The Big 10 zero, zero, zero!

Well, my 10,000th visitor slipped right on by me today! Oh, darn I'd planned to have confetti. LOL!

This blog has been such fun for me and I hope you've gotten some good information out of it, too.

Since I started this blog I:

• have a chance to make a great network of blogger friends - homeschoolers, anglicans, fun moms and more
• have learned about life in China and life in Qatar through blogger friends
• was privileged to pray alongside one blogger as she awaited the birth of her VERY high risk Twins
• got to work with some blogger friends as we had two of the first Anglican carnivals (one and two)
• followed Deb along as she discovers the Orthodox faith (and recieved from her some wonderful paper icons)
• discovered that sometimes we hurry past the most extraordinary things
• shared with you about the REAL first Thanksgiving
• won an award
• seen a most amazing military aviation video
• announced a new blog (and an awesome family event)
• collected some excellent Anglican family resources
• and just had a great time!

To mark reaching 10,000 visitors, I thought we could enjoy a little Q&A. I'll ask you a few questions and you can ask me a few questions. What do ya think? Ok, I'll start...

How did you first find my blog?

What would you like to see more of?

Are you a drop-in reader or a subscribed reader (via RSS or email)?

And just for fun...

What book (books) are you currently reading?

Leave your answers and questions in the comments...and thanks for helping me to celebrate!

Got Spinach?

We are still getting greens, including spinach, here in North Carolina. In fact, I had a couple pounds in my outside fridge getting mighty close to being seaweed. I needed to use it and QUICK!

I determined to use it in quiche, but not having time or the inclination to make a bunch of pie crust, I opted for a different approach. Instead of making the whole quiche, I mixed up the filling and just froze that. Now, when I'm ready for quiche all I have to do is thaw the filling, pour into a fresh crust, and bake!

So here's the recipe I used:
4 eggs
1 c half and half
4 c. of fresh spinach
1/2 c of swizz cheese, grated
salt and pepper to taste
Slightly wilt spinach by steaming for 5 minutes. Squeeze out any excess water. Cool slightly.Whisk eggs until blended, then add half and half and whisk further. Stir in cheese and spinach. Pour mixture into freezer bag (this is easiest if you set your bag in a deep bowl). Squeeze out excess air and lay on a flat surface to freeze. (I put my bags onto a cookie sheet and put that in the freezer.

Once frozen I removed the cookie sheet and the bags are flat and store nicely.) I made 3 batches of this and can't wait to try it out!What are some of your favorite spinach recipes?

Almost to 10,000 visits - Time To Celebrate!!!

Ok, friends, I'm only 195 visitors away from 10,000! (Can I tell you how surprising that is to me?) I really try not to pay too much attention to the sitemeter (other than to check to see what's interesting to visitors), but reaching 10,000 is admittedly exciting. :)

So, how to celebrate...hmmm - any ideas?

• What about a blog scavenger hunt?
• One of my blog friends, Jeanne - from At A Hen's Pace, allowed her visitors to ask any question they wanted then she answered them...ALL.
• Maybe a contest and give away?

What do you think?

YUM-O! A new book to help the family cook!

What a great idea - a cookbook designed for families to use together! Of course, with a title like "YUM-O" - you know it has to be Rachel Ray!

Some features are:

• A sidebar with each recipe with ideas for how “The Itty-Bitties” can help (by beating eggs, squeezing spinach dry, mixing dry ingredients etc.);
• A section devoted to “rollover dinners” which allow you to cook once and eat twice (or more) with some quick variations;
• Other sections devoted to breakfasts and lunches and snacks.

Sounds great doesn't it? Want your own? Well, you can order via this link:



or go to 5 Minutes for Mom and enter the contest to WIN a copy! The contest is part of their "Creative Summer Days" going on June 10-18th. Go check out the fun!

Help with Grocery Pricing Comparisons

Do you find it as difficult as I do to remember what is a good price for a can of soup, box of plastic baggies, or bottle of apple juice? I get in the store and the numbers all start to swirl together. I really want to be a wise shopper taking advantage of good sales and avoiding overspending, so I made myself a Grocery Comparison Chart.

You could get the prices from old receipts or walking through the store, but I found that using an online grocery shopping service through my local grocery store was fast and easy. I searched for the items I wanted to include on my list (things I buy pretty regularly) and then found the best price per unit for each item. I noted the item, cost per item, unit size (for better comparison shopping) and the brand name, if needed.

Then I compiled this list and printed it on card stock and slid it into a page protector.

Now I can take this page with me anywhere and I don't have to worry about it getting wet or mangled. My hubby recommended taking a wet erase marker along on shopping trips to mark down any changes (or better deals).

We tried the list out on our last trip to Costco - it was very helpful! I could easily see how much we might save at Costco on some items. And I found that the grocery store had better prices for some items I'd not expected!

This Grocery Comparison Chart really WORKS FOR ME! Want some more great ideas - check these out!

Peter Piper's Picks - June 8th

From the UK's DailyMail (and HT: Mere Comments): Can modern technology change our brains? What are the implications for the future?

Are you an amateur educator? I am, and proud of it. So is Dana. But the question she's really tackling is whether or not we have the right to be amateur educators.

Here's a nifty little gadget for those of us who are verbally-inclined.

Oh, and photos to let yourself get distracted by. I think she is a Finnish traveler in France.

Maria Callas, O Mio Babbino Caro

We were watching Mr. Bean and my kids wanted to know what the opera song is that he lip synchs. The song is "O Mio Babbino Caro".

Of course, Maria Callas' version is the best...thought you might enjoy it, too.

One of my favorite homeschool mom bloggers, Dana, has a new project that I'm SUPER excited about: a Homeschool Talk Show podcast! The shows start in July, so keep an eye on her blog for more information. And if you'd like to participate, drop her a line via her "Contact" form.

June - Recipe Swap Box

It's time for delicious recipes at Randi's blog, i have to say! Check out this month's Recipe Swap Box - lots of good stuff there.

I submitted some of my favorite summer recipes:

Bok Choy

Blissful Baba Ganoush

Zucchini Garden Chowder

Summer Squash Bake

Family Bible Study Curriculum

As a homeschooler, wouldn't you love to find a curriculum that allowed your entire family to study the Bible together?

About two weeks ago, I got an email asking about an Anglican curriculum for homeschool. To my knowledge there isn't something like that, but I think until somebody comes up with that, we can make do with some good resources and lists.

While searching for some resources, I stumbled on to this bible study curriculum that provides instruction for the entire family on the same scripture. It is ideal for a homeschooling family AND their statement of faith is acceptable to an Anglican.

The Bible study is by Explorer's Bible Study. From their website:

Explorer’s Bible Study is an interdenominational ministry with headquarters located 35 miles west of Nashville in Dickson, Tennessee. Tom and Nellie Constance founded the Bible study in 1972. They did not set about to begin a Bible study ministry but saw a need, and being obedient to God’s call, sought to fill that need.

Mrs. Constance helped establish and teach a Bible Study Fellowship (BSF) class for 10 years. During that time, she saw the power and effectiveness of this wonderful study method. There were many members of the class who were
traveling over 60 miles each way to attend the Bible Study. These women approached Mrs. Constance and asked if she would be willing to write similar curriculum to have available in their communities. The need for in-depth study materials for use in smaller towns and communities where BSF was not available
became the driving force for what would become Explorer’s Bible Study.

You can see sample pages, but even better than that you can download an entire 30-week lesson for each age level (pre-k to adult) and get started right away - FREE!

Classical Conversations - History Lessons - Cycle 3

If you have come to this page looking for the History lesson plans for Classical Conversations cycle 3, you've come to the right place!  Sadly, the file is no longer here.  Previously, I had only posted the first semester and have since lost the file in a computer crash.  But a re-working was in order anyway!

I hope to have the file updated and ready for anyone interested before too long.  Previously, I'd included reading suggestions for each week.   I won't be including that this time as CC has a GREAT suggested reading list.  I highly recommend you review that (most of my suggestions were from that list anyway).

So, check back or subscribe!  I'll update this page and probably post a new page, too.

32 seconds that will touch your heart

So, I posted about the NBC Today show contest snafu a couple of weeks ago. Well, here's a company that GETS IT.

Pearle Vision - thanks for getting it.

Frugality links - and THANK YOU!

I've got a few links on frugal living to share with you, but first I want to say "THANKS" to:

Jessica (a fellow Anglican, who just had twins and has a lovely blog),
Annie (who I suspect is Anglican or atleast really loves the Church Year and has an adorable family of 6),
Emily (who has great photos of her garden and is also an Anglican...and lives in two states, but not at the same time!), and
Anne (an Anglican, clergy and clergy-spouse - and blogs about her family, church, and good food).

These ladies shared some great leads on frugal websites and resources. (The polls aren't closed - if you've got some good resources, please share!)

I'm sorry I didn't get back to this subject sooner, but we had some crazy moments in the past week. My MIL had to cancel a much anticipated trip to Sweden with our eldest son (12) (she was born there and was taking him to visit relatives he's never met) when it was discovered that she has hydrocephalitis. We've been on the phone quite a bit and making plans to get her condition taken care of, so not much time for blogging. (FYI - she is just out of surgery to place a shunt, hubby is with her right now)

Anyway - as I perused the sites you dear ladies suggested, I also found some others:

Frugal Mom, Frugal Living

Hillbilly Housewife

Fractured Frugal Friends

Each of these sites has lots of ideas, resources, and other links. I'll post more as I find them...and any ideas I decide to try out! In fact I have one I'd like to post, but I think I'll save that for another post. :)

An important article for Christians

Since our departure from the Episcopal Church in November of 2007, I've made a commitment to myself to avoid becoming engrossed with the goings-on in that body. Now, I'm still an Anglican, so I can't totally ignore it, but I don't read the blogs with near the fervency I once did.
However, the situation in the Episcopal Church is the canary in the coal mine. Christians of all denominations (or non-denominations) are wise to pay attention to the bigger issues here.

Today, I was catching up on some blog reading and came across this series of articles by Matt Kennedy from StandFirm. I've not read the entire series, yet, but I am recommending it to you after reading only the first four paragraphs. Don't let the "anglican" label throw you off - this really is important stuff for all Christians to be paying attention to.

The series is from two lectures he presented to the LCMS Atlantic District Pastors' Conference entitled: "Mere Christianity in a Pluralist World" and is divided into four posts: One Two Three and Four.

If you are like me and find it difficult to read lengthy articles on the computer screen, you can scroll to the bottom of the post and select "Printer-Friendly". Also, continue looking for the audio versions on Stand Firm.

Art Appreciation Resource: Online Tour - Frescoes

The National Gallery of Art has an online tour this month of the ONLY examples of Italian Renaissance frescoes in America. If you can't get there to see them, here's the next best thing!Each frescoe has an accompanying narrative (the set is a series telling the story of Cephalus and Procris from Greek mythology) as well as other background information.

Interested in a different online tour? Here's their list of available tours.

The NGA website is an absolute goldmine of resources. Spend some time digging around and you'll be amazed at what you find!