Making homemade Play-Doh

   Today two of the kids in our homeschool made some homemade play-doh today.  The boys helped measure out the ingredients, stir them all together, and knead the dough until it was the right consistency.  They had a blast.  Now they both say they only want to play with the homemade stuff instead of the kind you buy at the store.  I think it is because they made it themselves but also the homemade kind is softer.

The Recipe we use

2 cups flour

1 cup salt

4 T. vegetable oil

4 T. apple cider vinegar PLUS add enough BOILING water to equal 2 cups

food coloring

glitter

   Help the children measure up and pour the flour, salt and vegetable oil into a medium sized bowl.  Have the adult measure and pour in the vinegar and water.  Stir well.  Once it is mixed up fairly well, divide the mixture up into 4 equal sizes.  Place each glob into a separate bowl and add a few drops of food coloring.   Stir in glitter.  We used blue glitter with the blue food coloring, etc.    Once it is mixed up, place on a table and knead.  This dough is soft and fun and easy to make.   Store in baggies.

Conner showing off his final creation

Ronny with his final project he created.

If you try the recipe out, please share how you like it and some photos!

As always, please help support my blog by clicking on an ad and supporting my sponsors.

In Christ,
Melody

Loving wife of Ronald and incredibly blessed home educating mother with fantastic children.

‎"Tough times never last, tough people do." -Robert Schuller

We worry about what a child will become tomorrow, yet we forget that he is someone today. ~Stacia Tauscher

Just for fun....Join in!

I thought this would be fun for everyone to do!   (I saw this on a fellow blogger's site)

The Questions:

1. If you had $1000 to spend right now on a single thing, what would it be?
2. Which one of your pets is your favorite?
3. Did you ever own a waterbed?
4. What is your favorite color gummy bear?
5. Do you have any favorite shows that are coming back on soon??
6. Do you have any great bloggy friends?

 

My Answers:  

1.  A used minivan.  I have MS and have only a small car.  On days that I have to be in my wheelchair, I can't leave the house because my electric wheelchair won't fit in the car.  Those kind of days are becoming more frequent.  :-(

2.  My male Pomeranian, Rambo.   (Although the sugar glider is a close 2nd).

3.  No, but I would love one.

4.  ?  I have never thought about that.  I am not a huge gummy bear kind of person.  

5.  I do not watch tv.  Only DVD's etc. but I do have TV sitcoms on DVD that I enjoy.  Some of my fav. include CSI, King of Queens, and Third Watch. 

6.  I am fairly new to blogging and am meeting some really great friends so far. 

Have fun and I look forward to seeing what you have to say.  :-)

 

Here is some of the other blogger answers:

The Charming Mad Chatter 

What would Jen do

Field Trip!

Hi, everyone!
    This past Friday (Aug. 19th) was National Aviation Day.  It is celebrated in part due to the fact that Orville Wright's birthday is on this day.  Orville was born on August 19, 1871 and of course, we all know that Orville and his brother Wilbur are the ones who invented and built the first successful airplane. 
   To celebrate the day, I arranged for a tour of the Poteau Airport.  We took the 3 boys enrolled at our homeschool (our 2 boys and our best friends' son) and they had a blast. 

Brandon, Ronny, and Conner standing in front of a "kit" plane.  It is a single seater (obviously).

The boys walking up to another plane.  If my husband remembers correctly, this plane was made around 1979.   It has about a 4 hour flying time before it has to refuel.   It cruises at about 150 mph.

This is Ronny looking really hot & tired.  It was over 105 degrees on the tarmac.  They were all real troopers!

This is Conner, Ronny, and Brandon standing in front of a plane that was built in the late 1940's.  It has canvas wings!  This plane is a flyable plane and is operational.  

    On the drive home, Ron (my husband) quizzed the boys on what they had learned.  They went over the purpose of the wings and how they work; control services on how planes turn and go up and down; and learned about how they can tell how fast a plane goes by using a "pito" tube. 

Hope you enjoyed reading about the field trip.  Do you do any kind of field trips to coincide with holidays?

As always, please help support my blog by clicking on an ad and supporting my sponsors.

In Christ,
Melody

Loving wife of Ronald and incredibly blessed home educating mother with fantastic children.

‎"Tough times never last, tough people do." -Robert Schuller

We worry about what a child will become tomorrow, yet we forget that he is someone today. ~Stacia Tauscher

 

What a week!

Hi, friends.
    Have you ever had a week that really flew by but at the same time seemed like it had gone on forever?  Or does that even make sense?  I am sooooo behind on my blogging but life just keeps getting in the way.  lol

    The Lord has heaped a lot of great blessings upon my lap this week and I am feeling so blessed.  But at the same time, my MS has been really affecting my day-to-day living.  Today is the first day in awhile that I have been symptom free and have enjoyed the day so much.  I praise God for that also.

     We now have 4 eggs in our nestboxes.  We are leaving them for now because they may be fertilized.  The chickens were in with roosters when we purchased them so any eggs laid in the first 2 weeks here have a chance of being fertile.  Baby chicks would be exciting.  Also, 2 of our chickens started looking bad.  Their eyes were shut and they were not eating.  Found out they had gotten dirt in their eyes and had become infected so we have been washing them out with a warm washcloth and putting triple antibiotic ointment in them and they look so much better.  We even had to force them to drink for a bit.  But they are on the mend and that pleases our hearts.
     We are also now proud owners of a young pair of sugar gliders.  They are so adorable and I look forward to posting pictures of them soon on here.
    Well, until next time....
M
As always, please help support my blog by clicking on an ad and supporting my sponsors.
In Christ,
Melody

Loving wife of Ronald and incredibly blessed home educating mother with fantastic children.

‎"Tough times never last, tough people do." -Robert Schuller

We worry about what a child will become tomorrow, yet we forget that he is someone today. ~Stacia Tauscher

WIN a free complete spelling curriculum

     Hi, everyone!  I am so excited to tell you about an awesome giveaway.  "All about Spelling" is giving away a complete spelling curriculum.   How wonderful is that?!   I am so excited about it that I have 3 entries into the drawing!
    Go to this site:  Freely Educate and comment on the giveaway and you get one entry.  "Like" the "All about Spelling" company on facebook and get another entry.  How cool is that?  Go now and get your chance to win. 


  Once there, it will tell you all about the company and lists everything you can win.  Good luck!

As always, please help support my blog by clicking on an ad and supporting my sponsors.
In Christ,
Melody

Loving wife of Ronald and incredibly blessed home educating mother with fantastic children.

‎"Tough times never last, tough people do." -Robert Schuller

We worry about what a child will become tomorrow, yet we forget that he is someone today. ~Stacia Tauscher

I'm back...sort of

Hi, everyone! 
     I just wanted to take a moment to let you all know that I have not deserted my blog.  My MS has been acting up real bad the past few days and I just have not felt up enough to blog.  I have had some exciting things going on so bear with me and hang around and I promise to do better in the future.   I appreciate you all. 
As always, please help support my blog by clicking on an ad and supporting my sponsors.
In Christ,
Melody

Loving wife of Ronald and incredibly blessed home educating mother with fantastic children.

‎"Tough times never last, tough people do." -Robert Schuller

We worry about what a child will become tomorrow, yet we forget that he is someone today. ~Stacia Tauscher

Melody's MMM Good Meatloaf

    Many people have been requesting my recipe for meatloaf so here it is.  Enjoy!

Melody's MMM Good Meatloaf

                        2 lbs. beef                                           1 1/2 c. instant oats

                        1 1/2 tsp. dried chopped onion     1/2 c. ketchup

                        6 oz. can tomato paste                    2 eggs

                        1 1/2 T. Worcestershire sauce        1 tsp. minced garlic

                        1 tsp. salt                                            1 T. honey BBQ sauce

                        1/2 tsp. pepper                                 1 tsp. Soy sauce

  Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and then gather your ingredients and necessary kitchen tools.  

Put all the ingredients into a bowl and "smush" them all together using your hand.  It is the only way to get it mixed together well enough.  Once it is mixed together thoroughly, divide the meat mixture into 2 equal parts. 

Spray 2 loaf pans with cooking spray.   Place one half of the meat mixture into each loaf pan and pat down.

 

Double wrap one of the loaves in foil and then date and place in your freezer for up to 3 months or cook them both now.  We always freeze one for later or to give away to a friend.  

    Prepare the glaze by mixing 1/2 c. ketchup, 1 T. brown sugar, 2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce, and1 T. BBQ sauce together in a small bowl.  Refrigerate until needed.

   Cook meatloaf for one hour in preheated oven.  Ten minutes before the meatloaf is done, top with glaze.  

NOTE:  This is a VERY moist meatloaf.  If you like your meatloaf drier, then add an additional 1/2 c. of oats and omit the tomato paste all together.

    I hope you like it.  I look forward to any comments or ideas you have.  

  As always, please help support my blog by clicking on an ad and supporting my sponsors.

In Christ,
Melody

Loving wife of Ronald and incredibly blessed home educating mother with fantastic children.

‎"Tough times never last, tough people do." -Robert Schuller

We worry about what a child will become tomorrow, yet we forget that he is someone today. ~Stacia Tauscher

Insight into ME!

Insight into me…

I am wildly passionate about the things I believe in.

I am an extremist.

  If I am sad, I am deeply, deeply depressed. 

If I am happy, I am floating around.

If I love you, I love you unconditionally and whole-heartedly.

I do nothing “half way”. 

I am an all or nothing sort.

I homeschool our children.

I believe homeschooling is a positive and healthy way to raise my children.

I do not feel like my children are secluded, naïve or sheltered.

My children are respectful, obedient and smart.

I have MS but MS does not have me.

MS may hinder my movements but for now it does not hinder my mind.

I am still useful to my family.

I am respected and loved by friends and family.

I can be really scary. 

Try to hurt my family or my friends and you would be better off facing a wild grizzly, a wolverine, and a great white shark than cross my path.

I will hurt you in ways you didn’t know could exist.

I am also extremely loving.

I will give the shirt off my back for a friend or stranger in need.

I stand by my friends in good times and bad times.

There is NOTHING I won’t do for my husband or children.

I do not take “crap”. 

Things most people just let “slide”; I won’t.

If a clerk in a store is rude, I report them.

If a waiter is cross, I adjust their attitude.

But most waitresses love me because I have fun.

I pick on them in a friendly way and we all usually laugh it up.

I love the Lord.

He is my Savior.

I am not perfect. Not by any means.

I am not perfect.

I am forgiven.

I am NOT politically correct.

I don’t care about all that.

I have morals and beliefs and if they are contrary to the popular media, so be it.

I am against abortion.

I do not favor homosexuality.  I do believe it is a sin.

I do not hate the sinner.  Just the sin itself.

I do not promote violence against anyone.

I am an “old soul”.

Everyone said I would have been better off living in the 1800’s.

It’s true. 

I like having doors opened for me.

I like being the weaker sex.

I think a woman should be submissive to her husband as the Bible states.

Well, this is me. 

I am complicated.

I am a woman.

Nuff said!

   As always, please help support my blog by clicking on an ad and supporting my sponsors.

In Christ,
Melody

Loving wife of Ronald and incredibly blessed home educating mother with fantastic children.

‎"Tough times never last, tough people do." -Robert Schuller

We worry about what a child will become tomorrow, yet we forget that he is someone today. ~Stacia Tauscher

Hard times

     In the past week, I have heard from numerous people in regards to giving away free horses.  I live in a small, rural community and people are trying to give away good horses.  I could not figure out why.  I now know and it is shocking.  The reason that everyone is giving away their own horses is because they will not be able to feed them. 
     It has been so dry that hardly anyone was able to plow a field once, let alone 2-3 times as usual.  All of these farmers and ranchers are having to rely on the hay they have left over from last year to survive the upcoming winter and most do not have enough for all they have.  I was told that in another month or two that people will be giving away calves and cattle for the same reason.  One lady I heard talking said she has to get rid of at least 40 of her stock because she doesn't have enough hay to last all winter and only by giving away some of the cattle can she make it.     The calves are all real tiny and puny looking too.  They are not near big enough to take to market.  They are usually 3 times the size they are right now. 
    I have also talked to a lot of chicken farmers and their chickens are dying from heat in large numbers.  They said the chicken plants are having the same problems.  And it is so hot that the layers aren't laying eggs.  They are getting perhaps a tenth of the eggs as normal. 
     All of this is really making me think even harder about how bad things may get for everyone.  If the cows are drying up, dying off, and a big decrease in number going to market means we will have a shortage of milk and beef.  If the hay fields are that barren and dead, it is likely that wheat and rice, etc. will be the same way.  Then add in chickens not laying eggs, not producing chicks, dying off, etc. and there is another big problem. 
It all can really snowball from here.
    We have been "preppers" for awhile but I really think we need to do more.  I called a friend (she lives in a fairly large city) and was telling her about the free horses and everything else and she was shocked and clueless.  I just want everyone to know of some events that are taking place so they can know ahead of time and try to prepare themselves a bit.
   What kind of things are happening in your area?  What are you doing to prepare?   Any other thoughts or comments?

    As always, please help support my blog by clicking on an ad and supporting my sponsors.

In Christ,
Melody

Loving wife of Ronald and incredibly blessed home educating mother with fantastic children.

‎"Tough times never last, tough people do." -Robert Schuller

We worry about what a child will become tomorrow, yet we forget that he is someone today. ~Stacia Tauscher

Birthday & Puppet making

     Well, yesterday was our youngest birthday.  Ronny turned 7 yesterday and we just praise God for the past 7 years.  For those of you who do not know, on the day Ronny was born he was airlifted to Tulsa and was not supposed to make it.  When the helicopter lifted off, prayers were being lifted up.  By the time he reached Tulsa, he had stabilized (a miracle) and we have just felt blessed ever since.  He still has heart problems (mainly pulmonary stenosis) but he is with us and has brought such joy to our lives these past 7 years.

    We celebrated with a birthday cake, pinata and then hamburgers and swimming at the lake.  We invited some good friends and just had a great day.  Please remember to pray for Ronny and his ongoing heart problems.  Pray for healing and for the doctors caring for him.

***********************************************************************************
     We homeschooled our daughter from 2nd grade-8th grade.  Our boys have always been homeschooled.  Brandon (aka Bubba) is 13 and Ronny is 7.  This year we are also homeschooling our best friends' son who will be 7 in October.  It has been a challenge but a blessing.  Yesterday we made puppets and had a great time.  I just wanted to share some photos...

Bubba and his puppet

Ronny and his puppet

Conner and his puppet

And finally, me and my puppet

 

    As always, please help support my blog by clicking on an ad and supporting my sponsors.

In Christ,
Melody

Loving wife of Ronald and incredibly blessed home educating mother with fantastic children.

‎"Tough times never last, tough people do." -Robert Schuller

We worry about what a child will become tomorrow, yet we forget that he is someone today. ~Stacia Tauscher

Amazon Gift Cards: How to EARN them easily.

Hi, everyone.

    I am sure most of you all are like me...strapped for cash during this economy.  Well, I just learned of a great promotion called Swagbucks.  It is a way that you and I both can earn Amazon gift cards for free by doing what we already do....surf the internet.   We are hear anyway, why not get something out of it, right?  :-)

      You earn these Swagbucks by simple things too like uploading a photo of yourself, posting to Facebook, answering a daily poll, and downloading a toolbar.  In fact, I saw over 10 different ways to earn the Swagbucks in the few minutes I was on the site.  I signed up less than 10 minutes ago and have already earned over 100 Swagbucks.  Woot-Woot!

    Want to hear another cool thing?  If you sign up by Friday, August 12th, you will receive an extra 50 Swagbucks by entering the bonus code:  AUGUSTBONUS.  So just for signing up you get 80 Swagbucks.  And it only takes 450 of them to get a $5 Amazon gift card.  Also, you get referral Swagbucks so sign up, share the idea with friends and family and get to earning. 

   A blogging friend I know earned $200 in Amazon gift cards in just a couple of months.  I could definitely use them and I am sure you could too. 
   Click here to sign up:  http://www.swagbucks.com/refer/Proverbs226Blog

As always, please help support my blog by clicking on an ad and supporting my sponsors.

In Christ,
Melody

Loving wife of Ronald and incredibly blessed home educating mother with fantastic children.

‎"Tough times never last, tough people do." -Robert Schuller

We worry about what a child will become tomorrow, yet we forget that he is someone today. ~Stacia Tauscher

Our chickens and the breeds!

Hi, everyone.
     As promised I want to introduce everyone to our chickens.  They are new here but are the sweetest and most loving chickens I have ever seen in my life.  They love to be held and petted.  No pecking on us or anything.  I could hardly believe it. 

Cuckoo Marans

    We have 2 of these hens.  What I love most about this breed is the color of their eggs.  The lay really deep, dark brown eggs that are large in size.  So dark brown that they have a tint of maroon in them.  This breed originates from France and are considered heavy chickens with roosters that get between 7-8 lbs and an average hen is 6 1/2 lbs.   They lay about 150 eggs a year or 2-3 a week.  They are mainly egg layers but they do possess really fine meat qualities also.

White Leghorn

   We have 2 of the White Leghorns.  These are just like the bird in the cartoon "Foghorn Leghorn" but the word is really pronounced "Leggern".  Anyway, these are the birds that lay the eggs you find at the supermarket.  They lay X-large white eggs almost every day and average about 300 eggs a year.  They are really hardy chickens and can stand really cold winters and hot summers.  They are considered to be medium in size and weigh on the average about 6 lbs.  They originate from Tuscany, Italy.  They are egg layers and not viable as a meat producer.

Cinnamon Queen

   We also have 2 of these pretty hens.  The Cinnamon Queen is also called the Cinnamon Queen Sex Link.  It is called a sex link because it is a crossbreed from a Silver Laced Wyandotte and a New Hampshire rooster.  The Cinnamon Queen are known for their fast body development and fast egg production.  Meaning that these hens start to lay their eggs at a much younger age than most other breeds.  They lay large brown eggs and are considered to be a dual purpose bird.

Golden Laced Wyandotte

       We have one of these little pullets.  At maturity, the hen will lay a decent sized brown egg 4 times a week or an average of about 200 a year.  The roosters get to be about 8 1/2 lbs. and the hens weigh about 6 1/2 lbs.  They are a dual purpose breed (meat (large breasts) and eggs) and make good show birds.

Silkie Bantams

Buff Silkie

Black Silkie

Blue Silkie

We have one of each of these colors:  one buff silkie; one black silkie; and one blue silkie.  I know they lay very small eggs but I think they are so beautiful that I was a bit impractical and bought them anyway.  :-)

These are really neat because of the hair-like plumage they get and they are also different because their skin and bones are both dark blue/black and they have 5 toes instead of the normal 4.  The meat is very different so they are not usually eaten but they make awesome moms.  In fact, they will lay on other chickens' eggs, as well as duck or turkey eggs too.   They do make great show quality hens also.  Silkies are quite small with the males weighing 2 1/2 lbs. and the females at 2 lbs.  They lay small cream colored eggs about 2 times a week and average just 100 eggs a year.  

    Well, that is it.  So, what do you think of our new additions?   Feel free to leave your comments and subscribe to this blog.

As always, please help support my blog by clicking on an ad and supporting my sponsors.

In Christ,
Melody

Loving wife of Ronald and incredibly blessed home educating mother with fantastic children.

‎"Tough times never last, tough people do." -Robert Schuller

We worry about what a child will become tomorrow, yet we forget that he is someone today. ~Stacia Tauscher

Chicken Run

     As promised, I am going to write about our new chicken venture today.  As you may or may not know, I left on Friday afternoon to go over to Mulberry, AR (a 2 hour drive) to pick up some chickens.  We have been wanting to become more self-sustaining and decided chickens would be a good way to begin.  We already live on a secluded large area of land, have a few wells, a creek close by, a lake within walking distance, many fruit and nut trees on our property, etc.   We just want to be able to provide for ourselves better since the economy is so bad and money is so tight. 
     Anyway, Friday, Ron and I went to the lumber yard and bought the necessary supplies so he and Bubba (our 13 year old son) could begin building the Chicken run and coop while I headed out to get the chickens.  We only have an older, small car but we put 2 small dog pens in the back seat and I left.  I kept in contact with Ron and the boys via a cellphone and found out progress was going mighty slow.  It was 108 with an even higher heat index and the 2 x 4's we had were so dry and hard that it took a great deal of effort to drill the screws into each board.  They would work for 30 minutes and then go and cool off. 
    Here is the area that the coop and run will sit.

  
And here is their progress on the run.  The finished size of the run is 8 foot by 8 foot and it is 4 feet tall.  We will build more of these and separate them by breeds in a few months, when we get our roosters.

 The bottom frame.

 The side frames are up.

 Bub holding the frame together so Ron can secure it.

 Bub nailing up some of the chicken wire.  We put welded wire on it too to keep out predators.

    By the time I got home, it was already dark and the guys were sopping wet from sweat and exhausted.  The run was done but they had not begun on the coop.   We put a tarp over the top, cut some milk crates (for temporary nesting boxes) and called it a day.  The chickens seem satisfied and we will build the coop beginning of the week. 

Tune in tomorrow and I will introduce you to our chickens!  :-)

As always, please help support my blog by clicking on an ad and supporting my sponsors.

In Christ,
Melody

Loving wife of Ronald and incredibly blessed home educating mother with fantastic children.

‎"Tough times never last, tough people do." -Robert Schuller

We worry about what a child will become tomorrow, yet we forget that he is someone today. ~Stacia Tauscher

Blogging Support with Business2blogger

     Hi, everyone.  Many people who have read my blog have written me asking me if writing a blog can be profitable.  Well, the answer is yes.  I follow a blog and the owner made $1200 last month.  Do I make that much?  Hardly!  But I am new and am still trying to build up my followers, etc. 

    I have found a new company that I hope will help me to make some money from blogging.  Business2blogger.  Click on that link to learn more about the company. Business2blogger helps businesses and bloggers connect.   So, check them out and let me know what you think.

    As always, please help support my blog by clicking on an ad and supporting my sponsors.

In Christ,
Melody

Loving wife of Ronald and incredibly blessed home educating mother with fantastic children.

‎"Tough times never last, tough people do." -Robert Schuller

We worry about what a child will become tomorrow, yet we forget that he is someone today. ~Stacia Tauscher

My husband

Hi, everyone.
    Tonight I want to write about my husband, Ron.  For those of you who are married, perhaps you can relate to this.  Have you ever just had a day that you just look at your spouse and your heart just almost explodes from the amount of love you feel?  It is like falling in love all over again.  This week, I have felt this uncontrollable, raging love for Ron more than once.  I love my husband every single day but this is like an explosion of feelings.      
     I look at him and my heart beats faster and skips a beat, my palms get sweaty, and butterflies start fluttering around in my stomach.  He glances my way and gives me that special smile and I get weak in the knees!  How wonderfully blessed I am to have such a wonderful, God-fearing husband by my side.  A handsome man who can still make me swoon after all these years.  A blessing from God that keeps getting better and better with age. 
     God has blessed me so much by sending Ron to me to be a wonderful husband and father to our children.  I pray that each of you find the special love like Ron and I share. 

      As always, please help support my blog by clicking on one or more of the links.  

In Christ,
Melody

Loving wife of Ronald and incredibly blessed home educating mother with fantastic children.

‎"Tough times never last, tough people do." -Robert Schuller

We worry about what a child will become tomorrow, yet we forget that he is someone today. ~Stacia Tauscher