Makin' Those Family Memories

I know I told you about visiting Mammoth Cave a couple of weeks ago, but did I mention that we camped there that night? In a tent, no less.

The vote is still out as to whether or not I'm a good camper~both times I've camped it has rained. And I mean all. night. long. Even with a good tent you get a little damp and that's just not my idea of fun.

But we actually did have a good time while we were there. Except when Mr. B decided he needed to know what a lantern felt like and we had to nurse a slightly burned finger.

The kiddos slept great in the tent, even in the dampness. I, on the other hand, woke up at midnight when the rain started, then again at 1 and 2 and 4:30, then finally at 6:10. Sleeping in the rain in a tent is not the same as sleeping in the rain in, say, a camper. Completely different.
When we woke up at daybreak and the downpour was still steady, we decided that it was time to pack it up and hit the road home. That process went remarkably smoothly and we headed to our next stop: a warm and dry Bob Evans restaurant for breakfast:)

Even if I'm dreaming of one day owning that beautiful vintage Airstream, I'm pretty sure we'll be tent camping again soon. It's just a great experience, especially for the kiddos. The locals at campsites are always interesting, too.

Oh~and I have to tell you, one of my favorite things about visiting the National Parks and Historic Sites is the Junior Ranger program. Its an educational program for children of all ages. The booklets are available for download or you can get one at the visitor center when you go.
As you spend time at the park there are corresponding activities in the booklet to help your kiddos learn. There are different age level activities so that no one is left out, although you may have to help your younger kiddos do a little writing. Each age group has a certain number of activities they need to complete before earning their Junior Ranger badge and getting their certificate. So far my kiddos have earned badges and certificates for three different parks. I'm looking forward to them having a big collection. They love doing the workbooks! Its a great way to add some educational fun into the traditional park visit and I'm all about that.

Friend Makin' Monday {favorite things}

Today I'm linking up with Amber at {aefilkins} for *Friend Makin' Monday*. I have discovered this lovely new-to-me blog recently by way of my friend, Jolanthe, at No Ordinary Moments.

Amber has asked everyone to list a few things that we just can't live without. I won't list thngs like God and my family, because that goes without saying! But here are a few things that I like to have to make life better:

• my computer


• my phone


• my kitchen


• books

There are just a few of my favorite things:) If you're interested in making some new bloggy friends, head over to Amber's and check it out today.

Menu Plan Monday: Sept. 28th~Oct.3rd

Last week was filled with good food, I must say. It was my birthday week and I got to celebrate all week long~just the way I like it:) Seriously.

On my birthday night my awesome hubby took me to P.F. Chang's. Wow. Have you eaten there?! I've been hearing about it forever and just discovered there was a new one only an hour from us, so I requested it for my birthday date night. I was a little worried that I had built it up so much in my mind that I might be disappointed...NO way! It was sooo yummy, I can't wait to go back!

The rest of the week was filled with good home cookin' and another night out, compliments of my parents, on the weekend to celebrate my birthday some more. We went to one of our all-time fave places, a local Italian restaurant, Taliano's. If you live in the Fort Smith, AR area at all you really have to eat there~the manicotti is amazing!

I promised you a couple of the recipes from my menu last week, so here they are, with my menu plans for this week following:

Chicken in a Package

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
3/4 cup red and green sweet peppers, sliced thinly
1 1/2 cups red potatoes, sliced thinly
BBQ sauce
Freshly ground black pepper
4 small pieces of aluminum foil

On each piece of foil spread a small amount of bbq sauce on half of it. Place the chicken breasts on top of the sauce, then cover each piece of chicken with slices of peppers and potatoes. Sprinkle with black pepper and top with more bbq sauce.

Wrap each chicken breast up with the other half of the foil piece and seal well. Bake @350 for 1 hour or until potatoes are tender. (Its a good idea to place a baking sheet on the shelf under the packets to catch any possible drips).

Delicious!!

***********

Mom's Potato Soup
Enough peeled, chopped potatoes to fill a soup pot 1/2 full
3 Tbls. butter
2 onions, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
1 can chicken broth
Salt & Pepper, to taste
1 quart half-n-half
1/2 lb. bacon, fried crisp
2-3 Tbls. cornstarch
*****
Melt the butter in a large skillet and saute the onion and celery. Put the peeled, diced potatoes in a large stockpot and cover slightly with water; cook until just tender. After the onions and celery are sauteed, add the chicken broth and simmer for 20 minutes. When potatoes are done, leave water in and partially mash them. After the broth mixture has simmered, add it to the potatoes and stir well. Add salt and pepper; cook about 8 minutes longer. Add the half-n-half and stir. The soup will be thin. Let this simmer on low for 15 minutes, stirring often. Then mix the cornstarch with a little water and pour into the soup, stirring well. Just when you are ready to serve the soup, crumble the bacon and sprinkle on top. I also like to add in shredded cheddar cheese. And this is also good to make with broccoli or cauliflower.

Monday: black-eyed peas, spinach tart* and baked potatoes
Tuesday: beef veggie soup with cornbread
Wednesday: spaghetti pie with garlic bread
Thursday: baked salmon, baked potatoes and a veggie tba
Friday: homemade pizza & movie night
Saturday: Going to the Apple Festival in Lincoln, AR


This post is linked to Menu Plan Monday at I'm an Organizing Junkie.

Thinking About Pumpkins...

This weekend I was perusing the lastest issue of Martha Stewart Living and its full of the most adorable pumpkin projects. So I thought that I should start thinking about what sort of pumpkin I'd like to do this year:) My family loves to carve pumpkins! Last year was probably the most fun we've ever had with pumpkins~you can check them out here.

Look at these cute ideas:

And I'm thinking these pumpkin luminaries might be pretty and festive on our coffee table:
(all images from Martha Stewart)

Does your family like to carve pumpkins? If so, where do you get your inspiration?

The First Month of Homeschool

Its hard to believe that we just wrapped up the first 4 weeks of school for this year. It has absolutely flown by! And it has gone really well. That doesn't mean that every day is perfect, but we are having a great time learning together.

I'm also really happy with our new homeschool group that we've joined. Last year was a pretty lonely time for me with pretty much no support group at all, so when we moved I was determined to find a good homeschool group to become a part of. We now are participating in co-op classes each Friday afternoon and the kiddos are loving it. The Princess has art, a book club and a history class and Mr. B is taking early math and early reading classes with playtime in between.

Our group took a field trip to a local fire station this past week, too, and we all had so much fun!

Fort Smith Fire Station No. 1

Demonstrating *the suit*

coming out of *The Smoke House*

The Princess was so excited to blow the horn on the fire engine.

We also took a trip this month for some of my husband's speaking engagements and were able to take the kiddos on some other fun field trips (have I told you how much I love field trips?!) : the Colonel Sander's original cafe, Cumberland Falls and Mammoth Cave.

So, yes, September has been a busy month~and its not over yet. I've got a trip to our state fair and a regional apple festival on the calendar before everything is said and done:)

The Tour Part 5: The Master Bath

Well, I realize it's been a while since we had an installment on the house tour. I kind of got stalled with the master bedroom and bath. Why is it that we tend to leave those rooms until the last? Or is it just mine that get junked up with little piles?

Today I'm sharing our master bath. I have to say I do like it alot, I feel very blessed in our rental home.

I work fine with only one sink, but having double sinks is really nice.

Here we have a print of vintage Paris postcards and some guest towels, both vintage and new.

More Paris decor. In case you're wondering why I'm such a Francophile, Vince and I honeymooned in Paris. So it has a special place in our hearts.

This is the private toilet~its great having that all nice an separate.

And here's the shower. That kind of says it all.

Their is also a corner jaccuzi tub. I have to say the corner shape is a little awkward, but it is a nice relaxing tub. But do you see those huge 46" square windows on each side of the tub? Well, let me just say those window blocks don't give the privacy they claim to~I've tested them!:) So after weighing my options and costs for those options, I decided to go with the least expensive, but effective solution: sheers.

Now I know by the very name *sheers* it seems like that wouldn't be the right thing to hang up there, but they actually do the trick. I feel much more comfortable in there now:)

So there it is...the master bath. Hopefully I'll get the master bedroom photo-ready soon.

This post is linked to Show & Tell at There Is No Place Like Home.

A Snacky Blast From the Past

My family loves this *oldie but goodie*!

Ranch Oyster Crackers

12-16 oz. pkg. of plain oyster crackers
1 pkg. Hidden Valley Ranch Salad Dressing Mix
1/4 tsp. lemon pepper
1/2-1 tsp. dill weed
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
3/4-1 cup canola oil
*****
Preheat oven to 250F. Combine the dressing mix and oil, then add the dill weed, garlic powder and lemon pepper. Pour over crackers, stirring well to coat. Place in preheated oven for about 20 minutes. Let cool.

Mammoth Cave National Park

Last week we visited the longest cave in the world~367 miles long! Pretty amazing! Since we were in the area for Vince's speaking engagements we thought it would be a great field trip for the kiddos. They have a ton of tours available in different parts of the cave, and there were several that looked really interesting, but we opted for one of the shortest tours that looked like it would be best for The Princess and Mr. B.
We decided on the *Frozen Niagara* tour. This part of the cave is one of the few that has stalactites, stalagmites, collumns and flow stone formations. Mammoth is mostly a dry cave and in order to have these types of formations there must be moisture.
Even though this was a short tour, it was amazingly beautiful. The formations were so varied and intriguing. I realize these photos are a little dark, but it was the best I could do in a dark cave with a flash:)

I hope that we get to go back someday and take another tour or two. Have you been there? I'd love to hear your other tour recommendations.

Fall Into Reading 2009

It's that time of the year! You know the one: when Callapidder Days hosts the Fall reading challenge. I need that challenge right now, too. I have been reading a little fiction lately, but I need to dig into some meatier stuff also. So here's my list for the next few months. It may be added to or have a deletion or two, but I hope I'm able to conquer it all. I'd love to hear what you're reading right now~I'm always looking for great book recommendations.

Fiction:

The House of Winslow series, by Gilbert Morris

This is a series of I-don't-remember-how-many books (around 40) that traces the family of Winslow from the Mayflower to modern times. I have read the first 8 and am looking forward to reading the rest.

The Return of Sherlock Holmes, by Arthur Conan Doyle
I've had this book forever and have never read it~shame on me! Now I'm reading it.

Non-fiction:

Let Go, by Shelia Walsh

I just received this book for my birthday and it looks really good. The tagline on the cover says, "live free of the burdens all women know". Sounds good, huh?

Jesus Wants to Save Christians, by Rob Bell and Don Golden
I have really loved the other 2 Rob Bell books that I've read. In fact, Velvet Elvis is one of my all-time favorite books. So I'm very interested to read this latest one.

The Seven Pillars of Health, by Don Colbert (a re-read)
This was a very informative and helpful book the first time I read it, almost 2 years ago. I feel like I need to read it again to encourage me to stay on track even more in the food arena.

Just Like Jesus, by Max Lucado (a re-read)
I read this book years ago when it first came out and remember being very challenged by it. As I was browsing my bookshelves, it caught my attention and I'm taking a second look.

Head over to Callapidder Days to check out what others are reading~or even join the challenge yourself!

Good Times!

We started the birthday celebration early~as usual:) My theory is that if you have to get older why not celebrate longer?! I try to party all month if possible. LOL

Even though yesterday was a day early we had a yummy lunch out after church at a local fave restaurant, Marketplace Grill. On your birthday they give you a dessert on the house. My personal favorite is The Chocolate Mess. Can you see why?!?!I promise I shared it with 4 other people!! And we scraped it clean, too!

Afterwards we took the kiddos to the movies to watch *Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs* in 3D. We were way early for the movie, so I thought I'd capture the moment with them in the special glasses. The movie was really great~we all enjoyed it. Actually, the entire day was really wonderful: a great service at church, delicious lunch and awesome family time. It just doesn't get any better!