She includes a few recipes of her own flour mixes. I can't wait to get cooking :o) It should be so handy with a child with various food allergies.
Saturday, September 24, 2011
Cheap books at www.allbooks4less.com.au
She includes a few recipes of her own flour mixes. I can't wait to get cooking :o) It should be so handy with a child with various food allergies.
Sunday, September 18, 2011
Big sister, little brothers
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| Written by sister |
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| She is the BEST sister |
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| Friend taking boys out |
Dad and a few of the children enjoyed a lovely visit to the beach meeting up with another family. They played on the sand, the had a boat ride, played with remote control cars and found natural treasures.
Cost was only fuel.
Thursday, September 8, 2011
A bridge to get to the craft room
Pooh and eldest found old timbers, off cuts etc and made this cute bridge so we don't have to get wet feet from the grass. Once the bridge was in place it screamed out for a pond underneath and that is in the making!
It has cost nothing so far and we even got to use the huge bucket of roofing nails we bought for $5 years ago, imagining that they might come in handy one day!
It has cost nothing so far and we even got to use the huge bucket of roofing nails we bought for $5 years ago, imagining that they might come in handy one day!
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| The bridge to craft room |
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| The pond is being dug out |
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
Homeschool routine
What does our homeschooling day look like? How do we get the 'domestic' side of home done?
The day starts the night before.
Go to bed with most of the housework done, try not to leave any dishes for later, have an idea what you are doing for school tomorrow.
We put a pot of porridge in the thermal cooker so breakfast is cooked and ready on rising. Put a load of washing in the washing machine.
Morning: Make bed on rising, ablutions etc, get dressed. While you are waiting for the kettle to boil for your morning cuppa, empty dishwasher from last night. If you don't have one, get one! LOL
Enjoy pre made breakfast with children. While children are getting dressed and making beds get washing out on line.
We tidy house together, vacuum, sweep or wipe down beaches and clean bathroom. Feed chicken and get wood for the fire.
School starts: By 9am we sit down to start school book work.
While the children are having morning tea I get lunch and dinner made. Lunch is usually something easy like tuna mornay. Dinner is something that can be prepared and reheated or put in the thermal cooker to delightfully stew until dinner time. Use time savers like the bread machine and/or slow cooker. Involve the children in the preparation if you like.
Keep working until lunch with children.
Lunchtime: Shared lunch
Afternoon: Finish off any book work but preferably get into hands on stuff. Out in to the garden, craft or a trip to the park. Bring in washing from line, folded and taken straight to bedroom etc
Dinner: Enjoy the family meal together around 5 pm or 6 pm depending on the older working members of the family. Get dishes done, clean benches.
Children are bathed and can then have free time on computer, or watching some tv.
Bed: Story and bed by 7:30 for children
Mum looks over work for tomorrow, choses dinner for tomorrow if there's no meal plan etc.
Time out: Enjoy time alone with beloved, curled up watch a movie or just chatting with a cuppa and nibbles :o)
Before going to bed, put porridge on for next morning and washing in machine. Lights out.
The day starts the night before.
Go to bed with most of the housework done, try not to leave any dishes for later, have an idea what you are doing for school tomorrow.
We put a pot of porridge in the thermal cooker so breakfast is cooked and ready on rising. Put a load of washing in the washing machine.
Morning: Make bed on rising, ablutions etc, get dressed. While you are waiting for the kettle to boil for your morning cuppa, empty dishwasher from last night. If you don't have one, get one! LOL
Enjoy pre made breakfast with children. While children are getting dressed and making beds get washing out on line.
We tidy house together, vacuum, sweep or wipe down beaches and clean bathroom. Feed chicken and get wood for the fire.
School starts: By 9am we sit down to start school book work.
While the children are having morning tea I get lunch and dinner made. Lunch is usually something easy like tuna mornay. Dinner is something that can be prepared and reheated or put in the thermal cooker to delightfully stew until dinner time. Use time savers like the bread machine and/or slow cooker. Involve the children in the preparation if you like.
Keep working until lunch with children.
Lunchtime: Shared lunch
Afternoon: Finish off any book work but preferably get into hands on stuff. Out in to the garden, craft or a trip to the park. Bring in washing from line, folded and taken straight to bedroom etc
Dinner: Enjoy the family meal together around 5 pm or 6 pm depending on the older working members of the family. Get dishes done, clean benches.
Children are bathed and can then have free time on computer, or watching some tv.
Bed: Story and bed by 7:30 for children
Mum looks over work for tomorrow, choses dinner for tomorrow if there's no meal plan etc.
Time out: Enjoy time alone with beloved, curled up watch a movie or just chatting with a cuppa and nibbles :o)
Before going to bed, put porridge on for next morning and washing in machine. Lights out.
Monday, August 29, 2011
Front door improvements
We didn't have a covered front verandah or porch, we had to walk straight into the house and traipse dirt into the house. So I asked Beloved to extend the eaves and add a seat so we could sit and pull our shoes on and off, also a place to keep the shoes outside but safe from a chewing dog ;o)
DS20 made me a terrific seat, the shoes hid underneath. I think it looks very cosy. DD16 sits outside to have her breakfast admiring the new day. It was all made from recycled timbers and cost virtually nothing. Even the mirror was old, the note the back said to the installer "here's 50 cents for a drink up at no. 47" LOL
The paint was left over from the fence and the window was an old one from our "Steptoe and son" stockpile.
We still have to put the eaves and I think we will have to buy them. We have the screen doors to hang on.
DS20 made me a terrific seat, the shoes hid underneath. I think it looks very cosy. DD16 sits outside to have her breakfast admiring the new day. It was all made from recycled timbers and cost virtually nothing. Even the mirror was old, the note the back said to the installer "here's 50 cents for a drink up at no. 47" LOL
The paint was left over from the fence and the window was an old one from our "Steptoe and son" stockpile.
We still have to put the eaves and I think we will have to buy them. We have the screen doors to hang on.
Back to homeschooling
Our little ones have been really sick with Scarlet fever. They have missed over a month of school, so as they got well enough I started doing schooling work with them. I am pleased to have the boys home as their health improves, it is asthma season for our littlest and ds7 still has very itchy skin and suffering with dry eyes. I can't imagine a school being able to accommodate this so frequently. We are hoping it all improves of course.
I forgot how much I love homeschooling! The children are enjoying themselves so much, they even ask to do school work on Saturday:o-
I have applied for registration and eagerly await my visit. So here' s peep at what were are doing and where. Fingers crossed it ticks all the boxes and pleases the homeschooling registration man :o)
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| http://www.mfwbooks.com/ |
There is a lot of paper work to handle so I'm using a portable filing cabinet. So far so good. A section of the main curriculum, the work sheets and then each child's work.
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| Portable filing box |
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| We have snuggled up for stories here |
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| Nice view for the little ones :o) |
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| New light |
Sunday, August 21, 2011
Saving with foamy soap pumps
A foaming soap dispenser
We bought one of these commercial soap dispensers because we ran out quickly with 7 people washing their hands. So this was the least industrial I could find.
It came with a box of refills that were quite expensive but I hoped I'd be able to refill. I scarified many empty containers until I mastered it and here's the trick :o)
Drill a small hole in the top and use a syringe to fill. I used the point of scissors to make the hole.
I used 150 ml of chosen shampoo and topped the rest with water. The containers take 1 litre but I couldn't fill it to capacity as they collapse as they empty in the 'real' refills. I got near enough and it mixed as I filled it so slowly. It works and feels as cleansing as the ready made real refills :o)
We bought one of these commercial soap dispensers because we ran out quickly with 7 people washing their hands. So this was the least industrial I could find.
It came with a box of refills that were quite expensive but I hoped I'd be able to refill. I scarified many empty containers until I mastered it and here's the trick :o)
Drill a small hole in the top and use a syringe to fill. I used the point of scissors to make the hole.
I used 150 ml of chosen shampoo and topped the rest with water. The containers take 1 litre but I couldn't fill it to capacity as they collapse as they empty in the 'real' refills. I got near enough and it mixed as I filled it so slowly. It works and feels as cleansing as the ready made real refills :o)
Sunday, August 7, 2011
Craft room update
We are getting the pergola section of the craft room done. Slowly we gathered the metal and have welded and painted the bits ready to be set in place. Looking good, it will make a great outdoor area. If Pooh is feeling well enough tomorrow they might go up :o)
The craft room is going to share it's space and be a school room. I've been very busy sorting and I've run out of space :o-
I wonder if Pooh will make me another room? lol
The craft room is going to share it's space and be a school room. I've been very busy sorting and I've run out of space :o-
I wonder if Pooh will make me another room? lol
LEGO in Canberra
We attended the Lego Exhibition in Canberra on the weekend. We waited in line for an hour, yes, one hour! The exhibition was so full, so hot and very hard to see :o( It would have been great if it had run for a week and the crowds were less so the children could get a good look. On the up side it was $10 a family and the money went to the hospital, pediatrics section.
Then is true thrifty living style, we didn't buy lego from the exhibition at inflated prices, we popped over to Big W and found it to be a fair bit cheaper. We had promised the boys they could spend their money at the Lego Exhibition. Close enough and they were happy.
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| Pooh giving advice |
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| Advice not received |
Then is true thrifty living style, we didn't buy lego from the exhibition at inflated prices, we popped over to Big W and found it to be a fair bit cheaper. We had promised the boys they could spend their money at the Lego Exhibition. Close enough and they were happy.
Saturday, June 18, 2011
Power House membership and reciprocal rights
For those of you in country NSW or 150km from Sydney and like to take your children to museums etc check out the powerhouse membership offer. We have one for our family and today we took the children to Questacon in ACT under reciprocal rights, so no cost :o) We found it cheaper to belong to Power house than to Questacon, but still can go unlimited times. Interesting hey. (However it doesn't work if you live in ACT, they don't let you go to Questacon on a PH membership)
I confess this was an accidental discovery, we went to take the kids to the Lord of the Rings exhibition years ago and it was cheaper to get a membership than to pay individually to see the exhibit. We have had a membership since:o)
Powerhouse: $160 for 3 years. For "Country Household".
Questacon: $220 to join for only 2 years then $195 to renew. For a "Family" 2A 3C extra children $23 each for 2 year memberships.
Powerhouse membership
Reciprocal rights
The little ones had a ball today and it cost nothing other than fuel.
Friday, June 17, 2011
One lovely blog award
I have been awarded a "One lovely blog award" from Sammy http://myhealthyhappyfamily.blogspot.com/
Sherrie from http://simpleliving-sherrie.blogspot.com/
and Peta at http://greatgoogamoogas.blogspot.com/
They have gorgeous blogs and so worth making time for a coffee and a good read!
7 facts you might not know about me:
1. I love hand made gifts
2. I don't like cooking
3. I long to live Henry Thoreau style
4. I would have loved more children
5. I want to be a missionary once the children leave home/old enough to be left
6. The thought of sago makes me dry reach
7. Pooh and I met under the shower
The cost of home cappuccino
We do enjoy a nice cup of coffee and we used to treat ourselves to shop bought ones. I though homemade one might be good but I was too nervous to buy a home coffee machine, when I looked at them I got over whelmed by the choices and did away with the plans.
However, we were blessed to recieve a machine from friends who didn't use one they were given.
So how much does it cost? 90 cents! *Obviously not including the cost of the coffee machine.*
We use Organic fair trade coffee beans. We had a grinder that I used for nuts. We use lactose free milk.
33c for 14grams of beans
50c for 200mls of milk -Bearing in mind it's expensive lactose free stuff
5c for power usage of coffee machine
1c for grinder usage
1c for chocolate dusting powder
I think it would be cheaper with 'normal' milk
I honestly think they taste better than the shop bought in most cases :o)
However, we were blessed to recieve a machine from friends who didn't use one they were given.
So how much does it cost? 90 cents! *Obviously not including the cost of the coffee machine.*
We use Organic fair trade coffee beans. We had a grinder that I used for nuts. We use lactose free milk.
33c for 14grams of beans
50c for 200mls of milk -Bearing in mind it's expensive lactose free stuff
5c for power usage of coffee machine
1c for grinder usage
1c for chocolate dusting powder
I think it would be cheaper with 'normal' milk
I honestly think they taste better than the shop bought in most cases :o)
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| Oh so yum! |
Thursday, June 16, 2011
Tea Cosy
Just because you are thrifty it doesn't mean things can't be fun. I'm making a tea cosy for our tea pot.
Here's it being tried on the teapot for size.
I got the pattern from Wild Tea Cosies by Loanie Prior that I borrowed from the library. I also learnt to knit on a round! Here is a link to her blog and a free pattern.
Here's it being tried on the teapot for size.
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