♥ Box Day! ♥

It's a happy day around here when the mail lady arrives with a package, but it's a really happy day around here when the Fed-Ex guy pulls up with our Sonlight books!

It's so exciting to see what reading adventures await us for the year!  For those of you not familiar with Sonlight, it is very literature rich.  We spend a great deal of our school time independently reading and me reading aloud, which is my favorite part of homeschooling by the way.  :)

And this year, there was even more excitement.  Gleaning from the years of excitement watching his sister get a box of books and have a love of reading, Luke was thrilled to get his own box of Sonlight books - his very own Core!

And then today, Luke got another box of  extra goodies....educational games and puzzles to supplement our Sonlight through Timberdoodle, which I also love by the way!  This adds lots of hands-on elements to the reading and writing!  :)

Now we've got all our books......we're ready to get this thing started.  Although we just "eased" into school with a subject or two, our first official day of school will be this Monday!  I think I'm ready......yes, I'm ready!  :)

Thanks for stopping by!  :)

♥ Tammy ♥

Pinterest Inspired

I’m kind of hooked on Pinterest. Well, okay, I LOVE Pinterest. And I know we all joke about all the things we pin that we never do or use, and yes that IS true. But….it’s kind of like window shopping or wishing…….. or for just in case, right? It doesn’t cost anything to pin and save it for later. And it’s so fun to look at!

Facebook or Twitter has never interested or enticed me. Guess I’m not that social,(in that way anyway)? Blogging and Pinterest are more my style. I really do refer back to my Pinterest boards (or Joy’s when I tell her to pin something so I can pin it too). So far most of my Pinterest inspired creations that I have actually followed through with have been recipes or educational type activities. And so it is again.

We haven’t actually stuck to this plan with the hospital trip and a/c woes, but Joy and I decided we were going to try to do one fun activity or “out of the ordinary thing” each summer day. Nothing fancy, just something.

So early last week (pre-hospital visit), we referred to our Pinterest board and decided to try milk painting on toast.

You need these three ingredients:  Milk, food coloring and bread.

Pour just a dab of milk in small bowls and add your food coloring of choice.

Then you simply paint your toast!

Joy was, of course, more artistic with hers.....

.....but Luke had a ball with his too.

And while Joy was more artistic, Luke definitely won the award for eating more of the finished product than anyone else.

Then the next night, I again referred to my “What’s For Dinner” board and cooked Quick Tortellini Bake. Our dinner was very simple as I only added garlic bread. We had leftovers, so we also enjoyed it the next night. It was delicious! For some reason, I never think about taking photos of food while I’m preparing it. So you can see some is already missing from this dish.

Here’s the pretty photo from Pinterest (Click on the Pinterest link to take you to the pin).

And the recipe:

• 20 oz frozen or refrigerated tortellini
• 1 tbs olive oil
• 1 24-oz jar jar of spaghetti sauce of your choice
• 3 oz cream cheese, softened
• 1/3 cup skim milk
• 1 cup grated parmesan cheese, divided
• ½ teas garlic powder
• ½ teas dried basil
• ½ teas dried oregano
• 1 cup mozzarella cheese

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray one large baking dish or two small ones with cooking spray.

Bring a large pot of water to boil. Cook the tortellini as per the package. Drain.

Meanwhile, stir together the spaghetti sauce, cream cheese, milk, 1/2 cup parmesan cheese, garlic powder, basil, and oregano.

Pour the tortellini into prepared baking dish and cover with sauce mixture. Toss a bit to combine. Sprinkle the mixture with the mozzarella cheese and the remaining parmesan cheese. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until the cheese is melted and beginning to brown.

Don’t you just love Pinterest? This is also your personal invitation to come follow me on Pinterest......you will find the link on my sidebar!  :)

I’d love to come check out your boards too! Have a great day and Happy Pinning!