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Month: January 2014

Denver Aquarium ~ field trip

January 31, 2014Written by Joy

Yesterday, they kids and I went to the Denver Aquarium with some others from our homeschool group. The Denver Aquarium held classes for 3 different age groups, for our kids. My younger kids went to the “Sensational Sharks” class and my oldest went to the class that took them behind the scenes of the Aquarium. They learned all about how the aquarium operates and how they take care of all the fish and animals that live there.

One of the reasons why I enjoyed this aquarium so much, is the way they have everything split up. They have several different exhibits split up into North America, In the Desert, Under the Sea, At the Wharf, The Rainforest, Coral Lagoon, Sunken Temple, Shipwrecked and At the Beach.

The kids and I had a wonderful time and can not wait to go back. I took almost 700 pictures. It was so hard to choose which ones to share with y’all. I hope you enjoy the ones I chose.

The snapping turtle they have, is one of the largest I have ever seen. He was HUGE. I loved watching him, as he swam in the tank.

snapping tutle

They also have soft shell turtles. This one just looked so peaceful as he swam. He just glided through the water.

soft shell turtle

Obviously, since it is an aquarium, they have an abundance of fish. The colors of some of the fish are so vibrant. They are just beautiful.

fish

I have always been fascinated with sea horses. They are very unique creatures.

sea horses

the aquarium also had a lot of different stingrays. They would swim up to the glass and it looked like they watched you as you walked by. We saw one that looked like he was smiling at us.

stingray

The tank with the starfish and sea cucumbers was pretty cool. I didn’t know that the starfish came in so many different colors.

starfish

It was fun to look around at all the different exhibits. Some of the fish liked to hide and keep sheltered by the plants and coral.

fish

My oldest daughter was fascinated with the ones that were hidden. She had fun trying to locate them in the exhibits.

Sarah looking at fish

The younger kids couldn’t get over that the piranha tank didn’t have a lid on it. They were certain that the piranha’s could jump put of the tank. They also noticed how thick the glass was for the tank. They were happy that the fish wouldn’t be jumping out.

Samuel and Claire looking at Piranhas

I think we were all surprised to see the tiger at the aquarium. They actually have several tigers on display, but we only saw one. He was just hanging out, watching everyone walk by.

tiger

Ever since the movie “Nemo”, my kids always enjoy looking for the Nemo and Dory fishes.

clown fish

A highlight of the was the shark tank. I was surprised by the amount of sharks they had AND the size of some of the sharks. They have a few sharks that are up to 10 feet long. The aquarium doesn’t look that big on the outside, but it is fairly large. We were able to watch them feed the sharks. You would think the sharks would have plenty to eat with all the other fish that are in the tanks, but they do feed the sharks with fish that they bring in.

shark

We enjoyed watching the sharks and watching all the other fish. It is really neat to see and learn about the different types of sharks and fish that live together and don’t bother each other.

shark

The jelly fish had tanks of their own. They were beautiful to watch, just floating around.

jelly fish

I am so glad that we were able to go to the Denver Aquarium. I am looking forward to going back again, soon. We have talked about getting a membership, so that we can go as often as we want to. My oldest daughter, also saw that she will be able to volunteer when she turns 17. She is counting down the days, until her next birthday. Yes, I do think this will be a place we will visit often, together, as a family.

Have you been to an aquarium before? What sea creature do you like the best?

2014, field trips, homeschooling aquarium, classes, Denver Aquarium, field trip, fish, homeschooling, science, sharks

homemade baked macaroni-n-cheese ~ recipe

January 24, 2014Written by Joy

For the last year or so, our family has tried our best to eat healthier, a lot more vegetables, fruits and proteins. Sometimes though, we just crave that southern comfort food, that we grew up with. Macaroni-n-cheese is one of those dishes that just brings us back home, to our roots. We don’t eat this often, but enjoy every bite of it, when we do bake it. This is a dish that can be a side dish or you can even make it your main dish and add ham chunks to it, right before putting it in the oven.

I watched my mom and dad make this recipe often. They would make it for the holidays, for a potluck dinner at church, or for any meal that they knew would have a large crowd. This recipe doesn’t hold back the calories or the fat. So I definitely don’t recommend this on a daily menu, but every now and then, maybe for a special occasion, would be alright. Remember, all in moderation when it comes to those foods that have a few more calories and fat.

Homemade Baked Macaroni-n-Cheese

1 pound of elbow noodles (we use different shapes of noodles, it just depends what we have in the pantry. I have even used gluten free noodles.)

1 stick of butter

2 eggs, slightly beaten

1 cup of milk

2 pounds of cheese (my moms recipe just calls for 1lb, but I have always added more cheese.)

salt and pepper to taste

Boil the noodles to al dente or almost done. You don’t want to cook it all the way, because the oven will finish cooking the noodles. The time it takes for the noodle to cook, will vary on the type of noodle that you are using. Once you boil your noodles, strain the water off of the noodles. In a bowl, pour the noodles in it, add the butter, milk and the slightly beaten eggs. Then add your shredded cheese and mix it well. Save a cup of cheese to spread on top of the noodle mixture. Lastly, pour the noodle mixture in a casserole dish. Bake the macaroni-n-cheese in a preheated 350 oven. Bake for 45 minutes or until firm and the cheese on top is melted and slightly golden.

Mac-N-Cheese

Are there any comfort foods that you just crave on occasion?

2014, family, recipes cheese, comfort, easy, family, food, homemade, macaroni, macaroni-n-cheese, recipes

Moist Pound Cake ~ recipe

January 21, 2014Written by Joy

4 Comments

Since we moved to Colorado, I have had a hard time adjusting to the higher altitude, with my baking. While I have been able to tweak most of my recipes, to begin with, the one recipe I have had such a hard time with is my dad’s Moist Pound Cake. The problems would stem from rising and overflowing, to collapsing and being very dense. No matter what I tried, I just could not get it to rise to a normal level and stay that way. That is, until today.

When I made the cake on Sunday for practice, for my daughter’s birthday coming up in February, it was a disaster. It overflowed, all onto the bottom of the oven and then collapsed to almost nothing in the bottom of the pan. I put a plea on Facebook and had a couple of people to send me websites that give help on higher altitude baking. My husband and I started reading and going through what we have tired and what we haven’t tried on this cake. We finally decided on what changes we would make when I tried baking this cake again.

Pound Cake just taken out of the oven.

As you can tell by the picture, the change we made this time, was perfect! I was so excited! Below is the original recipe. It is the one that my dad and grandma baked, all the time. I am going to make the changes next to the ingredients that we changed. They will be highlighted with an * and be in bold.

Moist Pound Cake

2 sticks butter, softened

2 cups sugar

6 eggs (room temperature) *I added an extra egg, so the total is now 7

2 cups all-purpose flour (sifted 4 times, you have to sift it. This is what makes the cake rise.) *I added an extra 1/2 cup of sifted flour

1 TBSP vanilla extract

Preheat over to 300 degrees(*I upped the temperature to 350). Grease and flour a bundt pan. Cream butter and sugar until smooth. Add 1 egg, at a time, mixing well after each addition. Add flour, beating until creamy. Add vanilla and mix well. Spoon into greased/floured bundt pan. Bake at 300 (350) degrees for 1 hour (50 minutes), or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

So the changes that I made were adding an extra egg, adding another 1/2 cup of flour, baking it at a higher temp at 350 and only baking it for 50 minutes, instead of an hour. It is very simple changes that took a lot of trial and error to figure out.

Pound cake taken out of pan too soon! 😉

I was so excited about the cake baking perfectly, that I didn’t let the cake sit long enough to cool. When I tried turning it out on to a plate, the top of the cake stuck to the pan! So a little advice about the cake, let it sit long enough to cool. Don’t be inpatient like I was!

This cake really is an easy cake to make. It takes no time at all to mix up. You can even change the flavoring extracts for different flavors. I have used Lemon, Almond, and Rum extracts in place of the Vanilla. You can even mix up your favorite frosting and pour it over the top.

Now that I have finally figured out how to bake this properly, I plan on making these often and give them away, just like my dad did. Nothing better than giving away something that you love making, or in this case, baking!

What is your favorite cake? Have you ever had a recipe to give you a hard time when cooking for baking?

P.S. One of these days, I will remember to get our good camera out, instead of using my phone camera.

2014, family, recipes baking, family, high altitude, pound cake, recipes

changes in history curriculum for 2014…

January 20, 2014Written by Joy

4 Comments

We started the 2013-2014 school year trying out a new history curriculum. I was wanting to do American history with my kids and was having a hard time locating one I thought would work. The two previous years, we had used Mystery of History from Bright Ideas Press. Bright Ideas Press history, All American History, looked a little too challenging for my younger kids, so I choose My Father’s World: Adventures in U.S. History.

The first few weeks, we struggled and had a lot of tears. The kids did not like the change. It was TOUGH. They cried, then I cried. I was determined to give the new curriculum a chance, though. I know that sometimes change can be hard, but that if you give things a chance, it could work out. I told myself that we would give the new history until the end of the year. I wanted to make sure that we gave it our all, before we switched curriculums. The kids like the time period that we were studying. They just did not like how it was presented, they did not like that there wasn’t daily activities or projects. With this curriculum, there was a lot more copywork, than anything.

The end of 2013 came and I knew the time had come. We were going to change history curriculums. The problem was, which one do I choose now? I had wanted to teach the kids American history. I have just had a hard time trying to find one that I liked. I knew we needed to go back to something that we were familiar with. One of the joys of homeschooling, is using curriculum that fits the needs and learning style of your children.

So what will we do now? One thing we will do is continue to read the books that I picked up on American history. They are short readers that the kids can read on their own. We also have the Little House on the Prairie books that we will read together.

{Disclaimer: This post has affiliate links.}

My kids have asked to go back to Bright Ideas Press, Mystery of History. Since we finished with Mystery of History: Volume 1, last year, we will begin Mystery of History: Volume 2, this next week. I already had this Volume on our book shelf, so it will save us money for the time being. In the mean time, I will be saving to purchase their All American History Jr. I would love to be able to look at the books and see what all the Jr. section covers. Hopefully, we will be able to start this in the fall.

After 11 years of homeschooling, I am learning it is okay to change curriculums, even during the middle of the school year. One of the joys of homeschooling, is being able to meet the needs of your children if something isn’t working. So mom, don’t give up if you are having a rough time. If you feel like you have given the curriculum a fair chance, and it still isn’t working, then change! You will eventually find something that will work, or a curriculum that you can tweak enough to make it work for your family.

Have you ever had any curriculum that made your kids break down in tears? Have you had to change curriculums in the middle of a school year? I would love for you to share your experience with us!

2014, homeschooling Adventures in U.S. History, All American History Jr., American History, Bright Ideas Press, curriculum, history, homeschooling 2014, My Father's World, Mystery of History

Young Living Essential Oils and why I love them..

January 19, 2014Written by Joy

I first heard of Young Living and essential oils late in 2012. A friend of mine had heard about them and started using them. We both have some of the same medical issues, like Fibromyalgia and Arthritis. She was using them to help with the pain, headaches and had even used them when her family had gotten sick with a really bad cold. I had looked up essential oils to see what all the hype was about. I looked at the couple of direct Marketing companies that were selling them and I even looked at the oils that the local health store had. I was a real skeptic about them. Especially the ones from Young Living, because they were so much more expensive. Why were they so much more expensive than the ones at the local health store. The more I researched, the more interested I became in them. I finally decided to give essential oils a try and went with Young Living Essential Oils. Now let me tell you why I love them.

Peace&Calming, Frankincense, Balsam Fir (Idaho), Eucalyptus Blue, Ginger, Valor, Nutmeg

I ordered the Starter Kit with the Everyday Oils Collection. The starter kits have changed since then. They have 3 different ones you can choose from. When I first ordered the kit, everyone had colds and I started using the Thieves right away. I would rub it on their feet and I would diffuse it in the air. It really did help our colds. It cut the length of our cold in half. I would also rub Peace&Calming on my children’s feet, it helped them relax enough to where they would sleep through the night.

Grapefruit, Lemon, Wintergreen, Melaleuca alternifolia (Tea Tree Oil), Citronella, Lime, Thieves, Progessence Plus

For really bad colds, I had been told that R.C., Raven and Eucalyptus Radiata would be good to have on hand. I ordered those next and I am so glad I did. The following month, in February, I truly do believe having those oils on hand and using them on my son, saved us a trip to the emergency room. By alternating the Raven and R.C on his chest, peppermint for the fever, we were able to cut his illness time in half. I had taken our son to the doctor, just to make sure it wasn’t turning into pneumonia and the doctor told me that this cold/cough was taking people up to 3-4 weeks to get rid of. My son was 100% in about a week and a half. He never did have to go on an antibiotic.

Orange, Aroma Seiz, Oregano, R.C., Raven, Melrose, Bergamot, Purification, Cypress, Deep Relief Roll-On.

Like I mentioned at the beginning, I had ordered these oils to see if it would help bring relief with my pain from Fibromyalgia and migraines. When I begin to have flare-ups, I use Ortho-Ease oil, Panaway, Aroma Siez to help with the muscle pain. It ALL helps bring relief. I could not believe it. I don’t use them all together, but depending on the pain and where it is, will depend on what oil I use.

For my migraines, depending on how bad they are, I will use Peppermint and Deep Relief. It works for me. Does it work ALL the time? No, on occasion I have had to use it a few times in a day. There has only been a handful of times that I have had to use my prescription migraine medicine.

Essential Oil Reference and Guide books.

Yes, I was a skeptic to begin with, but I am a believer in using oils now. My husband was a huge skeptic and now will turn to use the oils before grabbing any of the OTC medicines. Do I think this will get rid of the doctors for us? No, I feel that there are times to go see a doctor. However, if I can help our family in a more natural way, to get over a sickness, I am going to do it.

If you have any questions about essential oils, I would love to answer them for you. You can email me at jumpforjoy@gmail.com. If you would like to place an order or even sign up to be a distributor, visit my Young Living Website. My member is 1410497 and I would love to have you on my team!

2013, family distributor, Essential oils, family, Young Living