Something to think about...

I may be crazy, but I've seriously been thinking about homeschooling my Youngest next year when he starts 1st grade. Don't get me wrong, but I LOVE the school, LOVE the teachers, Like the district, but I've still been thinking about it.

As a substitute teacher this year I've been able to see how much time a teacher must spend getting the class to settle down, get to work, to line up for music/PE/lunch, and how much time they really spend one on one with each child and I know I can give my child at least that amount of attention each day with school work. Socialization isn't an issue because he will be starting Cub Scouts and sports are not an issue, because wrestling and baseball are in his future.

What really stops me is the fact that I know myself and I'm not sure I have the patience to teach him and not do his work myself, and I'm afraid that his education will be neglected in some vital way with me as his teacher.

Anyway that is just something I've been thinking about this crazy April in Oklahoma!

A new recipe...

I discovered a new recipe in my Food & Family magazine and my family loves it...Roasted New Potatoes! Potatoes and bacon...Yum!!!

Roasted New Potatoes

from Food & Family magazine

2 lb. new potato, cut in halves or quarters

6 slices bacon, chopped small

3 Tbsp. Italian dressing

1/3 c. Kraft mayo with olive oil

1 Tbsp. lemon juice

1 clove garlic, minced

2 Tbsp. shredded Parmesan cheese

2 tsp. chopped fresh parsley

1. 
   
   Heat oven to 400 degrees F


2. 
   
   Combine potatoes, bacon & dressing; spread on a sheet pan & bake for 45 minutes. Stir after 25 minutes.


3. 
   
   Mix mayo, lemon juice and garlic...set aside.


4. 
   
   Place potatoes on a plate, top with mayo, cheese and parsley and serve.

This is one of our new favorite recipes. I usually make it without the garlic, but follow the rest of the directions exactly. We had it last night with Shake-N-bake pork chops and roasted broccoli and it was all gone by the time we finished dinner last night. Please enjoy!

Zoo Trip

Zoo Trip!

We took the boys to the zoo for the 1st time in several years. There were many new exhibits that made the trip fun. This is the entrance to the Children's Zoo. My Youngest enjoyed petting the goats!

This is just 1 of the lorikeets that liked me. I had 2 on my head earlier...a weird experience.

I've never been this close to a flamingo before. We could almost pet them.

The Oklahoma Trails exhibit, made up of all the animals found in our great state...including the 2 animals in front of the glass :-)

We love the Tigers. This one seemed to watch us, wonder what he was thinking?...Yum?

The monkeys all together. Everytime we go to the zoo, the boys take a picture with these gorillas. The boys keep getting bigger.

The new elephant exhibit.

Plateau...

Well I've plateaued...or I plateaued back before Christmas. I haven't lost any weight, and I haven't gained any weight, which is probably a miracle with the amount of sugary goodness I've eaten in the last 3 months!

I'm finally back on schedule though. No more holidays or snow days to de-rail me from my walking and no more baking to eat!

I've made it out to the mall 5 times this week and I've been able to walk about 10 miles!

All the chocolate goodies are gone out of the house so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the scale will start falling again. It's not like I'll be sitting around the house bored (I usually eat the most when I'm bored), since I've started running around taking the boys to soccer practice and games, baseball practice, track practice, track meets, etc. Baseball games and t-ball practice will be starting soon. I don't have time to cook food, much less eat it!

1st Soccer Game...

My Youngest had his 1st soccer game (ever) today! It was fun to watch and I think he had fun too.

Soccer Star!

Practicing my dribbling...

Game Time!



The Cheering Section:
Brother and Cousin ...

Little Cousin...

Grandma (who wouldn't look at the camera) and Uncle...

Big Brother...

Dad...hiding behind Grandma

And Mom (not shown, but present all the same)

We WON!

More due to luck than any real skill, but still a win!

Ensemble...

My Oldest went to a band contest today. It was for Solo's and Ensembles, his ensemble included 2 trombones, a percussionist and my son's bassoon. They received a 2! Great job! This was their 1st contest, the school band will go to one in 2 weeks, I'm wishing them luck now.

CODA 7th Grade Honor Band Concert

This was an AWESOME concert! Loved every minute of it! They held it back in January, preceded by 2 days of clinics for the 7th grade band, the 8th & 9th grade band, HS honor band and HS jazz band, followed by the concert. The kids had their music for 1 month, they worked on it during the clinics all day Friday and Saturday morning and put on a great concert Saturday afternoon. They were WONDERFUL! This is the concert hall.

My son and his bassoon.

The whole band! About 100 7th graders!

Superb! Wonderful! Bravo!

I was so very proud of my son!