Tag: autumn

Caitlyn, education, family, field trips, homeschooling

European History & Culture Sampler: An Epic Homeschool Field Trip

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After talking about it for several years, last fall we finally followed through on one of our parenting goals: international travel with Caitlyn at an age when she’d be old enough to understand and appreciate what she would see and experience but young enough that she’s not too cool to hang around with her parents.   It’s a big world out there (and we only managed to see a small portion of it this time) and getting to see some of it firsthand is good for building empathy, experiencing diversity, and appreciating your own privileges.  It’s harder to “other” people …

Caitlyn, homeschooling, Seasons

Costume Evolution

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Used to be, I wouldn’t ask Caitlyn what she wanted to be for Halloween, I just put bunny ears on her. In more recent years, we’d have conversations, usually in late summer, about costume options (although I’m fairly certain she didn’t request the fairy princess costume, I just wanted to make it), settling on a tiger or a pioneer girl. Last year’s FireCat was a collaboration. This year, it was all Caitlyn. She started planning back in early September. Her dragon costume went through a lot of mental permutations before taking shape, with big black wings (from her dress up …

homesteading, Seasons

Harvest Time: Apples, part 2

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The second picking from our apple tree did indeed fill the box again. As predicted, the apples were a bit bigger the second time, too. What to do with them all? I mean, I’ve already done apple preserves and there’s still plenty of applesauce in the pantry. I’ve already baked more apple things beyond what we can eat, although I suppose a couple more batches of apple muffins tossed in the freezer would have been ok. I borrowed a juicer (thanks, Erin!) and we drank lots of homegrown apple juice. While tasty, I don’t think I’m going to pursue this …

homesteading, in the kitchen, Seasons

Preserving Season

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I’ve discovered Preserves this summer. Sure, I’ve been “preserving” for a few years now: freezing, drying, canning, etc. And I’ve certainly preserved fruit before. But a Preserve. It’s not whole or sliced fruit floating in simple syrup. It’s not jam or jelly. It’s somewhere between the two: chunks of fruit in a syrup, often with additional flavors. I know it sounds strange, but I’m finding preserves to be a little bit more flexible, more “ready to eat” than just fruit in jars. See, I canned apricots back in 2010. Almost 20 pints of golden orange yumminess. We’re still eating them. …

Seasons

Harvest Time: Pumpkins

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Some people grow enormous squash. This week at our farmers’ market, our favorite farmer brought in a squash so folks could guess its weight. It was a funny looking thing, about three feet long, a foot tall, just over a foot wide, with a all-over bumpy surface. I watched a man lift his son, then lift the squash, to better gauge the weight of the squash. I guessed it to be 96 lbs. Caitlyn refused to guess, although she admitted to wanting one of the farmers’ market t-shirts that was the prize. The farmer told me (later, not near the …