Large Family Homeschool Life – Week 36 of 2024

The inside and the outside of our house gets an Autumn makeover while we celebrate a birthday and make lots of Fall treats!

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MONDAY

I woke up early this morning and turned on the attic fan because it is in the upper 50’s! It is so beautiful outside! Our air conditioning isn’t working properly, so I needed to get the house cooled down anyway, so we can make it through the day when it gets into the upper 80’s.

Last night, I put the chicken bones from the roasted chicken I made on Saturday into the Instant Pot to make broth. I added some seasoning to it and let it cook one more hour. I am taking a class from Traditional Cooking School, and one of the projects was roasting a chicken and then making chicken broth. I am so inspired by these lessons! Definitely check out these classes if you are wanting to learn how to cook more healthfully and save money too!

Then, I grabbed my paddle board and headed out for an early morning paddle with friends on this lovely Labor Day!

When I got home, the kids were up and ready to play with neighborhood friends who have the day off from school. They rode bikes and then came inside to play Historical Conquest. We’ve had this game for many years, but the younger boys just started playing it and are loving it! They introduced their friends to the game as well.

That afternoon, I had a hair appointment. I decided to cut about 6″ off my hair and lighten some of the darker pieces. I love it! (When I got home, Mercy said she wanted my old hair back, but everyone else like it.)

I skimmed the chicken broth out of the instant pot and started a new batch. I can usually get 2 decent batches of broth from the bones, but no more than that.

It’s been so nice filling the shelves with various preserves! Last week, I made apple pie filling, pickled okra, and now the broth.

I tidied up my bedroom and changed out my sheets. I also switched out my seasonal magazine collection. I have Victoria, Tea Time, Country Sampler, and a few other aesthetically pleasing magazines that I rotate through a basket next to my chair in the bedroom. I get Spring and Summer out at the same time, and then rotate with Fall and Winter. I don’t often thumb through them, but occasionally, I’m just in the mood for a lovely seasonal magazine.

Several weeks back, I bought a couple of Autumn pillows at Sam’s. They have just been taking up space in my bedroom because I didn’t want to put them out until we decorated for Fall. Well, today’s the day! So, I took them downstairs and put them on the couches in the living room.

However, before we started decorating, we had our End of Summer Picnic and campfire! We don’t usually have a campfire because it is often way to hot for such things, but we’ve had an unseasonably cool Summer, so the evening was nice enough for one. Instead of fried chicken, we roasted hot dogs and made s’mores. We also had watermelon from the Farmer’s Market. I set aside the rinds to make into Watermelon Rind Pickles.

While around the campfire, we talked about what we liked best about Summer this year. From winning a family pool pass to learning to paddle board to the lovely weather, I’d say it was a stellar Summer!

We cleaned up the backyard and came inside to start decorating for Fall! First, we put away all the Summery decor – the eucalyptus garland on the mantel and the wreath near the front door, the bee themed decorations in the dining room, and even the kitchen towels.

Then, we hauled in the tub of Autumn Decor from the garage and got started ushering in Fall with a leaf garland on the mantel, autumn wreaths on the front porch and the back deck, pumpkin candy dishes, and other Autumn-themed decorations about the house.

I decided to wait to finish out the front porch until the painting on our house is complete – possibly next week!

Then, I got the watermelon rinds prepped and soaking in the brine overnight. This is the best recipe, and lots of people have labeled it “The one to use!” on Pinterest! We first had these lovely delicacies when we stopped at a small station in the middle of nowhere New Mexico and bought some from the store’s shelves out of pure curiosity. So yummy!

I spent the evening chatting with the children in the living room with Vintage Autumn Music playing on the TV. Our 18 year old son found this station on YouTube a couple of years ago, and we love to have it playing in the background this time of year…

We finished out the evening with our 13 year old son reading aloud his Scriptive story about how the turtle got its shell. Everyone had been begging to hear it when they found out he made the whole thing rhyme!

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TUESDAY

It was in the mid-50’s this morning, so it was nice and cool in the house. I took my walk and then the HVAC guy showed up to service the AC. It needed a new condensation hose, so he got that fixed up.

Then, the carpenter showed up to start repairing the boards that have rot and prepping our house for paint later this week.

For Morning Time, we did 1 Samuel in the PictureSmart Bible pages. We also talked about orchards and pollinators in our AgriScience class. And we watched videos of walnuts and peaches being harvested.

We finished up Morning Time by reading a chapter in Little Town on the Prairie. The kids have been enjoying this series so much, and so have I!

I grabbed a quick lunch before my baby grandson came over while his mama got a prenatal massage. We had so much fun, and introduced him to our fall tradition of doing a Pumpkin Hunt!

After he left, we tidied up and ran the Roborock. It always make the house feel so clean! Here’s the one I bought…

Then, I ran to the city office to pay our water and trash bill. On the way home, I got a call from my sister that a dear friend of ours had a heart attack and died this morning. We are both in terrible shock. When I hung up with her, I called Ty to let him know. Then, I let our oldest son know, but our friend’s son had already called to tell him. He was such a wonderfully hilarious and godly man! He will be terribly missed by all.

During the evening hours, the 19 year old and I went to our Titus 2 Bible Study and had a lovely time of fellowship. While we were gone, the kids decorated for her birthday tomorrow! They always love to hang streamers all over the house to celebrate!

WEDNESDAY

Our 3rd child (2nd daughter) turned 20 today! I took my walk and did my usual kitchen chores. Then, I made Autumn Pancakes.

I love how these pancakes just scream Fall! Nuts and Apples and Oatmeal – yum!

For Morning Time, we finished 1 Samuel in PictureSmart and I read in Little Town on the Prairie.

My baby grandson came over to say hello to his Auntie for her birthday. My daughter-in-law brought her Boba Tea as a present. When they left, I ran out to get the birthday girl lo mein for her lunch.

After lunch, the kids played Minecraft with the 20 year old for her birthday. So sweet how she still enjoys playing with them. While they played, I took a quick nap because I haven’t been getting enough sleep lately. Then, I took inventory of the pantry and worked on a grocery list.

Next, we all headed to the scratch and dent store because that’s what the birthday girl wanted to do! We also snagged an ice cream cake for her at Dairy Queen.

Back home, the kids went out to play with the neighbors. I had a snack and relaxed for a bit before starting the creamed pheasant the birthday girl requested for her birthday meal along with the ice cream cake. Yep, another family favorite recipe!

That evening, I cut the 3 younger boys’ hair. They desperately needed it, and I had the time to do it. That’s pretty much how I do everything!

THURSDAY

This morning, I opened up the house and ran the attic fan and then took my walk. As I was walking, I saw our house painter turn down our street, so I turned myself around and headed home to get the windows shut for him.

I cooked up the rest of the Autumn Pancakes from the batter I made yesterday. I also cut corn off the cobs we didn’t eat this past weekend and put them in our chili for tonight. I didn’t need all of the corn, so I vacuum sealed the rest and put it in the freezer. I’ve really enjoyed having this vacuum sealer!

The owner of the painting company showed up and he and I did a walk around the house to check over the carpenter’s work before they start painting. It all looks great! I’m nervous and excited to have them start painting today!

For Morning Time, we read in 2 Samuel from our Story Bible and then read in Little Town on the Prairie.

Micah (15) started a couple of new classes from Compass Classroom – Grammar for Writers and Filmmaking. He does the editing for my videos and really enjoys it, so I wanted to make a more robust class for him to be able to use it as an elective for his high school transcript. He’s also a fantastic writer, so I wanted to give him the tools to take it further with Compass’ Grammar class. They have so many great classes for jr. high and high school!

We ate a late lunch. The kids are eating down our emergency canned meals from the overflow pantry because they are getting close to their best by date and I need to rotate the stock. We keep these on hand in case we have a natural disaster and need to eat meals straight from the can. Not an ideal food source, but easy. The kids were super excited about it the first day they got to eat them, but now they have grown weary of the less than tasty offerings.

That afternoon, I ran errands – books dropped off at the library, Home Depot to pick up light fixtures I ordered for the outside of the house, Aldi, and Walmart. When I got home, the change in the house color was unbelievable and so beautiful!

That evening, the kids played with the neighbors and then did “Trash Patrol.” Every week on the night before our trash is picked up, they work together to haul all the trash to the curb. I really appreciate their hard work!

That evening was the 20 year old’s turn to be the Special Night Kid. (The kids love it when their birthday week is also their Special Night Week!). She wanted Caramel Puff Corn. This is something Ty’s granny’s used to make. We buy 2 bags of puff corn from Aldi, make caramel and then pour it over the puff corn and stir.

We also turned on the football game in the background. My 13 year old has become quite interested in football lately, so he wanted to be able to see the plays and follow the game.

While the kids played, I read in Two From Galilee, a fictionalized account of Mary and Joseph that a friend suggested. It is very well done! I’m surprised I’ve never heard of it.

I also started yogurt and sourdough rolls. I put the yogurt in the oven overnight and covered the dough for the rolls with plastic wrap to set out overnight too.

FRIDAY

I walked, ate breakfast, shaped the sourdough rolls, spooned the yogurt into mason jars, and made granola to go with the yogurt for breakfast. PHEW!

After breakfast, we tidied up for our weekly Home Blessing. I ended up needing to fix the sink sprayer that wouldn’t retract. It’s not 100%, but at least it isn’t dangling from the faucet!

I called my mom to discuss the chair lift we’ll be putting in for her since she’ll be living in our basement. We decided on the one we want, so I’ll call and order it next week.

I baked the sourdough rolls and then planned out the rest of our dinner. We have friends coming over for a time of fellowship and singing, so I’m making this Instant Pot Chicken and roasted root vegetables. (We ended up having a wonderful time together!)

By the way, the painter finished the house today! It is gorgeous and feels oh so Fall!