Sisyphus Acres

Grocery Shopping and Menu Plans..

Today is grocery day.. WOOHOO.. I am so excited.. I am finally getting back on my menu plan and have my grocery list all made out.. I am so excited.. You just don't know how excited.. So I want to ask you to all who read this send me your fave reciepe for fall.... The kids and I love to make things together and so we are looking for new things to try out as well...

I am headed to the grocery when I get out of class at noon thirty so I can be done with our Once a Month BIG shopping trip and get home so the kids can help unload when they get off the bus right before homeowork......

Well anyway I am going to try to make one of the kids fave meals tonight for supper and I am sure that they are going to be really really happy and we are going to make a snack together after school as well..

Ok gotta run again..

Have a great day..

God Bless,

Mars

I have a What Would You Do Question..

My ex husband called me the other day and we were talking about kids and etc and all of a sudden he says well I have a question to ask of you and your not going to like it. My first response was is it for you or for her???

You see first let me say this. My kids stepmom I don't feel like is very nice to them alot of the time.. She says my 13 year daughter needs to be in special ed and she made her write the alphabet because she wasn't sure she knew it.. What.. I am sorry, but all of MY kids are A or B honor roll kids and if their teachers do not have a problem then what is yours?? She has never had kids of her own and I understand that, but you knew that he had 5 when you married him...

She tends to get upset with Rodney if he has the kids any extra time except his weekends.. Now our parenting plan states that he gets them every other weekend and then every Wednesday for a few hours plus anyother time he might want them that is agreable between the two of us, plue every other week during the summer.. Now Rodney has been getting them his weekends, but he only had them 2 full weeks in the summer because of the situation with her.

Anyway the kids are looking forward to their weekend this weekend and she tells Rodney that he needs to change weekends because she only has 2 days off this week and etc and that if he doesn't change then he and the kids have to stay somewehere else...

Now I normally am very easy going and would trade him in a heartbeat, but I am sick and tired of her trying to keep him from having his time with the kids.. My kids welcome the time with their dad when she is not around and want to go ahead and go with him this weekend..

So long story short.. I told him that the kids wanted to come with him this weekend and that I was not going to trade.. If it was something that he needed becasue of work or something then we would work it out, but hello she knew he had kids and that he needs to spend time with them.. My older kids are upset because they know that their relationship with dad is going down hill because of her and they want to go to their dad's this weekend..

So should I switch or let them go with their dad?? I know that she or my ex MIL will read this and make comments, but really this is about the kids and their relationship with their dad..

God Bless you for reading this far....

God Bless,

Mars

Glorious Weather

I love, love, love those first cool days of Autumn, and this is the second gloriously cool morning we have had!

I had to remind myself of Charlotte Mason's habit of declaring a "holiday" on those really lovely weather days, because this is, after all our first "official" week of school.....but, how could I resist 3 pairs of blue eyes begging to go outside and play this morning? 

So, out we went, Mom with a cup of tea and her notebook (still finishing up those curriculum and lesson plans- which will change time and time again as the year goes by); and  girls with quilts and other things to create their little home with. 

Nature study showed itself quickly- a tiny walking stick that hopped onto one little lady's leg.  Then, the hunt was on for other creatures- damsel flies, butterflies, and other things were enjoying the Autumn morning as well.

The other books can wait until afternoon, after all- Living is a wonderful way to learn!

Off to have more tea and read my own books on the porch...

Catherine

OH.....we planted the Fall garden at the new house yesterday!  So exciting, I'll tell you about it later...my tea kettle is calling!

Mini Pumpkin Butterscotch Muffins

These are SO GOOD!!!

MINI PUMPKIN BUTTERSCOTCH MUFFINS (allrecipes)

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup white sugar

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 eggs

1/2 cup melted butter

1 cup canned pumpkin

1 (6 ounce) package butterscotch chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease mini-muffin pan with cooking spray.

Sift together the flour, brown sugar, white sugar, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into a large bowl. Whisk together the eggs, butter, and pumpkin in a separate bowl. Mix the flour mixture with the egg mixture. Stir in the butterscotch chips; pour into each cup of the muffin pan to about 3/4 full.

Bake in preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean, 10 to 12 minutes.

Granny Square Tutorial with Pictures

Alright my friends, I am going to attempt my first EVER sewing tutorial!   I told you that I was taught how to make a granny square while I was on my Ladies Retreat.  It was so much easier for me to learn from the ladies teaching than it was for me to look at a book and try.  The picture quality is not wonderful, I just saw some of the pictures I took last night, but hopefully you will get the hang of it as easily as I did and you will be turning out some beautiful squares as well!
If you are a Newbie to Crochet HERE is a site to help you with basic stitches, you will see me refer to several in this tutorial... Chain, Slip Stitch, Double Crochet.

Step 1: Chain 5
Cool, you got that! Alrighty we are on our way!

Step 2: You want to turn that chain into a round so you will go to the first chain and slip stitch...
Now we have our center, we will build on from there! Woohoo!

Step 3: Chain 3
Here we are building out from the center and we will begin making a larger circle to build on from here

Step 4: Two(2) Double Crochets and chain 1
Alright, here we are in process of making our circle, so what we are going to do is we are going to double crochet 2 times and then chain 1.  The chain will make the space we need to help us along in future steps...

Step 5: 3 Double Crochets and chain 1 (3 more times) slip stitch to complete the circle
Now we have a circle!! Yippee... but wait I told you we were making Granny Squares right?  Ok, bear with me we will get to the square in a minute.
So to make sure we are cool to this point, counting the first 3 chains as one DC (double crochet) you will have 4 sets of 3 double crochets with one chain in between.... clear as mud??

Step 6: Chain 3 and then double crochet 2, chain 1, double crochet 3 and chain 1 in the same hole
If you will look at your round you will see 3 double crochets and then a hole/space in between each set of 3.  This space is where you will go into to make your next layer or sets of 3.  Does this make sense... I am trying!
What you are doing now is building your edges... we can't make this granny square stay a circle any longer, we are going to put some corners on it!

Step 7: Look for next hole, double crochet 3 and chain 1~ 2 times in each hole.  (You will do this in each hole till you meet back up with your first set.  This will form your first square. Slip Stitch to complete the square and now you are ready to build on. 

Step 8: Chain 3, double crochet 2, chain 1
You will notice that there is now a hole between each of the four edges, you are going to do almost the same thing in each hole... meaning you don't want an edge you just want a set of 3 dc's to fill the hole.
So dc three times and chain one and move to your edge.

Step 9: Double Crochet 3 times, chain 1, Double Crochet 3 times, chain 1 in corner hole.
Again, you are making corners for this square, you should be catching on to a pattern if I have successfully portrayed this to you.  So in each of the corners you are making 3 dc's, chain 1, 3 dc's, chain 1.  Simple!

Step 10: Slip stitch to join the square together

Step 12: All the way baby... go all around just as I told you, come together again, slip stitch and tie off your end. 
The lady who taught me only does 4 layers, but of course you can do more if you like. 
Now you want a bunch of these... so get to it!
I don't have nearly as many as I would like to have had done by now, but remember I am teaching myself to hold the crochet needle/hook in the proper way, so I am SLOW JOE right now. 
Once you get several made you can do all kinds of things with them...
Make them into an afghan by stitching them together, make potholders out of them by putting several layers together on top of each other and stitching, use them as coasters, make a pillow cover, make your dd a doll blanket out of a few... whatever you like.
I hope you enjoyed and understood my attempt of spreading the knowledge that I received this past weekend.  If you see a mistake, feel free to email me or message me and I will change it, and now go get your yarn and your hook and go for it!  If I can do it YOU can do it!

With Love From My Homestead to Yours,
~Chas~
Chasity L. Burrell
Senior Editor Homesteadblogger
Heritage Acres Farm