Nothing says fall like delicious pies lining the Thanksgiving table: pumpkin, apple... and squash pie? 
 
I hadn't heard of this delicacy until I dove into Sara Delano Roosevelt's household book, which houses everything from the instructions for the layette set she stitched for Franklin to how to detect a sewer leak (a little bit of peppermint oil!). Her household book was compiled into print by Clara and Hardy Steeholm and sent to publication in 1950. This gem of a find is rich with the Roosevelt's personal lives and provides an intimate look at their history.
 
It's amazing what you might learn about a person by what happens in their kitchen, and Sara Roosevelt's book is no different. Though she didn't actually cook, her staff cooked for her, and the recipes she compiled each had a unique story from her journey. Some she picked up while traveling- Parisian Pancakes, anyone? Many came from her sister Annie, and one peeked my attention given to her by "Mother Roosevelt." 
 
Does that name just sound intimidating, or is it just me?
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​"Mother Roosevelt" was Sara’s mother-in-law Mary Rebecca Aspinwall Roosevelt. 
 
Mary was born in 1809 and married Isaac Roosevelt when she was 18 which came as a bit of a shock because Isaac was somewhat of a squire recluse nearly twice her age. 
 
Nonetheless, they welcomed James Roosevelt (1828), the father of future president FDR, and twelve years later they welcomed a second son, John (1840). They lived on their estate, Rosedale, which still stands today.

Now, Mary wasn't likely to be cooking this recipe herself. From census reports, we see that in 1850, Mary lived with Isaac, James, and John as well as a coachman, groom, gardener, and three domestic servants. The following census lists them with a gardener, a coachman, and five domestic servants. I guess the groom's position went out of style! 

Though this recipe isn't dated, Mary died six years after James and Sara married (Sara was James's second wife), so this recipe likely came to her between 1880-1886. It's interesting that it's sugarless- which would make it perfect for times when sugar was scarce! 
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To start with, I cut this recipe in half! Nobody needs a ton of squash pie if it turns out inedible! I used two bags of frozen butternut squash, cooked in the microwave for simplicity. The microwaved squash was incredibly moist, so, when adding my liquids, I omitted the cream and just used milk.

Now, the recipe says, "Beat together, put it warm in the paste-" which I interpreted as somehow beating it into paste form. BUT- a little research revealed that the "paste" was actually a pie crust! By the time I realized that I was too far in to whip up a pie crust, so I baked it in a pie pan, crust-less. 

Well, if I presented this at a family meal instead of a pumpkin pie, there might be a mutiny in my house. 
The ginger was the predominant flavor- which I loved. But, I couldn't personally overcome the eggy texture. Without sugar, it simply lacked the "pie" qualities we've become accustomed to today. Nonetheless, it was fun to create, knowing this recipe was cooked over two-hundred years ago! 

I think I'll have to give squash pie another chance, and use this other historic recipe from 1912 Lowney's Cookbook, sugar and Nutmeg included!

I remember being a child and laying on the ground to watch the clouds pass. It was so peaceful and spurred my imagination into guessing what the big, fluffy, shapes might look like! It wasn't until I hit college that I learned about different types of clouds and what they signify! I didn't want my kids to wait THAT long to learn about clouds, so I created a brief unit study that will introduce students (around 5-8) to types of clouds and what they mean. 

To start, you'll want to download the free printable Montessori Cloud Cards.

Ready for the next activity?
Awesome!

To round out the unit study, we spent some time crafting and baking! Look at this gem, an attempt at a cummulonimbus!

I bet you don't even need instructions for this project, but to check out the project and the recipe for cloud cake, head over to this page:

I hope you had fun, and learned something new along the way! Pass this along to your friends stuck in quarantine for a little easy, free, relief! 

 Last December, our family started a new tradition where we have worship time each evening. I wanted my kids to understand the importance of worshipping the Lord, so they take turns picking a special song that's on their hearts to sing before bed. As well-intentioned as the time seems, there's plenty of fighting over whose turn is next, accompanied by dancing that leads to bumped heads- but I know God is working through the chaos. 
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Every night my sweet daughter, Genevieve, requests an Anne Wilson song. I think the lyrics of "Sunday Sermon" about being seven years old in church caught her attention and heart. This week was Genevieve's sixth birthday and coincidentally was Anne Wilson's debut album launch!
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Thanks to Momentum Influencers, I got to be the coolest mom and join in for Anne Wilson's debut CD  live stream event where we heard some of Anne's new music. My new favorite song, "Mama," is timed perfectly for mother's day, and features the lovely Hillary Scott of Lady A - such a fun surprise for us all! 

As my girls watched with stars in their eyes, I was able to type a special question into the chat for Anne with the hope she might answer- and she did!
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I asked her what advice she'd give to children who'd like to grow up and perform like her and she said:

"Those growing up wanting to be artists- work super hard at what you do. Never give up. Fix your eyes on Jesus."

What a great answer to accompany a lovely CD launch- I hope my kids hold that advice close to their hearts on each & every road they travel! 

If you haven't yet heard Anne Wilson's new album make sure you check it out!  You can buy or stream it here.

"My Jesus" features fifteen original songs- it's debut single "My Jesus" has been the #1 single on Billboard’s Christian Airplay chart for 7 total weeks! The CD includes:

1. Prelude (Scatter)
2. Scatter
3. My Jesus
4. Devil
5. Sunday Sermons
6. Hey Girl
7. This House
8. Mansions
9. Mamas (with Hillary Scott)
10. No Place Like Home
11. God Thing
12. That’s What We Need
13. Something About That Name
14. Closer To God
15. My Jesus (feat. Crowder)
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AND I'm thrilled to be giving away an autographed copy to one lucky reader! 
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While you're waiting to see if you won the CD- you can get even MORE excited by watching her story!
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Disclosure: Many thanks to Universal Music Group for providing a sample of the product for this review. Opinions are 100% my own and NOT influenced my monetary compensation. ​

Growing up in Connecticut yielded frigid, snowy winters. By the time February appeared, the white beauty of snow had outworn its welcome, and the grey frozen slush was entrapping. Before spring had time to peak, a few warm days would surface as a relief from the cold: my February thaw.

As a child, I'd take the opportunity to mash the melting snow under my boots. As a teen, I'd wear something skimpy and attempt a tan from the frail rays of the sun. This February has brought a different thaw, one unrelated to the weather, as we wade through another round of sickness in our busy lives.

Three weeks of this cough, and that sneeze, melted away our normal routine into the slush of television and computer games. But, there's been a surprise silver lining- or red! Beautiful cardinals have been flying about our back yard. This sparked a brand new desire in our homeschool- to learn about the our feathery friends!

We set up a bird feeder, and my kids have made sure the birds are the best fed birds in the neighborhood! Then, we discovered The Good and Beautiful Birds supplement! This has been filled with some simple lessons and great ideas to fly out new passion into a homeschool lesson!

Though we're slowly getting back to normal- our new normal is filled with wonderful discoveries from our February that! 

Back in December, Muan sent me her due date and asked me to pray for her upcoming delivery. Hearing the losses she'd suffered broke my heart, and I began praying for a peaceful, supernatural delivery of her third baby!

She writes,

"Hello Alexandra,

 I gave birth to a healthy baby boy on the 21st December 2021 after 6 years of marriage.  I had  a miscarriage in 2019 at 7 weeks of pregnancy and a still birth last year on the 16th of December 2020 in my  8th month of pregnancy.  When I was grieving over the loss of my baby , the Lord gave me peace that He would bless me again.  

I needed an assisted delivery (vacuum assisted delivery) because the baby's face was up and at one point the baby's heartbeat started dropping. Through all of that I was completely at peace , I kept repeating Bible verses in my mind, especially Psalm 23 and 2 Timothy 1:7 . I held on to the Truth that God hasn't given me the spirit of fear. 

Though my delivery wasn't pain free or injury free, I still believe it was supernatural in the way the peace of God swept over me during the labour and the birth and I didnt have an iota of fear nor did I panic in any way. 

Our God is a wonder working, supernatural God who delights in doing good for His children. Praise God and praise God. "

​Each New Year starts with frantically looking for calendars to keep track of our schooling and activities. Maybe, one year soon, I'll start this process before January, but that wasn't happening with our bout of covid. For 2022, I ordered a notebook calendar as a homeschool log and found a beautiful 16 x 26 acrylic wall calendar to help keep our family organized! 

Growing up, my family had a dry erase calendar where we'd record our activities in the specially selected color for each family member. It sat next to the corded phone (my, times were different!), and at a glance, it gave us a good sense of how the week would go. 
 
This calendar reminds me of the one we used, but it offers a sleek minimalistic style. I was impressed with the quality of the nickel accents and love how the calendar is offset from the wall! Each box is a generous size for recording activities (or decorating, as my kids love to do!).
​We've been having a lot of fun with this board and have found it can be used for much more than just a schedule.  It's perfect for things like:

I've used both dry erase and fine-tipped chalk pens on this board. The chalk pens are my favorite and offer a vibrant color and can be wiped off with a damp cloth, making events less prone to disappearing with all the little hands in my house.. The dry erase markers still showed up well and appear slightly more opaque, making it a close second!

Funny story: The other day, someone tagged me in a post of a graphic I created four years ago. I had pretty much forgotten that ever existed, so I decided to check out the original blog post, and I couldn't remotely remember writing it! Call it getting old, or mom brain, but I was laughing out loud at my own joke!

In the post, I discuss the origin of New Year's Resolutions, whether or not they're "Christian," and share some great Scripture to focus on as we dive into a brand new start!
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Plus, it's got mom jokes and footnotes!
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Check it out below:

​Cheers to a wonderful New Year, filled with fresh hope!

    Fall seems to be showing up here in Georgia, except it's still hot. Instead of relying on the outdoor temps, I've set my oven to 350 degrees and have been enjoying classic fall baking.
Pumpkin Bread, Pumpkin Chili, Apple Cookies, and flavorful Carrot Cake have been bringing my beloved Connecticut fall to my new Georgia kitchen! 

     Of course, sugar is no ones friend, so I've adapted this sweet, comforting recipes, to be slightly healthier by reducing the sugar and cutting out the butter- but don't worry, you'll never notice! Also missing from this recipe is a can of pineapple because...who remembers to buy that at the store??

I do apologize for not snapping better pictures... I was hungry!
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​One of my favorite Christmas poems is "Christmas Bells" by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. My oldest recited it on Christmas Eve a few years back, and we always enjoy it as the Christmas season rolls into view.
 
This year, we have a new addition to our poem about Christmas bells with a set of our very own Merry Bells for Christmas fun. I shared about them a few months back, and how they were an easy way to introduce music into your homeschool routine.

Merry Bells have also added a wonderful jingle to our pre-Christmas season! We printed out some of the Christmas song bell charts to practice mixing the tones, while singing the Christmas melodies that we already know and love. The music sheets have been beneficial to focusing on blending notes to create the right tone. After mastering that, we can focus on the rhythm and singing along- pretending it isn’t still 80 degrees outside!
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I’m hopeful that by starting our Christmas music practice now, we’ll be able to play some great songs for our Christmas guests- and I can’t wait to pull out the dvd’s and enlist our guests in playing along with us!

If you’d like to add Merry Bells to your Christmas rhythm- you can save 10% by using code:

​I still remember the nervous pit I felt in my stomach before each new year of elementary school began. Of course, it faded away after the first day and was replaced with excitement, but as a mom, I experience those same nerves before starting my children’s homeschool year! Each year has its ups, its downs, messes, and moments of utter chaos, but a few tips help me to pull through and make the most of this messy journey!

​This works particularly well if you're running a 4 day per week homeschool schedule. Work with child A and C on Monday to Thursday and child B and D Thursday through Sunday. There's less of a break for mom, but the days themselves may just be more peaceful! 
 
Another option to divide and conquer if you're on a 5 day per week schedule is to work with one set of children in the morning, and another in the afternoon. In our house, this looks like morning lessons with my pre-school and 1st grader, then an after lunch history storytime with all my children, then more focused lessons with my 2nd and 4th grader.

​Certain subjects are easier than others for each child. Depending on age and strengths, find a streamlined online option for that student to work through. For example, my five-year-old loves math and enjoys Mathseeds, so that's one subject she can work on independently with a program that I trust to build a strong number foundation.

​I know in the homeschool circles we run in, rhythm is a common catchphrase. Think of it like breathing. There's the inhale, the fast-paced run around or higher stress lesson times, and the exhale of independent play or quiet reading time. Simply observing the natural rhythm that takes place without intervention can help you build off of a hidden pattern that's already taking place around you.
 
For example:  Our days tend to be tense from 9-10, while some of my students work [and fight for my attention], but we take a break around 11 to start lunch. That's an inhale, and an exhale.
After lunch and outside time, it's time for another inhale with some of our more challenging lessons, but an exhale comes around 2 when I attempt to get my toddler to nap.

​With the presence of video chatting platforms these days, why not incorporate a video call with a relative as some learning time? My son enjoys reading chapters of books to his grandparents and quizzing them after, and my daughter likes memorizing poems to share. You could even consider asking a relative to pitch hit a lesson via zoom. 

​It's ok when lessons don't go as planned… It's ok to switch curriculum in the middle of the year… it's ok to blaze your own path… it's ok to say "no" to too many activities. Give yourself the grace to grow just as you give your children grace to learn and explore.  Remember, there isn't a right or wrong way to homeschool- just what works for you and your students!