Old Faithful...

Eight years ago, we were on our way to Universal and needed a really compact yet full sized stroller. I happened to find this one at a Babies R Us...


Peg Perego Pliko P3


It had everything I wanted in a stroller. It folds like an umbrella, into a small rectangle. It has a wonderful sunshade that would completely cover a child in a sudden downpour. It gives a wonderful ride for the child, no matter what size they are. It has a step that older kids can stand on if they get tired and I've put two kids in it without trouble many times when an older child has given out during an outing.

A few years ago, we were given a Ford Expedition by my MIL. It has no trunk space at all, but this wonderful stroller will fit in the crack behind the seats that is called a "trunk."

To say that this stroller has been a lifesaver, is an understatement. After eight years of faithful service, it is now going into retirement. It STILL works, mind you, but many things are starting to give out and we think that it's ready for a life of mild service instead of what we do to things around here.lol The foot broke off of one of the brakes, the seat belt no longer functions and the poor dear sunshade has many holes from lots of use. But it STILL works.



So, when looking for something "new" and "fun", what do you suppose we decided upon?

No contest. P3 is our favorite and we'll stick with it till the end. Amazon has this beauty on sale for $220 and I think it's worth every penny.

Here it is folded up...

And if I couldn't have possibly loved my older one anymore, this one has many features that I wished our first one had. The shade can be unzipped in the back so you can shade them in front but they aren't stuck without a breeze. It has two cup holders for the little one. The harness is stationary, unlike the first one which would get all tangled up and my littles could get out of and it's orange which is one of my favorite colors. lol

So, if you are ever in need of a new stroller...this one is my hands down favorite and no, I didn't get paid to say it either.lol

Blessings,

The Art of Uncheese...

At first I denied it. Then I ignored it. Finally I accepted it. Now I'm embracing it.LOL

Hi, my name is Lisa and I'm allergic to dairy.lol I finally started trying to replace the dairy in my diet with acceptable pretend cheeses. The only problem is, the prepackaged stuff still has things I'm not supposed to eat and it doesn't taste very good. Well, I researched and found a few books that people on Amazon.com said were good and I bought this one...



My very first attempt was fake parmesian cheese. After grinding it up, it smelled so bad that I stuck it in the back of the fridge vowing never to eat it. After about a week, I got desperate and pulled it out to eat with my garlic butter pasta.LOL (Yes, I know I'm weak.) It turned out to be so good that EVERYONE liked it! Whatever made the smell dissipated and it no longer smelled bad.lol All in all, a success.

Fortified with a good recipe under my belt, I tried to make Unmozzarella. It's the ONE cheese that I miss the most. I let it set for a day or two and then made everyone pizzas, mine with the faux cheese. It didn't look very good and it tasted worse. It was REALLY bad.LOL Took me a while before I could muster up the courage to try another recipe.

Today, I dusted off the book once again and made an unCheese Wiz type recipe. Here's what it looks like...



I made Jon try it first.lol I'm such a chicken! He said it was good but his face said something else.lol I decided to try it anyway and it's good! This has a sharp taste, but not the texture of cheese. It reminds me of that cheese that comes in a spray can. Tangy, a little garlicy, and a bit like hummus but good. Remember all, I'm desperate.LOL We all tried it on crackers and enjoyed it. I think it's a keeper and whenever I get more than ONE recipe from a cookbook, I call it good.lol I'll be trying more recipes in the weeks to come, but just having a cheap, good parmesian makes me happy.

Blessings,

Review: Teachable Moments: Finding Your College

I just finished watching the final DVD from Lee called Finding Your College. This is another one to purchase! She goes in detail, showing you how to select just the right college, which she calls, "Finding the love of your life." My notes were so many that I've decided to just buy the DVD.LOL Really, in order to glean as much info from this DVD as you can, you need to sit down with it and do each step of college admissions, one step at a time. Lee has such amazing insight and really knows how to bring home the financial aid money. But, this is the most exciting thing, she also knows how to help you find just the right college for each of your children! I can't wait to begin this process next year with my first daughter! What an amazing time, being able to find your children's very first love.

The details: Find this dvd at www.thehomescholar.com
It is only $20 and it's a gift that will keep on giving all throughout your homeschooling journey. I am so thankful to Lee for giving me this opportunity to view these DVD's. They are a blessing to this family and I think they would be a blessing to anyone with highschool children.

Blessings,

Review...Teachable Moments: Big Scholarships

Lee Binz has amazing insight into the world of Big Scholarships! She has waded through this maze already with her two boys and has gotten to the other side with two full scholarships for her boys top college pick. This DVD was the most concise work on the subject of getting scholarships that I've ever watched. I loved all the inside pointers on studing for the SAT, keeping accurate records, making your own transcripts, financial aid, essay writing, and how to find just the right colleges to apply to. Presenting three different and unique views of your child on the essays was just the kind of interesting and indepth information that I have been looking for! I think that EVERYONE, no matter whether you think your child will go to college or not, should buy this DVD. Top notch information and a view on the other side. You can't get this anywhere else.

The website for The HomeScholar is: www.thehomescholar.com and the cost for this amazing resource is a very reasonable $20. Get yourself one today!

I'll be reviewing the last DVD sometime this week and it's called Teachable Moments: Finding A College. I can't wait to watch it!

Blessings,

The HomeScholar Preparing To Homeschool HighSchool DVD's

I just finished watching this three dvd set on homeschooling the highschooler. All I can say is Wow! These dvds really helped me to feel confident in continuing our homeschooling. Lee helped me to see where I am doing things right and also showed me ways to make our homeschooling better. I loved the sections on recordkeeping and on specialization. I don't think I even considered some of my kids areas of focus to be something for us to work on as subjects but it makes so much sense! She really helped me to see where to focus our energies this next year. If you are new to homeschooling a highschooler or even if you've been homeschooling for quite some time, I would highly recommend buying these dvds. I have learned quite a lot from this amazing resource!

Here is the website: www.thehomescholar.com

The price for this three DVD set is $75 and worth far more than this cost.

I will be reviewing her next dvd: Teachable Moments: Big Scholarships in my next post...

Blessings,

My Camera Saga...

It started with this camera...

Casio Exilim 4.0

We began our quest for the perfect camera. Small but sharp. Easy to use but detailed.lol My trusty little Exilim is a GREAT camera. The only trouble I had was trying to take photos of the littles with it or sports shots. My little camera couldn't keep up with the movement or the kids would be teeny-tiny when out on a field.

Macro
Macro

Evie this morning...

This was our next camera. I was not happy with the action shots at all. Many photos were ruined by blurriness. (We gave this one to Allison but she prefers my new camera)

Kodak Easyshare Z650

Macro

Evie still eating her breakfast...

We then moved to a Canon S3IS. My dh traded it in because I still wasn't happy. It was hard getting those moving little ones. I would need at least 10 photos of them just to get one good one. I had to adjust the ISO speed and it helped but then things were grainy. Here are some photos from it...

We finally just moved up the the SLR cameras. This one is my very favorite and I will not be trading it in.lol

It's the Canon Rebel xti (notice it's blurry,lol)

Macro

Evie done with her breakfast...

So basically, that's my review of the whole camera finding process we've been through.LOL I love, love, love, my Casio Exilim for being an easy pocket camera. It takes good stationary shots. It's soooo easy, just point and shoot. (We gave it to Jon and he uses it everyday.)

I love, love, love my Canon Rebel for it's action shots, and wiggly little people shots. It has great color and detail and it's pretty easy to use. I also love that I can buy different lenses for this camera.

Blessings,

Lisa

Review for SRC

I bought some back issues of this magazine on a whim. They seemed like they would be old fashioned and delightful to me! I didn't have a clue as to the actual worth of these until I received the first 5 issues in the mail. What a treat! They are extremely well written, have pertinent articles for today's times in them. I loved the first 5 issues so much that I've ordered the last four this week. Unfortunately, they are not going to be making any new ones but the author has her own blog that looks to be a real treasure. Here's her blog... http://www.xanga.com/item.aspx?tab=weblogs&user=MrsCatherine&uid=246494196

And here's the magazine's website... http://www.makingithomemagazine.com/

Blessings,

Lisa

Yesterday was a LONG day. It started at 5 and never really ended.LOL It was one of those Lemons into Lemonaide kind of days. After I got Sophia asleep around 6:30am, I decided to go ahead and start breakfast. I am sooo thankful that I was the first one in the cubbards! SOMEONE who will remain nameless, had put away all the dirty dishes the night before. Ugh. You know what that means, right? It meant that EVERYTHING had to be rewashed. Now this is where the lemonaide comes in. Instead of being angry, I realized that this was the perfect time to rearrange the cabinets! It was also the best time to wash the silverware compartments and wipe down all the drawers and bottoms of the cabinets. I started by loading my trusty three-tier dishwasher to the maxium capacity and then filled the sink with soapy water. It took me a couple of hours but the end result works so much better than the previous arrangement! Now all the dishes are clean and they all have new homes. I did tell the offending youngster that if it happens again, that person will be responsible for washing all the dishes, by hand and they would lose their allowance for the week. LOL

I had just finished when my Mom came over for a visit. It was so nice to spend some time with her. Usually, we only see each other in passing as she is so busy but will take a little sometimes during the week or on the weekend. We had a nice lunch and a nice visit.

After she left, I had a half an hour before my phone consultation with Lee and Allison recommended that I feed the baby before so that we wouldn't be interrupted. I fell asleep.LOL Lee was very understanding when I called her half an hour late. I highly recommend her services! She and I talked and talked and after an hour and a half, she was able to show me just how much we have accomplished over the past year! It was such a relief to really SEE all the progress we have made and she helped me set my path for this year. After the phone consult, she sent me Allison's transcript, a three page one! Her service is AMAZING and she's really fast!

I was soooo thankful that I had put dinner in the crockpot at 11:30 that morning! I just stuck our ribs in the crock with water and nothing else,LOL and after the call with Lee, I took them out poured BBQ sauce over them and stuck them in the oven for an hour. Voila! Dinner!lol They were really tender and good and I've decided to do this from now on.

After dinner, we did our usual bedtime routine and everyone was in bed by 8, even Sophia. Unfortunately, she woke at 2:30am and wasn't feeling good. I'm guessing she's caught the older kids cold, since she seems stuffy and wants to nurse a lot. I'll be keeping an eye on her today and hopefully she'll perk up soon.

Today has been kind of slow and laid back. The littles were getting cabin fever so we let them play in the rain and are now taking baths.lol We have a mild tropical storm over us today, which is a blessing since we really need a good soaking and it should rain all day. Well, I guess that's it. I hope everyone is having a great weekend!

Blessings,

Lisa