Making Won Ton Soup

Konos Unit: Honor
Theme: Japan

One of the projects for our Konos study of Japan was to make Won Ton Soup so that we can experience a new food from this most interesting country.  I had never tried Won Ton Soup so I was just as excited as the children to try it.

We started with ingredients recommended by Jessica...olive oil, ginger, spinach, carrots, chicken, garlic, soy sauce, just to name a few.

Rachel helped with washing the vegetables and Nicholas did all of the prep work from cutting green onions...

...to mincing the garlic.

His favorite part was using the food processor.  He got excited just seeing me pull it out of the cabinet.

I did all of the cooking steps just for safety reasons.

Rachel made one Won Ton and Nicholas made all the rest.  He was very meticulous about following each and every step.

He put a scoop of filling in the won ton wrapper.

Then he brushed the edges with water to help them get sticky.  He folded the won ton wrapper over and pressed down to close the three open sides.

Then you place them on a tray, sprinkle them with cornstarch, and cover them with a slightly damp towel to keep them from drying out while he made more won tons.  He made a whole tray of won tons and then we put them in the soup to cook along with all of the other wonderful ingredients.

The soup turned out beautifully and it was absolutely delicious!  Seriously, I had to get a second bowl because my mouth was just that happy.  I can't wait to have some more and I plan to make this often in the future.

Pop Quiz!  Do you know what's wrong with this picture?  The chop sticks should not be resting at the side of the bowl.  As we later learned, proper chopstick etiquette calls for the chopsticks to be placed on the table above the bowl, preferably on chopstick rests, in a horizontal orientation with the pointed ends facing to the left.  Placing diagonal, vertical and crossing each other is simply bad manners.  Ooopsie!

I'm so proud!

Look at these handsome guys!

One is a Wolf Cub Scout in 2nd grade.

The other is an Assistant Cubmaster for our entire Cub Scout pack.

I'm so proud of them both but especially Stuart.  He is so busy already with responsibilities at his job and oh my, there are always things that need his attention at home.  But he knows how important it is to be involved with his children so he makes the sacrifice and devotes a lot of time to be active in Nicholas' Cub Scout pack as well as helping me take him to all of his various extra-curricular and sporting activities.

I'm so very proud!

Japanese Garden

Konos Unit: Honor
Theme: Japan

We're nearing the end of our study on Japan. It's been a lot of fun learning so much about their different culture, architecture, foods, traditions, yet also realizing how much we are alike.

We took a field trip to the Japanese Gardens at the Fort Worth Botanic Garden to see some of the architecture, koi fish, and bonsai trees in person.



Although we've been to the Botanic Garden a bejillion times, this was our first time to visit the Japanese Garden. I can't believe we haven't been here before. It was such a treat!




We started with the Karesansui or Dry Landscape Garden. These are simple gardens with stones, gravel or sand, perhaps a few pruned trees. They are often representations of land and sea and the gravel and sand are usually raked to make patterns.





The children thought it was such an unusual garden and Nicholas hypothesized about the different ways that the gardeners could have made the rake patterns without leaving footprints behind. I was impressed that he noticed that there were no footprints and then came up with ways that this could be done.




The Japanese Garden is so lush and beautiful even in this incredible heat that we've had. There are lots of places to look down over the water and the kids wanted to check out each on of them. They especially enjoyed the carp swimming around in the water.




We've talked a lot about bamboo so it was neat to see bamboo hand rails on along all of the steps. What a simple but authentic little touch.




Rachel was busy checking out a little dead snake. I don't think she realized that it was dead because she was talking sweetly to it.




We discovered this small pagoda.  A pagoda is usually build for a religious purpose.  We just thought they looked really cool.


This picture below was taken from the Waterfall Overlook, another great place to look out at the water.  Oh, what a beautiful place this would be to just sit and read a book or enjoy the sounds of nature.


There are several bridges over the water and, of course, we had to cross each and every one.


We always have fun when we are outdoors.  Rachel is especially thrilled because she discovers so many new sights and sounds.  I like the look of wonder on her face.

There are concrete paths that meander through the gardens with surprises around each bend.  Nicholas led our walk because he just couldn't stand waiting to see what was coming up next.


Another bridge.  This time only Nicholas was crazy bold enough to cross this one.  He loved being able to look down and watch the carp swimming right around his feet.


Nicholas was excited to find some fern.  We had talked about ferns of Japan so it was neat to be able to see how whispy and soft they really are.


Then we stumbled upon the most exciting part of the trip.  There were maybe 40-50 carp in this little area.  It was amazing to see all the brilliant colors and different patterns on these beautiful fish.

As we walked closer to the edge of the water, the fish swam right up to us.  Wow! 


Then we realized why they were swarming us.  Nicholas discovered this little fish feeding station.  You need 1 quarter for a handful of fish food.  Note: brings LOTS of quarters.

Rachel started feeding them first, throwing just a pellet or two in the water at a time.

By now the fish were really excited so when Nicholas threw several fish pellets in at once there was a bit of a fish frenzy!

They were literally crawling all over each other to get those little food pellets!





Rachel made friends with this little turtle.  She talked to it and threw a few food pellets to it.



We ended up feeding tons of fish, 3 ducks, and at least 2 turtles.  It was really fun for all of us!

A mom walked up with her little one in a stroller.  They both walked over to the water and Nicholas shared his fish food with them.  I was so proud of him for his sweet and generous heart.



The colors of fall are just starting to appear.  I bet this place will be even more beautiful in another week or two.


Nicholas found the Moon Viewing Deck.  There really wasn't much to do there so he decided to just chase his little sister around.  Her cackles of laughter led me to believe that she didn't mind it one bit.




Nicholas, my little bug hunter, found this brightly colored bug.  With its orange and black markings, it looks like the perfect bug for Halloween.  We didn't mess with it because those bright colors typically signal danger.  Once we got home, we discovered that it is a large Milkweed Bug.  Milkweed can be poisonous so he may truly be poisonous to something that might eat him.



Even with all of the shade, it was still very hot.  The kids have been loving their Japanese fans.  So Nicholas created this fan from Magnolia leaves.



The scenery here is so peaceful and relaxing that even the squirmy little one was still and quiet for a while...well, at least 2 minutes or so.



Eventually, she had to go shake some wiggles out.


So beautiful!

Even the bird houses are made with Japanese architectural design.



We stopped by the gift store on the way out of the gardens.  I was so excited to see these Japanese red clogs just like the ones we had red about in the book A Pair Of Red Clogs!



We looked at several different bonsai trees.  It's just amazing how old they are yet so small.

The Fort Worth Botanic Garden is located at 3220 Botanic Garden Blvd. in Fort Worth.  Admission to the general grounds are free but the Japanese Garden costs $4.00 for adults on weekends or $4.50 on weekends and holidays.  Children ages 4-12 are $3.00 and children under age 4 are free.

Rachel's First Day At Preschool!

We've been struggling with the idea of whether to keep Rachel home with us this year or to send her to preschool. At this age, she needs a lot of structured hands-on activities and it is hard to keep her entertained while homeschooling Nicholas too. I have lots of art materials and educational toys for her to use while I'm working with Nicholas but her short attention span runs out before we are done and then she seems to find trouble in one form or another. At two, almost three years old, Rachel is all about exploring and getting into things in the blink of an eye.

I've also been trying to work with her on some basic preschool skills while Nicholas is doing a worksheet or reading a story. I want to help her learn to identify letters and improve her counting skills. But it is a challenge to teach two drastically different levels at the same time during the day.

As hard as I try to do it all, I'm still only one mama!

So we have sort of compromised and decided to send her to a half day program that meets two days a week at the preschool that Nicholas went to when he was 2 years old. Rachel will even have Mrs. E, the same wonderful teacher that Nicholas had! We are on a rather tight budget so to pay for preschool we just might be living on Beanies and Weenies, and possibly even rationing the Weenies, but it will be so good for all of us.

Earlier this week we stopped by Rachel's new classroom to let her meet the teacher and explore the room while there wasn't any other children there. She is usually shy around new people but she quickly warmed up to Mrs. E once she saw that we were friends with her (and she discovered what fun toys Mrs. E had to play with!).



It was nice having Daddy with us on this day. Rachel even taught him how this little activity worked.



After Orientation, we let the kids play in the school yard some and Rachel had to check out the water fountain.



Yesterday morning I had to wake up the kids so we could get Rachel to school. I must admit the kids are used to rolling out of bed at 8:00 - 8:30 and it will be a bit of an adjustment to actually get Rachel to school by 8:15. She has been a little nervous about school but when I woke her up and told her that we needed to get ready for school, she jumped up excitedly and said, "Yay! School!" I'm so happy that she's excited about it!

Here she is all ready for her first day of preschool!



She was very excited to pick out her own lunch box, a pink Hello Kitty box. And she is quite proud of the little red bag she got from school.



Nicholas was quite the protective big brother. He held Rachel's hand as we crossed the parking lot and he walked her all the way to class.



He showed her where her name was on the row of hooks and how to hang up her little red bag each day.



She didn't hesitate and walked right into class and started working on a puzzle. This is really amazing for Rachel since she has been really clingy and shy these days.



Mrs. E has a different assistant than when Nicholas was there but she is really nice and gets excited along with the children.



After leaving Rachel in her class, Nicholas and I visited the tree and bench where Nicholas loved to play each day when I picked him up from class. I wish I could get to my pictures of him from back then but they are stuck on a disk and I don't have a working player to read it :(



Nicholas and I got some grocery shopping done after we left school. Several times while at the store, Nicholas commented that he caught himself looking around for Rachel. I agreed and found it hard to relax and just shop. I'm so used to having the wiggly one with me that it was weird to be able to not rush through the store or chase anyone down an aisle.

We got home and breezed right through Nicholas' work that would normally take twice as long with interruptions. What a difference it makes to work one on one!

We went back to school to pick Rachel up and she was all grins. She wouldn't stand right by her teacher to get a picture but she let the teacher stand near her and a little bit behind her. It's a start!



Yes, I think this is going to be a good year for all of us!

How To Have A H.E.A.R.T. For Your Kids by Rachael Carmen

I just recently finished reading the book, How To Have A H.E.A.R.T. For Your Kids by Rachael Carmen. I think God must have placed this book in my lap because it was exactly what I needed to hear and at exactly the right time.

The author is a homeschooling mama so she does shares stories about her experiences teaching her children at home. However, the book is not about homeschooling. It's about loving your children and appreciating them for who they are and Whose they are. I think every parent could benefit from reading this book. I know once I started it, I was soaking up every word and didn't want to put it down.

Every parent worries if they are doing a good job with their children. As a mom, I worry about this daily but also as teacher I have the additional responsibility of providing their education as well. What a stress that can be! But the author has laid my worries to rest as she pointed out somethings that are truly necessary to be a good parent. Yes, I need to address issues with silly phonics rules and frustrations with spelling. But being a good mom, whether a homeschool mom or not, is also about praying to God to help my husband and me to be better role models for our children. It's about making our marriage stronger for our family's sake. It's about loving our kids for who God made them to be. It's about trusting God's plan for our family and our children. And it's about teaching our children to follow His path. When these core life skills are addressed, the other worries over whether to choose textbook A or textbook B will more easily fall into place.

H.E.A.R.T. is an acronym for these tenets that I mentioned above. There is a chapter to cover each one.

H - Have A Heart For The Things of God
I find that I often get tangled up in silly worries that can totally mess up my outlook and attitude. I seem to forget that God already has His hands in our lives. I just need to pray to Him for direction in my life and especially in our school work. How crazy is this - I would easily pray for God to help Nicholas to do well on his karate belt test yet I haven't been praying for God to direct our family's homeschool journey. Sometimes the most simple concepts are the most often overlooked.

"When I asked for wisdom and direction, He gave them freely. He even started to show me things I hadn’t asked for, things I hadn’t realized I needed."

I have since started praying each night before I work on our lessons plans for the next day. It has given me comfort and confidence to get through the planning and makes me excited to go forward and teach my children the following day.

E - Enrich Your Marriage

It is so easy to let the daily tasks overwhelm me. At the end of the day I'm tired and just need break. My sweet husband comes in from his stressful job and wants a break too. But how easy it is to forget his needs and just complain that the dishwasher still needs to be emptied or bug him about the socks on the floor. Rachael says,

"We need to stop criticizing others and begin looking inward and clean up ourselves. We have some corners to dust, some floors to sweep, some sticky spots to attend to."

Seriously! How can I complain about dishes and socks when the entire kitchen island is deemed unusable because it is covered with stacks of papers and plans for wonderful projects that I plan to do "something with someday", yet he never complains about it. We all have our quirks and vices but in a marriage we need to work together as a team to show our children that love is about working together, forgiving each other, and yes, sometimes even sacrificing the use of the kitchen island.

A - Accept Your Kids

This was the chapter that God wanted to smack me over the head with. So often I let my frustration about the things that my children are doing or not doing get the best of me. Why is he so loud and bouncy? Why is she so curious and into everything? Arrrgghh! Why can't they just do what they are supposed to do?

Rachael helped me to remember that they ARE doing what they are supposed to do because they are made in the most wonderful way by the Creator of the Universe.

Who am I to question or want to change that?

"Is it possible that you or I have given birth to an answer to a prayer……It’s possible that the answers to some of these prayesr are already here in the form of a child, a teenager, or a young adult. Are the answers to these prayers growing up under your roof?"

I need to quit wishing for my children to be like other children. I need to quit thinking that they are here just to drive me crazy. Instead, I need to pray for God's plan for these little people to be fulfilled in the most perfect way because they have a beautiful life prepared for them. They just may bring a blessing or miracle to someone else or even the world as long as I don't try to steer them off their intended path just to make my own life easier.

"We must seek God first when it comes to molding our children, or we will make the mistake of molding them into our image instead of His. We will try to make them into what we want them to be for our pleasure and pride and not for the glory and praise of their heavenly Father."

I think this chapter was written just for me. It was what I needed to hear most in this season of my life.

R - Release Them To God

Our children need us to "train them in the way they should go". They are not ours forever. They are sent by God and we must encourage them to follow His path even after they have left the comfort of our nest for He has great plans for them.

When you teach them about God’s faithfulness, sovereignty, and grace; when you don’t rain on their parades with words like “too much”, “too far away”, “too big”, or “too hard”; then they begin to believe that anything is possible. Your kids were meant to change the world. Think of it: young men and women dreaming great dreams for His glory. Isn’t that what this is all about?

T - Teach Them The Truth

We need to be sure to teach our children about Jesus

Regular family worship sets the stage for their day. It puts first things first and sets a tone of praise, submission, service, and sacrifice. Old Testament law taught the value of “firstfruits” (Exodus 23:19), and in the New Testament Jesus admonished His followers to “seek first the kingdom of God” (Matthew 6:33). When we set aside the first part of our morning for worship of Him, He blesses us. He knows what our day will hold even before we rise, and it is His desire to prepare us for it, individually and as a family.

Why haven't we been doing this? We say our blessings over breakfast each morning and we memorize Bible verses each week but we have not had a regular plan for prayer in the morning before starting our school work. What better way to start our day than with giving thanks and asking for direction from the Shepherd and Teacher who wants to guide and light our paths, if we will only let Him.

This book has been such a blessing to me. In just the short time since I've read it, I can already feel a change in my outlook for each day. Our days are so much more joyful and everything seems to run more smoothly.

How To Have A H.E.A.R.T. For Your Kids by Rachael Carmen is available from Apologia Educational Ministries for $13.00. Click HERE to order you copy. You won't regret it!



Apologia offers has some fantastic homeschool curriculum. We currently have one of their science books but I'm planning on using one of their geography books next year.

I was blessed to receive my copy of How To Have A H.E.A.R.T. For Your Kids from Apologia in order for me to review the book. I was not compensated for my time and my opinions are all my own. Please check out what others on the TOS Homeschool Crew have to say about this awesome book!