Tasty Tuesday~Farm Fresh Hard Boiled Eggs!

Do you like hard boiled eggs?  We do!  We use them for egg salad, a salad topping, or just whole as a snack!  The first time I boiled  an egg that was fresh from the farm I was one of the hardest tasks.  I thought there was something wrong. They were so hard to peel!  The second time I boiled them longer thinking that it was because they were fresher than the store bought eggs.  The third and final time I tried it I put 6 eggs in the fridge in the basement and waited about 3 weeks.  Don’t worry you can keep them for several months when you get them fresh.  They usually don’t last more than a week at our house, though.  
    So I boiled these “older” eggs, and ya know what?  The shells were still hard to peel. 
     We haven’t purchased eggs in the store for almost 3 years, I can’t bring myself to start now!  Our hens have light and heated water containers so even in the winter they lay pretty regularly.    However if we have period when the girls slow down we just do with out.  
   As I was browsing thru kitchen stuff at our local Kroger Marketplace, I came across this product that looked like it would solve my hard boiled egg problem!  Have you seen these things called Eggies?  They are little plastic cups, that allow you to make hard boiled eggs very easily without having to peel the egg shells off after.

These little plastic  things allow you to make hard boiled eggs very easily with your farm fresh eggs! 

Are they easy to use?  Let’s find out.  First, you want to wash them with hot soapy water before your first use.  When you are ready to make your eggs, take a paper towel and dab a little bit of oil (vegetable, canola, olive it doesn’t matter) on it.  You want to rub the oil on the inside of the Eggie.  This will prevent the eggs from sticking when you are trying to get them out. 

  Secondly, you want to crack one egg into each Eggie.   

     Now they are ready to boil!

I think they look funny!

You will want to boil them for about 10 minutes.  These little things float too!

          

   Once they are finished boiling and have sat for a minute you can take them right out and let them finish cooling.  Then you want to store them in the fridge like any other egg. Now, because of the shape of the Eggie, and the way that it is cooked,  your hard boiled Eggie eggs will not look exactly like the traditional hard boiled eggs.  They have a flat side to them.  I think they look kind of funny don’t you?

Good think their shape doesn’t change their taste at all!  Then you can do what ever you want with them, slice them put them on salad, eat them whole, make egg salad or what ever you do with your hard boiled eggs.

  Now, this was a fun experiment and I still have my Eggies.  They come 6 in a box and are really easy to use.  However, I found out a trick that works really well when peeling the eggs.  If you peel them under running water they peel really nicely too!  So if you choose to try the Eggies or use the water method, I hope you find hard boiled eggs easier to have in your home. 

Comparing the two cooking methods, here they are together!

Yep, each one of these is one egg!

Comparing the two cooked/finished products on taste, they are equal.  When going on appearance and performance, if you will.  I think the traditional hard boiled egg is much more pleasing to the eye.  So it would be totally up to you and what your intended purpose is.  I think that the hard boiled eggs are easier than the Eggies, however those are not really all that difficult.

Enjoy!

Snap Decision by Nathan Whitaker

Snap Decision (Game Face) by Nathan Whitaker
   
I received a copy of this book from Zondervan in exchange for my honest review.


    As another football season is so quickly approaching, it is the perfect time to pick  up this book!  It is about the small town of Lincoln, FL.  Where best friends face a difficult time.  Will they make the right decisions?  Will their friendship survive?  This book is about friendship, integrity, character and forgiveness.  Snap Decision also teaches and emphasizes what a good friend and teammate is, while taking a close look at something that our jr high and high school children are subjected to every time they hit the fields: concussions.
     I think that this book is a good book with a lesson that is very well written.  It shows spiritually throughout however in a “non-preachy” way that I think is appealing to the jr high or high school reader.  Some of the characters have strong faith others don’t have any at all, one of the things that children will face when they enter school or public groups, like sports.
I really like the fact that the author has included discussion questions as well as a glossary, great for this not up on football terms/plays momma! The men in the house like to watch sports on tv and of course there is the Super Bowl! 
Nathan also digs into the whole topic of concussions, and has a section in the back of the book devoted to these serious injuries.  He discusses here the importance, the signs and symptoms, if you suspect a concussion, and what to do and the danger signs of a concussion.
I think this book would be a great read for anyone, but I highly recommend this book for any parent and child who play sports.
About the author:  Nathan Whitaker is the coauthor of six New York Times bestsellers, including Quiet Strength, which reached #1 and was co-written with Tony Dungy.  Nathan played football and baseball at Duke University, and he also holds degrees from Harvard Law and the University of Florida.  Having worked in the scouting departments of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Jacksonville Jaguars, Nathan knows his sports.  Currently, he lives with his wife, two daughters and two dogs in Florida.  Visit him online at www.nathanwhitaker.com.

Thank you to Zondervan for the opportunity to review this book!

Get to Know Jesus By Nancy I Sanders

I received a copy of this book from Zondervan in exchange of an honest review.



Get to Know Jesus by Nancy I Sanders is a full color biography for kids.  It’s vibrant colors make this informative book very inviting.  As the book title states you will learn about Jesus and his life.  Within the 12 chapters you will read about parts of his life like, his birth, teaching in the temple, miracles, story and parables as well as his death, just to name a few.  The book has 5 features that will help you understand the book.  These features include: scripture, Bible Hero Highlights, Eyewitness Accounts, Did You Know and finally a Word Bank.  The scripture “Help”  will tell you where the scripture is in the bible, “Bible Hero” highlights heroes in the Bible, “eyewitness accounts” that explain that someone saw what happened and is telling about it, “Did You Know” that will tell you fun facts and finally a “Word Bank” that will explain new words. 
This book is part of a series called the Get To Know series.  You can check out the series at Zondervan here.
From the book cover:  Jesus was once a kid like you!  He went to school, had great friends, learned to be a carpenter, and had to help around the house. Read more about Jesus’ life and work. Learn about the man that changed history.
 About the author:  Nancy I Sanders is the bestselling children’s author of over 80 books including Frederick Douglas for Kids.  She lives with her husband, Jeff, and their two cats in sunny southern California and has two grown sons.  You can visit Nancy at: www.nancyisanders.com  

Thanks to Zondervan for this opportunity!

Our Curriculum Picks 2014-2015

   

With the beginning of the school year around the next bend, I am going to share our curriculum choices for this year. Starting out I will let you in on a bit about our homeschool.  First, we school mostly year round.  However, our summer is a lighter schedule.   We start our new books in the fall-ish time (usually sometime in August) and go until the end of July.  Why does it take us so long?  First of all, we take days off as family days, we take vacations and day trips, we work on 4-H projects and finally when those appointments come up there isn’t any stress about school work-we  just take the day off!  It all comes out to the same number of days.  Secondly, we do some of our subjects together as a family or in groups, like Bible, history or science.  Finally, we try to pick our curriculum and then stick to it for the year.  This will not always be the case but we try to work this way.   It is less confusing, less expensive and obviously more consistent.  So what do we use?  I am not a boxed curriculum homeschool momma per se.  We have used them however I prefer to be able to pick and choose exactly what we are learning.  Below is our list for the upcoming year by grade.  I have included a link to the website where applicable.  Not all of our subjects are purchased curriculums and we also use library books and resources, as well as other supplemental resources like Knowledge Box Central, Currclick, or Timez Attack.  Maybe you will find something in this list useful in your homeschool! I hope that you have an amazing year!

It's all in the bags!  Check out what we will be working on this year!

  High School-Sophmore

Bible-Positive Action for Christ (The Life of Christ)    

Math~ Math U See~Geometry

    Science~Apologia~Chemistry

   History~Notgrass~Exploring Government

  English~Alpha Omega~10th grade

Writing-Writing with Sharon Watson (Power in your Hands-Writing Non-Fiction in High School)

Computer~Switched on Schoolhouse~Fundamentals of Computer Systems

 Health/PE - PACE  High school Health elective, Training for 5K

Art~Art Projects~See the Light
Music-Guitar with music history, including composers

(No specific book)

Jr High (8th grade)

Bible- Positive Action for Christ (The Life of Christ)

Math~Math U See-Pre-algebra

Science~Apologia~Physical Science

History~Notgrass Exploring Government

English Switched on Schoolhouse (grade 8)

Writing- Institute for Excellence in Writing (lvl B)

Health/PE -Training for 5K, nutrition

Art- See the Light (Art Class)

Music~Guitar with music history including composers

(this I do not have a set book for)

Middle School (5th grade)

Bible-Positive Action for Christ (Building Life Castles

 Math~Math U See-Epsilon

Science-Apologia (Exploring Creation with Astronomy)

History-Trail Guide to Learning (Paths to Exploration)

English~Shurley English (Level 5)

Spelling-All About Spelling

Writing-Writeshop Jr

Health/PE-Nutrition and the importance of exercise

Art~Drawing with Children

Music~ Trumpet including basic

(No specific book)

         Elementary (3rd grade)

Bible-Positive Action For Christ (Building Life 

Math- Math U See (Beta)

 Science- (Apologia Exploring creation with Astronomy)

History~ Trail Guide to Learning, (Paths to Exploration)

English-(Shurley English Lvl 3)

Spelling~All About Spelling 
Nutrition and importance of exercise

      (No Specific book)

Art-Drawing with Children   

Music-  Hoffman Academy (Piano)

Penmanship- A Reason for Writing (Cursive)