Category Archives: Holiday Fun

$40 Thanksgiving Dinner

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The countdown to Thanksgiving has officially begun and there are only 8 days left! I love the holidays and I enjoy spending time with friends and family but it can get pretty stressful too. Let’s face it Thanksgiving dinner can be a headache especially if you are the one hosting the event. If your finances are already tight this time of year can be more than just a little stressful. According to Fortune, the average family spends approximately $100 on Thanksgiving dinner which is a hefty price tag for most families watching their budget. This year I want to share a few ideas to help you keep Thanksgiving fun and your budget on track.

The first thing I recommend is to sit down a week prior to Thanksgiving and plan your menu. Knowing what your menu is in advance will allow you to price shop and get the best deals. Snag as many grocery store ads as you can so you can compare prices and see who has the best deals. This year my local Kroger store has the best prices so that is where I will be shopping. Once you have your menu planned write down your list but before you hit the store take a look in your pantry first. You may be surprised to discover that you already have some of your ingredients on hand. If you do cross those off your list, grab your favorite cup of coffee and tackle the grocery store. Only buy the things that are on the list because even a few small add-ons can blow your budget.

I am able to keep my budget for turkey day under $40 by making things from scratch. It might be tempting to buy assembled dishes from the grocery store but you’re going to compromise on budget and quality. Keep your menu simple and enlist the help of your family to whip up affordable dishes. Sure you will have more dishes and flour will cover every surface of your kitchen but you will be making beautiful memories and this alone can reduce the stress of preparing a holiday meal. If you are interested in getting recipes for this menu stay tuned because I will be sharing recipes as well as additional holiday tips!

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http://fortune.com/2017/11/20/average-american-thanksgiving-spending/

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A Creeper, a Witch and a Scarecrow

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It has been almost two weeks since we celebrated Halloween and as always life has been a chaotic rush of events. It always takes a few days to recoup after a holiday and Halloween is no exception. You see we have this tradition of not buying store bought costumes instead I handmake each and every costume. This tradition started years ago when money was very tight and I had to think outside of the box for costumes. I realized that while my sewing skills are not seamstress worthy I could make an outfit that could safely be worn for a few hours. In fact, some of the costumes I have made over the years have held up for a decent amount of time so the kids were able to enjoy playing dress up with them.

This year was no different I worked around the clock for several days whipping up a Minecraft creeper, a witch and a spooky scarecrow. Every year the kids pick costumes that are more and more challenging and every year I question my sanity but in the end, it is worth it because of the memories made. We had a wonderfully mild Halloween which is pretty uncommon for us here in the Midwest. A typical Halloween for us involves trick or treating in high winds, rain/snow mix or even full-on ice rain. This is why whenever I make costumes I make them large enough to fit over winter jackets and snow pants that way everyone stays nice and warm and still they are able to show off their costumes.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Halloween and that you have enjoyed some rest and relaxation as we propel into the Christmas season.

 

 

Fun, Free and Spooktacular!

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I can’t believe that its already the middle of October! Halloween is only 21 days away and we are working hard to fit in a ton of fun and spooktacular activities. This morning we ventured to Blue Creek Metropark in Northwest Ohio for a nature scavenger hunt where we also hunted for leaves. We really had a blast and I love getting outdoors with my little ones and making memories with them. Not only did we have fun but we learned how to identify the leaves we found on the ground and we discussed how and why the leaves change colors. We collected a number of leaves for a science experiment that I have planned for later in the week where we will use Chromatography to separate the different pigmentations in the leaves. I will share more information about this experiment later this week in case you want to try this with your little ones.

Today though I do have something fun to share with you and your family and its a great worksheet from Education.com. I absolutely love this website and we print worksheets and lessons from them all the time. A few months ago I was allowed to share a fun math worksheet and was beyond thrilled when they asked if my readers might be interested in Halloween themed worksheet.  If you haven’t had the opportunity to check out Education.com I strongly urge you to click the link below to see all that they have to offer. Whether you are a full-time homeschooler or perhaps looking for supplementary worksheets you will be amazed by the variety and quality of the content on their website. In the meantime enjoy this fun, free and spooktacular treat from Education.com.

 

Find the spooky words in this Halloween word search from Education.com! Find more fun language arts games here.

word search_halloween

word search_halloween_answers

 

 

Baa Baa Black Bat

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Baa Baa Black Bat

Have you any bugs?

Yes sir, yes sir, 3 bags full.

One for the bird

One for the cat

One for the little spider

who lives down the lane.

*Original written by Rudyard Kipling
*Adaptation written byThe Derryberry Kids 🙂

This time of year I like to pile the kids in the car and take a drive in the country so we can enjoy the changing scenery. Seeing the trees turn various shades of yellow, gold and red is truly magical and it is a great way to spend a fall afternoon. A couple of years ago during one of our fall drives the kids reworked Baa Baa Black Sheep and made a Halloween version featuring a bat. Ever since then it has become one of their favorite Halloween rhymes. I really enjoy this and it always amazes me how creative and imaginative my kids can be with just a little encouragement.

 

Has your family reworked a classic rhyme, poem or song?

 

 

Happy October

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Fall is fully underway here in Northwest Ohio. The colors are beginning to change and while our days are still warm the temps are falling at night allowing for restful sleep. Fall is really my favorite time of year and we are only 30 days away to one of my favorite holidays, Halloween.  We love Halloween and we celebrate all fall with fun Halloween activities, crafts, and decorations. Today we spent our morning decorating our front porch with a creepy scene and later this afternoon we will begin to decorate our classroom a.k.a dining room. While we enjoy the creep factor on the outside of our house inside we like to keep our Halloween decorations cute and festive.

I love Halloween themed worksheets, activities, and events to help keep our homeschooling fun. Madlibs are great to include in your language arts lessons and we like to do them as a group so everyone can get involved in the fun. I will include a link to a fun Madlib offered by education.com titled Zombie Story at the end of this post. I am working on putting together a resource list with additional Halloween activities and crafts for you and your family to enjoy. I am hoping to have that posted in the next couple of days. I will also post some pictures of our decorations so you can see how crazy we are about Halloween and fall:).

Do you have a special way of celebrating Halloween? What is your favorite fall activity? Do you incorporate the holidays into your homeschool curriculum?

 

https://www.education.com/worksheet/article/zombie-story/