How to make an apple pie and see the world

Last week turned out to have a geographical tinge. Not only did we "row" How to make an apple pie and see the world by Marjorie Priceman but we also found out about our cultural exchange partners.

How to make an apple pie is a funny story about someone who wanted to make an apple pie and found the market was closed. Instead of buying the ingredients in the market she had to travel the world to find what she needed. We've had this book for sometime and it hasn't lost its appeal although I did find that the idea of actually making apple pie seemed much less attractive to the children than before. Maybe they've done this too often?

Anyway, we did lots of geography. The book has a map which we used to follow the story. We also placed ingredients on the countries mentioned on a big plastic map.

In the book, the salt water is put out to evaporate. We did try this but it has been very cold and I thought that this was more likely to show that salt water and plain water have different freezing points so I boiled up some salt water which showed well that the water evaporates leaving a salty residue.

The matter of keeping the milk and egg fresh comes up. We have put bread, in a bag, in the fridge and ,in another bag, on the kitchen window sill (amazing what ends up on home educator's kitchen window sills-worth a post on its own!). We wait to see the results!

This book lends itself to being acted out. I was a bit distracted at the way eggs were being carried around but the children enjoyed this.

We used apples for printing.

The results weren't fantastic. Perhaps someone has some tips. Mr Exuberance rapidly changed course in favour of hand printing. These prints came out much better although Mummy chickened out of allowing foot painting, definitely an outdoor activity, in my opinion.

Using hands for painting goes down well here. Miss Belle made this apple tree using the side of her hand for the trunk, her hands for the leaves and fingers for the apples.

I thought that playdough apples would be fun. It is always interesting to see how the children often prefer to do something different and their results. Miss Belle became very enthusiastic about making playdough planets and people.

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This week, on to Scotland.

Inspiration in February

February has arrived bitterly cold, after a mild January.

We are thinking about our cultural exchange. This is a scheme arranged through Little Red Farm where families from around the world exchange parcels with families in other countries. The idea is that the parcels contain objects and information which help others gain an idea of what it is like to live here. We've had our list our families through today and are excited to know that we will be finding out about Texas, Hawaii, New Zealand and Poland.

An important event here, in the UK, this year is the Diamond Jubilee of her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. There is a cooking competition for 10-15 year olds called Cook for the Queen. The website talks about schools but I have contacted the organisers who have informed me that the competition is open to groups of home educated children provided they are in the right age range and not just siblings.

For smaller children, Miss Belle is loving Reading Eggs. This is a phonics based reading programme. We are using it to supplement Jolly Phonics. She loves the Reading Eggs so much that she often requests it in her free time. It is also useful for when I need to work with Middle Son. There is a free trial and also many codes around which extend the free period to several months (google Reading Eggs codes).

I must mention the Usborne Big book of science things to make and do again. My younger two children love this book-and so do I. It has just so many activities, some of which are very quick and it has kept them busy for ages. Each activity introduces a scientific principle in a fun and relaxed way. We haven't used this in a systematic way, mainly the children choose the activities that they think would be interesting. Most of the materials are the sort of things that are around the house. I've had to buy straws and chocolate.

Tessellations

3-D vision game

States of matter-with chocolate, of course

Finger prints

We have done a few more activities although without pictures and have many more still to do plus the stickers! 

Buoyancy and icebergs

We've been reading about boats and barrels floating, in our Five in a Row book for this week, Ping by Marjorie Flack.

This has been a springboard for exploring buoyancy. Such a wonderful excuse to throw everything in the bath tub-yes, that did include a rather dirty stone.

 The children enjoyed predicting what would and wouldn't float. We discovered that full cartons sink and empty ones float. The empty ones are brilliant models for why boats float.

Ice is always good for tasting and exploring. We made model icebergs-some small (ice cubes) and some larger (using small containers). We coloured our largest with red food colouring-blue would have been better but some people do like making various coloured concoctions so that it had disappeared.

It was more difficult to predict whether ice would float but it did. The large iceberg showed really well how much of the structure is under water.

This was a fascinating springboard leading to talk about the Titanic and the structure of ice.

Mr Exuberance loved the water and managed to get his tongue stuck to an iceberg, at one point. He wasn't so interested in this discussion but did enjoy Busy boats by Ant Parker, that we read along with this. Lovely rhyme and mentions why boats float.

This is linked to Science Sparks.

Three generation holidays

At this time of year, many people are planning holidays. This post is about the practicalities of going on holiday with a frail person. It is not about going on holiday when Granny is able to babysit and walk up mountains. I'm sure there may be issues with this sort of holiday but I'm not qualified to talk about this!

Holidays can be fun but there is no right to go away. It is a truism but it doesn't always feel like that when everyone else is packing and it seems that we are the only ones left. It is a minor thing to upset our contentment but I know that I have struggled with this. Paul says

I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.

Philippians 4v11

Many families take an elderly relative on holiday. Where the older person lives permanently with their younger family, it seems reasonable, in many ways that they should come on the family holiday; after all they are part of the family. It may also seem reasonable, to the younger generations, that they should have a break from caring.

We have had

• holidays with an older relative
• non-family carers to stay
• family members stay behind

This is just about the first option.

A holiday with a frail or disabled person takes more planning. These are issues that will need to be addressed.

• Is the person concerned fit to go on holiday? People with dementia may get much more confused away from home. Has their doctor advised against them going away for any reason?
• Travel-most people are fit to go away but may not manage a long car journey. If they are relatively fit, they may manage better on a train but this isn't an easy option for people who walk but are unstable.
• Travel again-taking an older relative may mean taking a second car, with additional petrol costs and taking away possibilities of sharing driving. Again, shorter distances may be better.
• Journeys will take longer-frailer people are unlikely to be able to travel at night/very early in the morning and will require more stops. Again, a reason not to go too far away and to take plenty to occupy little people on the trip.
• The property is likely to need a ground floor bedroom with an en suite bathroom. 
• Steps to the property can be a no, no.
• Day of travel-it may be easier to travel on a Friday as the roads may be quieter and it is easier for the less fit members of the party to be able to go to church on the Sunday.
• Is there a good church close to the property? It is so refreshing to have spiritual blessing on holiday. Travelling a few miles to a holiday church isn't an issue for the young and fit but may be an issue for those for whom the journey has been a major endeavour.

Once on holiday, it can be difficult to balance everyone's needs. Prayer for a right attitude from everyone is really important.

 We have found that everyone enjoys meals out and the beach-it is worth trying to plan these into the programme.

 It isn't necessary to spend all the time together but don't assume that because someone is less fit they want to be left behind. Some of our most successful trips have been where everyone travels to the same location but divides into groups on arrival.

Some practical tips

• Don't prolong days out. Children and teenagers with plenty of energy can go for nightwalks/read/play games in the evening. 
• Think about walking distances. How far is the elder able to walk? Will it be necessary to take a wheelchair? Will the distance from the car park to the beach be further than they would normally walk? Will they manage?
• The beach may be beautiful but are there facilities?
• Research the area-is it somewhere with pleasant memories? Would it be an idea to go to see Great-great-grandma's house? Are there historic sites/houses to visit which cater for those who find walking difficult and provide child-friendly, interactive activities? Many National Trust and English Heritage sites would come into this category.

Happy holidays!

This is linked to Works for me Wednesday.

Finish the race-Eric Liddell

I was excited to review this new biography of Eric Liddell, the 1924 Olympic gold medal winner. Living in London in 2012 it seemed this book was a must read and I wasn't disappointed.

John Keddie has produced a short biography of Eric Liddell aimed primarily at children from 7-14 but an enjoyable read for a busy adult and accessible enough that my five year old enjoyed having portions read to her. Middle Son, aged 11, liked the book enough to read it in the car-an unusual event.

Liddell  was born to missionaries in China but educated in London, at Eltham College. The description of the six year old having to part from his family brought tears to my eyes. Can you imagine leaving a six year old for several years?

The most famous part of Liddell's life was his refusal to run on a Sunday in the 1924 Paris Olympics because he wanted to keep the whole of Sunday as the Lord's Day. This meant that he was unable to take part in his chosen event, 100m. Liddell instead took part in a less favoured option, the 400m, and went on to secure gold and set a new world record. However, the latter part of the book, and of the life, is probably just as fascinating as well as being less well known. Liddell was humble and willing to forego fame and wealth to serve his Lord.


There are a couple of minor things that would improve this book further. We are told that Liddell professed faith as a teenager but little more about this-it may be that little is known but I would have liked to have known more. A sketch map of China would have been useful-many of the locations were unknown to me without a map.

My thoughts-definitely worth reading and a definite challenge to honour the Lord God above all else.

Finish the race-Eric Liddell by John Keddie was provided by Christian Focus for this review. The opinions are my own.


Finish the race is obtainable from Christian Focus and  Christian Bookshop Ossett.

Pushing the boundary with veg-pak choi

I haven't pushed the boundary with fruit or veg for a while now but have a list of recipes to try this year.

Today is Chinese New Year and, not only that, but we are "rowing" Ping, by Marjorie Flack, which is set in China with the younger children. So today was the day to try stir fried pork and ginger. I had hoped to have a link as the recipe is in my BBC food recipe book but sadly, it doesn't seem to be on the BBC site.

Suffice to say, this is a simple recipe involving stir frying pork fillet, garlic, ginger with vegetables. The recipe suggested Savoy cabbage but I used pak choi and added in the sprouted mung beans that we grew.

Success, everyone enjoyed it-not easy when cooking for eight. Even my most fussy eater ate the pak choi-possibly not realising that a form of cabbage was involved.

I need to stir fry more often!

Some very practical thoughts on caring

This is the second post from Hazel Stapleton of On Eagles wings. Do look at her first post yesterday. Today Hazel talks about the practical side of caring.


 For someone who has always enjoyed good health, the idea of trying to
help a person with a chronic health problem or disability that has lasted for many years
and that they know nothing about may seem a bit daunting. What should be done?
How can we sympathise with someone if we have never experienced their particular
problem? Will we cause offence by saying the wrong thing? These are natural concerns,
but should not put people off from trying!



The vast majority of the people with long-term health difficulties that I have come across
over the years would be absolutely delighted to have someone get in touch with them
and show some support and concern. If you don't know what to do or say, ask! If you
know that a person has a particular illness or disability do a bit of reading around on the
subject, look up support groups on the Internet, look out for leaflets in your local
doctors' surgery. The fact that you have shown an interest, learnt a little about the
problem and gone to the effort of getting in touch will be greatly appreciated and be a
real encouragement to the sufferer.



When ill, receiving a letter, phone call, email, or even a short visit from a fellow Christian
means such a lot - and I am sure that it is virtually impossible for those who are healthy
to realise how much doing just a little thing like writing a little note can mean, resulting
in many simply not bothering. However, I would urge you to bother, to go to the effort
of sending a card or email, making a phone call, dropping in for a visit (but do phone
first and don't stay for too long!); it means so much and is such a help and
encouragement.



However, saying that, do be careful. Don't start something that you can't keep up. It's
no good saying that you will call in once a week if you cannot do it in the long-term.
Chronic health problems are a “long haul”. Far better to visit once a month and be able
to stick at it over a number of months or years, than try calling every week only to find
that you can't keep it up and so have to stop after just a few weeks.



When visiting someone with long-term health problems it is likely that they will be, to a
greater or lesser extent, physically dependent on others to manage from day to day.
However it is important that the sufferer does not become spiritually dependent on any
particular person i.e. you mustn't become a “spiritual prop”! It is important to be there
to help them, but try to direct them to the Bible, to find their ultimate help and strength
from God and His Word.



One other thing to bear in mind is that the person you are trying to help may feel rather
useless due to their circumstances. They may have had to stop many of the things they
used to do at home, at work and in the church. Do suggest to them that they maintain
an interest in and pray for other people. Missionaries known to the church could be a
particular focus for their prayers. Writing letters or emails to those working abroad
(something that I have enjoyed doing for many years) can be encouraging on both
sides, as can helping others with the same health problem. Also remind them not to
underestimate what a powerful witness it can be to non-Christians to see someone
coping with a long-term illness. J C Ryle commented that it is possible for those who are
ill to "honour God as much by patient suffering as they can by active work. It often
shows more grace to sit still than it does to go to and fro, and perform great exploits".



Be Practical - try to think of things that you would find helpful if you were house-bound
or bed-bound. For example, offering to help with shopping, cooking meals, giving lifts to
doctors. and hospital appointments. If the person is well enough just offering to take
them out for a short drive is likely to be greatly appreciated. Going out even for a short
time can give a tremendous boost.


Be Spiritual - one of the hardest things that I have found, as a Christian, to cope with
during the years of ill-health is the lack of Christian fellowship due to not being able to
attend church very often. Listening to recordings of the ministry is to be recommended,
and a great help, but being cut off from your Christian family is very hard.


Be Encouraging - chronic ill-health is hard, especially in our society when we are used to
the idea that if any health problem arises we can simply go to the doctors and get a
prescription to make us better!


Being long-term sick means that it is easy to lose touch with what is going on in the “big
wide world”. Talk about normal things. Tell the person about your family, what's
happening at the church, any interesting places you've visited. Don't expect the sick
person to initiate the conversation, after all they may not have been anywhere or done
very much, meaning that it is not easy start talking. At the same time, give them time
to talk about whatever is on their mind.



You don't need to have experienced an illness in order to help and support someone with
it. Be honest. Admit that you don't know much. Most people with a long-term problem
know a lot about their condition and will be happy to fill you in on the details - probably
in far more detail than you actually need or want to know!



Be Forward Looking - it is always good to talk with those who are ill about Heaven!
Remember that this World is not our home, we are just a-passing through. Whether or
not we will be healed in this life is unknown, but in Heaven we will see our Saviour and
we will be free from sin and from suffering. “For the unbeliever, death is the end of all
joys; for the believer, death is the end of all griefs” (Matthew Henry). Always “looking
for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Saviour Jesus Christ”
(Titus 2 v 13).

For yonder a light shines eternal 

Which spreads through the valley of gloom; 

Lord Jesus, resplendent and regal, 

Drives fear far away from the tomb. 

Our God is the end of the journey, 

His pleasant and glorious domain; 

For there are the children of mercy, 

Who praise Him for Calvary's pain. 

W V Higham (used by kind permission)

Hazel Stapleton, January 2012

On Eagles Wings