I Love January!

For a compulsive organizer, taking down the tree, packing up decorations, and vacuuming up the last of the Holiday cheer spurs a flurry of uncontrollable Spring cleaning. I know it isn't Spring yet but January is an excellent time to purge and replenish.

Have you ever noticed "white" sales are always in January? Furniture stores usually boast large sales numbers in January as well. I think it is more common that I thought. The urge to clean up and clean out comes naturally in the dark inside days of January. Furthermore, this is still our school break and I so rarely have start and "finish the job" time to spare so I am on a rampage, every closet, every drawer, everything in sight must have an excuse for being there. I become merciless in tossing, donating and reorganizing. And I'm in my glee. You see for compulsive organizers such as myself, this is the most delightful time of the year. I rethink systems, work on economizing products that we use, and restore order and fresh air in closets, etc. Some of the most inspiring books on cleaning and dejunking I have read are two books by Don Aslett:

Is There Life After Housework?
Clutter's Last Stand

Even though I read them years ago I still use many of the systems that I put in place almost 10 years ago. I still have spray bottles with dilutable cleaning solutions in every room for specific tasks. Bathroom cleaning takes only 3 and a half minutes when done daily. I can wash all the windows of my house, sparkling clean, inside and out in about two hours. (This is the only exception, I do NOT clean windows-in Seattle-in January. I let the rain do that.)

By the time Spring really does come I can be outside planting and preparing for a great summer show of blooms and tomatoes.

Being proactive throughout the year really does mean you can be on top of events and unexpected happenings as they come up instead of drowning in mess and dysfunction.

So, let's see, Kitchen drawers-done, laundry room-done, office and downstairs bathroom-done. Now, onto the school room. Hmm, I wonder if library late fees are tax deductible?

Purposeful Persimmons

I came across a winter salad recipe calling for persimmons. Quite honestly, I stumbled a little and thought, "What's a persimmon?" I had heard of them but had never bought or tasted one. I do not even know if I would recognise them at the grocery store, so to save face I did the only thing any honest homemaker would do. I sent my husband! With a cool and collected look on my face just as he was walking out the door I asked him to pick up a couple of persimmons at the grocery store. His reaction was worse than mine! "Persmidons? What's that?" I rolled my eyes and spelled them for him and told him to ask someone in the store or read the signs, "I want two, please," silently chuckling as I closed the door. I was astonished at the price of 2.00 for two tiny plum sized orangeish fruit but simply followed the directions and peeled them and chopped them for our evening meal.

Wow, I am sold! Persimmons are mine, to love and to hoard. They made a delightful color splash in our green salad and since then have tried them to my delight in a smoothie. Yum. AND, they are grown in the USA making them on my OK to buy list (No US banned pesticides.)
They are somewhat high in carbs and natural sugars but topping a salad makes for a moist sweet flavor boost amongst flat lettuce leaves. They are high in natural iron and vitamin c making them a great winter addition to our diets.

Persimmons are delicious whether eaten fresh, dried, or cooked. As a fresh fruit, they are unbelievable, perhaps the cross between a crunchy peach, and an sweet apple. However you might describe them, the taste of a fully ripened persimmon is superb-incomparable to any other fruit. (Persimmons are featured in the soon to be released book, "101 Foods that could Save your Life,")

Today, I found them at my local Winco grocery store chain (standing for Washington, Idaho, Nebrasca and Colorado,) for only 28 cents each! I filled my plastic bag with visions of what else I can try?
Hmmm,....How about homemade persimmon ice cream? I'll let you know how that turns out.

My friend and mentor Kerry Beck has written an article about her leadership training philosophy. I've included the whole article here. It is very good!

Raising Leaders in your homeschool.
How can teachers use their curriculum to train leaders for the future? How can parents encourage their children to lead when they grow up?

The first place to start in raising your students into leadership is to change your own education paradigm. “What in the world do I mean by education paradigm?” Most of us grew up in a public or private school, which can be likened to a factory. All the students come to the factory or the school. They start in kindergarten and move on to first grade, down the conveyor belt. At each stage of the conveyor belt (or grade level), the student learns the exact same information as everyone else. The students are told what to think.

Even though the school may be using tools like classics, the school’s approach to education only teaches students “what to think”. Too often, teachers lecture and “force-feed” information to their students. Please know I do not believe lectures are bad; they have a place. But too often, teachers lecture, telling their students what to think about the readings. Later on, tests are
given to determine if the student knows what the teacher thinks about the readings, not what the students discover about the readings. John Gatto says it well.

"After you fall into the habit of accepting what other people tell you to think, you lose the power to think for yourself." John Taylor Gatto, A Different Teacher, 2002

When you have a steady diet of lecture, you lose the power to think for yourself. To develop leaders of tomorrow, you need to change the methods used to educate the children of today. How do you look at education? Do you believe educators needs textbooks for everything? If so, you are training your children to follow. The underlying assumption of textbooks is that the teacher and student do not know enough to evaluate resources so the textbook author will do it for you. All the student has to do is learn the conclusions of the textbook to become successful in “school”. This model of education makes great followers who learn what to think. Ponder for a moment. Textbooks give students questions to answer. If the student can answer the chosen questions on a test, he can move on to the next piece of information. Textbooks do not encourage students to think outside of the answers in the teacher’s manual. This model has provided our society with highly trained, but poorly educated graduates. Leadership education takes a different approach to curriculum.

One of the essential elements of leadership is teaching how to think. I don't think your children should complete their education and not know how to think on their own. Shifting your educational model from from "what" to think to "how to think"can be a major change in your life. Below are some practical ways to set a foundation for this type of foundation by starting with yourself. As you teach your children how to think, you might see a lifestyle change for your entire family. Leadership education ultimately involves the family as a whole. Initially, it takes much effort from a parent because you must be involved in learning and growing yourself. You cannot hand over some workbooks and say, "go for it." Workbooks merely teach your children what to think, not how to think.

To begin your own education as a teacher or parent, start by reading one classic. Choose a classic that interests you. If you’re not sure what classic to read, consult a young adult classics list. After you finish your first classic book, read another one. Repeat this until you have read four or five classics. You are off to the start of a fine education for yourself. As your children see their parents studying and learning, they begin to have a different idea of what education is all about. You will be excited about what you are learning and want to share it with your own children. After you finish five classics, read another one and add a writing activity. As you read this classic, keep a reading journal. In your reading journal, write down your thoughts about the story. Share your thoughts with someone else.

Now, it is time to start with your own students. Choose a classic to read aloud together. The first classic you read together should be purely for enjoyment. If your students have never enjoyed classics, you may need to read a few more before moving to journaling and discussing. Once you think your children are ready, ask them to journal about the story after you finish reading each day. Then, discuss what the students wrote in their journal.

Francis Bacon said, “Reading maketh a full man, conference a ready man, and writing an exact man."

Reading, writing and discussing is foundational to developing students who think for themselves. If you want your children to be leaders, they must think on their own and classics are the best place to start.

Kerry Beck is the author of Raising Leaders, Not Followers, which encourages parents to raise their children to be leaders who make wise decisions and call their own shots.

Get Organized and Get Focused!

Well, it's the New Year. Have you spent the day planning, inspiring vision in your kids, serving your family or sitting around watching TV all day? Well, I have done a combination of all of all of these today and that's OK, but tomorrow, it'll be a back to business day and I will be planning and focusing on where we will be going in the New Year. I will be assessing my strengths and weakness and see where I can improve in a few areas. Some coming into focus already are


Homemaking-I plan on continuing to serve healthy meals to my family. That takes planning. What I find the hardest about planning ahead is balancing what my family wants (husband in particular) and what is practical, cost efficient and healthy. (All three don't ways compute in my family) Books to use are Nourishing Traditions, Raw-volution and Cooking free (just ordered from Amazon) I plan on Reading the following books Homemaking by re reading Don Aslatt's books on housekeeping. Anyway, I will try again at meal planning. My goal is 1/3 - 1/2 raw, mostly vegetables, sprouts and salads, and an increase of cultured foods, such as daily- Raw yogurt, kefir, sour cream and cream cheese. I plan on making these myself so there will be a learning curve. I also need to find a source of clean raw milk that is NOT $10.00 a gallon (which is what it is in our local Health Food store) I also plan on including some cultured vegetables. (I've tried them before and enjoyed them but my family-(opps husband again) turned up his nose. I'll try again.
I want to use my microwave less, plan more and cut down on our grocery budget without compromising taste or satisfaction (is that possible)- I'll be doing more sprouting and making some delicious salad dressings.
I also plan on getting my recipes organized- in one spot and findable when needed.
I plan on improving on getting dinner o the table at a more reasonable hour. 6:30pm if possible. I'd like to plan on 5:00pm but there is no way of knowing when my husband will be home. I plan on being tidier and neater and to inspire my children to do the same. I will be using Don Aslat's clutter free living.

Spiritual growth- I will be including in my reading journal for spiritual growth a book by Hannah Whitehall, The secrets to a Happy Christian. and using this for meditation this coming year. I have a prayer goals of certain issues that I need direction on, I will plow on till I receive his will on these issues. I want to reimplemented a daily quiet time focusing in the Lord and his direction in my life. I want to get personal, and have Him dig deep in my heart. It hurts but it is so good to be clean and in his care. I will be doing some word studies and hopefully some character sketches from the Word. I want do a comparative study on David, an example of the spirit controlled life (with a few hiccups) and Saul an example of the flesh) Home Education- I plan on reading 1 book per week, of history, classics etc. I resolve to move along in history moving up to the modern age by the end of this school year.

Parenting- To be more proactive with my children's character training. I have such precious time left and so much more I feel I need to cover and work in them. I will be rereading, Keeping Their Hearts by the Maxwell

Physical- I do regularly exercise but in the last few months,,,.... OK almost a year good habits have gone the way of the fire engine approach. Do what is urgent first. So again be proactive in my intent. And maybe tighten up a little and loose 5 lbs! (That would be great) I will be continuing with Jane Fonda's complete work outs and walking daily with my sons, I hope.

Business-I want to open up a few more areas of product sourcing for our online book sales, adding a new book inventory and perhaps a website to market them as well (not sure) I am looking to increasing sales by 10 percent and stabilizing fluctuating monthly income.

Personal Growth-I plan on learning to type. (gasp she can't type?) Nope, I'm the fastest look at your keyboard typist around but it isn't as good as seeing at all your mistakes happening as you make them, so I plan to attack this weak area.
I plan on organizing the files on my computer so I can find things when I need them most. I really really do want to understand why this ....blessing.... of a computer does all these wacky things when I try to direct it.
Most of all I want to focus on relationships this year; relationships with my two sons, who are still in our home. Time is short and I want to instill a deeper relationship and foster deeper trust.
For my husband I want to enter into prayer on his behalf for his job and a few other important issues and to not let discouragements get me down.
With my grown children and their spouses, I love them all so much. How can I serve them? and my grandchildren.
I want to be a Grandma to be remembered, one with a multi generational goal of spiritual influence. That takes a life a sacrifice, of prayer and of commitment.

OK, so off with the TV and get to work. (actually it's not just plain old TV, it's Hogans Heroes 2nd and 3th seasons collection that my youngest got for Christmas. Hilarious!)

I've got another year to live with gusto. In a nutshell, I need to get organized and get focused.

Pleased to Meet you!

Hello and welcome to my blog that is based on who I am and what I believe in- a homecentered lifestyle. In short, "Home is at the center of all we do."

Homeschooling with vision

Home business for skills

Home cooking for health

Homemaking with love

I will be moving some of the applicable posts over from our other blog over time;

"Raising EntrepreneursAtHome.blogspot.com

and will center most of my time here where my heart is. Join me on a journey, to explore and master some of the ancient skills of making the home the center of life and learning, and all family life.

Janet Langford,

wife,

mom,

grandmother,

homeschool mentor,

entrepreneur

and woman of God

-or aspiring to be all of the above.

Healthy Marmalade and a Natural Antibiotic to Boot!

Every year we make our favorite marmalade and hand it out as Christmas gifts "from our kitchen." This year however, I noticed a link that for some reason I had never clued into before. These two recipes may be prescriptive and preventative, one after the other. The first is a natural antibiotic, just in time for cold and flu season and the other a yummy fresh tasting spread to put on hot buttered toast after you have recovered as a maintenance and a delightful winter treat. They are made from some of the same ingredients and both work great.

The first is what I call my powerful natural antibiotic recipe and is made in a regular blender using organic citrus fruit. They really should be organic as regular oranges and lemons have a lot of chemicals and coloring agents in and on the skin. If you cannot find organic, soak and scrub regular oranges well using a fruit and vegetable cleaner and a scrubbing brush.

The honey should be raw, unfiltered for the antibacterial benefits. Cooked filtered and otherwise processed and altered honey is permanently runny and may be diluted with undesirable sugar or corn syrups, exactly what you do not want in a remedy for a sick person! Raw honey will be a thick liquid that will eventually turn in to a crystally solid and is great on hot buttered toast all by itself.

Perhaps not as important but preferred are organic onions as often store chain onions are treated with anti sprouting agents. (along with potatoes -but we don't use potatoes in this recipe)

So here it is.

2 whole organic oranges, skin pulp and all
1/2 - 1 whole organic grapefruit, same thing, the whole kit and caboodle
1 organic lemon- all of it.

blend with

1 cup raw honey

till smooth as possible.

Add

1 or two large whole garlic cloves or more if you can tolerate it

add a half an organic onion.
Whiz till smooth.
Pour into a glass jar with a lid and store in the fridge for easy and frequent use.

Take 1 tablespoon every hour for the day and evening hours, drink plenty of pure water and expect a quick recovery-without the harmful, and cyclical damage of prescription antibiotics.

Continue the next day if symptoms persist .

Although is sounds like quite an offensive combination it is not entirely unpalatable. If small children object add a little more honey and adjust to a little less onion. We have used this for many years and the first time I tried it on my four year old's ear infection, it cleared up over night!

Perhaps you might want to start with half the recipe to start and see how it works for your family.

AND for prevention in the dark of winter when we have overindulged on Christmas sweets enjoy a very yummy healthy marmalade. Try this one.

2 large organic oranges
1 cup of raw honey

whizzed in a blender till chunky or smooth and poured into glass jars and refrigerate till ready to spread onto hot buttered toast.

(This is the first in a series on natural remedies. Check back for more tried and true natural and healthy remedies for your family)

Hmm, I think I'll go check to see if there is any left in the fridge.

Happy New Years Day and we wish you a great, healthy, prosperous and successful year for you and your family.