A Shark Quickie

A couple of days ago, my girl, Tasha, shared a link for 9 free kids ebooks on various animals. I jumped at the freebie and loaded them to the Kindle App. On the way home yesterday, the Prince started reading Sharks and finished 75% of it. At dinner he was telling his daddy all about sharks. So this momma wasn't gonna let a great lesson end there. This morning, thanks to the fabulous Step Into Second Grade, we continued our poetry lesson my completing the Shark ebook and making a very cute scary shark poem. Head over to Mrs. Lemons blog and get you free Shark templates. I can't wait to find projects for the next 8 books.


Thanks again, Tasha!

Ewww. Frogs.

I don't like frogs. The end. Well, not the end because I haven't blogged anything yet. I still don't like frogs.


I do like teaching basic poetry while practicing verbs and adjectives in the form of a Cinquain poems though :).This is where the husband would make a face and say "you're such a dork!"


Thanks to Step Into Second Grade for the uber cute and crafty frog idea and The First Grade Parade for the FREE brainstorming and planning sheets!

We started off reading a couple of thought enticing books. Thunder Love enjoyed them.

MMMMMM, I LOVE CURRY!

Super Easy, GF, Vegan, Protein Packed and Yum-O Delicious!

I know that convenience food is just that, convenient. So, I need some convenient food/recipes in my life too. What's a food conscience momma to do??!!

I'll tell you that we are a fruit loving family, so you may see us dipping apple in raw peanut butter at any given moment, due to convince and healthiness.

But what about a hot, healthy and convenient meal? Well here is one you may catch us eating for lunch on any given day:

Curry Quinoa and Chickpeas

Ingredients:

1 TBS coconut or olive oil
1/4 diced onion
1 garlic glove, minced1 1/2 cup cooked quinoa**
1 can, rinsed and drained, organic garbanzo beans/chick peas 
2 tsp. curry ( or more depending on your spice level)
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Sautee onion and garlic.
Then add all other ingredients, heat through and serve!

*I cook with quinoa a lot, so I always have cooked quinoa in my refrigerator. It makes dishes like this super easy*

A Quick and Fun Turtle and Verb Review

This week we watched a movie and read a book about turtles. Turtles are dear to use because our Tommy the Turtle was the Prince's first pet.


Thanks to Mrs. Lemons from Step Into Second Grade our verb and writing activity was simple, cute and fun. Head on over and print your freebies too!


Earlier this week we collectively came up with verbs related to the activities of turtles then today the Prince created his own turtle with "verb spots" and finally he used some of the verbs to write a paragraph about turtles.

"My turtle is fast. He can see and walk.

He can hide in his shell. I think turtles are cool"

Thanks to my girl, Gwen, for this cute picture!

Basic Gluten Free 101

The Prince and I have been gluten free (GF) for approximately two years. I have been approached by people out of curiosity and out of necessity with regard to "Where do I start?" So I thought I would post some very basic starting points. Here's the thing about the Prince and I, we are both vegetarian (often vegan) which made things a bit more challenging at first, but I learned and so can you. I sometimes take things to extreme (okay, all the time...but who's counting) so, I now make most things from scratch, from cakes to vegan GF chicken nuggets...but I'm crazy and that's way too much info. for a newbie; so luckily for you, none of that non-sense will be included. This is basic folks, basic.

Let's start with the basic foods that are naturally Gluten Free:

Meat
Poultry
Fish
Eggs
Potatoes
Rice
Fruits
Veggies
Beans
Most Dairy

**These need to be closely examined is they have pre-made sauces. Sauces often contain gluten.**

The above list can be a great starting point for a newbie! Now, let's move on to various GF products....this can be dangerous...to your pocket! I can not tell you how much $$$ I wasted on various GF items that tasted like dirt. Luckily, I have tasted lots of them and have my favorites. Different stores offer varying amount of GF items, but Whole Foods will most likely have every item I have listed.

Bread, muffins, waffles, etc

Canyon Bakehouse Hamburger Buns - these buns, in my opinion, are the most superior GF bread I have had.

Canyon Bakehouse Slice Bread is also a good bread.

Udi's is good too. If you have a Jason's Deli restaurant near you, they sale Udi's bread and the slices are much larger, for some reason Udi's bread has tiny slices...??
  
Against the Grain GF Baguettes...holy yum!

Van's GF Waffles provide an easy breakfast.

Udi's frozen muffins are good when toasted.

Bob Red Mill's GF Oatmeal - Click HERE for on of my favorite easy oatmeal recipes

Cereal : Kix, Chex, Fruity Pebbles and then tons at Whole Foods. My favorite right now is Nature's Path: Crunchy Maple Sunrise

OH! and I really like Enviro Kids Panada Puffs; they taste like Captian Crunch.

Frozen Pizza

Udi's make a decent pizza crust to make your own pizza
  
Against the Grain makes a delicious pizza (my favorite)



Cookies

Two all time favorites: WOW and Udi's

Ordinary Snacks that are GF

Most tortilla chips and salsa

Original Lays potato chips

Fritos

Most microwavable popcorn

Most rice crackers


We don't eat fast food, but everyone should have a fast food option in case of an emergency hunger pain!

Wendy's : baked potato and side salad (no croutons)**make sure you read the ingredients of the salad dressing** and a hamburges sans the bun.

Chik fil a : fries, salad (no croutons), and they will grill chicken if you ask

Chipotle: everything on their menu except flour tortilla and they will change their gloves before preparing your food if asked

Jason's Deli: has a GF menu, just ask


**This is post is meant to be fairly basic. I know there are tons of items not listed. Two points I want to make, you must READ the ingredients (Did you know most soy sauce contains wheat??) on everything you buy and when dining out there is always a chance of cross contamination and everyone's intolerance level is different. 

More and more restaurants are offering GF menus, if you are not sure before heading to the restaurant call and ask or check their website. This will save you stress of whether or not you will have options.

Hopefully this post was helpful and if you ever have more specific questions or food recommendations...ask away!

Now, pictures of my Prince and one of my Gma...just because :)

Yep, it's freshly squeezed.

Spring, Peter Cottontail and a Little Pizza

Can you believe we are still NOT 100% better? I can't believe myself. Regardless, I was determined to have some homeschool fun/learning this week despite feeling like something nasty that gets stuck to the bottom of one's shoe. So, I started stalking reading my favorite blogs and HOLY CUTENESS, I hit the jackpot! These activities went right along with what the Prince is learning:


This adjective review project is compliments of Step Into Second Grade.





 This adorable fraction rabbit and yummy looking pizza project are both compliments of The First Grade Parade.

If you are going to have the Prince do a pizza fraction lesson, he should have real pizza to eat along with it. The silliness is compliments of non-other than my Chef Aiden( more on the cute hat in a future post!)

Overnight Orange Oatmeal - DELICIOUS!

I found the idea of Overnight Oatmeal on Pinterest and immediately thought it sounded like a great idea! Just think, you prep it at night and before the Prince or my tummy could say "I'm hungry!!" Viola it's ready! What I didn't anticipate was how Ah. Maaa. Zingly. delicious it would be! So click HERE is you want to see the original recipe or just keep reading to see my version.

**Typically I would just eat it straight from the mason jar, who needs to dirty another dish??, but a bowl is easier for the Prince.

Ingredients

• 1 cup GF Oatmeal
• 1 1/4 cup almond milk (or milk of choice)
• juice of 1/2 an orange (I've been using Navels)
• zest of one orange
• 1 tablespoon agave nectar/honey or your sweetner of choice
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/8 teaspoon ginger

**I have also been adding bluberries - YUM!

Instructions

1. Mix all ingredients together in a seal-able container and let sit overnight in the refrigerator (10-12 hours).
2. If it is thicker than you like add 1/4 cup of milk (I do this) enjoy cold or microwave for 45 seconds to take the chill off and to thicken the texture (I do this). Stir, add toppings as desired and enjoy.

Chicken Noodle Soup - With No Chicken

The Prince created the title, simply defined. This recipe is vegan and GF, but make it how you like. We were in high need of chicken soup due to being a sick, aching, and contagious house for what has seemed like FOREVER....

Who needs medicine?!

Bring on the chicken noodle soup - with no chicken!

Okay, on to the happiness, or at least mild comfort, of food.

Ingredients

1 TBS olive oil
2 minced gloves of garlic
1/2 onion - diced
2 peeled and diced carrots
2 diced stalks of celery
3 No-chicken bouillon cubes
6 cups hot water
1/4 chopped parsley
2 cups cooked GF (or not) pasta**
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

Sautée onion, garlic, carrots and celery for 6 to 8 minutes in medium to large sauce pan.
Add 3 bouillon cubes.
Add 6 cups hot water.
Bring to boil, reduce heat, add cooked pasta and parsley.
Simmer ingredients for approximately 10 to 15 minutes.

**If you plan to eat right away then immediately add GF noodles, if you plan to eat it over time i would suggest adding the GF prior to heating up the soup**