The inspiration for our coop:

Finished product:

Easy access to the eggs:

I must say, Josh did a great job. His natural, domestic skills never cease to amaze me.

~audrey

**Warning: the following post will bore you to tears if you aren’t a gardener! 🙂 **

Yesterday (February 4) marked ten weeks before Augusta’s average last frost date. Therefore, it is officially seed starting time!

Below are pictures (since I don’t know how to post a document!) of my two 4×8 garden layouts as well as my reference sheet (which plants correspond with which number), and a helpful seed starting chart that I made this morning. The only plants that need to be started 8-10 weeks before the last frost are cabbage, kale, celery, and bell peppers. I did not have very much luck with the seeds I started indoors last year. I’m hoping for better results this year. I did read that it can be helpful to transfer the sprouted seeds to small, individual pots before hardening off and transplanting outside. This prevents their roots from getting intertwined with the other seedlings. I found these pots at the garden center down the street for $.15 each!

Bed One:

Bed Two:

Plant Reference

Seed Starting Chart

My third and final bed will be 4’x6′ and will be strawberries only. I read all sorts of great info online today about how to maximize your strawberry bed. I will only plant one per square foot, even though the real square foot gardener says you can plant up to four per square. Here is the general info that seemed most helpful:  If I will cut off all runners and maximize nutrients to the mother plant, I will have a nice 12-18″ plant in each square and each plant should put out about a quart of strawberries.  Once harvesting is complete, trim plant down to about 3″ above the crown, cover with a heavy layer of mulch for winter, and you’ll be good to go for 3-5 years with the same strawberry plants!

I know I’m a nerd.  But I figured some of you may be as well!  I hope this was helpful.

~audrey

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January went very well as we ate much healthier. The boys asked for snacks much less since the food they were eating at meal time was so nutritionally dense. We definitely spent more money on fresh produce last month than any other month I can think of. However, we did not spend any money on empty carbs such as granola bars, cereal bars, crackers, etc.

Here’s my dilemma:  I have a strict grocery budget of $100/week.  I was able to stay on budget last month, but ONLY because I already had my freezer stocked with meat.  I didn’t have to buy any chicken or ground beef/turkey at all last month.  It is a new month and we’re continuing our fast food fast.  I went to the grocery store yesterday and was really disappointed to see my total:

$118

For the last several years I’ve been grocery shopping for two weeks and a time.  However, I definitely feel like I’m saving the most money by shopping only one week at  a time right now.  It’s very easy to determine exactly how much of each item you’ll need when you’re only shopping for seven days.  I think for next week I may even limit our breakfast choices to two options (for example oatmeal or yogurt and granola).  I’m trying hard to simplify and cut every dollar that I possibly can while still making good, healthy choices.  I was trying to think of things I could’ve eliminated from yesterday’s shopping trip to save money.  I didn’t really need coffee creamer.  I had a little left in the fridge and I don’t even make it everyday so I could’ve gone without it ($2).  Two things I had to buy in order to make more bread were both expensive.  Powdered milk was $8 and honey was $6.  Thankfully, these ingredients will last me a few months before I need to buy them again.  That’s $16 right there and I would’ve almost been at the $100 mark.  Also, I was planning to make homemade veggie pizzas one night.  Sauce and dough are cheap to buy/make, however the artichokes alone are $3/jar, mushrooms are almost $3 fresh, and a large bag of shredded mozzarella is over $6.  Instead I bought a 16″ veggie pizza from Walmart’s deli for $7.98!

Here is my menu for the next week.  I actually had more than seven dinners planned because of what I already have in the house, so going over budget by $18 this week should really balance out by the end of the month.

Keep in mind, yesterday’s grocery trip was all done at Walmart.  I had no coupons and did not shop sales.  I simply did not have time for that this week.  All of these meals are based on many ingredients/items I already have.

Breakfasts:

cream of wheat

oatmeal

grits, eggs, bacon

biscuits and gravy

pancakes

blueberry muffins

fruit and yogurt

Lunch:

turkey, apples with almond butter

pb & j sandwiches (these are organic on whole wheat bread)

deviled eggs, yogurt, and baby carrots

soup and baby oranges

Dinner:

Lasagna, salad, and garlic biscuits

Chicken and Dressing (Southern Living crockpot recipe- YUM!) and sweet potato casserole (already had all ingredients)

Tomato Soup and Grilled Cheese sandwiches

Veggie Pizza

Chicken, Corn, and Wild rice casserole and green beans

Tilapia and broccoli cheese and rice casserole

White Chicken Chili

Hot Dogs, baked beans, fresh broccoli with ranch dip

Broccoli, Ham, and Cheese Soup (another fantastic Southern Living crockpot recipe!)

Snacks:

apples

bananas

applesauce

popcorn

string cheese

almonds

I’m really excited to try Pioneer Woman’s recipe for “the best coffee cake in the world”.  At least that’s what her husband thought it was until she broke the news to him that it is really Prune Cake!!!

I already have all of the ingredients so I’m going to make it this morning and see what the kids think!    🙂

Happy Rainy Friday!  It’s yet another jammie day at Wilkerson Academy!

~audrey

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Okay, so it’s not really THAT bad, but I can’t remember the last time all three of my kids have been laid out for a solid week.  I think it may have started with Joshua when he had a fever last Thursday.  It only lasted about 24 hours, but that was all my immune-deficient six year old needed to catch those germs and run with them.  By Sunday Jesse was running a 104 fever and by Tuesday he hadn’t eaten in three days and I finally took him to the doctor.  I’m one of those mothers who would really rather wait it out before rushing to the doctor.  With almost eight years of motherhood under my belt, I feel fairly confident as to when it’s time to go to the doctor and when it’s time to let a virus run its course.  There’s nothing worse than loading four or five kids into the van (including the sick one that really doesn’t want to leave the house), sitting for an hour in the waiting room while everyone else’s sick kids cough and sneeze all over you, only to be told  “Your child had a virus when you walked in the door, but within a week they’ll probably have the FLU since you just sat in our waiting room for an hour. Either way, there’s nothing we can give you. Just go home and rest.”  haha!

Owen developed a nasty cough and his nose is running like a faucet.  Thankfully he hasn’t had a fever.  And by the time Joshua and I got home from church last night (I thought I had left all the germie kids at home with Josh), Joshua had a 101 fever and still had it when he woke up this morning.  He asked for some medicine but I explained to him, if he thought he could handle the fever without medicine it would be allowing his body to do what God created it to do.  Fight those germs.  I also explained to him that the other day Jesse was taking tylenol and motrin and every three hours to keep his fever down.  When the medicine kicked in, Jesse thought he was “all better” so he started playing and got very rough….several hours later is when his fever spiked again at 104.  The fever is GOOD for you if you’re willing to rest and let your body fight off the bad stuff.  So, he opted to wait it out.

Here are the quarantined:

It’s been a full week of laying around doing nothing. We haven’t done any school work and we missed co-op on Tuesday. Today I plan to clean and disinfect!

By the way, remember the miracle twins we’ve been praying for? They went home yesterday!!! Erin text me this precious picture this morning after their first night at home as a family of five. We praise You Lord!

Happy day-before-Friday!!

~audrey

I love new beginnings.

Mondays.

January.

First of the month.

New school years.

First day of summer.

Today is the first of February and I’m excited about a new month.  Today I will balance the check book, pay bills, change the boys’ sheets (don’t worry, that’s not just a once a month chore!), update our calendar for this month, and take food inventory so I can clean out the fridge and make a menu and grocery list.

Today also marks the third verse in the Siesta Scripture Memory Team challenge.  My third verse is Philippians 4:8

“Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.”

One thing the Lord is really working in me lately is taking every thought captive (as I mentioned yesterday) and striving for the things in Titus 2:3-5.  I suppose I will memorize those verses as well at some point.  Right now I’m focusing on being discreet.

Webster defines discreet as being judicious in one’s conduct or speech, especially with regard to respecting privacy or maintaining silence about something of a delicate nature.

I suppose this applies most in my life to the topic of gossip.  I certainly don’t sit around with my friends and talk badly of others, but I’ve noticed lately how easy it is to take part in conversations that start out innocently and before you realize it you’re speaking in a way that doesn’t glorify God.  I just want to be more conscious of every word that comes out of my mouth.  And not just the words, but the tone and intention as well.

February’s challenges will be a fast food fast again and being consciously discreet.  Our fast food fast went very well last month for about 23 days.  For whatever reason, Josh and I just flipped a switch at the end of the month.  We were busy, low on groceries, and over committed in the evenings.  As a result, there were many dollar menu drive-thru dinners and $5 Little Caesar Pizzas.  This month, I’d love to make it the entire 28 days!  It definitely helped us stay on track with our budget almost perfectly…until we blew it at the end of the month!

Clean slate!

~audrey

Boy, oh boy does my house need a good thorough cleaning.  I mean the whole house.  That’s what I plan to do tomorrow after my weekly group training at the canal.  Thankfully, it should be a lot warmer this weekend; up into the 50’s and sunny!

We’ve had a very nice week at home.  The twins haven’t gotten here until around 9am each day, we’ve taken our school work in small bites, and the kids have been able to play outside some every day (that makes a huge difference in my house!).

I’ll have Monday off next week because the twins’ mom doesn’t have to work, so I’m looking forward to bringing lunch to a friend who recently had her sixth baby.  I haven’t seen her in months.  Her four oldest are boys so my kids will be very excited to play with them as well.

I’m suppose to meet two of my running buddies at an indoor track in an hour and I’m going back and forth and back and forth in my head as to whether or not it makes sense for me to take all five children to an indoor track, push a double stroller, and likely get the girls down late for their naps.  But I know if I go I will be meeting my workout quota this week and it will also help me eat better for the rest of the day.  I think I’ve done well this week.  I’m hoping to see another 4 or 5lbs lost by Monday!  I need to be drinking more water.

Tomorrow will be the 15th and I’ll be posting my second Bible verse for Beth Moore’s Siesta Scripture Memory Team. I’ve chosen two verses that just can’t be split up.

“This you know, my beloved brethren.  But everyone must be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to anger.  For the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God.”  James 1:19-20

Lisa Welchel, in her book Creative Correction uses part of this as her “mantra”.  The anger of Mom does not produce the righteousness of God. I always loved that!    🙂

May we all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to anger this weekend!

Happy Friday!

~audrey

We awoke this morning to 4″ of snow with the sleet still falling. The twins’ mom doesn’t have to go in to work, so she’s not bringing them, and Josh’s office is closed as well.

Everyone piled into our bed at 8:00am to watch the weather channel. Whole wheat French toast, boots, hats, gloves (or “gwubs” as Owen says it), and the kids were out the door to play in the frigid mess. I knew the continuing sleet meant it was probably pretty wet out there; not the soft powdery snow we had last year around this time. What a treat to have so much snow in Georgia in the last 18 months. And by so much, I mean two significant snow falls. 🙂 Before last year’s snow fall, the boys didn’t believe that God EVER made it snow in Georgia. They’ve been pleasantly surprised.

Josh and I were awake until 1:30am watching movies and constantly looking outside to watch the snow and wind as the winter storm finally arrived in Augusta.

Our house is quite cold. Even with the heat on 70 and space heaters in the living room and bedrooms, our 40 year old house with poor insulation, single pane windows, and badly sealed doors allow for a constant draft of cold air when you get close to any exterior walls.

It will be a wonderfully lazy day today at Wilkerson Academy. This morning, as we read all of the school closings on the news, the boys dropped their heads and said, “Man, I wish we had to drive to school so we’d have a day off!” Trust me boys, I don’t intend to have a full school day today.

I may get on the treadmill at some point to try to work out these sore legs, we’ll do some reading and prepare for co-op tomorrow, but other than that we’ll enjoy a lazy day just like the rest of Augusta.

Happy Snow Day!

~audrey

That’s all I can say after our first “group training” for the Couch to 5K this morning.

We met at 10:30am, stood around and chatted for about ten minutes, talked about the plan for a few minutes and then set off for our first “30-minute” training. HA!! Somehow 30 minutes turned into almost an hour (and over 2 1/2 miles!)! I didn’t know we were shooting for the 5K on the first day!! lol. It was a lot of run, walk, run, walk, wind, and hills!!

I felt like I was going to DIE at some points. Now I know what it must be like to give birth naturally. I have heard you get to the end and that’s when you doubt yourself and start panicking and want to give up…but you really have no choice but to finish. Yes, that’s how I felt. My shins and calves will be quite sore for the next 72 hours I assure you. I should be able to move again normally by next Saturday when we’ll do it all over again.

I have to admit though, it was a lot of fun to get back on the road with a bunch of women all aiming for the same goal. Exercising does help me make much better choices in my eating too. Who wants to come home and eat a grilled cheese or a cheeseburger when you’ve just worked your booty off for what felt like five hours!? 🙂 Clearly I’m miserably out of shape, but today marks a new beginning for sure!

When we finished training, I went to Publix and Earth Fare to get all of our produce for the next week. I came home, ate a string cheese, fixed half a turkey sandwich (no condiments or cheese) and finished it off with a pickle and huge glass of water. I’m feeling good!

Check back with me tomorrow morning when these legs have to get me out of bed! haha!

Thank you to those who have encouraged me already! Apparently it takes a village to get this girl in shape.

~audrey

I know it’s already January 7th, but I’m so excited to share this with you!

I am one of Beth Moore’s “sistahs”. Yes, it’s sisters…with some attitude. 😉 Spell check corrected it to “siestas” back in the beginning and she decided to keep it. Everyone who follows her blog is called her siesta. Beth decided to create a Siesta Scripture Memory Team. Anyone who wants to can join the team. On the first and fifteenth of each month you pick a different scripture verse to memorize. By the end of the year, we’ll have 24 new verses engraved on our hearts.

I don’t know about you, but I struggle with scripture memory, just as I struggle to exercise. I have to make it a priority. My life depends on it (the exercise AND the scripture memory).

Here is the link to Beth Moore’s blog and the exact instructions if you choose to join the Siesta Scripture Memory Team. Tara was so sweet to order a Scripture Memory Team spiral for me when she ordered hers. I love it! If you decide to join in on the fun and want the cute little spiral note cards from Living Proof Ministries, you can order them here.

I decided to use one of Beth’s favorite verses for the new year as my first scripture.

“You crown the year with Your good blessings, and You leave abundance in Your wake.” Psalm 65:11, NET Bible

I’m very excited about, yet another, point of accountability this year.

Okay, right now all five kids are sitting in front of the television watching SESAME STREET! lol!! Time to get crack-a-lackin’!

Happy Friday Ya’ll!!

~audrey

Today is day 3 for our second semester and first week starting “back to school” while also babysitting the twins. Here is our new “Master Schedule”. It is much more flexible and doesn’t necessarily micromanage everyone at one time. It is working wonderfully!

6am: Quiet Time
Exercise
7am: Boys awake
Bible
Language Lessons/Phonics
Breakfast
Chores
Handwriting and Copywork
8:30am: Girls arrive
Puzzles, books, and trains
9:30am: Movie for girls and Owen
Math for Joshua and Jesse
Boys outside/treadmill (yes, Joshua and Jesse love taking turns on the treadmill and it’s great for indoor physical activity on cold, rainy days like today! 🙂
LEGOs, drawing/coloring, practice piano
11:15am: Lunch
12:00: Naps
Reading
Wii (for one hour only)
Play outside
Snack
Go to park
4:00pm: Girls go home
Dinner/Clean up
Baths
Reading/games
Prayers
Bed

Today for example, the boys are still in their pajamas, and we were able to finish all of our school work before the girls arrived because they were running late and didn’t get here until 10:30 this morning.
Our healthier eating is going great as well. We all had organic strawberry-banana smoothies for breakfast and whole wheat pancakes and fruit for lunch.

Now, the girls are napping and I’m going to start some laundry.

P.S. Last night marked the beginning of a new season of Biggest Loser. January marked the start of my family making HUGE efforts to eat healthier and for Josh and I to get in shape. Ashley has agreed to join me in Biggest Loser: Blog Edition!. We’re hoping to take a “before” picture today or tomorrow so I can do the first post!

I’ll leave you with this picture of the Lairsey twins. At only ten days old, they are off everything but their feeding tubes, doing AWESOME and got to move in together yesterday!! How adorable are they!!

~audrey