Our Monarch Butterflies

So at first we received this little jar in the mail and watched our caterpillars grow
and turn into cocoons

when they were ready we took them out and hung them in the special butterfly house/net.

 At first only one showed up and my kids were truly amazed.

The next day we welcomed the entire family.

Today we decided to let them go so they could spread their wings and fly 

It was so wonderful to see them fly away and also bring joy to my kids 

what a great memory.

We hope they will stick around a bit so we can watch them a little more...

Peanut butter, banana, chocolate chip bread.

Peanut butter, banana, chocolate chip bread, need I say more?

yummmmmm

My Veggies

Walking out to the back yard I have my 

beautiful rosemary in a pot so I can take it in once the weather gets cold

on the way to the garden is my lettuce mix in a old fashioned silver tub

next are my herbs, some covered by glass jars to give them that glass house effect

on the left are my spring veggies

radishes, beets, collard greens, lettuce, broccoli, cauliflower, kale, onions, leaks and fava beans

a close up of my wonderful cabbage

fava beans

my radishes are almost gone b/c my kids keep on taking them and just munching on them

tomatoes in jars to give that glass house effect again

potatoes 

strawberries

I do have more things planted but we have to wait for the sprouts to come out.

So far it is all looking good.

Mahi-Mahi with peaches and poppy seed rice

Just needed to post this because it tasted and looked so good. 

Our last nights dinner was Mahi-Mahi fish 

grilled with some seasonings, garlic, lemon juice and wine.

Then the idea of rice came along. 

Since Mahi-Mahi is usually eaten sweet I decided to sweeten the rice. 

I cut up some peaches and covered the whole thing in sweet poppy seed dressing. 

Let me just say YUMMM!!!

It was so good even my kids asked for more.....

Kotlety Mielone

A Polish favorite of mine "Kotlety Mielone" with potatoes 

and a side of peas and carrots in a little bit of sauce.

This brings back memories to my late grandma Helena

who made this often, I remember the peas and carrot side the most. 

Here are some simple tips on how to make a quick meal.

I used organic grass fed ground beef,

 season to taste, 

add one egg 

some crushed garlic

 2 slices of american bread that has been sitting in warm water for easier mixing.

Mix all the ingredients together

then take out a smaller piece and roll into a small ball and flatten 

(sizes can be according to your family needs smaller for kids bigger for adults)

Dip the "kotlet" in some bread crumbs

on a bigger pan pour some oil and pan fry on both sides

in a few moments they should begin to brown

While the "kotlets" are on the pan, prepare your potatoes and boil. 

Here is the side, cooked carrots and peas ready to go

cut the carrots in smaller pieces,

prepare some flour and butter 

always use 1 tablespoon of butter to 1 tablespoon of flour

melt together in a pot 

use as much as you need till you get a nice thick consistency

I used about 4 and 4 tablespoons

add some water and the veggies to the mix

you should have the consistency of just some sauce 

but not so much that the veggies are submerged.

Also season to taste.

And here is the finished product, yum yum yum....

Enjoy - "SMACZNEGO"

Play-Doh lids

What do you do with your Play-Doh Lids?

We use ours in our homeschool, for color and size recognition.

Here my almost 3 year old awesome dude is matching the colored pom poms

to the correct lid with a clothes pin.

Notice we have one small lid and one big lid

as well as one small pom pom and one big one to match

this helps them not only to recognize the colors but also size.

One of our favorite.

Polish School 2

Every Monday is devoted to strictly Polish homeschool

we speak Polish, we read in Polish and my kids learn to write as well.

So there is this alphabet book (that I even remember using as a kid)
called ELEMENTARZ a great source for beginners. 

It introduces the children to easy words such as Ala, Ola, las, lis, as, osa and so on.

Here my almost 5 year old awesome dude is recognizing the pictures 

from the alphabet book and writing what he sees.

I copied the pictures from the book

and made two blank lines with the letter "i" in between which stands for &

Ala i Ola (2 girls names)

As i osa (dog named As and a bee)

las i lis (forest and a fox)

my almost 3 year old awesome dude

 is just typing the first letter of the picture that he sees

A i O

A i O

L i L

here is a picture of a fox which my 5 year old wrote on the chalkboard

kot (cat)

On this picture is a Polish flag that I cut up and laminated, 

it was easier for them to connect the pieces when I numbered each piece

because the flag is just white and red so each piece looked like the other

easier one for my 3 year old (straight lines)

and a little trickier one for my 5 year old (cut up in triangles)