October Favorite Things: Favorite Meals - Greek Chicken and Quinoa

We have several meals that we really enjoy as a family!  Tonight we had one of those meals...Greek Stuffed Chicken with Greek Quinoa and fresh hummus (made right before dinner!)! YUM!  The only thing missing was some fresh pita, naan, or laffa!  Just as a side note, the picture below was taken in the spring when we had roasted romanesco along with dinner.  I was going to take a new, better picture tonight, but by the time I remembered, everything had been devoured. Oops.

The chicken recipe is from Men's Health a few years ago.  I was still able to find the link for it, though.  Check it out here: Greek-style stuffed chicken!

Here is the fantastic hummus recipe that I used: Smooth Hummus Recipe by Inspired Taste

Seriously, with their help, I have conquered hummus.  Until I discovered this recipe, I just couldn't make it turn out right.  Now I'm dreaming of Roasted Pine Nut Hummus and other varieties! 

As for the Greek Quinoa recipe, it comes from the amazing folks over at Two Peas and Their Pod.  This Greek Quinoa Salad is one of my all time favorites!!!  

If you want to learn more about romanesco, click here! And just for the fun of it, here is a laffa recipe I might need to try: Laffa Bread! Happy eating!

October Favorite Things: Homeschooling!

Our schooling journey has been just that...a journey.  We chose homeschooling in the beginning for the flexibility and freedom it would bring in our schooling and family life.  We took last year off, for various reason, not knowing if we would ever come back to it.  The boys were in our local public school last year and it was a good year.  But we missed the freedom to have a flexible schedule, to take advantage of opportunities, and to do some different things!  So, here we are again.  

I honestly didn't plan to write about homeschooling during this month of favorites.  I wasn't sure if it was one of my favorite things or not.  It has been tough to adjust back to being 'teacher' and it has been challenging to once again balance home life with school life.  But after a month and a half or so of school, I can say that it is a favorite of mine!  I enjoy teaching and facilitating the boys learning time.  I wouldn't miss our weekly field trips and days of exploration for anything! I don't know what the future holds, or how long we will walk this road again, but I will be thankful and relish each day!

"In his heart a man plans his course, but the LORD determines his steps." Proverb 16:9

Going on a short hike at a local nature center.

October Favorite Things: Tulsa Favorites

There are so many places that the boys and I enjoy going here in the Tulsa area. I'm just going to highlight two today.  The first is an obvious choice for many others as well...The Tulsa Zoo.  It doesn't seem to matter how old the boys get, they always enjoy a visit to the zoo.  We went just a couple of weeks ago with some friends and left looking forward to our next visit!

The boys on the statue in front of the zoo entrance.

October Favorite Things: Learning a New Language and Duolingo

My family and I have started learning Spanish together as a family.  Though there are many great resources and games out there to help learn languages, Duolingo is my current favorite.  We all have our own accounts through Duolingo and move along at our own pace.  The boys usually practice 4 times a week. My  husband and I practice almost every every day. It's amazing how even 15 minutes a day can make a language start to come alive!  

There are other things that the boys and I do together to practice learning Spanish.  I check out dual language story books from the library that help us to become familiar with a broad range of words.  I also have them learn basic vocabulary such as the days of the week, months of the year, numbers, etc. As we progress, I hope to include some immersion type conversation to start practicing our new skills!  

If you are looking to learn a new language, or want to brush up on one that you already know, check out Duolingo!

October Favorite Things: Restore International

It is such an honor to talk about today's favorite - Restore International!!  I first heard about Restore International after reading Bob Goff's book Love Does (which is by the way a fantastic book and I recommend you read it as soon as possible!!) Restore was founded by Bob Goff and works to change lives for the better. Whether it is fighting for freedom and human rights, or providing much needed education, they do a good work in several countries across the world.

We've heard Bob Goff speak a couple of times and are always so inspired by him.  If you ever have the chance to hear him speak, do it!!  And then, go love people...because Love Does! And check out Restore International if you are looking for an amazing group to support! Click here to find out more.

Big J with Bob Goff this past January. :)

October Favorite Things: Exploring and The Great Outdoors

This afternoon, the boys and I were able to enjoy two of my most favorite things...exploring new places and being outside!!  We visited Spavinaw State Park for the first time.  The boys enjoyed exploring and catching crayfish and other critters, while I took pictures and skipped rocks.  It was a much needed getaway!

Catching Crayfish!

October Favorite Things: Connection

Spoiler alert...this isn't going to be a normal "Favorite Things" post. Something happened today that I wanted to share with you about. 

My phone took an unexpected swim early this morning. And in hope of recovery, it has been sitting in a jar full of rice for the better part of the day.  The good news is that it appears to be mostly functional.  Siri does come on at random times, which is hilarious and frustrating at the same time.  I tried to turn her off, but the voice command kept taking over and making random phone calls.(I apologize in advance if you get a random phone call from me...)