Apples to Jam

You know when you go to Costco and see those big flats of apple

and think I will never be able to eat all of those before they go bad. 

Well I bought them, not to eat but to make jam with.

Carmel Apple Jam

from my favorite cooking magazine Taste Of Home

Granny Smith Apples

Peel the apples

Keep apples in water so they don't turn brown

This is J-Man's job

Apple peels (aka "snakes") are fun to eat

J-Man with a long "snake"

Mr. Mr. got a "snake" and hurried to get down from the stool

he bumped his arm, ouch!  I-Man was quick to act

and read him a story while he iced his arm.

cut apples in half

remove the cores 

and return to water

I-Man did such a good job Mr.Mr. fell asleep.

Place bottles, lids and rims in canner

cover with water and bring to a boil

I used a mandoline to slice the apples

place apples back in water

Apple slices, 1/2 cup water and 1/2 teaspoon butter in dutch oven

Cook until apple slices are soft

1 cup sugar, 2 cups brown sugar, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, 1/2 tespoon allspice

3 oz Liquid fruit pectin

Jars are getting nice and hot

Apple slices are soft  then add fruit pectin

Bring to rolling boil

Add sugars and spices

Bring to rolling boil, then boil for 1 minute

Ladle into hot jars, seal with hot lids and rims

place in canner

Cover and boil for 14 minutes

Remove from canner, let sit on a towel

Lids will pop as they cool,

write the name of jam and date made on lid

Finished jar of Carmel Apple Jam

Mr. Mr. the next morning saying take my picture

I made the jars look cute with tissue paper and some lables I made on the computer

I sent some jam and rolls to the Middle School as a favor to Mrs. M.W.

Here is a picture of a caterpillar I found

J-Man is sure it will turn into a butterfly

I had one extra canning jar, perfect for watching the caterpillar grow.

Apple Pie Jam

Peel the apples

More apple peels

Place the apples in the water.

Core and slice apples

Boil the apples with 1 cup of water until apple slices are soft

add 5 cups of sugar and 1/2 teaspoon of butter.

I ran out of butter so I used 1/2 teaspoon of shortning and

a decent sprinkling of butter popcorn flavor.

Add sugars and Butter/ Shortening

Stir and Bring to a rolling boil

Stir Constantly, Boil for 1 minute

add 3 oz of liquid fruit pectin

Bring to rolling boil

Remove from heat

then add 1 teaspoon of cinnamon and 1 1/4 teaspoon of allspice

fill hot jars with jam, wipe rims and remove bubbles

place lids and rims on jars

place jars in canner

Boil for 14 minutes

Remove from canner

place on mat to dry and cool

listen for the popping of the lids.

Two days of hard work

11 Jars of Carmel Apple Jam

&

12 Jars of Apple Pie Jam

Big thanks to L.G. who lent me her large stock pot.

Weekend 'O Fun

Weekends at our house are rarely boring

and this one did not dissapoint.

Mr.Mr. is hiding on the couch. Why?

That's why!  His favorite food, salad dressing.

Sycamore Elementary School Community Fair on Friday Night.

I like to go because of the Silent Auction.

One year we got a new garage door opener.

This year I bid and won museum passes to museums around town

and  a family membership to Kitt Peak Observatory. Score!

Mr.Mr. on his bike at the fair.

J-Man on the Slide

J-Man building a super maze thing. 

 He built it up even more and when I went to take a picture

a middle school girl came and knocked it down,

 made J-Man cry and got in trouble from me. 

I made her come build it back up,

but it wasn't as cool as the one J-Man built in the picture.

It was great to be surrounded by so many friends and the kids had a blast.

Also I had the most delicious taco and refried beans ever, and I live in Tucson!

Need a caterer, here is my recommendation.

On Saturday, we invited some soccer families over for dinner.

For dessert I thought I would try Smore Pops

Grahm Crackers cut in heart shapes with a cookie cutter

Hershey chocolate square on top of cracker

Strawberry flavored large marshmallow on top of chocolate

top with cracker

Side view

Put under Broiler until marshmallow is puffy

push cracker down into marshmallow

then insert candy stick

let cool for an hour or so

then you can pick up Smore Pop

They are very rich.

The weekend was full of fun, food and friends.

Staycation Adventures 2012

This year we are planning a staycation. 

What is a staycation?

We will stay at home, and do activities each day. 

I have planned 7 Weeks of activities geared toward children ages 3-12

If you are in the Tucson area you can attend the weekly outing

or just customize it to where you live.

I will blog about the crafts and activities as we go along.

Take advantage of the links and keep me updated

on your own Staycation Adventures

Week 1 Dinosaurs

Monday May 28^th  – Friday June1st

Educational links for printing out worksheets, coloring pages, crafts etc…..

http://www.kidsdinos.com

http://teacher.scholastic.com/activities/dinosaurs

http://www.enchatedlearning.com/subjects/dinosaurs

Day 1

Monday May 28^th 

 Paleontology

Learn about fossils, dinosaur tracks.

Activities

Excavate a “Fossil” from a Dino Egg.
Use Plaster Paris and a small dino toy in center
 in an egg mold, to create the dino egg.
Dig out with nail file and dry paint brush

                                                                                                                                                             

Dino Egg Toss – Water Balloons

Day 2:

Tuesday May 29^th 

 Classification of Dinosaurs

Activities

Games:

     Dino Bingo

         Dino Memory

Make Dino Stationary with Dino Stamps

Day 3

Wednesday May 30^th 

 Dino Crafts

 Milk Jug T-Rex Skull Craft

            Paint your own Dino Suncatchers

            Dino Backpack Charms or Key Rings

Day 4

 Thursday May 31^st

Cooking with Dinosaurs

Activities

  Make Mashed Potato Volcanoes with Lava Gravy

                   Meatloaf Dino Nests with Dino Eggs (peas)

 in the Green Leaf Forest (Broccoli)

Dino Cupcakes for dessert

Day 5

Friday June 1^st

Party Like a Dinosaur!

Join Us Activity

Tsunami Night @ The Cove in Sierra Vista AZ

2900 Martin Luther King Jr. Parkway

Sierra Vista, AZ 85635

Tsunami Night – ride the waves

7-10 pm

$10 admission includes free pizza and soda

the cove

Week 2  Astronomy

Monday June 4 – Friday June 8

Day 1

 Mon June 4^th 

 Solar System

Activity

Our Solar System Book

Solar System Book

Day 2

Tuesday June 5^th 

Constellations

astro sky map

Activity

Nail Board Constellations

Materials Board painted black

      50 Nails: hammered into board 25x25

String

Day 3

 Wednesday June 6^th 

 Meteorites

Meteorites are mostly pieces of rock,
though a few are metal, that fall to Earth from space.
Most meteorites come from the break-up of
small asteroids that never accreted to form a planet.
Meteorites give us clues to the origin and history of the solar system.

Meteorites come in a variety of types
and a wide range of sizes and shapes,
but most meteorites have two things in common:
they have dark brown or black glassy crusts on the outside
and contain enough iron metal to attract a magnet.

The outside crust of the meteorite is produced as the
rock is heated by friction when it comes through the atmosphere.
The outer part melts and forms dark fusion crust
that often has flow marks or indentations like thumbprints.
The inside stays cool and is usually light gray to black in color,
but some may be tan or, if weathered and rusted, brown.

The simplest classification of meteorites into
stony, iron, and stony-iron types is based on
the amount of iron metal and silicate minerals in the meteorite.
Each of the three major types of meteorites shows considerable variability
and is further subdivided based on mineralogy and composition.
Stony meteorites are divided into chondrites and achondrites
based on whether they contain small round balls of silicate minerals called chondrules.
 Chondrites contain chondrules and achondrites do not. 

Activity

 Edible Rocks

Edible Rocks

Day 4

 Thursday June 7^th

University of Arizona Flandrau Science Center

Join Us Activity

more info here

                                                      Family Fun Time 6-9 pm

Observatory (Free) 7-10 pm

Admission: $7.50 (16+)             $5.00 (4-15)

Laser Light Show $10 Adults and 7.50 Children

Day 5

 Friday June 8th

Observe the Night Sky in the Backyard

astro sky map

Activity

Make a Telescope, then use it to view the stars at night

DIY telescope instructions

Week 3

Monday June 11^th  – Friday June 15^th

Fathers Day

Day 1

Monday June 11^th 

 All about Grandpa,

Activity

Write a letter to Grandpa

Lady Bug Tie Tack

make it

Day 2

 Tuesday June 12^th 

 Songs about Dad

Songs

My Dad

Song and Words

Daddy’s Homecoming

Song and Words

Day 3

Wednesday June 13^th

 All About My Dad poems

HARD WORKER

My daddy is a hard worker,

With daily work to do.

I want to be like him,

And be a hard worker too.

I will do honest labor

It will make me a better man

And one day, when I'm all grownup

I'll say

I'm like my dad,

Yes,

I am.

D. Alsup

Craft

Paper Smiley Face Flowers in a Flower pot full of kisses

to go with poem

The NICEST KIND OF FLOWERS

 I think the nicest kind of flowers

To give dad on fathers day

Are just a bouquet of smiles

That you can give away!

I have some here I brought you.

Will you have just one or two?

Will you come closer?

For there's a kiss with those smiles

That I have just for you.

Day 4:

Thursday June 14^th 

Activity

Make a Recording for Dad of Songs, Poems and Pictures

Day 5

Friday June 15^th

Craft for Father’s Day

Activity

On the grill cupcakes

recipe

Lawn Mower cupcake

recipe

Week 4 

June 18 – June 22^nd 

Nature

Day 1

Monday June 18^th

Sonoran Desert

museum info

Activity: Identify Plants and Animals

               Go on an Early Morning Nature Walk

Day 2

Tuesday June 19^th 

 Camp Preparation Day

Day 3

Wednesday June 20^th – Day 5 Friday June 22^nd 

Camping at Rose Canyon Lake on Mt. Lemmon

Activities

 Fishing, Hiking, Games

                  Bird watching, Leaf Press

                  Campfire: roast hotdogs and marshmallows        

                  Look a the stars and sing campfire songs

Week 5

 Monay June 25^th – Saturday June 30^th 

Science

Day 1

Monday June 25^th

Colors of the Rainbow

Activity

learn about weather and rainbows

more info

Tie-Dye T-Shirts

Day 2

Tuesday June 26^th

Electricity

Activity

 Potato Battery

instructions

Day 3

Wednesday June 27^th 

Music

Activity

Rhythm and drums

Day 4: Thursday June 28^th – Biology The Human Body

Learn about Nose, Ears, Eyes, Tongue and Fingers

5 senses activity

 5 senses games

Activity

Five Senses

Smell: Scented candles in paper bags, guess what they smell like

Hearing: Record different sounds and guess what they are

Sight: Binoculars

Taste: Bitter, Sweet, Salty, Sour

Touch: Soft, Hard, Rough and Smooth - scavenger hunt

Day 5

Saturday June 30^th 

Join Us Activity

Tucson Children’s Museum

more info

Week 6

Monday July 2^nd – Friday July 6^th

Fourth of July Celebration

Day 1

 Monday July 2^nd 

Learn Patriotic Songs

        Yanky Doodle Dandy

listen here

      

        "America The Beautiful" .

listen here

    "God Bless America" 

listen here

     

    "My Country, 'Tis of Thee"

listen here

        

       "This Land is Your Land"
listen here

   "You're a Grand Old Flag" 
listen here

  "Stars and Stripes Forever" 
listen here

Day 2
Tuesday July 3^rd 
 Patriotic Crafts

Patriotic Sea Shells

instructions here

Tons of patriotic crafts
ideas here

Day 3
 Wednesday July 4^th 
 Celebration

Day 4
 Thursday July 5^th
Madera Canyon Picnic

Day 5
 Friday July 6^th 
 Swimming Party

Week 7 
 Monday July 9 – Friday July 13^th 
 Back to School Preparations

Day 1
 Monday July 9^th 
  School Supplies

Day 2
 Tuesday July 10^th
School Clothes and Shoes Shopping

Day 3
 Wednesday July 11^th 
 Hair Cuts

Day 4
 Thursday July 12^th
Safety Kids Activities
I remember doing these activities as a child,
the songs are great in helping you remember
to be safe in different situations.
purchase info

Day 5
Friday July 13^th 
 Pizza and Movie Night