Cooking a Turkey in a Tabletop Halogen Convection Oven

I cooked a 13 pound turkey in my Secura halogen convection oven(see Reducing Energy Useage in the Kitchen) for the first time last night. It came out moist and juicy. I think 13 pounds might be the limit for this oven. It just fit. The cook time was on the low side, 3 hours at 400 degrees, but still within the recommended range for an unstuffed turkey of this size. With this oven, you do have to flip it over at the halfway mark to make sure both sides get cooked evenly. I referred  to this YouTube video before I tried cooking the turkey. She has a different brand than I have, a Nuwave oven, but it is similar

to my Secura.

Clean up was very easy...just dump the cooled grease away in the garbage, and clean the glass bowl and wire shelf in the sink . The meat just slid off the bone, so I had the carcass cleaned off in no time. I froze the meat in separate baggies for future meals. I figure I'll keep doing this while the turkey prices are low.

Printable Paper Doll Table Setting

Source: 28.media.tumblr.com via Alexandra on Pinterest

Pilgrim Paper Dolls

Source: thestrong.org via Alexandra on Pinterest

Priscilla anrd John Alden

Printable Indian Camp 3D Cut-out

Source: bibigreycat.blogspot.com via Alexandra on Pinterest

Vintage Three Little Bears Short Film

Free Interactive Game for Learning Temperature

We are learning temperature in first grade math today. Here's a very simple cute interactive online game to reinforce learning.

 

Circumventing Impulse Buying at the Dollar Store

I love the dollar stores, but I always seem to end up with more than I absolutely need, and my daughter comes with me every time, which means she wants things. It all becomes a struggle that I would altogether rather avoid.

So, I tried the Dollar Tree online and got 3.5% off my order by clicking through the Bigcrumbs.com shopping portal.

Shipping was free to the store, and I had to order in bulk. I ordered trash bags, feminine hygiene items, light Ranch salad dressing, drain cleaner, hand soap, and 6 ounce cans of chunk chicken(for salad). I need some more items, but I'll wait because it did add up pretty fast! I'll save on gas and impulse buying this way, and I'll send my husband to pick up the heavy boxes.

DIY Straw Mattress

Source: whittleddown.com via Alexandra on Pinterest

Click on source link above for directions.

We did this! It is actually very comfortable. I used a thick zippered futon cover purchased on ebay and stuffed it with clean straw. Over top, and underneath the bed sheet,  is a homemade bed topper(old quilts sewn together) for extra comfort. It's a heck of a money saver and the straw smells wonderful. I mixed a small amount of boric acid powder into the straw to sanitize and bug proof it.

I've had my straw bed since August. I think the straw should be changed out every so often. I'll probably wait to see how long it lasts before replacing it. I will definitely replace mine when new straw comes back to the garden centers.

The first few weeks the straw did shift around, but shaking and flipping it over every few days solved this problem. Now it stays in place and is great if you like a firmer mattress. It helps my back quite a bit. Ours is on a homemade platform bed which is long pine lumber over three attached large beams...very Modern Rustic/Oriental. The lumber is open spaced, rather than fitted tightly together, for air circulation. We got the supplies at a big box store, so the whole bed was very inexpensive!

Our platform bed looks a bit like this:

Source: cabbagerose.tumblr.com via Alexandra on Pinterest

DIY Futon

Source: littlelivingbigpicture.blogspot.com via Alexandra on Pinterest

Click on source link above for instructions.

Money Worksheets for Visual Learners

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Budget Math Manipulatives

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Learning Sight Words

Source: mrstsfirstgradeclass-jill.blogspot.com via Alexandra on Pinterest

Cute idea...sight word tower.

A Sculpture with Gauze Bandage

Dutch Bedtime Stories

I found this story book online, Dutch Fairy Tales for Young Folks by William Elliot Griffist at Project Gutenberg.com. Read here or download, free and in public domain. We have been reading tales from this book the last few nights - delightful! 

The Last Radicals:Homeschoolers

"There is exactly one authentically radical social movement of any real significance in the United States, and it is not Occupy, the Tea Party, or the Ron Paul faction. It is homeschoolers, who, by the simple act of instructing their children at home, pose an intellectual, moral, and political challenge to the government-monopoly schools, which are one of our most fundamental institutions and one of our most dysfunctional. Like all radical movements, homeschoolers drive the establishment bats..." Read more here.

All my life I've been told I'm too independent. :)

Free Children's Burgess Bird Book Companion Resources

"I’ve put together a list of resources to complement this fantastic book. This companion document is not affiliated with the Burgess Bird Book for Children, it is simply a handy reference to list related links. I’ve linked to the top bird identification sites and to free coloring pages. I couldn’t resist looking up the Audubon plush birds with sound calls, we have a few in our collection."

See here.

Building Vocabulary: Online Vocabulary Quizzes

I just signed up for Vocabulary.com, a free site that gives you quizzes adjusted to your knowledge levels in a game type style with scores and rounds. If you get an answer wrong it provides the definition and allows you to hear the pronunciation. Vocabulary is taken from major news sources and classic literature. You can click on the source of the example sentences for further reading.

I enjoyed it! I worked one round missing the word "legerdemain". I took Spanish in school, and not French. If I had taken French I'd have recognized this word!

This is a great homeschool resource for building vocabulary.