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Colorado Symphony ~ field trip

November 26, 2013Written by Joy

A couple of weeks ago, the kids and I were able to attend a program for kids, put on by the Colorado Symphony. We went to a program last year and loved it, so the kids and I were really excited about the concert this year. Music is a big part of our family and any time we have a chance to experience different types of music, we do our best to attend.

Colorado Symphony

This year, the Colorado Symphony played a tribute to Latin Music, Musica Latina: A Symphonic Celebration of the Americas. The conductor, Scott O’neil did an amazing job explaining the different types of beats and rhythm of the songs they played. I was truly excited, because I had never heard any of the composers or songs that the did play.

In the hour long program, they played 7 songs; Alberto Ginastera -“Los trabajadores agricolas” from Estancia, Silvestre Revueltas – Sensemayá, Arturo Marquez – Danzon No. 2, Joaquin Rodrigo – Allegro con spirito from Concierto de Aranjuez for guitar, Traditional – El Mosquito, Jose Pablo Moncayo – Huapango, Alberto Ginastera – “Malambo” from Estancia.

Samuel and Claire waiting for the concert to start.

Once the music started, Scott O’Neil and the Symphony held our attention to the very last note. From the beautiful solos of the guitar and the percussionist playing an all wooden Marimba, the sound was truly amazing. We are truly blessed living in an area, where we can experience the sounds of other cultures.

I highly recommend checking in your area, to see if their is a program like this. It is truly an experience that you soon won’t forget and will be counting down the time, until you can attend another program, like it. I know our family is looking forward to being able to attend another concert soon.

2013, family, field trips, homeschooling Colorado, Colorado Symphony, family, field trip, homeschooling, Latin Music, Marimba, Symphony

my momma’s carrot cake…

October 24, 2013Written by Joy

When I asked my daughter what cake she wanted for her birthday, she said carrot cake. Right then, I knew which one that I wanted to bake. It is the carrot cake that my mom used to make a lot for the holidays. I remember helping her when I was young and now I am enjoying teaching my kids how to bake the cake.

I have a lot of wonderful memories standing next to my mom, dad and grandma, as they cooked and baked for the family and for others. The carrot cake is a cake that my mom would make for Thanksgiving or for Easter. She really didn’t bake cakes or pies much, so that is why I remember this one a lot. I am so glad that I had the chance to learn how to cook and bake, from her. My mom has Alzheimer’s now and isn’t able to cook or bake like she used to. These memories are good for me to remember the fun days that we had together. While she is still the same person, the disease has taken so much from her and from us.

I thought I would share with y’all the recipe that she used. I do not know where she got the recipe though. I just remember seeing it in the cookbook that she and other school bus drivers put together in the county where we lived. It is also my favorite cookbook to use. The frosting that I made for it, was the best that I have ever made. My only problem with it? I didn’t make enough! So definitely double this recipe if you make three 9-inch pans of carrot cake! Now on to the recipe!

Carrot Cake

2 cups cake flour 1 tsp. salt

2 cups sugar 4 eggs

1 tsp. baking soda 1 cup vegetable oil

2 tsp. cinnamon (I use pumpkin spice) 3 cups grated carrots (I used 4 cups)

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Grease and flour the bottom of three 9- inch pans (or you can cut parchment paper down in the bottom of the pan). Sift together the dry ingredients; set aside. In a bowl, mix the vegetable oil and eggs together until mixed well. Add in the dry ingredients and then mix until it is well combined. Then stir in the carrots. Pour the batter evenly into the pans. Place the pans in the heated oven and let bake for 20-25 minutes. Oven times could vary.

Cream Cheese Frosting

8 oz. cream cheese, softened 2 tsp. vanilla extract

1 stick of butter, softened 16 ounces of powdered sugar

milk (this amount will vary) 1 cup pecans, chopped finely

Beat the softened cream cheese and butter together, until smooth. Add the vanilla extract and mix well. Add the powdered sugar and beat until light and fluffy, if it seems too thick, add a little milk, until you get the consistency that you need to spread evenly. This is just something that you will need to judge for yourself. Then just spread on the layers and cake. The pecans is to put on top of the cake or side of the cake. You can even leave the pecans off.

Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting.

(I have never claimed to be a cake decorator. This cake isn’t pretty, but it sure was delicious!!)

Do you have any favorite memories of being in the kitchen with a loved one? What is your favorite dessert or dish? I would love for you to share your memories with me!

2013, family, recipes birthday, carrot cake, cream cheese frosting, family, recipes

first time sledding this year ~ family traditions

October 20, 2013Written by Joy

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first time sledding this year ~ family traditions

This past week, we got a pretty good snow in our area. While we did get snow in our city, it didn’t stick for long. So we headed off to the mountains to find the perfect sledding place. This is one of my favorite family traditions. I look forward to every snow we get!

We found this great place called Berthoud Pass. There is a trail that you can walk along with this huge hill that you can play in the snow. There were people skiing, snow boarding, hiking, snowshoeing and sledding.

It didn’t take the kids long to get their snow pants, jackets, hats and gloves on. They headed up the hill pulling their sleds behind them.

Claire’s first trip down didn’t go so well, but she laughed, got up and headed back up the hill. The snow was like powder and they had to make a couple of trips in the same place to get the snow packed down.

Samuel was trying to find the best path down. Once he got going, he didn’t want to stop!

What was so wonderful besides watching my children laugh and have a wonderful time? Meeting another homeschooling family playing in the snow! The kids played so well together and shared our sleds with them. They even raced down the hill! There was a lot of good laughs and a friendship made at 11,000ft.

This was our view from Berthoud Pass. I see it as a place we will visit many times a year. We can’t wait to go back to hike the trail!

Once we said our goodbyes, we headed on around Loveland Pass. We had been there about a month ago and couldn’t wait to check it out when it had snowed.

As you can tell, the drive to Loveland Pass, did not disappoint. The view was amazing. The wind was blowing so hard, that the snow was just blowing around and off the tops of the mountains.

Once we got to the Loveland Pass pull-off, some of us (ahem, me and a couple of the kids) sat in the van! It was COLD! the wind was blowing like CRAZY! We saw people being dropped off, so they could ski, snow board and snow show down the mountain. I don’t see how they were staying so warm with the wind blowing like it was.

My husband braved the wind and the cold and ended up with some amazing pictures. The view was a sight to behold. God’s creation is so amazing and wonderful to be in. I am so thankful and blessed that we are able to live in this area.

How has the weather been in your area? Are you taking any fun trips with your family? I would love for you to share your family traditions with me!

2013, family, photography Berthoud Pass, family, Loveland Pass, mountains, photography, sledding, snow, traditions

family time looking at fall colors…

September 29, 2013Written by Joy

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If you have been following me here for a while, you know that our family loves to go riding and seeing all the sites and views that our area has to offer. Being in the mountains, you can drive the same scenic route and see something differently every trip. However, I think my all-time favorite time of the year going riding, is when the leaves are changing. This is our 2nd fall in Colorado and I was so excited that we finally got to see the leaves this year, since we missed them last year.

We have driven the Guanella Pass before, and have fallen in love with it. It is a beautiful drive that has many trails that you can hike. It also has camping sites all along the drive that you can use. We are hoping to go back camping here, soon!

To get to Guanella Pass, we drive to the Georgetown, Colorado side and enter there. It is an old mining town that has a beautiful historic Main Street that you can walk and look at. You will drive right down Main Street to get to the road that takes you on Guanella Pass.

Before you do start driving on Guanella Pass, be sure to stop at the Georgetown Visitor Center. It is filled with a lot of history and some of the items that they have in there are amazing.

There is this park area, with a lake (I can not remember the name of it), that my kids love going to. They enjoy throwing rocks in the water and climbing on the rocks. There are picnic tables, grills and rock fire pits that you can use.

Up at the Guanella Pass Summit, there are a couple of different pull-offs that has trails you can hike in several different directions. By the time we had made it to the summit, it was getting late, so we didn’t hike.

It was just so beautiful, standing there and looking all around at the gorgeous mountains and blue sky that God created. It just takes my breath away.

I love that my kids enjoy taking trips like this with us. I remember going on drives with my parents and it brings back such wonderful memories for me. We leave the electronics off (phones and tablets), and take this time to just talk and be with each other.

The mountains have a little snow on top, from the previous evening. While it rained in the valleys, there was snow at the top. The white snow reminds me of white frosting just sitting on top.

While the higher you go, the less trees and shrubs you see, the mountains are still alive.

While we did see a lot of beautiful color and scenery, the one thing we didn’t see on this trip, was wildlife. I am thinking they were off in the trees hiding, since there was a lot of traffic out at this time.

I think this was the last weekend that the leaves will have color for this year. It is turning cooler and the leaves are slowly falling to the ground. This pass will be closing in the next couple of weeks and won’t open until the last snow clears in the spring time.

While I will miss this place during the winter, I am excited about the other places that we will be able to visit. The state of Colorado is full of so much history and has so many unique and beautiful places to visit. The hard part will be choosing what area we will visit next.

Do you go on family trips? What places bring back wonderful memories for you? I would love for you to share them with me!

2013, family, photography Autumn, color, Colorado, fall, family, family traditions, Guanella Pass, kids, leaves, mountains

Update on our Colorado life…

March 24, 2013Written by Joy

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Elk in Rocky Mountain National Park

It has been a while since I have done an update on our Colorado life. As you know we moved from North Carolina to Colorado back in August of 2012. Yes, we have been in Colorado for 7 months. It definitely has been an interesting 7 months. While we know God moved us out here, it has definitely taking some getting used to for me and the kids.

First off, we are living in an apartment, in a city. Yes, me a country gal, living in a city. I definitely feel like a fish out of water. There have been comments about my accent and where I am from. Some good, but there has been some rude comments as well. I have actually been questioned about having manners and raising my kids that way. Like I said, it has been different.

We have joined a homeschool group and have been on field trips and other outings. However, making friends have been difficult for myself and the kids. They have asked on occasion why we had to move. I just keep telling them and reminding myself that God has a plan for us. He moved us here and we need to do the best we can and just make the best of it.

We are still looking for a home church. I think this has been the hardest thing of all. We miss being in fellowship with other believers. We have visited several churches, but my husband and I have not felt like God has pointed us to the right church. We are still praying about a home church and know that God will lead us to one, in his timing.

It has also been a very long winter for us. We love the cold and we have enjoyed the snow that we have gotten. However, since this is a new climate and area for us, we have also been fighting sickness. We have had the flu, stomach bugs, really bad colds and just recently, I have had some major dental issues surface. It has been tough being at home and not being able to go out and explore, go on field trips and even a mom’s night out.

We are still homeschooling and loving it. I finally feel like we have the curriculum that works for our family. The kids enjoy their science and history. We love reading and doing projects together. We love going on field trips and exploring the new area together. We do enjoy our homeschool group we are in, but I have been looking for another one that is a little more involved and get together a lot more often. I am hoping the kids will be able to make friends soon.

Do we love Colorado? Absolutely! We definitely felt like God lead us out here and the opportunity for my husband to work at this college, just could not be passed up. It has just been an adjustment and with God, we will get through this.

Sun setting on the Rocky Mountain National Park

As you have noticed on the blog, there have been a lot of reviews lately. It has been because of us being sick and I have not been able to write like I have wanted to. As I mentioned, I have had some dental issues and it has required me to be on some pain medication. Yes, it has been that painful. I am hoping this will be the last week with so many reviews. I finally see a light at the end of the tunnel.

I am also working on a couple of different projects. One, I am working with a wonderful friend. I am hoping we can share more about it soon. It involves a new blog that we will be doing together! A little sneak peak is the title, “Surrendering the Plate.” Any ideas of what it could be about? 😉

I am truly excited about it! God has also been working on my heart in the past year. I am just in the beginning stages, but I am trying to figure out how to get started with it. I would love to have some kind of mentoring program to where older (more experienced) women teach and mentor other women. Like a Titus 2 mentoring program. I know there are a lot like that out in the blogging world already, but God keeps laying it on my heart to someone get involved and do something.

Well, this is how things have been going for us. We are taking it one day at a time and trusting in God to lead us every day. I would like to ask one thing of you, could you please be in prayer that I follow where God leads me? That is including this blog. I want to blog to bring glory to God, to help and encourage others in their faith and their homeschooling journey.

Blessings!

2013, family Colorado, family, homeschooling, life, move