Movie Review: Man of Steel - How Does it Rate for Families?

For a short housekeeping issue - I turned off the requirement to put in a Captcha image in order to leave a comment. I am bringing that back, but hope it won't stop you from adding your two cents. With it off I got more comments, most of them SPAM. Thankyewno. So it's going back on today!

I can't put the "official" Man of Steel logo, of course, because it is copyright protected - for all I know so is the movie title, but I hope they'll forgive my use of it, since it's really hard to do a review of something (even an unofficial review!) without using the name of that thing! Anyway, for Father's Day, the White Knight wanted to take the Crew to do something fun, but it was a truly hot, above-90-degree day, so Busch Gardens was NOT at the top of this Pregnant Mama's list, so we headed for the cool dark of the movie theater. 

We considered a couple of options and settled on Man of Steel (as I'm sure you've guessed by now) because it seemed most likely to appeal to the spread of ages we have going with our kids - 2, 4, 8, 11, and 13 now. The long and short of it: The movie was enjoyed by everyone, but (as other reviewers have said), sometimes it seems like they used action scenes (and long ones at that!) to replace having to focus on character or plot development. If you have seen the earlier movies from way back, and know the history line of Clark Kent in those flicks, then you'll be okay, but just jumping into this one, it can be difficult to follow.

Recipe Day: Fish Broth (and why we use it!)

I know - Fish Broth?? Why would anyone want to make fish broth?? -  but bear with me here. We are Pesci-vegetarians, and I've begun to make fish broth from home because it provides much needed minerals that help support growing bodies and growing bones. Most notably: magnesium, iodine, calcium, phosphorus, silicon, sulphur and other trace minerals. But why are we making fish broth? Well, these minerals can help strengthen the bones and - more importantly - teeth in our bodies. 

The veggies in the latest batch of fish broth

I have three boys now with brittle teeth - especially those four in the front at the top. They crumble away.

Down Memory Lane: Ways to Preserve Memories

One of the things I work on from home is helping families preserve memories through family history and memoir books. While I was going through the last of the boxes in the garage, I re-discovered some old tip booklets I wrote in 2007. I am going to start putting the articles on the blog here, one or two at a time, in hopes of helping others preserve their memories before the people involved are gone or before the memories fade altogether. This is the first of those articles. I hope you enjoy them, and would love feedback!

an impromptu ice cream break after chasing down the truck!

Simple ways to preserve the memories in the moment... 

Homemade, All-Natural Peppermint Patties

Thought I'd put the recipe for making your own, homemade peppermint patties on here since I put those pictures up once before. I'm still working on making them "pretty", but for now we're going with "tasty"! I looked this recipe up online and found a few that I liked but I didn't like any entirely. Most of the other recipes called for chocolate chips, extract, etc. and I wanted to use cocoa powder, and essential oils, which I'm more likely to have in my house already.

The finished, perfect-tasting all-natural Peppermint Patty!

Schoolhouse Review Crew: Science Naturally

About seven years ago, I stumbled across a homeschooling math book called One Minute MATH Mysteries. It was a gem and I have used it for three of my five children to give fun, short breaks to their math curriculum. When the Homeschool Review Crew put out that they had a review coming up for a One Minute SCIENCE Mysteries book, I was really excited and hoped I would get picked to review the product for Science Naturally! 

Schoolhouse Review Crew: Papa's Pearls

Papa's Pearls is a fun, easy-to-read book by Diane Flynn Keith, and I am glad that I was picked to be one of the reviewers for this little gem. "Papa" was what Diane's father was called by children and grandchildren alike, and Ms. Keith does a wonderful job of including stories from each of the generations about him. It is clear from the story that he loved his family (and they knew it) and is loved by his family still (though he is gone now.) 

Buttercup "reading" like Mom. She's getting there!

The story is a sweet way to pass on Papa's sayings (the "pearls") and life lessons, and to share those lessons with the world at large. I was drawn into this book, and throughout every chapter found myself thinking, "That's a good way to illustrate that lesson," or "I like that saying, I have to remember to use it in our house more often!"

Quick Five Friday - Holy Week, Hair Carnage, & Sweet Smiles

It is Holy Week in the Orthodox church. That means we are at the end of the 40-day fasting period that is Great Lent; we are building ourselves up for the excitement of Christ rising from the tomb on the 3rd day; we are getting ready to rejoice in His resurrection. It also means we're in church a lot this week. A whole lot. 30 hours, if you go to every service. With the White Knight out of town, we haven't made it to all of them, but I've done my best. It makes such a difference to go to every service leading up to the joy of Pascha (Easter). So while I am busy with that, I leave you with a few pictures for the weekend.

The girlie is on a haircutting kick - hers, other kids, etc. so I bought ten
Barbies at a yardsale to let her cut to her heart's content.
These are the first victims... er... models.