Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Is there a market...

So, many of you know that I'm finishing up my PhD in Education. Right now I teach at a nearby university and mostly enjoy my job. My previous gig was with a big company writing curriculum for schools, and I enjoyed that as well; however, I am always dreaming of doing new things (am I the only one like that?). Lately I've been pondering how to combine my love of education with my passion for homesteading. To make a long story short, I'm thinking of writing curriculum specifically for homeschooling homesteaders!

In my mind, the curriculum is divided by homesteading seasons (i.e. spring & garden tending, harvesting & canning, fall crops, putting the garden to bed for the winter, etc.) and incorporates all the chores we'd normally be doing. I'd like to highlight various teaching techniques to incorporate traditional subjects into daily work. I'm thinking the books would be sold as PDF downloads so I don't have to pursue a publisher and all that jazz...this also keeps cost lower. They could also be used for hybrid families like ours who do traditional school during the school year and homeschooling in the summers, weekends, and anytime we get the chance. I don't even know it this is a viable idea, but I think I would really enjoy it. What do you guys think?

Thursday, November 4, 2010

It's Pumpkin Time!!!

Please, oh please, do not let all those lovely pumpkin seeds go to waste! We had all kinds of pumpkins decorating our house and this is about the time I begin to harvest their seeds and freeze up some pumpkin puree. The best instructions I've found for roasting these lovely little seeds comes from Pioneer Woman. She has beautiful step-by-step photos of the process...check it out!!

You can also find instructions for the puree on the Pioneer Woman's website! She's awesome!