REVIEW: Ultimate PreK-12 Annual Membership by SchoolhouseTeachers.com

Disclosure: I received this product free through the Homeschool Review Crew.

There’s so much material to peruse in the Ultimate PreK-12 Annual Membership by SchoolhouseTeachers.com, so we wanted to give a review and highlight some of its features for you.

WHAT IS IT?:

The Ultimate PreK-12 Annual Membership at SchoolhouseTeachers.com gives you access to what is now a complete curriculum for all students in grades PK through 12th grade.  So if you’ve checked out the website prior to 2020, then you may want to take another look.  Before that time, it offered lots of supplemental courses and materials, but last year, it began offering a full curriculum for every grade level.

You can explore courses sorted by “school boxes,” by specific grade level, or by subject in order to find the courses that are right for you.  This includes core subjects, the arts, and other electives.  There is also an extensive streaming library and other resources that can be used to supplement many topics you might be studying.

Right now through January 31st, you can get an annual membership for just $139 for your entire family with code “START139,” or get a monthly family membership for just $16/month with code “START16.”

OUR EXPERIENCE:

We’re over halfway through our school year already since we homeschool year-round from June-May, so I didn’t need any full courses at this time.  So for this review, I decided to focus on more of the supplemental materials that are available with your membership. 

I’ve always been a huge fan of the Drive-Thru History series, so I was pleased to find both the American History series and the Ancient History series available on the website.  They could be used as video-based courses complete with worksheets and quizzes or as single episodes for your viewing enjoyment in the streaming library.

I found myself drawn to episode 9 of Drive-Thru History: American History, because it took me on a journey through Virginia, which is where I lived for 39 years.  Virginia is so rich with history that we made a point to use our vacation time to explore different historical sites each year.  I’ve taken my family to both George Washington’s home, Mount Vernon, as well as Thomas Jefferson’s home, Monticello.  Monticello was my favorite place, because it is right in the heart of the Shenandoah Mountains, which I think is one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever been.  So I particularly enjoyed this video, as it brought back lots of fond memories of historic VA.

 

There’s also a whole Resources section that has a plethora of good stuff ready for the taking.  I love cooking and baking and trying new recipes, so I was really excited when I discovered a whole Monthly Menu section with links to recipes for every day of the year!  I saw lots of good stuff that I’m anxious to try.  I love all things pumpkin, and not just in the fall.  The November menu was absolutely filled with recipes for yummy pumpkin goodies, including Pumpkin Cream Puffs!  This got me excited, because my sister used to make us cream puffs when we were kids, and I never learned how to make them.  They are one of my fondest childhood memories, so I’m looking forward to trying out this recipe!  I would imagine it would be simple enough to change out the flavor of the filling to whatever you’re in the mood for just by blending in a different flavor each time.  Awesome!

Also in the Resources section, there is a whole are on seasonal resources that brings together links to tons of activities and lessons related to various holidays throughout the year.  So if you’re looking for themed activities to help celebrate a holiday, that’s a great place to go.

Most homeschoolers use some kind of planner, whether you prefer a printable physical planner or a digital one.  In the Planning section, you can access your choice of planners.  For instance, there is the renowned Schoolhouse Hey Mama Planner that you can download and customize to print your own physical planner, or you can access the AppleCore online planning program. 

I think every time I explore the Ultimate PreK-12 Annual Membership at SchoolhouseTeachers.com, I come across something new that I hadn’t seen before.  I also receive an email each month that highlights new courses that are being added all the time.  The cool thing about it is that regardless of how many people there are in your family or what their ages are, there’s something for everyone in this family membership!

Take a look at what other Crew members have to say about this membership by clicking the banner below.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year…and a Couple of Birthdays, Too!

This is always a busy time of year for us.  First, there’s Christmas.  Everybody was home for a nice Christmas evening dinner, so that was cool.  We used my rec room craft table, which used to be our big dinner table in VA.  I had set it with a nice blue & white Christmas decor.  Hayden slipped out to spend time with his girlfriend’s family as soon as dinner was done, and I was on the phone with my sister at the time.  Unfortunately, that meant we never did get our annual family photo in front of the tree.  Ugh!  I get nervous when that happens, because with a son who is 21, I always wonder if this will be the last Christmas where all my kids still live at home.

Then just 3 days later, it’s my youngest son’s birthday.  Holden turned the big 13!  No more little kids in my house…only teenagers and adults!  Isn’t he so handsome?  I sure do love him.

Then just a week after Christmas, my own birthday falls on New Year’s Day.  Hayden had to work that day, but he slipped home long enough to sing and eat cake before Haylee had to go to work, too.  I turned 49 this year!  It’s my last year before I’m officially “over the hill!”

Check out that cake!  It’s my favorite, and I order it from the Kroger bakery every year.  It’s a 1/4 chocolate sheet cake with chocolate whipped cream, strawberries in gel and chocolate curls on top, and sliced strawberries down the sides.  So yummy!

Now this Thursday, it will be Steve’s birthday, too.  He’s turning 50!  But for now, we get to spend a few days being the same age.  For our birthdays, we decided to buy a 1912 Victrola phonograph for ourselves.  It’s gorgeous!  It’s in a mahogany cabinet.  We bought it with 91 records for $450 from a retired couple in Hurst, TX.  It was a little pricey, but it’s in really good condition, and the mahogany matches our living room perfectly.  It was nice not to need to fix anything major or to have to hunt for records and needles to get started.  Also, this particular 1912 model is a little lesson common, so it’s worth a bit more than most.  It has an internal horn.

 

I am absolutely in love with it!  Today, we had a nice family breakfast while everyone was at home, and then Steve and I slipped out to the Montgomery Street Antique Mall by the Fort Worth Botanical Gardens and visited a record shop in there called Doc’s Records to look for more shellac phonograph records.  Bingo!  We really hit the jackpot.  He had 2 crates underneath a table that were labeled as 78 rpm shellac records for just 25 cents each!  We took everything that wasn’t broken, and we paid under $13 including tax for 48 records!  Such a steal.  I spent the rest of the day listening to each one and cataloguing them in my spreadsheet that I’d already set up with the records that came with the Victrola.  I also set up a “my collection” list on the Discogs website.  All that took me about 6 hours, but it was worth it!  And all of the music we got today was fabulous.  I’ve decided that my favorite era of music is the 1940’s!  I now have 18 different Bing Crosby records, so I’m really happy about that.  Now we want to keep an eye on that record store in the antique mall to see when he might add some more.  He has a huge separate record store somewhere in town, but I think he takes his overstock to the antique mall and sells everything much cheaper for a flat price.  That’s what I’m looking for.  He ought to be pleased that we cleaned him out!  Now I’m on a hunt for a Bluebird record from 1946 that has Glen Miller with Moonlight Serenade on one side and Sunrise Serenade on the other side.  It seems to sell for a bunch, so I’m hoping to just run across it somewhere locally.  Moonlight Serenade has always been one of my favorite songs, and I feel like it’s just so well-suited for the sound of a phonograph.  Not a day has gone by that I haven’t played records on this Victrola!  I’m totally enamored with it.

Well, that’s it for now!  I’ll have a photo from Steve’s birthday for you next week!  I will be skipping my favorite recipe posts for a couple of weeks since we have been making special meals and treats for all of these holidays and birthdays instead of doing our traditional meal plan.  Unfortunately, all the goodies have added 5 pounds to me!  Ugh.  I’ll be back to the usual meal plan soon enough.

Happy New Year!

Favorite Recipes for the Week of December 20th

We did Thanksgiving dinner all over again for Christmas with all the usual combinations of leftovers, so there were just a couple of recipes we had for each meal earlier in the week.  Some were repeats of things we’ve had and featured before, so I’m only sharing new recipes with you here.

TOP FAVORITE BREAKFAST:

Egg ‘n’ Bacon Sandwich.  This is just like an Egg McMuffin, so it’s always a hit with my Crew.  It’s my go-to meal when I’m short on time but have the ingredients on hand.  I can whip it up in just a few minutes and be on my way.  I serve this with a cup of fresh cantaloupe on the side for a total of 266 calories.

Photo Credit: Taste of Home

TOP FAVORITE LUNCH:

Shredded Beef Barbecue.  This was so easy to make in the crockpot, and it made so many servings on fluffy Kaiser buns from the bakery!  This lasted us for several days of lunches.  I served it with a salad with light dressing, a pickle spear, and a medium apple for a total of 385 calories.

TOP FAVORITE DINNER:

Easy Swiss Steak. My husband really liked this simple meal.  Cubed steak is generally tough, so simmering this for so long on the stove made it really tender and enjoyable.  The flavor reminded me of chicken cacciatore, only with beef instead of chicken.  I served this over white rice with green beans on the side for a total of 358 calories.

Photo Credit: Taste of Home

I had a lovely Christmas with my husband and kids.  It continues to be an odd year of celebrations because of the ongoing pandemic, but I’m thankful that all of my kids are still at home this year so we can all be together.

I hope you all had a Merry Christmas!

Favorite Recipes for the Week of December 13th

We really had some great choices this week.  Our meals were all so good!  My husband got a new-to-us used car from Carvana last weekend, so we were busy getting that squared away and trying it out.  I hope you find some great new recipes to try from our menu for the week!

TOP FAVORITE BREAKFAST:

Italian Garden Frittata.  This was a really tasty egg dish, and we both felt the flavors were even better in the leftovers as each day passed.  I served this with a Peach Smoothie recipe we’ve had before and some fresh blueberries for a total of 324 calories. 

Photo Credit: Taste of Home

TOP FAVORITE LUNCH:

Lime Jalapeno Turkey Wrap.  Wow!  This was a total winner.  You might be thinking that a wrap is a wrap…they’re all pretty similar.  But this was loaded with flavors.  We did note that the recipe was void of any kind of condiment, so I added a drizzle of light ranch dressing to each wrap, and it was the perfect cooling complement to the heat of the jalapeno.  This was SO good!  Instead of shredded turkey, I bought a slab of cooked oven-roasted turkey breast from Aldi and cut it into cubes.  It was perfect.  We will definitely be having this again and again!  I served it with some white corn tortilla chips and salsa for dipping and 1/2 cup of baby carrots for a total of 409 calories.  Yum!

Photo Credit: Taste of Home

TOP FAVORITE DINNER:

Southwest Pasta Bake.  My husband really enjoyed this dish for its unique combination of flavors.  It’s like a cross between Italian and Mexican.  It’s very tasty in an unexpected way and is actually very good!  I served it with steamed broccoli for a total of 328 calories.  My husband enjoyed it so much that he actually took some of the leftovers for lunch one day!

Photo Credit: Taste of Home

The top favorite dinner was a difficult choice, so I have to give honorable mention to these delicious Two-Cheese Turkey Enchiladas.  My husband and I really enjoyed the creamy filling.  They were easy to make, and the leftovers lasted us several days.  I actually had enough filling to make more servings than were listed, so this is a great dish for feeding a crowd.  I served it with some shredded lettuce, tomato, and light sour cream on top and a salad with light dressing on the side for a total of 329 calories.

Photo Credit: Taste of Home

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TOP FAVORITE DESSERT:

Banana Chocolate Chip Cookies.  I only made one dessert this week.  I had intended to make more, but I was super busy and never got around to it.  But I’m happy to share this delicious recipe with you.  These soft little dome-shaped cookies are almost cake-like, and the chocolate chips are quite plentiful.  They were a hit with my family.  I used a 1.5 Tbsp. cookie scoop leveled off to measure out my dough, and it made a few extras over and above the suggested serving count.  I think they came out to about 50 calories a piece, so we could indulge in a few of these without a lot of guilt.  It’s also a great way to use up over-ripe bananas instead of throwing them out!  The recipe came together in a flash.

Photo Credit: Taste of Home

That’s it for now!  I will have fewer recipes to choose from next week since I’ll be doing a traditional Thanksgiving-type menu for Christmas, complete with all the leftovers for the weekend.  I hope you all enjoy your holiday, even if it’s without your extended family. 

Happy cooking, and stay safe!

Favorite Recipes for the Week of December 6th

I have some great recipes for you this week!  Choosing was *really* hard.  We had some real winners across the board, so narrowing down the top recipes was a real challenge.  I hope you enjoy the ones we chose!

TOP FAVORITE BREAKFAST:

Sausage Breakfast Wrap.  My husband and young son really, really enjoyed these, and they were very filling.  I served them with 1/2 cup fresh blueberries on the side for a total of 318 calories. Here’s a photo from Taste of Home.

TOP FAVORITE LUNCH:

Spicy Buffalo Chicken Wrap.  If you enjoy buffalo chicken wings and blue cheese, then you’ll enjoy all the same flavors in these convenient lunch wraps.  There was quite a bit of chicken in these, and I served them with celery sticks with ranch dressing on the side and 1/2 cup red seedless grapes for a total of 304 calories!  Here’s a photo from Taste of Home.

TOP FAVORITE DINNER:

Glazed Asian Pork Medallions and Stir-Fried Carrots.  I have to admit that I was skeptical of this recipe when I saw that it contained orange marmalade, but I selected the spreadable fruit-type of marmalade for less sugar, and I was amazed at the authentic Asian flavor of this pork!  It was perfect.  I kept thinking that in the future, I would use this same glaze recipe for Orange Chicken, because using the marmalade is a whole lot faster and easier than grating fresh orange peel to combine with fresh orange juice!  Anyway, I served this with the Stir-Fried Carrots and a buttered roll on the side for a total of 386 calories.  This meal came together quickly and was a real winner with my crew.

I just have to give honorable mention to this fabulous sandwich we had for lunches.  It’s called a Baked Deli Focaccia Sandwich.  Check out the picture of the whole thing when I took it out of the oven!  It got slices up into wedges, but this thing was as tasty as a sandwich gets.  I stopped by Panera Bread to get a fresh-baked Asiago Cheese Focaccia loaf on which to make this sandwich, so that was the basis of flavor in the bread itself.  It was incredible!  My husband said he found himself looking forward to this sandwich each day, and the bread held up well and didn’t get soggy as leftovers on subsequent days.  We reheated it in the air fryer.

There’s only one more shopping weekend left before Christmas, so get your meal plan organized with some of these great recipes and use your time wisely so you’ll have extra time to get out and finish up your Christmas shopping before the big crowd rush next weekend. 

Enjoy, and have a great week!

Favorite Recipes for the Week of November 29th

This was a week full of some really wonderful recipes!  I hope you’ll find something great you can’t wait to try!

TOP FAVORITE BREAKFAST:

Garden Frittata.  This was loaded with a variety of veggies, but with a combination of feta, mozzarella, and parmesan cheeses, the cheesy flavor permeated the dish and helped to hide all of those nutritious veggies.  It was absolutely delicious, and I would definitely make it again!  I served it with a cup of fresh pineapple or cantaloupe for a total of 326 calories.  Here’s a photo from Taste of Home.

TOP FAVORITE LUNCH:

Tuna Artichoke Melt.  This was really, really tasty!  We were both pleasantly surprised at just how good this was.  I could eat this any day of the week, as it was very flavorful!  I prepped these in advance for a couple of days and found it was easier to toast the muffin in the morning and then just warm the tuna topping in the microwave, melting the cheese on top, and then plop it onto the English muffin.  So very good!  I served it with 1/3 cup of red grapes for a total of 378 calories.  Here’s a photo from Taste of Home.

TOP FAVORITE DINNER:

Balsamic Seasoned Steak and Colorful Roasted Veggies.  This steak was easy to make, and the balsamic sauce really added so much flavor to this tender meat.  I had never broiled a steak before, and I was surprised that I was able to get it well done without overcooking the outside, but it actually worked out great.  I served it with a lovely array of oven-roasted vegetables that were a great complement to the main dish.  I love any veggies roasted in olive oil, rosemary, and salt, so I knew this was going to be good!  I served these two dishes with a small baked potato for a total of 326 calories! 

Choosing a favorite dinner was difficult, because this Chicken Marsala and Savory Asparagus was restaurant-quality delicious!  My youngest son, who is almost 13, absolutely raved about this meal and was happy to have leftovers the following night.  He even asked to have it for lunch!  I was impressed at how good it was, and it was definitely worth the effort of marinating it the night before.  I will happily add this to our rotation in the future!  Even the asparagus was so good, and he surprisingly ate that, too.  I was supposed to serve it with 1/2 cup of white rice, but I totally forgot the rice!  No biggie…it was great just the way it was.  The chicken and asparagus totaled 321 calories.  Here’s a photo from Taste of Home.

 

I hope you enjoy these recipes as much as we did.  Have a great week!

Favorite Recipes for the Week of November 22nd

Happy Thanksgiving!  I trust you all had a wonderful time with the families in your own households this week!  It was odd not to have any guests or extended family to share the meal with this year, but I was very blessed to have a special meal with my husband and all of my own children.  My oldest son is 21, so every holiday we share could very well be the last one we’ll share with him while he lives under our own roof.  He doesn’t spend a lot of time at home any more now that he’s been steadily dating someone for over a year, but he made a point to have dinner with us and take a peaceful walk with his mom after the meal before taking off to see his girlfriend, so I was certainly thankful for that!  We all had a wonderful day together.

TOP FAVORITE BREAKFAST:

Egg ‘N’ Bacon Sandwiches.  The only change I made to this recipe was to use light English muffins so I could use a whole muffin per sandwich for just a few more calories rather than serving it as an open-faced sandwich.  It was delicious!  I could eat these any day of the week and never tire of them.  I served them with some sweet fresh cantaloupe for a total of 266 calories.  Here’s a photo from Taste of Home.
 

TOP FAVORITE LUNCH:

Vegetable Beef Stew.  My husband enjoyed this lunch so much that he texted me to tell me how good it was.  My young son wasn’t so fond, but I also thought it was very good.  It hid a healthy amount of nutritious butternut squash, as well.  I served it with a small buttered roll and salad with light dressing for a total of 348 calories.  Here’s a photo from Taste of Home.

TOP FAVORITE DINNER:

Mushroom Turkey Tetrazzini.  This tasty dish is an old favorite.  It uses 4 cups of cubed cooked turkey, making it an excellent way to use up leftover turkey from Thanksgiving dinner.  What’s more, it makes 8 servings, so there’s plenty to go around.  I serve this with green beans (or other leftover vegetables) and a salad with light dressing for a total of 362 calories.

That’s it for now!  I had a wonderfully relaxing weekend, completely free of Black Friday shopping for the first time in my married life!  One thing coronavirus has brought to us is a far less busy lifestyle with more quality time to just “be” together.  That’s probably the most positive thing to come out of this crazy, messed up year!  I can’t lie…I’ll be glad to bid farewell to 2020.  But in the interest of focusing on the positive, I’ll share my holiday photos.