Biology 101 from the 101 Series ~ A Homeschool Crew Review

So it had come time for my daughter who's in 10th grade to take Biology, and I was honestly dreading trying to find a course for her. I was really excited to see that Biology 101 from the 101 Series was coming up for review, because it honestly sounded perfect to fit our needs.

This is the first time I have ever used anything in the 101 Series, so I was curious about who they were. Westfield Studios was founded in 2003 by a homeschooling couple, Wes and Tammy Olson, who homeschooled all 4 of their children. When Tammy was looking for a Biology curriculum for her two high school aged boys, she was having trouble finding something that would fit their needs. Wes, who had years of corporate film experience, helped her create the perfect curriculum for their children. And so, the 101 Series was born. I am always so excited to use products that are created by other homeschooling families.

What did we recieve for this review?

Biology 101 is made up of 4 DVDs, all from a Biblical Perspective. This is also something that is very important to our family, especially when it comes to teaching Science. You will also receive a printable PDF Guidebook, and a 12 page "Course Accreditation Program" booklet if you want to use this a one year course for your student.

How does Biology 101 work?

So we are doing the Course Accreditation Program since Edyn is using this as a full year of curriculum. I LOVE that they lay everything out for you, so that it makes it easy to do. This program is set up to give your student 135 hours of biology study and 20 hours of lab work. They will be doing activities such as:

• Watching the DVDs and using the Guidebook
• Making a Biology 101 Notebook to ensure that they have a place to keep and record their work
• Research and Lab Reports
• Discussion Questions
• Conducting fun and easy labs
• Taking field trips
• Using the web and library for additional resources

The DVDs in Biology 101 are the main event in this curriculum. I could tell after just the first day of Edyn using this that she was learning, and she was enjoying it! She watches the DVDs, and while watching takes her own notes, because it helps her remember better. There are 11 segments that are then divided into 27 weeks of study. After watching the DVDs you have the guidebook which is some of the valuable information from the videos in print, but also contains your discussion questions and quizzes.

It is Creation based so this course starts with an Introduction and then moves into Day 3 which is Plants. Edyn has really enjoyed learning about plants and the parts of plants. She has taken her own notes, and we have had some great discussions about plants. The other topics of Creation that will be covered in Biology 101 will be:

• Aquatic Creatures
• Avian Creatures
• Land Animals (Part 1 and 2)
• Mankind Part 1 - brain, senses, skeletal and muscular systems
• Mankind Part 2 - circulatory, digestive, lymphatic, endocrine, human developement
• Biology History, Cells, and Genetics

What have we thought so far?

I am really impressed with the information that's packed into this curriculum. Edyn says that it's fun and engaging and she's excited to keep learning more about Biology. She was really dreading taking Biology, but I think using this curriculum has changed her mind. I think the fact that it's Creation based makes it even better, and you can rest easy knowing that this is true information. I am looking forward to using the other courses offered in the 101 Series too which are Physics 101 and Chemistry 101.

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Commissioned by Chara Games ~ A Homeschool Crew Review

One of our favorite ways to spend time as a family is playing board games, but sometimes it's good to just play alone with my husband so that we can get some quality "us" time in. We have had the chance to review a really unique and fun board game called Commissioned by Chara Games over the last few weeks, and it's proven to be one of our favorites!

What is Chara Games?

Patrick and Katherine Lysaght wanted to design table top games with Christian themes to bring families and friends together. Chara is the greek word for JOY, and that's exactly what they want people to experience while playing their games. Pure JOY!

Lets talk about the game...

Commissioned is a historically themed cooperative deck building game for ages 14 and up. You don't play against each other, you play together against the game, and let me tell you. It's not easy, but it is loads of fun!!

First, I want to take a minute and talk about how well this game is made, because I was impressed. It is constructed of good thick cardboard, from the box it comes in to the game board itself. All of the pieces are well made, so that this game will last you for years and years. The colors are vibrant and beautiful throughout all pieces of the game.

The game is composed of quite few pieces because it's very intricate and detailed. In the game you will receive:

• 1 double sided game board
• 5 double sided scenario cards
• 6 unique player boards
• 96 faith cards
• 27 trial cards
• 4 wood missionary meeples
• 75 wood church member cubes
• 1 wood elder's staff
• 6 wood player pawns
• 30 double sided stop tokens
• 5 double sided extinguish tokens
• 1 converted city leader's token
• 1 Roman Legion token
• 1 8-sided die
• 1 rule book
• 1 Theme Appendix

Ok, so let me start by saying this. This is not a sit down and start playing in 5 minutes type of game. It's got a lot of rules, and a lot of components. My husband took one look at the rule book and decided that he hasn't ever played a board game that was so detailed.

It looks way more complicating and intimidating than it really is. We ended up watching the video that tells you how to play, because we are much more visual learners. Like I said before, it's for 14 and up, and there's very good reason for that. My daughter who's 15 wasn't into it at all, so we decided to see if the 11 year old wanted to play. He was ok at first, but ended up getting a little confused, so we will wait a little longer before he plays again. It states that it takes about an hour to finish. We have experienced that it takes longer than that for us, but my husband is a critical thinker, so he takes his time. The first time took us about 3 hours, and then we got it down to around 2.

First, there are 5 different scenarios you can play! We played "Acts of Apostles" and stuck with that one because we wanted to get good at it enough to win! The object of the scenario we played, is to build up your churches, and to have a church in every city on the map while also collecting all of the bible cards. This sounds easy enough, but there is only one way to win, and basically 2 ways to lose!

In the beginning you choose which apostle that you want to be, and grab their apostle card and matching pawn. Each apostle has cards that has his special skill on it. As you play you will add to these cards and build your deck from the faith cards.

A turn consists of 3 to 4 different stages I guess you would call it. You first ARM yourself, or in other words, draw your cards. Then you LIVE, and this stage is broken down into mini stages. After all of that you Mature. This is where you will start building your deck.

You have to have a church in every city, and you have to have all of the bible cards at the bottom of the board to win. You will run into many scenarios with those Trial cards that will try and extinguish your churches that you have already worked so hard to build. If you extinguish them all, game over.

What did we think?

Like I said, at first we were wondering what we got ourselves into, but within a short period of time, this turned into one of our favorite games! It is so much fun, and works well for us because we work together to win. I can't wait to sit down with family and friends this holiday season and play this game with more people. It will definitely remain a go to game for us!!

Stay tuned because I will also be reviewing another game by Chara Games soon called 3 Seeds!

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Sentence Diagramming: Beginning by The Critical Thinking Co.™ ~ A Homeschool Crew Review

Language Arts and Grammar are hit or miss subjects around here. Depending on what part of it all we are learning, the kids either hate it or love it. Sentence diagramming was always something that was frowned upon. I really hated that they didn't like it, because if we are going to be honest, the grammar nerd in me really enjoys doing it. I was kind of reluctant on doing the review for Sentence Diagramming: Beginning by The Critical Thinking Co.™ because I wasn't sure how receptive they would be to it. I have been pleasantly surprised at how they have embraced doing this workbook.

About The Critical Thinking Co.™ ~

Back in 1958, John Baker founded this company under the name of Midwest Productions where they were mainly a math and textbook company. Now The Critical Thinking Co.™ has over 200 titles available in reading, writing, math, science, and social studies! It still remains a family owned business, and is now run by John's son, Michael Baker.

As their mission states, they are always committed to helping students with their critical thinking skills to help better their grades and test skills.

Sentence Diagramming: Beginning

Angela Carter wrote this workbook while she was teaching elementary students how to diagram sentences. She was having trouble finding resources that would teach diagramming in a logical way, and also a way that is easy to understand. She went on to say that she started making up quick lessons on her own, and decided to write them down and share. You can read the rest of her story in the beginning of the workbook.

So, I want to talk a little bit about the book. The entire workbook is 65 pages that are perforated so that they can be easily taken out. This makes it so easy to take the pages out, and copy so that you can use it for multiple students. It has a glossy and colorful cover that is well put together. This workbook is perfect for grades 3-12+.

How did we use this in our school?

I decided to use this workbook with both Edyn and Gavin. Edyn is in 10th grade, and Gav is in 6th so it was a good opportunity to see if there were any differences between the 2. The book is broken down into 12 lessons and a review. It also includes an answer key in the back.

• Lesson 1 - Simple Subject and Main Verb
• Lesson 2 - Direct Object
• Lesson 3 - Adjectives
• Lesson 4 - Adverbs Modifying Verbs
• Lesson 5 - Predicate Adjectives
• Lesson 6 - Predicate Nouns
• Lesson 7 - Prepositional Phrases (Adjectives)
• Lesson 8 - Prepositional Phrases (Adverbial)
• Lesson 9 - Compound Subjects
• Lesson 10 - Compound Predicates
• Lesson 11 - Compound Direct Objects
• Lesson 12 - Compound Predicate Adjectives and Nouns

What I like about the book is that there isn't a lot of complicated teaching you have to do. It's pretty self explanatory. She gives you a few good examples and explanations, and you start doing it yourself. We learn better that way anyway.

The lessons are short and easy. She starts off each lesson with an example that has an error. You figure it out and diagram it correctly. You will then move on to diagramming the given sentences. She gives you several to practice on as you go. Finally, you will make up your own sentences and diagram those. It's very straightforward and to the point, and that's the perfect kind of workbooks for us!

What did we think?

We really enjoyed working on this, even though the kids still aren't fond of diagramming sentences. Darn it. I just don't think they are into it, no matter how good a program is. I really do think that this is perfect for anyone that is wanting an easy and straight forward workbook, that doesn't make it complicated.

If you have any preschoolers, please consider checking out these awesome bundles for their Reading, Writing, and Arithmetic Before Kindergarten!™ programs. You can read about the Importance of Preschool Academics HERE.

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Cooking up History with the Founding Presidents by Homeschool Legacy ~ A Homeschool Crew Review

I love short little unit studies that don't take up a lot of time, but also have quite a bit of valuable information. For the last few weeks, we have been doing a Once a Week Micro-Study called Cooking Up History with the Founding Presidents by Homeschool Legacy.

If you've never heard of Homeschool Legacy, it was started by Sharon Gibson, a veteran homeschool mom of 16 years who used unit studies with her own family. She quickly learned that the short interactive lessons worked well for her children and brought them closer together.

What is a Micro-Study?

These are basically short unit studies. Don't let that fool you though. I found this study to be packed with information, and it isn't dry and boring. These studies are great for grades 1-8. These short studies provide you with a topic that you can touch on throughout the week, or just work on one day a week. They are flexible, so it's something that you could add into a study that you are already covering, or if you just want to have a little something extra to learn that week.

Which Micro-Study did we cover?

We have been using Cooking up History with the Founding Presidents, and I am so glad we got this one to review. The kids and I love learning about the Presidents, and the first First Ladies.

The Micro-Study is broken down into 4 weeks. Each week you will learn about and discuss a President, and if you want to go the extra mile, cook one of their favorite things.

• Week 1 - George Washington and the recipe that goes along with him is of course, cherry pie
• Week 2 - John Adams and his recipe is Apple Pan Dowdy
• Week 3 - Thomas Jefferson and his favorite recipe is macaroni and cheese
• Week 4 - James Adams is last but not least and his recipe is "Thomas Jefferson's vanilla flavored ice cream" (sounds much better than oyster ice cream which was Dolley Madison's favorite)

This study was very easy to understand and did not take much time to do every week. At the beginning of the study she gives you facts about each President, which we would write on our white board to see throughout the day. I also love the fact that she lists the supplies you will need that week so that you can have it prepared. She gives you great information to read about each President such as history, language, government, and of course the recipes.

You can print out all of the pages so that you have it in front of you, but I found it also good to follow along on the computer so that you can easily access the links. She gives you awesome videos, and links to some very valuable information.

We didn't get to do any of the recipes because my son was just diagnosed with some major food allergies that affects his esophagus. I didn't want to make all of those yummy things that he couldn't eat. Otherwise I think these Micro-Studies are great, and I think that they would be a great addition to any homeschool.

If you are interested in any of her unit studies she also offers:

• Pirates or Privateers: You Decide
• Victoria and Her World
• Thanksgiving with the Pilgrims (this is a great time to order this one!)
• Many Nations

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Personalized Framed Plaque with Name Meaning and Bible Verse from CrossTimber ~ A Homeschool Crew Review

Christmas is literally right around the corner, and gifts that are meaningful are so much better than something you pick up at your local big box store. Are you in the market for something different and unique? We have been able review a beautiful product, a Personalized Framed Plaque with Name Meaning and Bible Verse, from a fantastic company called CrossTimber.

What is CrossTimber?

Have you ever wanted to know what the meaning of your name is? What is the history of your name? John and Katie Dehnart over at CrossTimber have over 15 years of experience in researching names. They believe that there is a lot of importance in a name, and that it's a representation of who you are! I have to completely agree. When I had children, I made sure that their name was meaningful to me. I spent a long time researching names, and making sure it was something that would match each one of them. One child didn't even get the name that I called her for the 9 months I was pregnant with her, because her name didn't match her! Names are important!

I was really excited to find out that the owners of this fabulous company are also a homeschooling family! John and Katie, along with their children, all work together to make these custom and meaningful gifts. John has a really lovely story of how his Name Meaning business came to be, and I encourage you to go read it HERE.

What did we receive for the review?

CrossTimber was very generous and allowed us to choose a Personalized Framed Plaque with Name Meaning and Bible Verse, or upgrade to something else of our choosing. As soon as I saw the owl background, I knew it would be perfect to use for my gift. I chose to do my granddaughter's name to use as a gift for my daughter for Christmas. The owl background was an upgrade, so I chose to upgrade that rather than get the frame. I am having a frame custom made for it anyway. I was hoping it would be ready for the review, but it's not.

I was having trouble getting the perfect lighting so this picture does not do it justice. The colors are beautiful and vibrant! The text is clear and easy to read. I absolutely LOVE the meanings of her name, and the bible verses that were chosen to go with it. 1 Corinthians 13 is one of my absolute favorite verses of all time!

The pictures with the name and meaning are not all they offer. They have so many more gifts to choose from. Bookmarks, coffee mugs, and music boxes are just a few.

The ordering process was absolutely one of the easiest I've done. I was in contact with Mr. Dehnart from the beginning. He responded to my emails very quickly, and was more than willing to make a change for me. I decided I wanted to put both of Mila's names rather than one, and he made it happen with no issue at all. On top of that, there are so many designs to choose from, so you can definitely find something for anyone, no matter what. They have some beautiful scenic backgrounds!

What did we think?

I am really impressed with not only the craftsmanship of their product, but also the character and integrity of the family that does this. They are willing to go the extra mile for their customers, and that says a lot to me. This family loves to share the meanings of names. Do you want to know what a specific name means? Head on over and email them, no matter how unique the name, they will be able to do it!

Here's a cute video of the family announcing some exciting news!



They are going to be holding a FREE GIVEAWAY through December 1st. Who doesn't like a giveaway?? Be sure and head on over to get signed up for your chance to win!

Click the banner below to enter!

I also want to mention that they do a quantity discount on their products, so the more the merrier!

If you still need some Christmas presents, or even a gift for yourself, be sure and head over to CrossTimber, and get your orders in today. You won't be disappointed!

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The Familyman's Christmas Treasury - Audio Collection by The Familyman ~ A Homeschool Crew Review

There are two things I love, Christmas and audio books. Combine them both together and I'm a happy girl. We have had the chance to review The Familyman's Christmas Treasury - Audio Collection with digital downloads from The Familyman for the last few weeks just in time for Christmas.

There is something about curling up by the fireplace (if you have one) with a cup of hot chocolate, a blanket, and some good, family friendly, Christmas stories. Even though it's only October, that's exactly what we did (minus that whole fire place thing lol). I love being able to get back to basics and listening to a story, letting your mind decide what characters look like, and where they are.

A lot of times, my kids don't want to pay attention to that because there's no screen, they can't see it, and all of those excuses. I have to say, after listening to one of these stories, they wanted more. They couldn't wait to hear the rest. So, if my kids are asking for more, then they must be GREAT.

Who is The Familyman?

Todd Wilson, the man behind The Familyman Ministries, is a writer, conference speaker, former pastor, and most of all, a dad. He believes that being a dad is the most important job you have, and that you will only have one chance at it. Todd and his wife, Debbie, travel around the country with their 8 kids encouraging other moms and dads.

The Familyman's Christmas Treasury

Included in this collection will be the first 6 stories of the collection which are:

• Captain Chaos and the Manger Blaster
• Cootie McKay's Nativity
• The Stranger
• The Bishop's Dream
• Harold Grubbs and the Christmas Vest
• Gladys Remembers Christmas

Here's a little bit about each story. I got my 11 year old to tell me about each one for you so that it would be from a kid's point of view. 

Captain Chaos and the Manger Blaster - Jason is a 10 year old boy who thought the story of the manger was boring. He gets into trouble and has to go to bed early. This is when Captain Chaos comes into the picture, and changes everything, including the birth of Jesus. What happens in a world with no Jesus?

Cootie McKay's Nativity - This was our favorite! The Nativity scene in this small town gets ruined unexpectedly. The townspeople didn't know of anyone who could build it until someone suggests Cootie McKay as their only hope. Everyone doubted that Cootie could make it happen, but after he learned what the Nativity meant, he started building the best he could. But..was it good enough?

The Stranger - A stranger, Jesse, shows up to town and everyone thinks that he's homeless, and is afraid of him. He knocks on several doors and no one will let him in. He ends up at the the Tucker family's home and even though they are having a really rough night, they welcomed him into their home. What happens next will give you the warm and fuzzies because it's a really beautiful story.

The Bishop's Dream -  Bishop Nicholas went and took care of the homeless children everyday, and they loved him so much. One day after spending time with them, he has a strange dream. People are celebrating "Christmas" and he doesn't know what it is. He sees children laughing and having a good time with Santa Claus. He quickly realizes that it's not all about Jesus, which saddens him, and finds out where Santa came from.

Harold Grubbs and the Christmas Vest - Every year a young boy's dad digs out an old vest right after Thanksgiving. The boy wonders about the vest and where it came from, so his dad tells him about Harold Grubbs, the meanest man in town, and how he ends up having the vest. What happens to Mr. Grubbs that changes him?

Gladys Remembers Christmas - Gladys grew up feeling very unloved after her mother died when she was young, and she ends up really not liking Christmas. While cleaning out her father's house she finds a box that takes her back to Christmas past. What happens to Glady that changes her feelings?

What did we think?

Honestly, we were super impressed with these stories. My son already wants to listen again, so I think we will turn these on while putting up our tree this year. I think these would also be great on those long car rides for the holidays, or just for some family friendly entertainment. Order these now so that you too can enjoy The Familyman's Christmas Treasury - Audio Collection.

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Educeri Lesson Subscription Service by Educeri.....Educeri a division of DataWorks ~ A Homeschool Crew Review

I love to find programs that the kids can use the computer to work on. In a house that doesn't have much extra space for more books, it is so much easier to log onto a program and put them to work. I was excited to receive this review to Educeri Lesson Subscription Service from Educeri....Educeri a division of DataWORKS. They were very generous and gave us 12 months of access to their program to use for this review.

What is Educeri?

Educeri is a fairly new program, and was designed by John Hollingsworth and Dr. Silvia Ybarra along with their team of specialists. This is not a program that is only designed for homeschool students. It's actually perfect for public school kids as well, or anyone that is in need of a little supplementation. Educeri offers over a 1000 lessons in all different subjects, so that you can get some extra help where it's needed. The subjects they offer for grades K-12 are:

• Math - 413 lessons for all grades
• English Language Arts - 525 lessons for all grades
• Science - 22 lessons mostly for middle-high school grades
• History - 26 lessons mostly 5th grade and up
• Art, P.E, and Music - They only have a lesson or 2 each.

They have made it easy to get started with this program, and will even provide you with a free demonstration on how to use it if you need it. They seem very willing to help you succeed with this, and that's definitely a plus.

How did we use Educeri in our homeschool?

First of all I want to comment on the layout of this program. It's very easy to navigate which is important to me. It's no fun using a program that you have to try and figure out how to use. With the search feature, it makes it very convenient to just type in what I'm looking for, and get to a lesson quickly. Other than the search feature, the lessons are easily accessible through drop down menus for subject and/or grade. Using this makes it easy to see all lessons offered for either the grade you are looking for or whichever subject you are looking through. Both are efficient.

The format of each lesson is set up as a Powerpoint presentation. I have to be honest and say that my kids did not care for that format. I think while working on the computer they would rather something with a little more sound and interaction. I also think that all of the extra boxes and words distracted them a bit. I believe that this is more for the "teachers" considering it's supposed to be lesson plans, but it did not work well here at our house with our kids. They got to the point that they were asking if they had to do it because it confused them. I told them not to worry about the extras on the page and just try and focus on the main subject, and that seemed to help a little bit. This was particularly a struggle for my child with ADD. It was just too much going on for her, and she stopped using the program almost immediately. My son continued on and we did several lessons together, and he did have a little more success than my daughter did.

What did we think of this program?

Well I think that this program would be a good fit for some people even if it isn't for us as a family. They are Common Core aligned, and even though we do not align with anything Common Core, I can see where this would be great for certain families that need it, especially a supplement for students who attend public school. I also wish they had a few more options in the science and history section since that is always a favorite subject here. Of course I can also understand that there is more of a demand for math and language arts.

If you are looking for a supplemental program that is also CC aligned, then I think this would be a good fit for you.

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MyFreezEasy.com Freezer Meal Plan Membership by MyFreezEasy ~ A Homeschool Crew Review

With 5 different people in the house and 3 different diets, meal planning can be a real task. For the last few weeks though, MyFreezEasy.com Freezer Meal Plan Membership by MyFreezEasy has made the task quite a bit easier! We were really excited to receive the Premium Annual Membership for this review.

What is MyFreezEasy all about?

I have never done freezer meals even though I've always wanted to. They always seem to be a lot of trouble and honestly extremely time consuming. Just like the name implies, MyFreezEasy makes the process more than easy to do. It will help you save time and money in meal planning!

MyFreezEasy is designed to help you get 10 to 12 meals in your freezer in less than an hour. They are easy, flavorful meal plans and recipes that keep this in mind.

The way it works is, you buy a monthly subscription to MyFreezEasy which is very affordable for what you get. The Basic Meal Plan, which is $7 a month or $77 annually, will get you access to 8 monthly meal plans each month, and the best part of all is it has options for almost any kind of diet. You will get new recipes every month with no repeats!

The different types of meal plans include:

• Traditional Plan - 10 meals: mix of all different types of meals
• Gluten Free Plan - 10 meals that are completely gluten free including the sides
• Slow Cooker Plan - 10 meals that are all straight from your freezer into your slow cooker
• Clean Eats Plan - 10 meals all clean ingredients
• 20 Meals Plan - 20 meals that are all different types of meals
• All Chicken Plan - 10 meals using all chicken so that if chicken is on sale, you can stock up and get meals ready to go in your freezer
• All Ground Beef Plan - 10 meals using all ground beef to use the same as the chicken meals
• All Pork Chops Plan - 10 meals using all pork chops so again you can stock up when it goes on sale

With the Premium Meal Plan you will still get access to the 8 monthly meal plans, but you can also create your own, and also change the amount of servings which works best for us! It's still very affordable at $10 a month or $95 a year.

With both meal plans you also get so much more than just a meal plan. They have included everything you need to not only plan, but also get you completely organized to go grocery shopping. They include shopping lists, assembly details, printable labels for your freezer meals, instructional videos, and even dairy and gluten free modifications. They really left nothing for you to do except decide what you want to eat!

How did we use MyFreezEasy?

Since we started this review, we received some news about our 10 year old son Gavin. He has a disease called Eosinophilic Esophagitis. This means that he has food allergies that attack his esophagus. With all of his allergies, he has to eat gluten free and dairy free meals. I also have a vegetarian, plus my husband and I are trying to follow Trim Healthy Mama. The awesome thing about this meal plan is that you can get meals for ALL of those different diets in one place. I thought meal planning was going to be a nightmare, but this has honestly been a dream come true.

For September, I chose from the gluten free meals. I made several different ones up and put them in my freezer. Let me say, from the time you choose your meals, to the grocery shopping, to the actual assembly, it was extremely easy. For October, I utilized the build your own meal plan feature that's available to the Premium Meal Plan subscribers.

After you pick your meals, it's as easy as printing them out. I also love that you can save the meals to your computer, so that if you find some favorites, they will always be there. The old meal plans disappear after that month, so if you want them, you need to save them.

I love the grocery list for all of the meals that it comes with because it makes it so much easier than going through each recipe and trying to write it all down, because that's what I've always done. It's laid out so that it makes everything easy to find.

So for example I'm going to talk about one of the meals that was a real hit here. It's the Dutch Oven Italian Chicken and Potatoes. After I chose my meals and printed out my lists, it was so easy to throw into a freezer bag and into the freezer. Some recipes I kept ready to cook, and a few I decided to freeze. This meal was a freezer meal and it worked out perfectly.

I literally took the ingredients and put it in a freezer bag. That was it. It took maybe 10 minutes for that one meal, only because I had to open the chicken and wash it. I through it in the freezer and I was done.

When it came time to cook that meal, I had forgotten to take it out of the freezer the night before. Well I let it thaw for an hour or so and decided to throw it in my crock pot. It came out beautifully! I was a little concerned over freezing potatoes because I've had a bad experience with freezing potatoes before, but this turned out just great. You would have never known the potatoes were frozen!

What did we think?

Honestly I loved this plan more than I ever thought I would. Now that I'm getting the hang of planning meals for 3 different types of diets, I plan on solely using this program. It's just too easy to make meals for everyone that won't get boring. The meals are good, and they are easy to tweak if you need to change it up a bit. I definitely give this plan 5 stars, and I think it would benefit anyone from the working mom to the homeschool mom! 

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