A Little Side Note on a Snowy, Snowy Day

Blizzard of 2/1/11





The view from my window

As many of you reading this might know, Indiana was recently pelted with 21 inches of snow, and 60 mile an hour winds, otherwise known as: The Biggest Blizzard of the Decade, The Snowpacalypse, The Worst Snowstorm of the Century, etc.

Personally, I am quite tired of hearing about the whole thing.  I mean, come on.  Its just snow. It was exciting at first; waking up to 4 foot snowdrifts against my window and spotting entire vehicles completely buried.  Yet after two days stuck in the house with my...wonderful family, watching every weather report, reading hundreds of identical facebook statuses, and not being able to go absolutely ANYWHERE, its safe to say I wish I lived in Hawaii.

 However, it has been a wonderful time to try out new recipes. When I'm bored, I cook. I've made breakfast lunch and dinner for the past two days, much to my family's enjoyment. Oh, and I tried making a delicious white chocolate creme brulee which I will soon give you the recipe for.  My mom stocked up on groceries, and I've had more than enough time, so why not?
 The biggest problem I've had during this snowstorm though is motivation.  I just can't seem to find the energy to buckle down and do my school work,even though I know I need to, I'm bored out of my mind, and I'm completely unable to leave the house. 

The benefits of homeschooling

The real problem is, while everyone else is out of school for a few days, us homeschoolers are expected to carry on with our day as if nothing is different. Let me tell you; MUCH harder than it sounds.  There are howevever, many benefits to being homeschooled. The world's idea of homeschooling may look a little something like this:

And in some cases, that may not be far from the truth! But I also think that homeschooling has come a long way in the last few years, and I find myself often thankful that I haven't gone to a public school all my life.

 I have been homeschooled ever since preschool.  My mom heard many complaints about the school system in my town from different parents, and decided to try homeschooling and see how it went.  I've met a lot of great people I wouldn't otherwise know, and I've also LOVED the freedom and flexibility of it.  I would miss being able to babysit during the day, or do my school at nighttime when I've got things going on.  Here is a short list of frequently asked questions I've become accustomed to:

*Do you get to do school in your pajamas?

* Do you have any friends?

* Do you actually DO school?

*Are you ever going to go to college?

*Don't you wish you could go to school?

* How do you meet people?

* Does your mom just always give you As?

*Can your mom homeschool me?  I hate school.

And the list could go on and on :)

 As annoying as it is to try to explain to everyone I first meet that no, I am not weird, yes, I have many friends, and yes, I actually DO school, most of my friends forget after awhile anyways. Well, once they realize  I'm not really much different at all, except maybe in a few positive ways. 

 I feel very strongly that the people you hang out with greatly influence who you are and how you act in a huge way. I know this first-hand.  Growing up, I've been blessed to have many great christian friends in my life, and that's helped me to stay strong in my faith.  Going to a public school, it can be much harder to find a good group of friends that won't bring you down, and influence you negatively. 

 Another benefit to homeschooling is being able to move at your own pace.  Students learn at different rates and some are ready to move on while others still haven't grasped a  certain concept.  I like that I can move at my own pace and get my schoolwork done on my own time throughout the week.  I know of many successful homeschool students that have gone on to excel in college and in fact tend to do much better than average. 

 So, in the end, homeschooling has quite a few benefits.  If you're one of the many that are quite skeptical of the whole idea, hopefully reading this has opened your mind a bit!

With that said, I hope you enjoy this recipe for creme brulee.  My family sure loved it!

                                                         White Chocolate Creme Brulee  

Ingredients:

7 lg. Egg yolks
1/2 C.Sugar
2 C. Whipping cream
3 oz White chocolate imported, finely chopped
2 tsp. Pure Vanilla extract
2 T. Sugar ( I used brown sugar)

Directions:

Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 315 F. Whisk egg yolks and 1/4 cup sugar in medium bowl. Bring cream and remaining 1/4 cup sugar to simmer in heavy medium saucepan. Reduce heat to low. Gradually add chopped chocolate to cream mixture and whisk until smooth. Gradually whisk hot chocolate mixture into yolk mixture. Mix in vanilla.
Ladle custard into four 10-oz. custard cups (or creme brulee cups). Place cups in large baking pan. Add enough hot water to pan to come halfway up sides of cups. Bake until custards are set in center, about 1 hour. Remove custards from water and cool. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Preheat broiler. Sprinkle 1/2 tablespoon sugar over each custard. Broil until sugar caramelizes, watching carefully, about 2 minutes. Serve hot, or refrigerate up to 24 hours and serve cold.

Yield: 5 Servings