Hello Reader,

Do you enjoy eating salads? I do! If there is one thing I can never get too much of, it is fresh, tasty salads. Leafy salads, fruit salads, pasta salads...

I was about to say "I love them all." But then I remembered jello salad, and I'm a little picky with that one (although my mom makes a delicious strawberry jello salad with pineapple and sour cream using a recipe she found years ago in Southern Living. I wouldn't mind polishing off a serving or two of that one long about now).

Otherwise, if it's brightly colored, grows in the ground, and is tossed with a nice vinaigrette or creamy yogurt-based dressing (or simply served plain), you can count me in! So when I learned May is National Salad Month, I knew it deserved its very own link list. I hope you'll enjoy it. Mmmm-mmm. Happy munching and crunching!

Free resources for you this week:

• ​Avocado & Black Bean Salad - one of my favorites for summer picnics
• ​Train Your Kids to East More Veggies - tips for getting kids on board w/ healthy food choices
• ​All-American Potato Salad - this recipe is super creamy and feeds a crowd
• ​Plant a Garden Coloring Page - God urges His people to grow their own salad veggies 🌱
• ​Broccoli & Cauliflower Salad - one of our go-to Thanksgiving salad recipes
• ​Salad Fixings Word Scramble - how fast can you decipher this list of ingredients?

What I'm reading this week:

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I've been reading Favorite Poems Old and New aloud to the children as part of our literature studies (again). I've read lots of books of poetry over the years -- many to myself and even more to my children -- but this remains my all-time favorite collection. It offers an easy and enjoyable way to expand one's vocabulary, enrich one's education, and develop a greater appreciation for language. Poems are grouped by topic, and the book includes a wide variety of styles. Our family has discovered several favorites in the pages of this book which we've subsequently committed to memory, either individually by the child who was especially fond of it or as a group so that we can review and recite together.

This week's reader request:

A reader from South Carolina (Andrew Jackson's home state) asked if I could put Jackson's face on a coloring page I designed several years back. It quotes what Jackson said about the Bible, but features a sketch of a preacher instead of the president.

It was an easy enough change to make, so you can now download either iteration of the printable by following this link: Andrew Jackson on the Bible​

On the podcast this week:

Loving Life at Home: Episode 45 ​DON'T WASTE THE CRUST​ In sandwiches and in life, many of us prefer the soft, cushy parts. If we could leave on our plates anything that's difficult to swallow, we would. But the tough parts serve an important purpose, whether you're talking peanut butter and jelly sandwiches or our Christian walk. ​ Listen Now

Progress on last week's goals:

I never got around to doing about half the things on last week's to do list at all, including ❌ grading papers, ❌ participating in my DIL's meal train, and ❌ gathering/pricing books for our homeschool group's used book sale.

But I ✅ did clear out/ answer the vast majority of messages in my inbox. I also ✅ received and approved the proofs for my State Capitol Passport and National Park Passport (they're now available on Amazon). And (by God's sustaining grace) I ✅ kept three of my younger grandkids clean, dressed, fed, entertained, and alive for the past four days. (Which explains why all those other items on my list were completely neglected. Ha! I obviously forgot just how much time and energy preschoolers require. Hats off to all those dedicated mamas who are still in the thick of it!)

Personal goals for next week:

• make a huge batch minestrone soup (to eat, freeze, and deliver to my DIL)
• add printable versions of my new passports to our online shop (for DIY-enthusiasts)
• attend the Texas Republican State Convention
• craft a few new patriotic ornaments
• switch out springtime decor for Memorial Day on the seasonal tree in my bedroom
• type up notes/links from last week's transcript talk