Real Life Stuff

Here's Real Life...

2010-09-06T08:25:00.000-07:00

"It happens before you know it... the handprints get higher and higher, then suddenly - they disappear."

You conceive, you patiently wait nine months (give or take), you get up at 2am to feed and diaper change, you kiss their boo boo's, you bake cookies for their class, you give advice, you scold, you teach, you hug, you kiss, you transport to numerous sporting events, you are there when they are let down, when their hearts get broken, when their car is broken, when they just need a shoulder to cry on, and eventually, all too soon, they are grown and gone. I dropped my oldest baby off at college on Saturday and leaving him there was the hardest thing to do. He is 7 1/2 years older than our next one, so he has become a friend. He was our "right hand" man. He is BUBBA to our other three, which translates to hero, friend, playmate, comforter... He is SO missed right now. But that is part of life. You have babies and before you are ready those babies grow up to be men and women and you really hope that you have taught them all they need to know. But even if you feel like you weren't finished with them, God is never finished with them and will continue to shape and grow them long after they leave your nest. We will adjust to life around here without our Bubba, and in the same way he has to get used to living without his 5 other family members, and with a roommate and 6 other suite-mates. He adjusts well to change, he always has, that, among many other things is a Gift that he has been given from his Creator. So until next time... I will be trying to cut down my crying for him to only once a day or less. I will be training my younger children to do the things that he usually did. And... I. will. survive. With God's help.

Life changes in the blink of an eye...

2010-09-01T17:29:00.000-07:00

The article that I have linked at the bottom of this post brings to mind my own small town where the suicide rate is the highest per capita in the NATION. Sadly, we have had several teens in our community commit suicide in the past few years and this article really brings to mind what circumstances can do to a person, especially in this fragile economy right now. There have been many times that I have wanted to just sit down and give up... too many bills, not enough money, not enough time, too many commitments, the list goes on... But the one thing that has kept me going is this...

"17The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles. 18The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. 19A righteous man may have many troubles, but the Lord delivers him from them all" Psalm 34:17-19

God has never promised that believers won't have struggles and hardships in their lives. He has promised, however, that He will be there as a refuge in those times of troubles. I wish wholeheartedly that those teens that have taken their own lives had known this truth before making that horrible last decision.

The following is an excerpt written by Trent at "The Simple Dollar" Click the link at the bottom to go to the full article... well worth your time.

Bad Luck That Changes a Life

Quite often, the only difference between the people we look up to and the people we look down upon are a handful of little events. A parent that cared a little more. An unexpected death. A bad test result with no positive reaffirmation to get up and give it another shot. A lost promotion. A hurtful comment at an emotionally weak moment. A flash of anger, by them or by someone else. A bit of peer pressure. The opportunity to make a connection with someone who can open a door.
Our lives are full of these little events, most of which are out of our control. It’s those events – and how we react to them – that determine much of what we have in life, and what we work for.

Click below to read the entire article...

Everything’s So Easy for Pauline: Thoughts on Luck, Fate, Money, and Life

Recipe Corner: Corn Cakes

2010-08-31T13:12:00.000-07:00

I have made these many times for my family and they gobble them right up! They are somewhat healthy, at least there is some added nutrition in there, but definitely yummy. Plus you can make it up ahead of time and store in the fridge for yummyness (blogger says that's not a word, but, I am leaving it anyway!) anytime! Here you go!

Corn Cakes

Mix all the ingredients together and fry up like pancakes...

3 eggs - non-salmonella ones if you can find them, I have some in the backyard :)
2 1/2 c milk
1 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 c cornmeal
1 c flour
1/2 c oat flour - to make oat flour, chop up oatmeal in the food processor til powdery like flour, then measure.
1 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp brown sugar
5 tbsp soft butter
1 tbsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 c wheat germ
2 tbsp flax seed
1/2 c chopped pecans
2 tsp vanilla

Who's job is it?!

2010-08-26T06:36:00.000-07:00

That's Not My Job
There is a story told about four people named Somebody, Everybody, Anybody, and Nobody. There was one important job to be done. Everybody was sure that Somebody would do it, but Nobody did it. Somebody got angry about it because it was Everybody's job. Everybody thought Anybody could do it. Nobody realized that Everybody wouldn't do it. It ended up that Everybody blamed Somebody when Nobody did what Anybody could have done.

Sound familiar? I think that those are pen names for my four children! Keeping house with 6 people in it is not an easy task, but it is one that must be done, and it is a constant. I once received a wall hanging from my husband's Great Aunt that read "Cleaning house while the children are growing, is like shoveling snow while it's still snowing". SO true, however, if the snow is gonna keep on for 18 years, then you're going to have to shovel it at some point, even if it is still snowing. And like a snow fence, children can be put to work to help contain some of the mess. Obviously the big ones, (my big ones are 10 and 18), can do pretty much anything I ask, such as washing the dishes, doing laundry, cleaning out the mud room, etc. But don't forget that you must train children to do the work... so start them young. My two youngest, 2 & 5, also have jobs they can do. My 5 year old can bag up the recycles to be taken in. The 2 year old can pick up the toys and put them in the box or pick up the books and put them in the bag. He will also throw away trash that has ended up on the floor. But when you have a larger family, everybody has to pitch in to get the job done or eventually you will just get snowed in! HAPPY CLEANING!

Blast from the Past

2010-08-25T08:37:00.000-07:00

Always remember that the future comes one day at a time.

And with that quote, here is a blast from my blogger past....
originally posted October 21, 2008

Recipe Corner: Home Made Laundry Soap

I have to place credit where credit is due, I got this "recipe" from Trent on The Simple Dollar. I have made it twice now since about April of this year. I have a front loading HE washer and the money I have saved by not having to buy special detergent for that washer in more than 6 months is enough incentive to continue to make my own. In my opinion (and that of Trent and many of his readers) it works just as well as Tide. Here it is...

1 bar of soap (cheap stuff will do)
1/2 cup borax
1 cup washing soda (not baking soda, washing soda can be found at the grocery store in the laundry soap aisle)
approximately 3 1/2 gallons water
5 gallon plastic bucket with lid

The soap I got for $1 for a 3 pack (and only use 1 per batch), the washing soda I got for $2.67 at the grocery store(only used 1 cup per batch) (my Wal-Mart didn't carry washing soda), the borax was $2.97 at Wal-Mart(again only used 1/2 cup per batch), the bucket I got at Ace hardware for approximately $8, however you can probably get them free from a restaurant, bakery, etc...

Start 4 cups of water boiling on the stove.
Grate your bar of soap using a cheese grater.
Add the shaved soap slowly to the boiling water a little at a time. When the little has dissolved, add more until it is dissolved, continue until you have dissolved the whole bar.
Pour 3 gallons of hot tap water into the bucket.
Add the borax and washing soda and stir.
Add the soapy boiling water and stir.
Cover and let sit overnight.
After sitting, stir it up. It should be fairly gelatinous.

The color of your detergent will be a lighter version of whatever color your bar soap is. I have 2 Tide bottles that I saved from before and I just refill those and use the dispenser cap from them to measure out. For the HE washers it is approximately 1/2 to 2/3 cup and for the regular about a cup.

I have continued to make my own laundry soap and am loving it! Happy soaping!

NEW Commitment.... NO Commitment!

2010-08-25T08:11:00.000-07:00

Okay, so 7 1/2 months ago I made the commitment to blog again.... and then didn't come back. I am so bad. Please forgive me. I have a new outlook... I am not going to make a commitment to blog. I will instead commit to blog without commitment. HOWEVER--- here is the promise that I have from my Maker.... "Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and your plans will succeed." Proverbs 16:3 NIV So with this promise, I commit this blog to the Lord and I know it will succeed! Have a blessed day! And HOPEfully soon I will be blogging for you again!

THIS IS THE DAY THAT THE LORD HAS MADE, LET US BE GLAD AND REJOICE IN IT!

A Fresh Start for the new Year.

2010-01-11T08:54:00.000-08:00

Okay. I admit that I left behind my blogging for a while. I apologize. I hope to make things right this year. So here's the plan... I will plan on putting up at least one new actual blog post a week and hopefully on the other days just have a quote of the day or perhaps a picture of some sort... Thats the plan... we shall see how it goes. Wish me luck and I hope to see you stopping in here!

1st QUOTE of the new year....

"Whether we are poets or parents or teachers or artists or gardeners, we must start where we are and use what we have. In the process of creation and relationship, what seems mundane and trivial may show itself to be holy, precious, part of a pattern." -Luci Shaw

The compost bin

2009-06-29T05:53:00.000-07:00

So, in my previous post I told you that we built a compost bin. Its something that I have been wanting to do for a while now. Before I had the bin I composted some, just into the rhubarb patch,things like food scraps, apple shavings, rhubarb leaves, some banana peels... basic stuff. But now, anything that will compost goes into the bin, coffee grounds, egg shells, leftover dinner, along with the apple shavings, banana peels, and rhubarb leaves. We also toss in there the grass clippings and used sawdust from the chicken pen. And the best part of it is I believe that most if not all of the materials used to build the bin were from recycled or repurposed items.

I started with 4 boards I salvaged from my grandfathers broken down barn (see the faded red paint on the front one!), 4''x4'x1/2''. I nailed them together with posts in each corner that were taken from some old pallets to form a box. I then took some lathe (skinny little boards used for walls) that were left over from another project and nailed those to each side along the top edge. I wrapped the whole thing in chicken wire that was left from the building of the chicken coop. I set it up behind the garage/barn and that is where all our compost goes. I feel so green! It all only took about an hour to build and it has saved on throw away trash. So join me in my "green movement" and do something great for the environment!

We've gone country!

2009-06-25T11:38:00.000-07:00

In my absence from blogging, we have got a garden tilled into our back yard and planted, tilled and planted a strawberry patch (conveniently next to the rhubarb patch!), built and started filling a compost bin, got chickens (and are about a third of the way to getting eggs! only about 11 more weeks!), and are collecting rainwater for the plants and chickens... We have been busy! Baseball is about over for the boys and the heat is laying into us hard! I have started my Farmers market season and it is going very well, with a new Monday night market starting in a couple of weeks. I will try and keep in touch with my blogger, but it's been tough. I appreciate those who have stuck with me over the past few months and ask that you just keep checking back for more! I hope everyone is enjoying their summer!

Check out our new products at Organically Simple Tees!

2009-05-13T04:56:00.000-07:00

We have added dark & colored tees to our organic lineup! And also, earth friendly aluminum water bottles! There are new designs added daily, so check back often!

Sorry for my disappearance....

2009-05-11T06:25:00.000-07:00

I have been so very busy with life. My son had his first prom, my daughter had her golden birthday (4 years old on the 4th), my in-laws were in town, baseball is in full swing, and the grass is growing, so it needs to be mowed on occasion. All excuses, I know, but they have kept me from my blogging. I hope to get back into the swing of things now that prom is over, the birthday is finished, and the in-laws have headed home. Baseball is still here and the grass continues to grow, but regardless, I will try and be more vigilant. Here are some pics...

A Thousand Words Thursday

2009-04-23T05:37:00.000-07:00

April 19, 2009

9 K's. That's what he did. His 1st time out to start for the varsity team and my son struck out 9 batters. He only allowed 6 hits and 1 walk in a complete game 5 inning victory. Isn't he just awesome!

Recipe Corner: Fluffy Biscuits

2009-04-22T08:10:00.000-07:00

I found this recipe somewhere on the internet a while ago and it has become my family's favorite biscuit recipe, especially when served with sausage gravy! Give it a try and I am sure your family will love it too!

Fluffy Biscuits
makes about 8- 10 biscuits

2 cups flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon sugar (can be increased if you want sweeter)
1 1/2 cups heavy cream (cannot substitute and maintain the same results)

Preheat oven to 480 (not a typo, really hot oven! yes really, 480!)
Spray cookie sheet with cooking spray
In a medium bowl combine all the dry ingredients.
Add cream (no substitutions... they won't get as fluffy, trust me, I've tried!)
Stir together just until it sticks together and forms a ball.
Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and gently press dough out to about 3/4" thickness.
Cut out biscuits using about a 3" biscuit cutter, or a glass will do!
Place biscuits on the greased cookie sheet leaving about an inch in between.
Bake in your preheated, very hot oven, for approximately 10 minutes, until golden brown on the top and the bottom. They will rise pretty tall while baking and will sink a bit after you take them out.

I recommend serving hot with sausage gravy to drown them in! YUMMY!

Trash to Treasure.... a school project

2009-04-21T06:34:00.000-07:00

My middle son, who is in the 3rd grade, had a project due today. So like we always do, we waited until the last minute to complete it. We had it all planned out, but just didn't get it done until late last night.

We built an art table made from plastic bottles, pizza boxes, & recycled paper. Then used a few staples & glue to hold it together, and paint to make it look pretty!

I had some chalkboard paint from another project, so we used that on the top to really make it a cool, functioning art table. The papers in the bin are from a large envelope that would have been thrown away, a paper bag that once held apples, which also would have been thrown away, and some comics cut out of the newspaper. The crayons in one of the holders were broken and getting lost on the floor, so we salvaged those and put them in a good place to be used. His colored pencils probably wouldn't have been thrown away, but they weren't getting much use where they were. The chalk was broken, it probably would still have been used, but now has a new home!

We had a lot of fun with it, and would recommend you give recycling and re-purposing a try with your kids!

A Thousand Words Thursday

2009-04-16T05:03:00.000-07:00

A sign of Spring
This was taken yesterday within a few hours of him hatching! My niece name him "Chip"

Organically Simple Tees is functional!

2009-04-15T08:13:00.000-07:00

We finally have our website, Organically Simple Tees, up & working! If you remember, I told you a few posts back, that we opened a new organic shop thru Cafepress. This is the off site web page for that! We offer all organic tees for the whole family. I am so excited! The website is not by any means complete, but it is up and running, and you can purchase from it! This is the first off site website that we have for our products, but there will be more, & you will hear about it here! So, please, do me a favor and go, visit our website, and comment back here what you think! Even better yet, you could order something! But seriously, click one of the many links you see in this post and visit us, because, the more unique visitors we have, the higher we are ranked on the Google search, and the more actual buying customers we are likely to get! Thanks!

Imagine the discoveries of modern medicine...

2009-04-14T05:15:00.000-07:00

I saw this on another blog, and it is a subject near to my family. Doctors at a San Diego hospital are discovering that, of all things, mothers milk is helping premature infants get healthier faster, and go home sooner! WOW! Ya think?? I apologize for my cynicism, but it seems that these doctors are claiming credit for something that so many people have known and have been doing for centuries! Mothers milk=healthier babies, regardless if they are premature or full term. Watch the video and lend me your thoughts!

Watch CBS Videos Online

Frugal Friday: Cheap Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner

2009-04-10T08:31:00.000-07:00

The other day, my hubby & I decided to get creative in the kitchen (for dinner people, get your mind outta the gutter!). We did a quick inventory of what we had on hand, and here is what we came up with, that I think we decided cost us less than $5 for the whole meal, give or take a little... It's not something that hasn't been done before, but here ya go...

My Cheap Meal on the Fly.... Breakfast (lunch or dinner) Burritos

1/2 large sweet onion
1 can mushroom pieces
3 tablespoons oil (we had olive oil on hand)
4-5 medium potatoes (we used red)
3-4 eggs
splash of milk
about a cup of shredded cheese
8 flour tortillas
salt & pepper

Heat the oil in a large fry pan or wok style pan.
Dice the potatoes (skin & all) into about 1/2 inch pieces & throw in the hot oil to cook.
Dice up the onions and mushrooms & throw them in the pan to cook with the potatoes.
Cover the pan and allow to cook, stirring occasionally to keep the potatoes from sticking.
In a separate pan scramble the eggs with a splash of milk.
Heat your tortillas a bit, we used the microwave.
Now, once your potatoes are finished cooking you can assemble.
Lay out a tortilla and place about 1/4 -1/3 cup of potatoes in the center.
Add about 1/4 cup of scrambled eggs.
Sprinkle with a little cheese and season a bit with the salt & pepper.
Wrap it up and eat!

The kids loved it and it was cheap and easy to make! And we usually have all of those ingredients on hand, so it's a meal that is readily available pretty much any time! Not to mention you can add other stuff to it to make it even tastier! If I had had some peppers, those would have gone in there, and it would be awesome with bacon or sausage!

A Thousand Words Thursday

2009-04-09T05:32:00.000-07:00

September 2007
My girl gettin' friendly with a goat at the local orchard.

Recipe Corner: Play Dough!

2009-04-08T08:33:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was day 2 of Spring Break. It was still a little chilly out for the kids to play outdoors, so we made some play dough! It was so easy and so much fun for the kids.

Play Dough

4 cups all purpose flour
1 cup salt
1/2 cup cream of tartar
4 cups water
4 Tablespoons oil
2 teaspoons vanilla (used as a preservative to keep from getting moldy & makes it smell good!)

Mix all ingredients in a large pan and stir over medium heat until a non-sticky dough forms. It will get very thick and hard to stir! So if you're gonna let the kids help, let them help at the beginning! Be sure and stir constantly to avoid the dough sticking to the bottom of the pan and burning. Once the dough has formed, remove from the pan to cool slightly. Divide into however many colors you are going to make and add several drops of food coloring to each ball. Knead the dough until coloring is completely distributed. Store dough in an airtight container to keep from drying out. We used the little round Glad containers and had enough for 3 tubs each of 4 different colors. This way each of the two kids (that are interested in play dough) had their own set and we had an extra set! Hours & hours of cheap indoor fun!

Baseball Season has arrived....

2009-04-07T06:42:00.000-07:00

Yes, baseball season is here. For a lot of you in the south, baseball season started a while ago... But here in the cold north it has just begun. Opening day was yesterday in the major leagues, but those of you involved in fantasy baseball already know that! Here in my household we are involved in all levels of baseball. My hubby is deeply involved in the fantasy baseball, (those who can't play...). My oldest is on the varsity baseball team at his highsch00l. And my middle boy is signed up for little league, just waiting for the practices to start. My girl helps where she can with her pink batting helmet firmly in place and pink softball in her grip, she can't wait until next year when she can start t-ball. And, well, the baby just claps and cheers as best he can to keep everyone going. Me, the mom, makes sure that everyone is fed and where they need to be at the time they need to be there, and makes sure that everyone is sufficiently hydrated for the game. Here in this house we do school baseball, summer baseball, and fall baseball. From March until October we eat, sleep, & yes play baseball. Baseball season has just begun... and it won't end until winter is knocking at our front door again... PLAY BALL!

Spring Break, Snow, and Hot Chocolate

2009-04-06T05:40:00.000-07:00

The first day of Spring Break and there is snow is on the ground. There is something just not fair about that! Spring Break is supposed to be all about breaking into spring, warmer weather, fun stuff... Not shoveling snow. So I suppose today's spring break activities will take place indoors. Maybe we will make cookies or some other winter break-like activity! The kids do take it in stride, but it still doesn't seem fair. Maybe this is why, when spring break came around last year, we headed south. To Texas. To warm weather. Yes, that would definitely been a good choice. But, here we are, in Northern Illinois, in the snow, so we will make the best of it. Maybe see if we can make a snow man. Break out the hot chocolate! Here is a hot chocolate recipe for you to try if you don't have any in the house....

Mom's Home Made Hot Chocolate Mix
1 large box of powdered milk
1-2 pound bag of powdered sugar
1 canister of cocoa powder
1 larger canister of non-dairy creamer

Combine all ingredients in a large plastic container and shake well. For an individual serving, mix 1/3 cup of powder with 8 ounces hot water or for an even creamier cup of cocoa, make it with hot milk!

Here's another idea.... dehydrate mini marshmallows with a food dehydrator! This will give you the crunchy little marshmallows that you find in the commercial hot chocolate mixes. Then add to your cup of hot chocolate. Store mix in a sealed container in a cool dry place.

Enjoy! And I truly hope that you don't have to endure snow on your spring break!

Fun Friday: April Fools Dinner 2009

2009-04-03T04:51:00.000-07:00

So instead of Frugal Friday, I decided to give you my April Fools 2009 dinner pics, so we will make this Fun Friday instead!

On the left we have dinner, which consisted of "cupcakes & ice cream sundaes". The cupcakes were meatloaf with mashed potato frosting and a little tomato sauce flower. The ice cream was mashed potatoes and the hot fudge sauce was gravy. For dessert we had pizza! I started with a tortilla crust that I lightly pan fried in a little oil to make it a little crispy, dusted it with some cinnamon sugar and then added the toppings... the pizza sauce was strawberry jelly, the cheese was sweetened cream cheese drizzled over the top, and the pepperoni's were fruit roll ups cut into circles! They were so yummy! And we had a great time making it! I hope you all had a fun April Fools Day, we have to try to do even better next year!

A Thousand Words Thursday

2009-04-02T04:37:00.000-07:00

March 2008

For spring break last year we went to visit family in the great state of Texas... my middle son's birthplace. Here are my 3 oldest posing for a memory at the welcome center.

April fools!

2009-04-01T06:32:00.000-07:00

Happy April Fools Day! Everyone likes to join in to some degree. Some more than others. My kids...so far... are fairly mild pranksters. My middle son likes to make an April Fools dinner & dessert for everyone. Last year it was "cake" & "ice cream" for dinner (pasta cake w/alfredo frosting & cherry tomato "strawberries" on top and mashed potato "ice cream"). And then for dessert we had "hamburgers" & "fries" (nilla wafer buns, chocolate covered cookies for the patty, red & yellow frosting for ketchup & mustard, sliced up pound cake for the fries and a little cup of red frosting ketchup).

My Jake gets so into this... So this year we have it all planned out again. We are having cupcakes and icecream sundaes for dinner and pizza for dessert! We will post pics when we have some!

I've opened a new shop...

2009-03-31T10:17:00.000-07:00

Some of you know that I have some shops on Cafepress. Well, we have decided to go Organic. Take a look at some of our designs on our new line of Organic Tees. We are constantly adding new designs to our lineup, so check back often, or if you would like to see some of our current designs on Organic, let me know and I can push those to the front... New Organic Tees, Previous Designs, Sports & Outdoor themed previous designs

Let me know what you think! We are also working on getting our website up and running so keep checking in!

Frugal Friday: Lunchboxes

2009-03-27T05:14:00.000-07:00

Everybody knows that packing your lunch, most times, is cheaper than buying your lunch. And most times, my boys pack their lunch for school (I say this as my boy is currently on his way to school with $2 tucked securely into his pocket for a hot lunch! i did say most!). Not only do I find it more inexpensive for them to pack their own lunch, I feel like it's healthier, and makes my kids more responsible (if they want to eat, they better pack something!). Now, if you buy all your lunchbox fixin's pre-packaged, then you might not be cheaper or healthier, but you will still help build responsibility. I buy some items pre-packaged, but not all. I also try and get away with making at home a lot of what you can buy pre-packaged. So lets start with what to put into a sacklunch...

The base, or the "entree'', what to start with and "pack your lunch around"...
Here are a few suggestions:

Sandwich (so many possibilities... bologna, PB&J, egg salad, ham salad, tuna salad, etc...)
Last nights left over pizza (kids LOVE this)
Soup
Pasta (either left over or Chef Boyardee ravs or whatever)
Wrap (tortilla, lettuce, veggies, salad dressing, chunks of meat)

The other components I try to have in a lunch are: either some crackers or chips (the salty), a fruit or veggie (the healthy), a dessert (self explainatory), and a drink.

For the salty:
Get a big bag of chips or box of crackers and break down into individual baggies for easy lunch packing. I like to do this as soon as I purchase a package so that it doesn't get mistaken for "sit on the couch and finish and one sitting" type of food.

For the healthy:
Really, any fruit or veggie works...

carrot sticks, celery sticks, pepper strips, cucumber slices zucchini slices or sticks... any of those with a small container of salad dressing for dipping.
grapes
a banana
an apple or apple slices and peanut butter for dipping
oranges slices

For dessert:
Something simple...

a couple of homemade cookies
jello (made at home and put into the small snack size plastic tubs)
pudding (ditto above suggestion)
brownie (also homemade)

The drink:
Most of the time I will just send 30 cents in for a milk purchase, but, we have done our own drinks also. I love the individual packets of drink mix you can get these days. You take a recycled water or soda bottle, fill it up with water and mix in the packet to make either lemonade, or tea, or kool aid... so many options out there. We have also found individual packets of chocolate milk mix... just mix into a bottle of milk! You can also go a little cheaper and mix up the big container and just pour into the bottle to save a little money.

I also like to have a "bonus" item a lot of the time, and that is either a granola bar or something of the like. I just recently made my own granola bars and the kids liked them! It was easy to do and I already had all the ingredients on hand for it. Look for a recipe for your favorite snacks, you might be surprised how easy it is to make your own!

There are so many options out there.... So make lunchtime fun and get creative!

A Thousand Words Thursday

2009-03-26T06:55:00.000-07:00

March 2009 Telling Secrets (or maybe, just maybe, he's getting ready to chew on his ear!)

New friends are great! Especially when they are okay with you chewing on their ear!

Crochet veggies!

2009-03-25T09:51:00.000-07:00

Okay so here are some basic directions to make some crochet cotton veggies...

Pick your veggie, I have so far made.... a tomato, carrot, eggplant, potato, ear of corn, and a cucumber.

I used a size G hook and cotton worsted weight yarn. Start with the coordinating color for your veggie.
Lets start with the tomato... With red yarn.... ( and I find it easiest to mark the 1st stitch of each row to keep track)

Chain 2.
Row 1: 6 sc in the 1st chain stitch made.
Row2: 2 sc in each sc around. (12 st)
Row 3: 2 sc in each st around (24 st)
Row 4: sc in each stitch around (24 st)
repeat row 4 until tomato is the right size of "round" for your taste. Then decrease evenly in each row to close, stuff with fabric scraps before closing and finishing off. Weave in ends.
To put the top stem or leaves on, attach a green yarn and chain up 4-5 and slip stitch back down the chain, slipstitch into next st and repeat until desired # of leaves are achieved. Finish off and weave in ends.

For other veggies, adjust the # of increases for the size of veggie. For a carrot, start with just 4 sc in the 1st chain and increase slowly, only getting up to about 8-10 stitches around and make a tube. For the corn, after I made the yellow tube, I turned it inside out to give it a more nubby look for the kernels.

Have fun and be creative!

Handmade... with love

2009-03-24T05:38:00.000-07:00

So here lately I have been crocheting a lot. I made myself some awesome potholders (some alongside the highway!) which work great. I have made a couple of kitchen towels and dishcloths, which I have yet to use because they are so pretty, I hate to dirty them! And I have also been making some toys for my 9 month old baby boy. They are so cute! I will have to get pics posted soon of them... Anyway, I have made him a set of sea creatures - an octopus, a jellyfish, and a goldfish. And I have made him a set of vegetables - a potato (my fave), a tomato, an ear of corn, some sweet peas, a carrot, a cucumber, and an eggplant! They are so fun to make and so easy to whip up! I have been crocheting since I was about 10 years old, and it used to be that I would just make scarves or blankets... there is so much more out there! I am really enjoying these new quick projects! I hope to soon make a bag, and I am learning to crochet with recycled plastic bags also! So I really hope I am able to make the "green" bag that I set out to do when I researched plastic bag crocheting!
For those interested, I will post pictures and some basic directions maybe tomorrow...

Destroy the boys!!

2009-03-23T07:43:00.000-07:00

Okay I have returned... I didn't go anywhere... I was just being negligent. No excuses. So for today, I have a conversation for you.

Conversation between my 3 1/2 year old daughter (the only girl) and me:

Me: Look at all these boys! (3 brothers and a dad in the room) What are we gonna do with all these boys?!

K: We have to DESTROY them!

Me: Destroy them!? Oh my!

K: We can keep one!

Me: Well which one should we keep?
(and at this point all the boys, including dad, are trying to be the one "picked" to be kept!)

K:All of them! I want to keep all of them!

Me: But I thought we had to destroy them?

K: No! They're my boys!

Me: So we're not going to just keep one?

K: No! All of them! I love them!

So needless to say, we have decided to keep all of her boys! Aren't kids great!

A Thousand Words Thursday

2009-03-12T05:13:00.000-07:00

JUNE 2001My middle son & his "twin" cousin (just 4 weeks different in age) dancing the night away at my sisters wedding, they were the ring bearer & flower girl.

Aren't they cute!

Well Said Erma!

2009-03-11T11:17:00.000-07:00

I got this in an email from a friend of mine, I hope you enjoy it!

IN honor of women's history month and in memory of Erma Bombeck who lost her
fight with cancer.

IF I HAD MY LIFE TO LIVE OVER - by Erma Bombeck
(written after she found out she was dying from cancer).

I would have gone to bed when I was sick instead of pretending the earth
would go into a holding pattern if I weren't there for the day.

I would have burned the pink candle sculpted like a rose before it melted in
storage.

I would have talked less and listened more.

I would have invited friends over to dinner even if the carpet was stained,
or the sofa faded.

I would have eaten the popcorn in the 'good' living room and worried much
less about the dirt when someone wanted to light a fire in the fireplace.

I would have taken the time to listen to my grandfather ramble about his
youth.

I would have shared more of the responsibility carried by my husband.

I would never have insisted the car windows be rolled up on a summer day
because my hair had just been teased and sprayed.

I would have sat on the lawn with my grass stains.

I would have cried and laughed less while watching television and more while
watching life.

I would never have bought anything just because it was practical, wouldn't
show soil, or was guaranteed to last a lifetime.

Instead of wishing away nine months of pregnancy, I'd have cherished every
moment and realized that the wonderment growing inside me was the only chance in
life to assist God in a miracle.

When my kids kissed me impetuously, I would never have said, 'Later. Now go
get washed up for dinner.' There would have been more 'I love you's' More 'I'm
sorry's'

But mostly, given another shot at life, I would seize every minute.look at
it and really see it live it and never give it back. STOP SWEATING THE SMALL
STUFF!!!

Don't worry about who doesn't like you, who has more, or who's doing what.
Instead, let's cherish the relationships we have with those who do love us.

Go Bananas!

2009-03-10T06:37:00.000-07:00

My aunt posted this on our family website, I thought you all might enjoy it! Very interesting stuff here!

A professor at CCNY for a physiological psych class told his class about bananas. He said the expression "going bananas" is from the effects of bananas on the brain.

First of all, never, put your banana in the refrigerator!!!

Bananas contain three natural sugars - sucrose, fructose and glucose combined with fiber.

A banana gives an instant, sustained and substantial boost of energy. Research has proven that just two bananas provide enough energy for a strenuous 90-minute workout. No wonder the banana is the number one fruit with the world's leading athletes. But energy isn't the only way a banana can help us keep fit.

It can also help overcome or prevent a substantial number of illnesses and conditions, making it a must to add to our daily diet.

Depression:
According to a recent survey undertaken by MIND amongst people suffering from depression, many felt much better after eating a banana. This is because bananas contain tryptophan, a type of protein that the body converts into serotonin, known to make you relax, improve your mood and generally make you feel happier.

PMS:
Forget the pills - eat a banana. The vitamin B6 it contains regulates blood glucose levels, which can affect your mood.

Anemia:
High in iron, bananas can stimulate the production of hemoglobin in the blood and so helps in cases of anemia.

Blood Pressure:
This unique tropical fruit is extremely high in potassium yet low in salt, making it perfect to beat blood pressure. So much so, the US Food and Drug Administration have just allowed the banana industry to make official claims for the fruit's ability to reduce the risk of blood pressure and stroke.

Brain Power:
200 students at a Twickenham (Middlesex) school were helped through their exams this year by eating bananas at breakfast, break, and lunch in a bid to boost their brain power. Research has shown that the potassium-packed fruit can assist learning by making pupils more alert.

Constipation:
High in fiber, including bananas in the diet can help restore normal bowel action, helping to overcome the problem without resorting to laxatives.

Hangovers:
One of the quickest ways of curing a hangover is to make a banana milkshake, sweetened with honey. The banana calms the stomach and, with the help of the honey, builds up depleted blood sugar levels, while the milk soothes and re-hydrates your system.

Heartburn:
Bananas have a natural antacid effect in the body, so if you suffer from heartburn, try eating a banana for soothing relief.

Morning Sickness:
Snacking on bananas between meals helps to keep blood sugar levels up and avoid morning sickness.

Mosquito bites:
Before reaching for the insect bite cream, try rubbing the affected area with the inside of a banana skin. Many people find it amazingly successful at reducing swelling and irritation.

Nerves:
Bananas are high in B vitamins that help calm the nervous system.

Overweight and at work?
Studies at the Institute of Psychology in Austria found pressure at work leads to gorging on comfort food like chocolate and crisps. Looking at 5,000 hospital patients, researchers found the most obese were more likely to be in high-pressure jobs. The report concluded that, to avoid panic-induced food cravings, we need to control our blood sugar levels by snacking on high carbohydrate foods every two hours to keep levels steady.

Ulcers:
The banana is used as the dietary food against intestinal disorders because of its soft texture and smoothness. It is the only raw fruit that can be eaten without distress in over-chronicler cases. It also neutralizes over-acidity and reduces irritation by coating the lining of the stomach.

Temperature control:
Many other cultures see bananas as a "cooling" fruit that can lower both the physical and emotional temperature of expectant mothers. In Thailand, for example, pregnant women eat bananas to ensure their baby is born with a cool temperature.

Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD):
Bananas can help SAD sufferers because they contain the natural mood enhancer tryptophan.

Smoking & Tobacco Use:
Bananas can also help people trying to give up smoking. The B6, B12 they contain, as well as the potassium and magnesium found in them, help the body recover from the effects of nicotine withdrawal.

Stress:
Potassium is a vital mineral, which helps normalize the heartbeat, sends oxygen to the brain and regulates your body's water balance. When we are stressed, our metabolic rate rises, thereby reducing our potassium levels. These can be rebalanced with the help of a high-potassium banana snack.

Strokes:
According to research in The New En gland Journal of Medicine, eating bananas as part of a regular diet can cut the risk of death by strokes by as much as 40%!

Warts:
Those keen on natural alternatives swear that if you want to kill off a wart, take a piece of banana skin and place it on the wart, with the yellow side out. Carefully hold the skin in place with a plaster or surgical tape!

So, a banana really is a natural remedy for many ills. When you compare it to an apple, it has four times the protein, twice the carbohydrate, three times the phosphorus, five times the vitamin A and iron, and twice the other vitamins and minerals. It is also rich in potassium and is one of the best value foods around. So, maybe its time to change that well-known phrase so that we say, "A banana a day keeps the doctor away!"

Want a quick shine on our shoes??
Take the INSIDE of the banana skin, and rub directly on the shoe... polish with dry cloth.

Amazing fruit!

PS: Bananas must be the reason monkeys are so happy all the time!

Frugal Friday: Traveling with Children

2009-03-06T04:29:00.000-08:00

I have done my fair share of traveling with young children. It started with my oldest son, when he was 3 we moved from Illinois to Arizona. We then a year later moved from Arizona to Texas. Once in Texas, we stayed for almost 7 years, but our families still lived in Illinois, so we took many car trips back up to see them. We then moved from Texas to Wisconsin and then after a year and a half, back to Illinois. But my experience doesn't end with car trips alone. My husband is a pilot, so we fly quite a bit, so I will cover flying with children as well. We have taken one train ride with 2 of our children, so I don't have a lot of experience there, but will cover what I do know. So here goes....

Car travel....
If you are taking a long car trip... say 8 hours or more... you will want to have age appropriate activities for the kids. I have car traveled with my kids from ages newborn all the way up (my oldest is 16). And trust me the whole "Are we there yet?" thing is real! But if you plan correctly you should arrive at your destination with your sanity intact!

For newborns and young infants (up to about age 3-4 months) you really don't need much beyond the basics of care... food, diapers, changes of clothes, blankets. Just remember to stop and feed them on time and change their diaper at every stop. Even if you don't feel they need it, it just gives their little bum a change of scenery so to speak. If it is an especially long car trip, change their clothes a few times for the same reason. They have to sit in a car seat and at that young age they really can't do a lot of moving around to relieve discomfort, so the more you do for them, the happier they will stay. Also remember to keep them a comfortable temperature, they don't necessarily need to stay bundled in their blankets the entire time.
For active infants up through say age 2, it will be trickier. Now sometimes when you get into a car, the kids will fall right to sleep and sleep for hours and hours, but not all of my kids were that way, so you need to be prepared for some entertainment. Books to read, crayons or colored pencils and paper and/or coloring books. Small toys. If you have access to a portable DVD player, this proved to be invaluable to travel with my daughter, who absolutely hated being in the car for any length of time. I don't recommend too much in the way of tv, but it is a good change of pace.
For toddlers again, books, coloring, small toys, and DVD's.
When the kids get old enough, around age 3-5 you can start to play car games with them, such as, see how many red cars you can count before we get to the next stop. Also the above mentioned items work for this age.
School aged children can start to do puzzle books, and more car games, finding license plates from different states, different makes of cars, etc... They can also pick out their own books to read and some car activities. We also have the portable gaming systems, which, if is an option for your family...go for it!
For all ages.... packing the right snacks. You have to have the right mix of salty and sweet. I try and pack easy snacking, buy the larger packages and individually package them myself (much cheaper this way). I pack trail mix, mixed nuts, dried fruits, granola bars, protein bars, cereal, cheese sticks, homemade cookies (peanut butter or oatmeal cookies are great for this), yogurt covered raisins, etc. If you will notice the trend of not too sweet, I also try and pack somewhat healthy. You will feel much better at the end of your trip if you all don't have indigestion from too many sweets and grease (potato chips, donuts, twinkies, etc).

For airplane travel the tips are much the same, but with some alterations to comply with National Safety Regulations. Snacks and beverages at an airport are outrageously priced, so unless you want to spend a fortune in buying snack foods at the airport, plan ahead.

The TSA will allow baby formula and medications to exceed the 3 ounce limit on liquids and gels, however, don't press your luck with juice boxes and drinks, these are not allowed and will be disposed of at security.
What I do for drinks is purchase a plastic drinking bottle or cup that is either 10 or 20 ounces, and pack it dry (generally the drink packets are for a 20 ounce bottle, so you can half it between kids or mix all in one). I also purchase the little individual drink packets of lemonade or sugar free drinks such as Crystal Light to mix into the bottles with water from either a drinking fountain or from a bathroom sink on the other side of security. You can also opt to just allow them water to drink, which is perfectly fine!
For snacks, you will pay about $4 for an apple inside security at an airport, or you can pack your own snack food! I pack dry cereal, cheese sticks, trail mix, crackers, granola bars, etc. Just be sure not to pack anything liquid or gel. You can also make sandwiches, though packing them without them crushing is a little tougher.
I will usually make up a gallon sized baggie of some snack foods for each child and they can choose when they will eat which snack. However, I control when the snacks are gotten out.
Entertainment on an airplane is a little trickier due to the lack of space allowed, but you can still pack a few things. I pack a few small toys that will fit into a side pocket of a backpack, 1 0r 2 books, and if you decide to bring the crayons and coloring books, just choose a few of the basic colors (red, yellow, blue, green, brown, orange) so as not to have spilled crayons all over the floor!
Don't underestimate the entertainment value of the flight attendant. My kids still love to follow along in the safety brochure as the flight attendant tells you how to put on your seatbelt, how to use the oxygen masks, that the seat bottom cushion can be used for a flotation device should we have to make an emergency water landing, and of course where the exits are! Don't forget that your flight attendant will also have a beverage service, so warn your kids ahead of time what they are allowed to drink, because kids and caffiene on an airplane don't mix! I let them know before they are offered, that they can choose one of the juices or a non-caffienated choice of soda, such as Sprite or 7-Up. And if you are lucky, some flights still serve a small snack such as peanuts or cookies.
Also let your kids know ahead of time if they do have any electronic games that they will be required to turn them off until you are in flight.
When traveling with an infant, I have found my sling baby carrier to be priceless. Especially if you have a walking child that needs to be kept in check and baggage to carry. It gives me a hands free way to carry my baby and allow me two hands to carry baggage and car seats.
For my 3 year old I finally broke down and purchased a monkey leash. (As seen in yesterday's A Thousand Words Thursday). I attached the tail handle to the ring end of my sling and she couldn't run off! It was great! So I had hands free control of 2 of my kids!

For train travel, I don't have a lot of info. The same rules apply for entertainment and snacking. The snacks you purchase on the train will be pricey, so plan ahead and pack your own. We took a train on a 24 hour trip with a 9 year old and an 18 month old. What we didn't do and wish we had was to book a sleeping car. Not necessarily for the sleeping, though that would have been a benefit, but for an enclosed room for the little one to roam in. Once he found that he didn't have to be in his car seat while the train was in motion, he didn't want to be there and it was simply too dangerous for him to wander on the train, so he had to constantly be held onto. The kids will only take so much of looking at scenery, so plan activities on the train. You can plan some games that take a table, because you can play in the dining car or the observation car. Card games are great for this.

But in any case, take the time to plan ahead and pack wisely, but, don't pack too much, because you do have to keep track of everything along the way. But above all, have fun! And make memories with your kids!

A Thousand Words Thursday

2009-03-05T04:32:00.000-08:00

February 2009...
My daughter and her newly found "sister-cousin" (neither of them have a sister, so they hook up as sister cousins). These two are 6 months different in age, and live many states apart so they didn't know they had each other! Needless to say, they were "just like peas and carrots!"

I am back...

2009-03-04T05:36:00.000-08:00

I am back. I went to help my sister who, at 10 weeks of pregnancy, miscarried her baby. I had a nice time playing with my nieces and nephews and learned to play Guitar Hero on their Wii (I am not very good at it, but it is FUN!) My sister is doing better, still a little sore after her D&C, but doing better. After leaving her house, we went to Atlanta, where my oldest son and my hubby flew to meet us. I spent my 20-14th birthday in Atlanta, where it SNOWED. I went south hoping to avoid snow on my birthday. Here in northern Illinois, I almost always have snow on the ground on my birthday. But, I guess the snow followed me. We are all exhausted from our travels and are happy to be home, so I will be back to my regular posting tomorrow with A Thousand Words Thursday!

MIA warning...

2009-02-23T17:21:00.000-08:00

Just to warn my faithful readers... This week I will be MIA for most if not all the rest of this week. My sister had a miscarriage and was sent to the hospital yesterday. She came home today, so I am heading to her house in NC tomorrow to spend a few days with her and help her out around the house... She has 3 young children, so I want to be there for her. I then will be going to Atlanta to spend my birthday! My hubby and oldest son will be meeting me and the 3 youngest children there, so it will be a busy busy week! I hope to be able to get on the computer some this week, but don't know if I will have a lot of time, so I guess I will have to update you when I can! Have a great week!

Isaac's First Plane Ride

2009-02-23T04:46:00.000-08:00

Isaac and I went to Atlanta on Friday night to see my husband. So he got to take his very first airplane ride. He was SO good the whole trip. He brought a bit of sunshine to everyone he came into contact with. I had people tell me that they were done having children, but if they could guarantee they would be like him they would have a bunch more! Everyone that saw him had to smile, he wouldn't have it any other way! Here is a photo journal of his trip there, the lake we went to and the trip back....

We had a grand time and we can't wait to get back!

Frugal Friday: Make a Mix

2009-02-20T04:38:00.000-08:00

One of my favorite "cook" books when I was growing up was mom's Make a mix cookery. In it were all kinds of recipes for mixes that you would normally buy at the store already made up. Mixes for cakes, biscuits, seasonings, cookies, pancakes, muffins, etc...
Making your own mixes can be healthier and money saving in the long run. I have included a few here to get you started.

Basic Baking Mix
2 1/4 cups flour
1/3 cup nonfat dry milk powder
1 Tbsp sugar
1 Tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
6 Tbsp vegetable shortening

Combine the first 5 ingredients until well mixed. Cut in the shortening until crumbly like oatmeal. Or you can use a food processor and process the shortening 1 tablespoon at a time . Store in an airtight container.

This mix will store in the fridge for about 6 weeks, or out on the shelf for about 4 weeks. Here are some uses...

Biscuits: Combine 2 1/4 cup baking mix with 2/3 cup milk, mix well. Bake at 450 until golden brown.
Pancakes: Stir 2 cups of baking mix with 1 cup of milk and 2 eggs until well blended. Cook as normal.
Waffles: Stir 2 cups of baking mix with 1 1/3 cups milk, 1 egg, and 2 Tbsp canola oil. Bake in your waffle iron according to the manufacturers directions.

Taco Seasoning
This will much healthier than its store-bought counterpart.
1/4 cup minced dry onions
1/4 cup chili powder
1 Tbsp cumin
4 tsp salt
4 tsp cornstarch
1 tbsp garlic powder
2 tsp granulated beef bouillon
1 1/2 tsp oregano

Mix all ingredients until thoroughly combined. Store in an airtight container for up to a year.
To make taco meat: Brown 1 pound of ground meat of your choice (beef, turkey, whatever), add 2 tablespoons seasoning mix and 1/3 - 1/2 cup of water, mix well and bring to a boil. Let simmer until sauce has thickened.

Cookie Mix
8 cups flour
2 1/4 cups sugar
2 1/4 cups brown sugar
3 1/2 tsp salt
1 /2 tsp baking soda
3 cups shortening

Combine all but the shortening until well blended. Cut in the shortening to make small crumbs. Store in an airtight container in the fridge. Will keep for up to 12 weeks.

Snickerdoodles: Combine 3 cups of Cookie Mix with 1/4 tsp baking soda, 1 tsp cream of tartar, and 1 egg. Blend well. Roll into balls and roll in cinnamon sugar. Place on ungreased cookie sheets. Flatten each ball just slightly. Bake at 400 for 8-10 minutes.

Peanut Butter Cookies: Combine 3 cups Cookie Mix with 1/4 cup packed brown sugar, 1 tsp vanilla, 1/2 cup peanut butter (creamy or crunchy), and 2 eggs. Blend well. Roll into balls about 1 inch in diameter. Place on ungreased cookie sheets and flatten with the tines of a fork to give the traditional criss cross pattern. Bake at 375 for 10 -12 minutes.

Chocolate Chip Cookies: Combine 3 cups of Cookie Mix with 3(+) Tbsp milk, 1 tsp vanilla, 1 egg, 1 cup chocolate chips, and if you want, 1/2 cup chopped nuts. Add more milk if mix is too crumbly. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto a greased cookie sheet. Bake at 375 for 10-12 minutes.

I hope you enjoy these recipes! Happy Friday!

A Thousand Words Thursday

2009-02-19T04:47:00.000-08:00

December 2008 - Isaac and Grandpa "discussing things".

Recipe Corner: Award Winning Chili

2009-02-18T05:04:00.000-08:00

Today's recipe corner is "borrowed" from my other blog, Country Life Adventures. I don't really post there much these days, but, anyway, if you have already seen this posting, I apologize. Here is my Award Winning Chili recipe...

Start with about 3 pounds of ground meat. This time I used 2 pounds of ground beef and 1 pound of ground turkey. Brown the meat in a big pot... like a 5 quart size. You can add salt, pepper, garlic and/or onions to the meat as it is cooking. Drain the fat off when it is finished browning.

Next add a large can of crushed tomatoes, 2 cans of diced tomatoes (or use fresh if you're so inclined), a can of Ranch Style Beans, and a can of black beans. And really, you can add pretty much whatever combination of your favorite beans and style of tomatoes. I, anymore, usually just use the crushed tomatoes. But you can use stewed, crushed, diced, whatever...

Stir all of this in over medium-low heat. When it is thoroughly combined you can add the spices: garlic powder, ground cumin, chili powder, & ground cayenne pepper. I like ALOT of cumin and chili powder in mine. I probably use about a scant 1/4 cup of each for this size batch. The garlic powder, I usually use about 1 - 1.5 tablespoons. And the Cayenne, about 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon.

Stir them in...
Now its time for my secret ingredient... brown sugar! My chili won an award for being the sweetest. And this is how my grandmother used to make it. So yummy! Add about 1/3 cup to the chili.

Stir it all together...
And add salt, pepper, & more spice when needed....just to suit your taste.
Continue heating over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally.

Until it is hot & thick.
Serve with crackers and cornbread!

Here is the pretty picture:

Here is the southern method with cornbread (the way my husband and sons eat it!):

Enjoy!

Baby Gift Giving for Baby #3, #4, #5 and beyond...

2009-02-17T05:24:00.001-08:00

I thought long and hard about what to post today. There are so many good topics out there, it's hard to decide which one to cover! So, as you can see by the title, I decided on baby gifts for baby #3 & beyond.

It's hard to decide when a woman is on baby number 3, 4, 5 or more, what, if anything, you should give as a gift in honor of the new baby. Every situation is different, and many people aren't sure if it is appropriate to give a baby gift beyond the first or second child. In my opinion, giving a gift is appropriate, whereas perhaps, giving a full blown baby shower becomes a little inappropriate sometimes, unless there has been a significant gap between kids. But, everyone's feelings are different, so talk to the expectant parents. Ask them if there is anything they need for the new baby, and if they tell you no, then offer your time. Offer your extra set of hands. Just be there to help.

If this baby is the fourth in as many years, then maybe you don't need to get baby basics such as onesies, toys, socks/booties, sleepers, etc... because, most likely, they already have plenty of hand-me-downs (or maybe sometimes fresh ones are appreciated!)! Some ideas for something you could give in this situation would be:

disposable diapers (a variety of sizes)(even if they are using cloth, disposables can be used for travel)
hand made coupon for babysitting services!
pre-made lunch stuff (sandwiches, etc) to make lunch time easier for the mama
activities/gifts for the new big brothers/sisters
a helping hand around the house (wash dishes, fold clothes, make dinner, etc)

Now, if it's the first girl or the first boy in the family you could get some new items to suit the gender of the new baby. As in my family, my 3rd child was a girl, and after having 2 boys, we had almost nothing for a baby girl! That is always fun!

Another situation where it would be appropriate to give traditional baby gifts is if baby #3, 4, 5+ comes many years after the previous child, and the likelyhood of there being any baby stuff left is pretty slim. If this is the situation, also ask the parents if they are having a shower, or if they are registered anywhere.

My cousin has a clever idea that she gives for just about every new baby in the family... she builds a diaper cake. In fact, her most recent diaper cake was actually featured here on Parenting.com in their list of favorite amazing diaper cakes! You make a "cake" out of disposable diapers (or cloth, if you choose!), add some ribbons and other small gifts such as lotion, pacifiers, baby bath, bottles, toys, etc. and you have a pretty awesome baby gift that any parent would appreciate.

So get creative! Make your gift giving unique for the situation, and make it memorable!

Great Diet & Exercise Website!

2009-02-16T04:56:00.000-08:00

So about a year and a half ago I was referred to a website by my cousin. We were both at the point in our lives that we wanted/needed to lose some weight and get healthy. In our late twenties ( you know, very late twenties... I was twenty-twelve and she was twenty-ten), and not getting any younger. She said that she had discovered this cool website that didn't charge you anything, but built a diet and exercise plan just for you. You input your height and weight, and what kind of plan you wanted (low-fat, low-carb, whatever), and it will give you meal plan suggestions and strength training suggestions. You can also choose to just make your own meal plans and choose what strength training and cardio exercises you wanted to do.

The website is called Sparkpeople and for me, worked wonders! I chose to make my own meal plans, so it gave me a goal calorie range to stay within, and also the number of carbs, fats, calcium, protein and whatever else you want to track. I just inputted everything I ate into the calorie counter. EVERYTHING. You have to count everything. Every little calorie counts. Even, as I found out, the ones consumed while standing (the calories don't fall out while standing!). Boy, was that an eye opener. Once you see how much you are really consuming, you start to pay attention and change your habits. Another thing you have to watch is how much water you are consuming. 64 ounces a day. No less. More is better, but at least 64 ounces. And no, tea and juice don't count.

When I realized what I was consuming, I changed my habits. I thought I was eating healthy... Did you know that one large hardboiled egg has 5.3 grams of fat? And 77.5 calories? I had no idea! Did you know also, that one large poached egg only has 5 grams of fat and 73.5 calories. Every little thing counts!

I also discovered that I was a car snacker. Whenever I am in the car driving for more than 10 minutes I start looking for something to snack on. Part of this, especially for longer trips, is to help keep me awake and aware. BUT, it was also adding extra calories that weren't really being accounted for, until Sparkpeople.

It made me very aware of what I was doing wrong. I started to read labels. I started actively paying attention to how much actual water I was drinking (some days I wasn't drinking ANY!) And when I changed some basic habits, the weight started to come off! When you lower your calorie intake and increase your water intake, that alone will give you results, even if you don't change your exercise and activity level. Because you are eating healthier, you get more energy, so you want to start being more active. So then, you add in some exercise and strength training.

I just started walking. Walking is an exercise that pretty much everyone can do. You can do it anywhere, and it is GREAT exercise! I started out with just a half mile, and slowly increased it every week. I got to the point where if I was walking, I made sure I walked a minimum of a mile and if I was biking, it was a minimum of 3 miles...everyday. In the month of October in 2007 I walked/biked/jogged over 100 miles!

I started with Sparkpeople in about September of 2007. By December I had lost almost 30 pounds. However, I had also found out, in November, that I was expecting my 4th child. Surprise! Life likes to throw you a curveball sometimes, but you just gotta go with the flow. I did pretty good with my weight gain during pregnancy, but now have some extra pounds to lose once again. I have had a hard time getting motivated, but the whole triathlon thing has done it for me. I am back into healthier habits, for the most part, and have been exercising at least 3 days a week. I have been doing this for 3 weeks now and have lost 9 pounds. YAY me! So check it out today! www.sparkpeople.com

Frugal Friday: Batch Cooking

2009-02-13T04:58:00.000-08:00

Now first off, let me state a disclaimer... I am not an expert in the subject on which I am about to write. I am only giving my view on the subject, so take it for what its worth, just my opinion.

Batch cooking has many names, such as Make ahead cooking, freezer cooking, Once a month cooking... you get the idea. The basic idea is you stock up on the most expensive part of most meals - the meat - when it is on sale or clearance, and then prepare a whole bunch of meals at once and put in the freezer for later use.

I have always thought that it would be kinda neat to do that. Because, how many times have I been asked the question, "What's for dinner", and that feeling of panic sets in as I cheerfully say, "It's a surprise!" (to all of us, really, because I have NO idea!). I start searching through the pantry and the freezer to see what I can whip up in a fairly short amount of time. And I have my list of stand by meals, but really, everyone gets tired of the same old thing.

Well, I think I am going to attempt it. I found ground beef on sale at the grocery store yesterday, so I bought about 12 pounds of it. I had a list of recipes sitting around here for a couple years for such an occasion as this, it was all ground beef recipes that you make up and put in the freezer. However, I cannot find it. SO frustrating! But I will continue searching for it, because I can no longer find where I got it online (again, frustrating!).

I have read up on Once A Month Cooking (OAMC) and of course, I didn't follow many of their suggestions. And I guess if you are truly serious about the OAMC then I would recommend you follow their suggestions. But me, I just wanted to try and make up a bunch of meals with what I have on hand. Or at least having to purchase very little extra. So perhaps I should just stick with the Batch cooking concept, which is just what I have said, making up a bunch of meals (or at least prep the ingredients needed for said meals) ahead of time so that I am not scrambling to figure out what I am going to cook. I will already have some planned meals and the only figuring out will be which of those meals is it gonna be.

So I have about 12 pounds of ground beef and I think 5 pounds of ground turkey. Some of the meals I plan on making are:

Meatloaf - kids love it, hubby will eat it, just hates the name of it!
Meatballs - can be used alone with bbq sauce, on spaghetti, or in subs
Lasagna - hubby says insert angels singing here, this is one of his favorite meals
Mexican Casserole - everyone loves
Chili - mine is award winning, recipe coming soon!
Some basic pasta/meat/sauce/cheese casseroles
Prep for sloppy joes

So anyway, that's the starter list. If you have any suggestions, please, let me know. I hope to get to this sometime in the next week. I will post an update after I do to let you know how I did!

A Thousand Words Thursday

2009-02-12T04:51:00.001-08:00

July, 2007 - My husband teaching our 2 middle kids to fish...

Recipe Corner: Aunt Suzie's Famous Veggie Dip

2009-02-11T05:00:00.000-08:00

I call it famous because she is not allowed to show up to family gatherings unless she has it in hand, and plenty of it! So when you make this, estimate how much you will need for the number of people attending your gathering and then at least double whatever you think you will need!
I apologize in advance for not having pictures up immediately... I will try to add those later...

You will need:
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
3/4 cup mayonnaise (or, if you prefer, whipped salad dressing such as Miracle Whip)
1 teaspoon garlic salt
1 teaspoon onion salt
1 hard boiled egg, (separate the white and yolk)

In a medium mixing bowl (not your serving bowl), mix up the softened cream cheese with the mayo until thoroughly combined, no lumps.
Sprinkle the garlic salt and onion salt evenly over the top and mix in.
Chop up the egg white into a small dice, about 1/4 inch chunks, doesn't have to be perfect. Mix that in to the cream cheese mix.
Now place the mixture into whatever serving dish you will be using. (I do it this way so that it will remain pretty for serving).
Crumble up the egg yolk and sprinkle evenly on top of the dip.
Serve cold with your favorite dipping veggies, such as, carrots, celery, broccoli, cauliflower, etc...
Be prepared to give out the recipe, or keep it a secret to be sure you are always invited to parties ("so long as you bring that dip")

And I have always made extra just to have for a few days after the party to use up the rest of the veggies. Or I could sit and just eat it with a spoon. Yes, it really is that good.

I was making a potholder on the side of the highway...

2009-02-10T05:05:00.001-08:00

Yes, I really was! Yesterday, I was driving home from the airport after taking my husband (on his way to Atlanta for the week), and the family van started acting weird.
The level of power dropped off,
the power steering was gone,
the engine was overheating....
Not good.
I pulled off to the shoulder, hazards on, semi trucks whizzing by.
Baby screaming,
3 year old asking "What are you doing, Mama?"
"The van is hot, I'm gonna let it cool down"
"Why is the van hot?"
"I don't know, sweetie, I'm just gonna let it cool down a bit"
"It is already cooled off, let's go home"
You get the idea, back and forth... She wants to just go home (as do I), and I have to wait for the van to get within reasonable temperature levels before attempting it.
I wait several more minutes... turn the key... nothing.
The hazards have drained the battery...
Just great.
I call my dad, who lives over by us, about 40 - 45 minutes away.
He's on his way.
Baby still screaming. Daughter still asking questions. Mommy about to lose it.
I sent my husband a text message, he tells me to check the serpentine belt to see if it's still there.
I check.... well, yes, it's still there, but its shredded and not in place.
I call dad, he's almost there, he'll just take a look.
I change a poopy diaper and teach a 3 year old little girl how to squat on the side of the road to pee.
And then I sit and work on my potholder I had started to crochet on the way to the airport. This is very calming for me. Yes, the trucks are still whizzing by, but I am calm.
Not a soul stopped to see if I needed assistance. Not even the state police that passed by. I guess everyone is too busy with their own day to day to stop. But I guess in this day of cell phones and such, people just assume you'll be okay.
Eventually dad arrives, the van needs towed, there is a piece broken, not just the belt. I call our insurance agent and arrange for it to be towed and we FINALLY get to go home.
My potholder is finished and it looks nice.
The van... not so much.
Life goes on, one potholder (or pothole) at a time.

Triathlon Training Updates

2009-02-09T05:16:00.000-08:00

So I thought I would give you another update on how my training is going for the triathlon...

It is going pretty good! I am so proud of my swimming! I can swim the entire mile now without stopping! I started to develop a bit of a head cold on Thursday, so I took myself out of the water since then, so that it wouldn't develop into anything worse than what it was.

Here it is Monday, and I should be able to get back into the water tomorrow with no issues.
Like I said, I can now swim the whole mile in one shot. I do it in about 40 minutes. I don't know how that compares to others when they swim a mile, but for me its my record. In order to be able to beat my record I need to develop a little more speed, but in order to that, my endurance has to be a little better.

So, that being said, my next plan of action is to actually stick with my current pace and just go further than the mile that I have been doing. I have done the mile with no breaks twice now. I did it with just 2 breaks last Tuesday, and then Wednesday and Thursday I did it all at once. So starting tomorrow I am going to try and improve my distance and hopefully that will build my endurance to be able to go a little faster in my pace. That's the plan anyway. We'll see how it goes.

As far as the other 2 sports (biking & running) I haven't worked on those anymore yet. I want to, in these cold months, develop my swimming indoors and then be able to take it outdoors when it is warm. I prefer to do my biking and running outdoors anyway and the weather so far hasn't been conducive for that.

I know I can do this! And I feel healthier already just 2 weeks into training for it! That's the most important part! Wish me luck!

Frugal Friday: Food Ministries

2009-02-06T05:05:00.000-08:00

Todays frugal friday topic is groceries. Specifically inexpensive groceries. There are food ministries out there that are inexpensive. I know of two in my area and they are both great! There is no income requirement. And you get a lot of food for the price you pay. The first is Angel Food Ministries. This organization is nationwide and costs just a mere $30 per month. The basic box of food is said to feed a family of four for a month. I got one box last month and the meat alone that you get is well worth the money spent. You also get frozen veggies, a dessert, boxed "meals" (such as mac n cheese), shelf stable milk, cereal, eggs, and usually some beans and/or rice. This month I will most likely get 2 boxes, it saves me on groceries and I can work with the meats and veggies provided to make some really tasty meals for my family.

The second food ministry is SHARE Food. This is a volunteer run food buying club. The only requirements that I have seen is that you do a minimum of 2 hours of volunteer work per month, and this can be as simple as teaching a Sunday school class, or working in the nursery at your church, or helping out a neighbor...very simple stuff here. The box of food usually costs about $15 - $17 and again, for what you get, is well worth the money. In the SHARE food box I have found fresh fruits and vegetables, meats, boxed meals, and desserts. I have lived in several different states and I was usually able to find a share food in the area. If you are unable to find one in your area you can organize one, just click on the link above to see more about that!

The savings that are available with food ministries is phenomenal - usually at least 50-60% off grocery store prices, and I know that without it, our grocery budget is usually stretched to the limit trying to keep food in the house with 6 people, two of them being a teenage boy, and a 9 year old boy that eats like a teenager.

Check them out and good luck!

A Thousand Words Thursday

2009-02-05T05:04:00.000-08:00

May 2005 - My baby girl just a few days old, sunning to rid herself of a bit of jaundice. We were so shocked to get a girl. She is the first and only girl born to my husbands family in at least 4 generations (we figured out that was over 120 years!).

Recipe Corner: Cranberry Sauce

2009-02-04T05:13:00.000-08:00

Who says cranberries are just for Christmas and Thanksgiving? Look at the bright red of the cranberry, perfect for Valentines day! Not to mention that cranberries are SO good for you! So here is all you will need to make this oh so awesome cranberry sauce:

That's right, only three ingredients! You can't get much easier than this! A cup of sugar, a cup of orange juice and a bag of cranberries!

Start by mixing your OJ and sugar in a medium saucepan:
Cook that over medium heat until the sugar is dissolved.

Then dump in your cranberries:
Aren't they pretty! I love the color red!

Continue to cook this over medium heat, stirring occasionally. You will see your berries start to crack and foam.
But thats okay, they're supposed to!

After a bit you will see it start to thicken up. That means it is done! YAY! And don't worry if it doesn't look thick enough, it will thicken more as it chills. Pour into a pretty serving dish, chill and serve!
Now, you can save this recipe and only use it during the holidays, or you can make it up right now and serve it to your favorite person! This is SO much better than the canned stuff!

Birthday Pictures

2009-02-03T05:04:00.000-08:00

As promised, here are some pictures of the Big Birthday Bash.

This one is of my Grandmother surrounded by 26 of her 35 great-grandchildren. Of the 35, there are only 14 boys! Ranging in age from 6 weeks on up to 16 years. When my Grandfather passed away almost 12 years ago there were only 2 great-grandchildren.

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Here is Gram taking our questions and listening to the memories that we wrote down to share with her.

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Apparently this question surprised her, I think maybe she was a little embarrassed by some of the questions!

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These are some of the great granddaughters making cards and pictures for "the Grandma". Sadly, many of these little ones probably won't even remember her and how great she really is! :( Even some of my cousins don't remember Grandpa all that well. My grandparents were married for almost 52 years when Grandpa passed away.

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Everyone, especially Gram, had a great time. Perhaps we should do a birthday bash like this every year!

A Birthday Bash for Gram

2009-02-02T05:05:00.000-08:00

So last Thursday was my grandmother's 85th birthday. We had her big birthday bash on Saturday. It was so much fun. She has 5 daughters, 16 grandchildren, and 35 great-grandchildren. All of her daughters were there, with respective spouses; all but 4 of her grandchildren were there, with their spouses and children. And her sister's daughter came all the way from Pennsylvania to be with her. In all, there were, (if I counted right), 55 people attending this birthday bash, and 27 of them were age 16 or under (about 20 of them actually age 10 or under!)

It was so great so see all of her family here celebrating with her. We all wrote out our favorite memory with her and a question to ask her about her life. There were questions like "How did Grandpa propose?", and "How much did your first car cost?", and "Did you and Grandpa ever go out dancing?" She struggled to answer some of the questions, or chose not to "remember" (I think she just didn't want to answer!). We played it like Who wants to be a Millionaire and gave her life lines she could use to help answer. The great grandchildren sang her a song that my mother wrote to the tune of "Home on the Range" called "Home on the Farm". My cousin sang her her favorite hymn. There was a ton of good, home cooked food. And of course there were the infamous pictures of Grandma surrounded by all the kids.

Everyone had a grand time and will remember the big birthday bash for "the Grandma" for years to come! I will try and add pictures of the party soon.

Progress made

2009-01-31T05:15:00.000-08:00

Okay, so I told you earlier this week that I was going to enter a triathlon and I would give you updates on my training progress... Here are the updates. I have a very long road ahead of me.

I took swimming lessons when I was like... I don't know.... six, maybe? And I wasn't taught the breaststroke. So really, swimming is my biggest challenge. I can do a breaststroke now, self taught. But my endurance is, well.... lacking. Here's the lowdown on what took place this week...
On Monday evening I went to the local (indoor) pool and took with me a towel and a swimsuit. I ask the lifeguard on duty how long one length of the pool is, I need to eventually do a mile, so if she knew how many laps that would be, that would be helpful information. She told me to go talk to the older gentleman that was swimming laps on the other side of the pool, he would know. So I go over there and tell him that I am beginning training for a triathlon, and I need to know how many laps is a mile... Turns out he is training for the very same one! Cool! So I find out that one lap is 25 yards...translated, one mile = 70 laps or 35 down and backs. YIKES! Okay, well, better get started. He asked if I had goggles... um... no, I don't. Well, you're gonna need some, he says, and loans me his extra pair. Lets just say the first lap was grueling. Holy Cow! I'm never gonna make it!
Fast forward to Friday....
I now have my own goggles, a new swim suit (better suited for lap swimming), and I can do 4 laps without stopping and I can still breath when I finish them! I did a total of 400 yards on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. And in fact, Friday I actually did 500 yards. SO progress is being made in the swimming department.

As for biking, I am not too terribly worried about it. I am probably going to need another bicycle. I have a mountain bike and I need a road bike. But, I can bike for long periods of time. And if I need to stop, I won't drown. I have been doing about 5 minutes on the stationary bike each time I go.

Running... I used to run many years ago. I then had children and gained a few, shall we say, curves. I haven't done a lot of running lately. Up until I became pregnant with my last child I was walking/jogging almost every day. So this portion of the race also doesn't worry me too much. So there you have it. Week one of training complete. We'll see how next week goes....
Oh, and a side benefit.... Since Monday I have lost 3 pounds! Yay me!!

Pray for Tuesday

2009-01-30T10:51:00.000-08:00

I came across this post on a friends blog telling us to pray for Tuesday on Tuesday. But little Tuesday needs more prayer than ever now - everyday. She was diagnosed with cancer last summer, and she has just been sent home for her last days on this earth. She has 2 brothers and a twin sister. See her mama's blog here.

Frugal Friday: Don't listen to Kermit...

2009-01-30T04:47:00.000-08:00

Kermit the frog says it's not easy being green. But you can make some green changes to your family's life to make an impact on the earth and your pocket book. Green living is all about Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. Here are some changes that I made in my family...

An easy one is to change out your standard light bulbs for florescent bulbs. They even make the fancy globe bulbs for chandeliers in florescent. We started doing this every time a lightbulb blew out then we would replace it with a florescent bulb. Or if you have some lights that you use more often than others swap the bulbs... put florescents in the ones used most and save the others for the ones not used as much.

Another way to save money is stop buying laundry detergent. I haven't bought laundry soap in about 10 months! My family's clothing is still clean, too! I make my own laundry soap and it works wonderfully! Click HERE for instructions!

We also make our own all-purpose cleaning spray. Mix a couple of tablespoons of lemon juice with 2 tablespoons of washing soda and a cup of hot water. Mix until dissolved. Pour into a spray bottle and fill the rest of the way with water. Use as you would any other all-purpose cleaning spray!

We use the 3 R's in our clothing all the time! Reduce: we've reduced the amount of new clothing we buy by Reusing! We buy a lot of ours and our kids' clothes at the local 2nd hand store, and also take what we don't need and donate there. So that is also recycling! A) It saves us money, as we don't spend as much on our clothes (we wait for the fill a basket for $4 day) and B) It keeps usable clothes out of the landfills.

Those are some easy ways that we have implemented green living in my family. Try it! Save some money! Feel better about yourself! It IS easy being green!

A Thousand Words Thursday

2009-01-29T04:34:00.000-08:00

November, 2006 - My kids out enjoying the fall leaves. Notice my "garden" in the background...I never have been able to grow much beyond weeds! Actually I think that year there were tomatoes and peppers out amongst the weeds!

Something to Celebrate, issue 1

2009-01-28T04:39:00.000-08:00

My family, well, let me clarify so as not to throw anybody in there that will claim otherwise... My extended family, meaning my aunts, mother, cousins, siblings, and, yeah we'll throw Grandma in there too, are always looking for a reason to have a party. We LOVE hanging out together and eating all kinds of festive foods and just enjoying one anothers company. We have many people in my family so it seems there is always another birthday on the horizon to celebrate. But, again, we don't need much of a reason to have a party!

Is your family like this? Perhaps you are and maybe you don't have enough reasons, maybe not enough birthdays in your life? Well, here are some holidays to keep you celebrating every day of the month! National Food Holidays! I will list January's & February's here today and continue this post throughout the year. I will give you an updated list for the upcoming month when it gets toward the end of the month, so that you know what you should be celebrating! Here we go!

January
* January 1: Bloody Mary Day
* January 1: Apple Gifting Day
* January 2: National Cream Puff Day
* January 3: Chocolate-Filled Cherry Day
* January 4: National Spaghetti Day
* January 5: National Whipped Cream Day
* January 6: Bean Day
* January 6: National Shortbread Day
* January 7: National Tempura Day
* January 8: English Toffee Day
* January 9: National Apricot Day
* January 10: Bittersweet Chocolate Day
* January 11: Milk Day
* January 11: Hot Toddy Day
* January 12: Curried Chicken Day
* January 13: National Peach Melba Day
* January 14: National Hot Pastrami Sandwich Day
* January 15: Strawberry Ice Cream Day
* January 16: National Fig Newton Day
* January 16: International Hot & Spicy Food Day
* January 17: Hot-Buttered Rum Day
* January 18: Peking Duck Day
* January 19: National Popcorn Day
* January 20: National Buttercrunch Day
* January 20: National Cheese Lover’s Day
* January 20: National Cheese Lover’s Day
* January 21: New England Clam Chowder Day
* January 22: National Blonde Brownie Day
* January 23: National Rhubarb Pie Day
* January 24: National Peanut Butter Day
* January 25: National Irish Coffee Day
* January 26: National Pistachio Day
* January 27: Chocolate Cake Day
* January 28: National Blueberry Pancake Day
* January 29: National Corn Chip Day
* January 30: National Croissant Day
* January 31: Brandy Alexander Day
February
* February 1: National Baked Alaska Day
* February 2: Heavenly Hash Day
* February 3: National Carrot Cake Day
* February 4: Homemade Soup Day
* February 4: National Stuffed Mushroom Day
* February 5: National Chocolate Fondue Day
* February 7: National Fettuccine Alfredo Day
* February 8: Molasses Bar Day
* February 9: National Bagels and Lox Day
* February 9: Pizza Pie Day
* February 10: Cream Cheese Brownie Day
* February 11: Peppermint Patty Day
* February 11: Don't Cry Over Spilled Milk Day
* February 12: National Plum Pudding Day
* February 13: National Tortellini Day
* February 14: National Creme-Filled Chocolates Day
* February 15: National Gumdrop Day
* February 16: National Almond Day
* February 17: National Indian Pudding Day
* February 18: Crab-Stuffed Flounder Day
* February 18: Drink Wine Day
* February 19: National Chocolate Mint Day
* February 20: National Cherry Pie Day
* February 21: National Sticky Bun Day
* February 22: National Margarita Day
* February 23: National Banana Bread Day
* February 23: Dog Biscuit Appreciation Day
* February 24: National Tortilla Chip Day
* February 25: National Clam Chowder Day
* February 25: National Chocolate- Covered Nuts Day
* February 26: National Pistachio Day
* February 27: National Strawberry Day
* February 27: National Kahlua Day
* February 28: National Chocolate Soufflé Day
* February 29: Surf and Turf Day

Have fun celebrating and Happy Blueberry Pancake Day!

Recipe Corner: Really Yummy Cornbread

2009-01-27T05:02:00.000-08:00

I grew up in Northern Illinois, not in the south. I did not grow up eating cornbread. I was never a real big fan of it, it's too grainy. I am more of a dinner roll kind of girl. However, my dear husband is from Texas, and his family has deep roots there. He is even related to someone who fought at the Alamo! Anyway...big cornbread eating family. So after we marry, we end up in Texas for about 7 years. I had to learn to make cornbread, and if I was to eat it, it was gonna have to be good. So here is a recipe I have found that is easy to make and actually quite good!

Cornbread

1 9 oz pkg Jiffy yellow cake mix (yes, cake, not cornbread)
-ingredients called for in cake mix... 1 egg, 1/2 cup water
1 cup yellow cornmeal
1 cup all purpose flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 egg
1/4 cup melted butter
1 cup milk.

Mix up the cake mix according to the directions on the box, don't beat too much air into it, you don't want holes in your cornbread!
Mix the rest of the ingredients and gently fold into the cake batter.
Pour into either 2 greased 8" pans, a greased 13"x9"x2" cake pan or you can also make cornmeal muffins. I usually just use a canola oil spray to grease the pans and it turns out fine.
Bake desired shape at 400 until it is lightly browned and starting to crack on top. Let cool a bit and then serve! Great served warm with butter or with chili!

My husband and kids take any leftover cornbread the next morning and crumble it in a bowl (or a cup) and pour milk over it and eat it. Must be a southern thing...craziness! But the cornbread itself is still somewhat grainy - as cornbread should be - but there is a slight sweetness to it because of the cake mix.

Enjoy!

25 Things You May Not Know About Me

2009-01-26T05:47:00.000-08:00

Okay, I have seen this on many other blogs, so I guess I will jump on the band-wagon. This will be hard, but here goes!

1. I LOVE Scrabble
2. I cannot stand cats, I'm a dog person.
3. My favorite color is red, I'm just drawn to that color!
4. I have lived in 4 different states and have had 7 different addresses in my married life (13+ years)
5. I cannot stand beets
6. My favorite dinner growing up (and still favorite that my mom makes) is Round Steak Casserole
7. I wanted a cheesecake for my wedding cake (went with traditional though)
8. I used to play baseball (okay little league, but refused to play softball with the girls)
9. I used to work at a bank, I was the vault teller for my branch.
10. I do not understand chess.
11. My dream car is a Porsche 911 (1975)
12. I have had 5 pet dogs (all dead now)
13. I am the only one of my siblings (there are 6 of us) to have all 4 grandparents alive at my wedding. (5 of us are married)
14. Right now I have the oldest and the youngest of my parents 14 grandchildren. (will change in May)
15. There are 5 - 4 wheeled vehicles sitting in my driveway at the moment... 1 will start and run.
16. There are 3 partial to complete motorcycles in my garage. None of which will start.
17. I LOVE having a daughter, but at one point in time wanted all boys.
18. My favorite flower is the Lilac.
19. I was in training to be a La Leche League Leader... then moved and never finished.
20. My daughter is the 1st girl in my husbands family in over 120 years.
21. There was an Amish family at my wedding.
22. I have attended an Amish wedding.
23. I have been to Disney World.
24. I fly for free.
25. I have touched a shark.

Motivation...

2009-01-24T12:22:00.000-08:00

That can be a big word. It can mean a lot of things to different people. The actual definition for motivation is "An incentive or reason for doing something". I committed to something that I might not have committed to, had I n0t had the motivation to do it. My motivation was I was led to believe by my 16 year old son that he didn't think I could do it. The "IT" is a triathalon. In less than 6 months time.
I used to run. I was working out every day a little more than a year ago. I then became with child. I gained back whatever I had lost. I gave birth. I renewed my love of sweets. It has been a struggle since that fateful day that I saw 2 lines on the stick.
My dear sister, 13 years my junior, 4 years older than my son, called my son and asked him if he would like to do said triathalon with her. I then said to him, "maybe I want to do it". And his response was a guffaw. Yes, a guffaw. Of course, I then HAD to do it. He MADE me do it.
My next plan of action was to get a partner in crime. Someone to make sure I showed up my dear son. Someone to motivate me. I had the perfect person. My cousin. And she proved it tenfold. I texted her at 10:45pm last night to ask if she would be interested in a triathalon. She responded with an emphatic YES! She works the midnight shift at a nursing home, so she was up and wide awake! By 7:45am she had put together and delivered to my kitchen counter a Motivational Folder full of motivational quotes and a training schedule built for us, a 32 ounce water bottle, and a planner. She is awsome!
My son motivated me by telling me I couldn't do something, I motivated my cousin with the offer of a triathalon, and she motivated me by getting me pumped about doing this! I will keep you all posted with our progress!

Frugal Friday: Coffee Filters, not just for making coffee.

2009-01-23T09:10:00.000-08:00

I got this from my uncle through our family website I thought it interesting and quite useful!

MORE USES FOR COFFEE FILTERS
1. Cover bowls or dishes when cooking in the microwave. Coffee filters make excellent covers.

2. Clean windows and mirrors. Coffee filters are lint-free so they'll leave windows sparkling.

3. Protect China. Separate your good dishes by putting a coffee filter between each dish.

4. Filter broken cork from wine. If you break the cork when opening a wine bottle, filter the wine through a coffee filter.

5. Protect a cast-iron skillet. Place a coffee filter in the skillet to absorb moisture and prevent rust.

6. Apply shoe polish Ball up a lint-free coffee filter.

7. Recycle frying oil. After frying, strain oil through a sieve lined with a coffee filter.

8. Weigh chopped foods. Place chopped ingredients in a coffee filter on a kitchen scale.

9. Hold tacos. Coffee filters make convenient wrappers for messy foods.

10. Stop the soil from leaking out of a plant pot Line a plant pot with a coffee filter to prevent the soil from going through the drainage holes.

11. Prevent a Popsicle from dripping. Poke one or two holes as needed in a coffee filter.

12. Do you think we used expensive strips to wax eyebrows? Use strips of coffee filters.

13. Put a few in a plate and put your fried bacon, French fries, chicken fingers, etc on them. Soaks out all the grease.

A Thousand Words Thursday

2009-01-22T06:21:00.000-08:00

March 22,2007
Today's pic is of my daughter a couple of years ago playing at her "beach"... a puddle in our rural driveway. She has always loved the water... she can't stay away from it!

Trying to get organized...

2009-01-21T11:17:00.000-08:00

I hope my readers will forgive me as I try and get organized... I haven't been posting with a lot of regularity and I hope to get a schedule set up for myself so that it will be easier to post new stuff! Here is what I would like to do.... at least one day a week I want to do a review or something along those lines. I will continue A Thousand Words Thursday. I want to do probably one recipe per week or maybe every other week. I want to do at least one posting on getting organized. And from there I don't know... any comments or suggestions or requests would be GREATLY appreciated! Thanks and have a great Wednesday!

Christmas letters....

2009-01-16T08:52:00.000-08:00

So how many of you write Christmas letters? You know, the form letter you send to all your friends and family that tells an annual summary of the life of your family... Traditionally sent with the Christmas cards and usually includes a group picture of either your whole family or at the very least, the kids. I don't write one every year, I usually try and do one on the years that we have something "new" to report. Whether that be a new house, job, child, whatever. Thats when I do. When everything is "same ol', same ol'" then I usually don't send anything. Well this year we had new things to report... we had a new child, my husband's job changed, things are looking up. I did write a "Christmas" letter. It now sits on my desk right here in front of me... Is anyone else bad about this? Normally I do send it out within a reasonable amount of time. I should still send it out, even though it is well past the Christmas season. The facts of the letter have not changed. I do have pictures of my children to send out with it. The problem is, the cost of postage has reached a ridiculous number and I know that it is only going to go up. That in itself is another topic to blog about... postage... But anyway. Please, someone else tell me if you are late in sending out the "Christmas" letter... help me to not feel so bad about it still sitting here... I think I will mail them this week. And you should too, if you haven't already....

A Thousand Words Thursday

2009-01-15T05:36:00.000-08:00

Todays pic is of my indoor/outdoor thermometer - that is the current readings as of 7:30 am. An hour ago it was colder by about 1/2 a degree! Yes my kitchen does tend to read a little colder than the rest of the house, so no worries there!

Recipe Corner: My Super Awesome Banana Bread

2009-01-14T04:33:00.000-08:00

Sarah's Awesome Banana Bread
I get rave reviews for this banana bread whenever someone tries it! I decided to do this in tutorial format since I have a cool new camera. (edit- I had a lot more pics, but blogger doesn't want to add them, so you only get a few this time...sorry)
Here we go...
Here's what you'll need:
1 1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup soft butter
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups mashed bananas
1/2 cup buttermilk
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda

First preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
Then you can begin by mixing your butter and sugar until it's nice and fluffy.

Now, add your eggs and mix until they are all combined. Your batter should now look nice and smooth.

Next mix in your vanilla, buttermilk and mashed bananas. If you are using a stand mixer you can get away with just breaking your bananas into pieces, so long as they are the really ripe, mushy ones.

*Tip: If you don't have buttermilk, not to worry, you can make an equivalent by placing a 1/2 tablespoon of lemon juice in your measuring cup and then filling to the 1/2 cup with milk.

Blend this until most of the lumps are broken down. It will still be somewhat lumpy and it may also look a bit "curdled" - this is normal, don't freak out!

Next you can measure out your flour, salt, and baking soda. You can choose to mix them together before you add them to the batter, you can sift them if you want, but usually I just add the flour to the bowl and then put the salt and baking soda in right on top of it. It will all mix in together, and I have never had a problem with it. Mix thoroughly. Even beat some air into it, this makes the batter a bit fluffier, a littler more cake-like.

If you would prefer, you can add nuts to your bread. Walnuts are the preferred nut for banana bread, but you use whatever nut you want. I just prefer my banana bread with no nuts. If you want to do some with nuts and some without, then save the nuts until your batter is in the pan, then sprinkle a handful on top and gently stir in, and then sprinkle a few more on top.
So now, you have to decide... Will you make muffins? Will you make loaves?

Or do you have one of these really cool itty bitty loaf pans?
I chose to do all three!! (I tripled the batch)

First, SPRAY YOUR PANS! My son and I have forgotten to do this on many occasions and it is not pretty when you forget!

Next fill your desired vessel about 1/2 to 2/3 full. Tap it on the countertop a bit to level it out. Next add your nuts if you are going to. If you are making muffins you can sprinkle the tops of the muffins with a bit of sugar - it makes them prettier.
Then all that is left is to bake, cool, and eat!

Baking times:
Large loaf pans (8" or 9")...50 - 60 minutes
Small loaf pans (4" - 7")....20 - 30 minutes
Itty bitty loaves or muffins...10 - 15 minutes

One batch makes either 1 0r 2 large loaves, 3 - 7" loaves, 4 mini loaves, and about 2 dozen standard size muffins.

Test your bread to see if it is done by either poking it with a toothpick and if it comes out clean then you're done! Or, my chosen method, touch the top of it, if it springs back, then its done, if it still feels a bit mushy, then you have some time left. They should be a golden brown when completely cooked.

Remove from the oven and let cool a few minutes in the pan, then run a knife along the edge to loosen from the pan and cool completely on a wire rack.
This recipe freezes beautifully for several months, just thaw in the fridge or room temperature. You can also mix it up ahead of time and store in the fridge for a few days before baking. It's great for gift giving! I hope you enjoy it!

The Search is over...

2009-01-13T05:35:00.000-08:00

For about 13 years I have been on a search. Well, lets go back to that fateful day......
I was sitting in the laundrymat in Prescott, Arizona. Waiting for my wash to finish so that I could dry my clothes. This was way back when I was newly married, so there wasn't much (compared to now) in the way of wash, so it really didn't take long. I sat in the nice seating area they had there and I was flipping through the magazines they had there. I came across an Eddie Bauer catalogue. I enjoyed Eddie Bauer items, so I browsed through the pages. Then, I saw it. It being my dream robe. Yes, we are talking about a bathrobe here. I fell in love immediately. It was floor length, white, soft terry cloth, and the most important feature, the hood. I had to have one. But as I mentioned before I was newly married. My husband and I were living in one of the highest cost of living areas in Arizona where he completed a very expensive education, and we were each only making minimum wage, which, by the way if you recall, 13 years ago was less than $6 per hour. The robe was not in the budget, but, I tore out the phone # for Eddie Bauer and kept it with me. The next time we went to Phoenix, I checked the Eddie Bauer store at the mall, "Sorry we are all sold out of those". And so, the next holiday season, I found a catalogue, which did not carry the robe. I called the phone # that I had saved and found that they discontinued that item (insert wailing here). I was so sad. So thus began my lifetime search for my perfect robe. Others came close, I found soft terry cloth, floor length white robes, but they didn't have the hood. I found hooded, white terry cloth robes, but they were only knee lenth (really, what is the point of that!!!). For thirteen years I, and my wonderful husband, have been looking everywhere for this style of robe for me. He even at one point said to find someone who could make it for me, he was willing to pay good money to check this off his list. I had all but given up. So now, lets fast forward to October of 2008.......
My sisters and I decided that there was just getting to be too many people in our family for everyone to be buying Christmas gifts for everyone else. The decision was made for the adults to exchange names and the kids to exchange names. This was to be so much cheaper than previous years. We set a price range and exchanged names. My youngest sister got my name. She consulted with my husband and purchased my gift. So now flash forward to just before Christmas......
Since she wouldn't be here on Christmas to see me open my gift, my dear baby sister had me open my gift from her a few days before Christmas. I opened the newspaper wrapping (she doesn't believe in wrapping paper), and found a box. I opened the box and I about fell out of my chair.... She had found the robe! I couldn't believe it! It is absolutely perfect! I received 2 memorable gifts this Christmas and I could not be happier! Here is a pic from online... just imagine it being an off- white color....

Daily Routines are a Good Thing

2009-01-12T08:00:00.000-08:00

One week into the new schoolday routine and we are still on track! YAY! We still need to work on the afternoon chores getting done in a timely manner, but I am sure that will come. Perhaps some sort of reward system being set up will be helpful. We shall see.
My husband and I are under the belief that if you get your kids into a daily routine that they will be better for it in the long run. My husband got into the routine of getting up with an alarm and showering each morning when he was in elementary school and to this day he has stuck with it. My oldest son has been getting up to an alarm for about 8 years now and he does really well with it. We are starting to see some progress with son #2. I am hoping that these good habits will stay with them throughout life. I think that if you teach your children good life habits they will be more successfull in whatever they do.
Habits such as cooking, cleaning, childcare, daily routines, money management, and of course the value of human life. I think that all children, regardless of what sex they are, should learn these things. I have 3 boys and a girl. My youngest 2 (a boy and a girl) are too young at ages 6 months and 3 years to do much in the way of cooking and childcare, but in time they also will learn. The 3 year old has started learning the cleaning, some money management, daily routines, and value of human life. She will help when and where she is allowed to with the cooking. And she will also help with feeding the baby some cereal when she is told to do that. She is my diaper and blanket runner also, so she is starting to learn in the childcare department. We try and keep some routine with her since she has started preschool, but sometimes life gets in the way of that. My oldest two are boys and both have done their share of cooking, cleaning, childcare, daily routines, money management and valuing human life. I feel comfortable in my oldest son's abilities to run his own household someday soon (way too soon for my taste, but that's another story). He can cook pretty much whatever he sets his mind to. All he needs to do is find a good recipe for it, and he knows how to locate one. He can bake like nobody's business. He has had experience in the childcare department from feeding and bathing to diapering and dressing from newborn on up. He knows the correct way to clean a house (whether he chooses to do it the right way or the lazy way is always a big question). He has proven himself in the daily routine department, and is learning the money management thing now that he is working his first job outside the home. The value of human life is something that we instill in our children from the beginning. I am very open with my children with how I feel about that. Life begins at conception. Regardless of whether or not that life was planned, it was a life that God created, and HE has his own purposes for. We are not to question those purposes.
I have yet to see how successful I am with the raising of my children, for they are not yet grown, but I think that so far my husband and I are doing a pretty darn good job, and that is good enough for me!

A Thousand Words Thursday

2009-01-08T04:32:00.000-08:00

Here is my grandmother at Christmas with 4 of her newest great grandchildren ranging in age from 5 months to 16 months. The 3 youngest have birthdays within a couple of weeks of each other. This year she had a total of 4 new great grandchildren giving her a grand total of 34 great grandchildren! And right now there are 3 more on the way!

Recipe Corner: Award Winning Gingersnaps

2009-01-07T14:25:00.000-08:00

These are great for snacking, for lunchboxes, for gift giving, for parties, an overall great cookie! I can say award winning... well maybe a more accurate description would be a contest winning recipe. I gave this recipe to a friend of mine and her daughters used it in a kids cookie contest in their area and each of them got first place in their age division for these cookies! So enjoy!

AWARD WINNING GINGERSNAPS

3/4 cup shortening
1 cup sugar
1/3 cup molasses
1 beaten egg
2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
sugar to coat dough

Preheat oven to 375. Cream together shortening and 1 cup of sugar until fluffy. Add molasses and egg and mix well. Combine flour, baking soda, and spices. Stir into creamed mixture. Mix well. Mold in to 1 inch balls (I use a cookie scoop and it works wonderfully here). Roll each in sugar to coat. Plase about 2 inches apart on a greased cookie sheet (though I just made these and did not grease and they were fine). Bake about 6-7 minutes . Cool on pan for a few minutes to allow cookie to "set" up. Completely cool on wire racks. Makes approximately 3 dozen cookies.

The NEW Camera!

2009-01-06T11:17:00.000-08:00

Okay, So I mentioned here sometime before Christmas that my camera died. I was SO upset. For when you have 4 children, one of them being less than a year old, and the others being SO DARN CUTE, (yes, even you my sweet 16 year old boy!), you HAVE to have a camera to record the memories, the moments, the smiles and silly times. I had a Kodak Easyshare Z760, which at the time we purchased it had a large number of megapixels at 6.1 (not super-sure what that really means, except it is supposed to be better the more megapixels you have, something about each pixel is a little dot and the more of them you have the clearer the picture is when you want to blow it up, or something along those lines). So anyway, I was very happy with my 6.1 megapixel Kodak. It took great pictures, it did video, black & white, all kinds of cool things. But then, it was over. It died. And I was so sad. So I started seeing the commercials with Ashton Kutcher and his Nikon camera, and I thought, I want one! But, alas, they are quite expensive, so I started looking around at other options. Nikon has one like the easyshare, all automatic and easy, so I thought that would probably work. My dear husband and I talked about the different options and decided that we would use the money we get from his grandfather each Christmas to get a camera. I would just have to use my cell phone camera to take my pictures until we were able to find one that we liked, which, by the way, is next to impossible to get a decent picture of 4 children all looking at the camera, sorry, cell phone, at the same time with a halfway decent look on their face, all while they sit perfectly still, because we all know that those cell phone camera pictures all blur if there is an ounce of movement. Anyway, I got one with my cell phone that is okay, but not great, to try and send out with Christmas cards (which still sit on the desk to this day) Here is the cell phone pic:

Very fuzzy, and dark, no flash on a cell phone you know! But a fairly good shot of them all, nonetheless. So lets move forward to Christmas morning........ Daddy has the big one get a package from under the tree for Mommy and says that this one has to be opened before anything else. So I open it and..........Why yes, that IS a Nikon D60 Camera. Just like the one Ashton Kutcher was using in his commercials!!! I was SO excited!! I even got 2 new memory cards for it to fill up! I was a photo taking fool for the rest of the holidays. And in fact, here is the new picture of my beautiful chi ldren taken with the D60 (10.2 megapixels by the way!!) A very Merry Christmas was had by all and I have the pictures to prove it!

A New Year, A New Routine...

2009-01-05T09:05:00.000-08:00

Okay Folks. I am back! Its a new year and I have made some household routine changes. My children have started back to school and I have instilled a new routine for them. Day one has begun with smashing results! Here's how it goes... The two oldest boys are to set out clothes, bookbags, etc, and pack school lunches the night before and are to get to bed 30 minutes before their previously set bedtime. Then in the morning they are to get up, shower, get dressed, eat breakfast, and be waiting with coats on when the bus shows up at 7am. Boy #2 got all his stuff together and packed his lunch the night before. He got to bed pretty much on time. He got up on time, and showered, dressed, ate and was all ready for the bus when it showed! SO proud of him! He even remembered his lunch today! Boy #1 opted for a hot lunch, so no lunch packing for him, but he got all his stuff together and was to bed at a reasonable hour. He was up and showered, fed and ready also before the bus arrived. A very smooth morning I must say! So now I must put together the afternoon routine. We will see if it all goes as planned. I am really really hoping that this will carry further than just today!
As for me, I am hoping to get back into the routine of posting on a daily or almost daily basis. I am hoping also to get a "schedule" for my posting. I will continue with Thousand words Thursdays. So that is one day scheduled. And it will be much more fun now with my NEW camera! Yes, I got a new camera for Christmas! A very nice one that I will blog about on another day! Have a Happy Monday!

I got an award!!

2009-01-05T06:35:00.000-08:00

I got my award from my dear friend, Marge. She has a couple of blogs that I thoroughly enjoy: Remembering the Lives & Remembering the Life, go check 'em out! This means so much to me to receive this award! I kind of ignored all my online stuff during the holidays... much too busy with family and holiday stuff, you know how that can be! Anyway, I am truly honored and will definitely pass this award on!

The rules for this award are:

1. Put the logo on your blog.
2. Add a link to the person who awarded you.
3. Nominate 10 other blogs.
4. Add links to those blogs on yours.
5. Leave a message for your nominees on their blogs.

I'll do my best! I'm not sure I'll be able to do ten, but I'll do what I can! :)

Famous last words..."I wonder what is under that carpet?"

2008-12-08T11:48:00.000-08:00

Those were the words coming out of my dear husbands mouth on day 2 of an 8 day off stretch for him. We had, just moments ago, been discussing what color of bookcases we were going to put in the office...because that was our project for the week... but now, I had been challenged. We had both been wondering what kind of floor was under the living room carpet since the day we moved in. The carpet was an okay carpet, but it was light colored and with 4 kids, it doesn't work very well, stains show up way too easily. So I found a hammer, and pried up the shiny brass threshold, and then pulled back the carpet and pad, and lo and behold found hard wood flooring that matches the hard wood flooring that is in the dining room!

Unlike the dining room which is stained a honey color, this was stained a beautiful dark wood color, perhaps a mahogany or a reddish walnut! SO beautiful. So, as you can well imagine, we had to take up the carpet. We rolled it back...

And then started the day long project of pulling up the 6 million staples that held down the pad (in addition to the extra set of staples that was left from another carpet)...

and pried up the two sets of tack strips that were all along the edge of the room (one from a previous carpet)

We got our 2 oldest boys to help (sorry about the resolution: dark room, phone camera)

And what we found as we pulled the rest of the carpet and pad back was a center rectangle that was unstained. This is commonly found in older homes (mine is from 1898), they did not stain the center of the floor, but just covered it in an area rug. In fact a lot of the homes didn't use the "good wood" for the center, since it would just be covered in a carpet anyway, and would sometimes use just plywood for the center, so we got lucky!

There were just a few areas that are going to need more work than just a sanding and staining. As you can see in the left and right pics below, there was apparantly something built in that is no longer there! We can only speculate as to what it was, but where the hardwood was taken up they put plywood in its place, so we will try and match up some hardwood planks to repair the damaged area. In the picture on the left the white stuff is filler that was smeared in the cracks, so that will also have to be dealt with. As for the middle pic, it looks like water staining, so hopefully it will just sand out and take a staining okay.

So for now, we have finished the "deconstruction" of the carpet, and have put the room back together. We got an area rug for the center and will probably put our work on hold until after the holidays. So here is the semi-"finished" room:

So consider this part one of the living room facelift, I will blog more as we get more done.

A Thousand Words Thursday

2008-11-13T05:11:00.000-08:00

Here is my daughter so proud of the tower of smarties that she and daddy built...of course I played with the picture a bit...isn't that cool!

Working through the webs...

2008-11-10T19:25:00.000-08:00

So this week I started on my 1st web. You know the one with organizing the kids' clothes and rooms... I got my oldest child's room in the basement completed to a point where I could move him back down there. (See this post for why he wasn't there already). I also got my daughter's room started in the cleaned and organized department.
So for my son's room we painted 2 walls and shampooed the carpet. I got his clothes, bed, and electronics (tv, stereo, etc) organized and in place, so he is able to live down there now.
For my daughters room I am working on getting everything picked up and organized so that she can play in there without fear of getting lost! She has so many "girly" toys and when she was sharing a room with her brother she couldn't really bring those out! So now we get to organize her "kitchen", her table & chairs, her rocking horse, her baby dolls, etc... It is really a lot of fun for me since my other children are all boys! I will have to get to the other rooms and do them up too, but for now I am focusing on the girly girl room!

Unending webs of work...

2008-11-07T06:34:00.001-08:00

Do you ever get caught up in a web of things to do? For example, here is my web... I need to get my kids' clothes sorted and the summer stuff put away, but before I can do that I need their rooms cleaned but before I can do that I have to move my oldest back down to the basement room but before I can do that I have to finish getting it cleaned up and painted but before I do that I need to wash clothes so that the kids have clean clothes to wear but if I do that I need to put them somewhere so I need the drawers cleaned out and sorted.... It's a neverending web of things that need to be done but can't be until something else is done... It is so very frustrating! I need to create a plan of action and follow through with it. I run into these webs everyday. Sometimes its a short time web like I need to fix dinner but before I do that I need to wash dishes but first I have to feed the baby but before that I need to change his diaper and on and on and on! My brain gets very scattered sometimes! Does anyone else feel the same way? So here is what we are gonna do. Find a web in your life. I'm gonna start with the whole organize clothes-cleaning rooms thing. Try and find a start point for your task. And then JUST DO IT! I will keep you updated to my progress! You let me know yours!

A Thousand Words Thursday

2008-11-06T04:49:00.000-08:00

Here is my now 9 year old son thinking... "All I want for Christmas is my 2 front teeth!"

Recipe Corner: Creamy Potato Soup

2008-11-05T10:30:00.000-08:00

I made this the other day in my crock pot and it was oh so yummy!
Start with 5 or 6 medium to large potatoes. For this recipe I used Yukon Gold potatoes.

Chop them up into 1" chunks (approximate, doesn't have to be perfect). And place them in the crock pot (or large pot for stove top cooking).

Then take 1/2 of a large sweet onion

And chop it up into a small dice

Then add about 32 ounces of chicken broth. I usually get the boxed kind, but this is all I had at the time, it works just fine.

Add the chicken broth and the onions to the potatoes in the pot

Then chop up some ham into 1/2 inch pieces, about 1 1/2 - 2 cups worth. I had this saved from some ham I sliced for sandwiches. Leftover ham works wonderfully here.

Add this to the potatoes.

Let this cook until the potatoes are tender. The onions should be fairly soft too. If you are using the crock pot, then it will be approximately 3-4 hours on high and 6-7 hours on low.

When the potatoes are tender then add some instant potato flakes (I know, I know, "those are fake!", but they are a good thickener).

I add about 1 1/2 - 2 cups.

Stir it in until all combined

Then add a good melty cheese. This time I used white american cheese slices ripped into small pieces. This brand melts really well. You can also use velveeta. Stir in the cheese until it is all melted.

If your soup gets too thick you can thin it out with some milk. The longer you cook it the thicker it will get. But if you plan on letting it cook for a longer period of time, don't add the milk because it will curdle. Just add it before serving and stir in until you have the consistency desired.

This about what you should be seeing... doesn't it look yummy! Add some salt & pepper to taste...

Dip yourself out a bowl and add some crackers. Some meal adders could be some grilled cheese sandwiches or breadsticks, and a salad! Enjoy!

Stay at home dads, check this one out!

2008-10-31T07:24:00.000-07:00

You have got to check this out!! Especially those who know a stay at home dad! I love it!! Stay at Home Dad

A Thousand Words Thursday

2008-10-30T15:24:00.000-07:00

Here it is Thursday again!

And here I am VERY pregnant with my 4th child. He was born 10 days after this pic was taken, 10 pounds 2 ounces, and 20 inches long. He was about 3 weeks early.

Dekar Day

2008-10-27T21:06:00.001-07:00

So today is the 27th. This marks the 4th month of remembering Dekar Day. We celebrate Dekar Day on the 27th of each month by having ice cream in honor of little Dekar Ezri Schmidt. Dekar was born on June 27th of this year at 10:46am and met the eyes of Jesus at 7:10pm the same day. He was diagnosed with Trisomy 18 and hypoplastic left heart syndrome. Dekar's mommy and I became friends through a pregnancy message board, Babyfit. She and I were due just 6 days apart, and our babies were born early just 9 days apart. Though we have never met in person, I feel such a bond with her. I post this to get the word out about Dekar Day and I hope that you will take part in remembering Dekar by indulging in your favorite ice cream every 27th. You can read more about Dekar and his family and his diagnosis and birth here.

Chili Cook-offs and other life successes

2008-10-25T09:29:00.000-07:00

This afternoon I am in a Chili Cookoff. This is the second year that our local park district has done this. I entered last year, one of I think 8, and won the prize for the Sweetest Chili. I have the award hanging in the kitchen. I don't enter my chili for any category specifically, in fact, I was really surprised when they announced mine as the sweetest. I just make mine about the same way my grandmother always did, with brown sugar. My recipe is my own, I have tweaked it to mine and my family's liking. I don't do anything special for it for the contest. I think that is where the most satisfaction comes in. It won an award without being any different than it always is. The judges thought that the way I made my chili for my family deserved this title. It is one thing to enter a contest and try doing something different than you normally do just because you think it will win an award. I think that my chili is just GOOD, that is why I entered and when I won the prize it was confirmation that it was just GOOD! To me that is the success. It's too bad that we as mothers don't get a prize for having a well behaved child. Or raising a child who then goes on to become something great. But then that in itself IS the prize. To be able to say that "Yes, that is my son, I didn't do anything special with him, that is just how he was raised. He got punished when he disobeyed, he was praised when he did well, he is just my own special recipe." And really, isn't that the best prize of all? Confirmation from an outside source that you did well raising your child. No parent is perfect. Especially not me. I have screwed up more than I would care to admit with my children, but I have no doubts that they will turn out okay. I discipline, I praise, I teach, I love, I do my very best to keep them well rounded and well grounded... that is my recipe. I have yet to see the end result, but so far it is looking pretty darn successful.

A Thousand Words Thursday

2008-10-22T19:48:00.001-07:00

Here is my daughter, off to save the world!

Totally Her Grand Opening - check it out

2008-10-22T10:58:00.000-07:00

Don't forget M y Giveaway.

Come check out a grand opening giveaway at TotallyHer.com They are giving away a $500 gift card, a $200 gift card and a 8 $50 gift cards to your choice of retailer! You can enter multiple times just click here.

For all the moms out there...

2008-10-21T17:46:00.000-07:00

Don't forget The Giveaway.

I got this in an email from my mother-in-law:

Invisible Mother......

It all began to make sense, the blank stares, the lack of response, the way one of the kids will walk into the room and ask to be taken to the store - while I'm on the phone.

Inside I'm thinking, 'Can't you see I'm on the phone?'

Obviously not.

No one can see if I'm on the phone, or cooking, or sweeping the floor, or even standing on my head in the corner, because no one can see me at all.

I'm invisible. The invisible Mom. Some days I am only a pair of hands, nothing more: Can you fix this? Can you tie this? Can you open this?

Some days I'm not a pair of hands; I'm not even a human being. I'm a clock to ask, 'What time is it?' I'm a satellite guide to answer, 'What number is the Disney Channel?' I'm a car to order, 'Right around 5:30, please.'

I was certain that these were the hands that once held books and the eyes that studied history and the mind that graduated sum a cum laude - but now they had disappeared into the peanut butter, never to be seen again. She's going; she's going; she is gone!

One night, a group of us were having dinner, celebrating the return of a friend from England …

Janice had just gotten back from a fabulous trip, and she was going on and on about the hotel she stayed in.
I was sitting there, looking around at the others all put together so well. It was hard not to compare and feel sorry for myself.
I was feeling pretty pathetic, when Janice turned to me with a beautifully wrapped package, and said, 'I brought you this.'

It was a book on the great cathedrals of Europe. I wasn't exactly sure why she'd given it to me until I read her inscription:

'To My Dear Friend, with admiration for the greatness of what you are building when no one sees.'

In the days ahead I would read - no, devour - the book. And I would discover what would become for me, four life-changing truths, after which I could pattern my work:

1. No one can say who built the great cathedrals - we have no record of their names.

2. These builders gave their whole lives for a work they would never see finished.

3. They made great sacrifices and expected no credit.

4. The passion of their building was fueled by their faith that the eyes of God saw everything.

A legendary story in the book told of a rich man who came to visit a cathedral while it was being built, and he saw a workman carving a tiny bird on the inside of a beam. He was puzzled and asked the man, 'Why are you spending so much time carving that bird into a beam that will be covered by the roof? No one will ever see it.' The workman replied, 'Because God sees.'

I closed the book, feeling the missing piece fall into place.

It was almost as if I heard God whispering to me, 'I see you. I see the sacrifices you make every day, even when no one around you does. No act of kindness you've done, no sequin you've sewn on, no cupcake you've baked, is too small for me to notice and smile over. You are building a great cathedral, but you can't see right now what it will become.'

At times, my invisibility feels like an affliction. But it is not a disease that is erasing my life. It is the cure for the disease of my own self-centeredness. It is the antidote to my strong, stubborn pride.

I keep the right perspective when I see myself as a great builder, as one of the people who show up at a job that they will never see finished, to work on something that their name will never be on.

The writer of the book went so far as to say that no cathedrals could ever be built in our lifetime because there are so few people willing to sacrifice to that degree.

When I really think about it, I don't want my son to tell the friend he's bringing home from college for Thanksgiving, 'My Mom gets up at 4 in the morning and bakes homemade pies, and then she hand bastes a turkey for three hours and presses all the linens for the table.' That would mean I'd built a shrine or a monument to myself. I just want him to want to come home. And then, if there is anything more to say to his friend, to add, 'you're going to love it there.'

As mothers, we are building great cathedrals. We cannot be seen if we're doing it right.

And one day, it is very possible that the world will marvel, not only at what we have built, but at the beauty that has been added to the world by the sacrifices of invisible women.

Great Job, MOM!

Hope this encourages you when the going gets tough as it sometimes does.
We never know what our finished products will turn out to be because of our perseverance.

My 1st Prize Giveaway!

2008-10-21T15:12:00.000-07:00

My husband and I have a few home businesses. The first one we have is that we are shopkeepers on Cafepress. We have multiple simple shops and a couple of Premium shops. We sell t-shirts and gift items such as mugs, clocks, hats, stickers, buttons, calenders, baby items, and just recently got to add Pure Digital Technologies Flip Mino Camcorders. These are mini digital camcorders that are about 2"x4" in size. Look at some of my newest creations for this item here. If you want to take a look at some of my other items, see the main shop here. I also sell the Over the Shoulder Baby Holder slings if anyone is in need of an awesome baby carrier. In addition to both of those, we occasionally sell on Ebay and I also run a home bakery. We continue to try and diversify our income and hope to maybe one day both be SAH/WAH parents.

Now to The Giveaway:
If you visit my shop and then spread the word by blogging about my shop and my blog with a link to both, I will post the name of your blog here on mine and you will be entered into my very 1st giveaway!! Just post a comment that you did just that along with a link to your blog and you will be entered into a random drawing for a special prize package which includes a 2009 calender print, a bumper sticker, and a rectangle magnet with the design of your choosing(from my shop of course)! And I will do a blog posting featuring the winner and their blog! Do this by 10pm central time on Friday, October 31st and you will be in the drawing! No late entries will be accepted, so get blogging!

Recipe Corner: Home Made Laundry Soap

2008-10-21T12:48:00.000-07:00

1 bar of soap (cheap stuff will do)
1/2 cup borax
1 cup washing soda (not baking soda, washing soda can be found at the grocery store in the laundry soap aisle)
approximately 3 1/2 gallons water
5 gallon plastic bucket with lid

Start 4 cups of water boiling on the stove.
Grate your bar of soap using a cheese grater.
Add the shaved soap slowly to the boiling water a little at a time. When the little has dissolved, add more until it is dissolved, continue until you have dissolved the whole bar.
Pour 3 gallons of hot tap water into the bucket.
Add the borax and washing soda and stir.
Add the soapy boiling water and stir.
Cover and let sit overnight.
After sitting, stir it up. It should be fairly gelatinous.

I think I need a clone...

2008-10-17T13:03:00.000-07:00

Have you ever felt that way? I do every day. It would be so much easier if there were two of me. An extra person to do the laundry, cook dinner, do the dishes, change the beds. You know all of the busy work that gets in the way of playing with my kids, updating my blog, organizing the thousands of family pictures that I have. Maybe just a robot of me would be better, robots don't have feelings and I wouldn't want to hurt the feelings of my clone by making her do all the dirty work. Or maybe I need an extra set of hands or two. That would certainly help. I could do so much more, so long as the extra set were built like Elastagirl!
Well, anyway. I think I really have too much on my plate and I need to prioritize and decide what really needs to be there. I have four children...they aren't going anywhere, so that is top of the list with my dear husband, can't live without him either! I have a home bakery business.. the market season is about over... I really could just set that aside for the season, and I just might. I have an online t-shirt and gift business that makes enough to pay my mortgage, so that one has to stay, and right now it doesn't take a whole lot of time. I also sell baby slings, but that right now is taking virtually no time, so that stays. Then there is the whole blogging thing. I could cut back, but it is just in baby stages and I need to build it if I want to eventually make money off it. SO perhaps cutting back or out the baking and slowing down on blogging... I don't know. Somethings gotta give. Let me know what you think...

A Thousand Words Thursday

2008-10-15T21:14:00.000-07:00

I decided that I liked the idea of A Thousand Words Thurdays from cheaperthantherapy. So here is my thousand words pic ...

My 3 oldest childrens shadows on the beach. (yes it's a cut and paste together, but I still love it!)

Light a candle for National Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day

2008-10-15T11:02:00.000-07:00

October 15th is National Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day in the United States. More than 25,000 children are stillborn in the United States every year leaving mothers, entire families and communities devastated. Estimates of the rate of occurrence of stillbirth make it at least as common as autism.

The above link takes you to www.october15th.com. They are asking that everyone who reads this message lights a candle at 7pm in every time zone, all over the world and let it burn for at least an hour. If this is done there will be a continuous wave of light on October 15th. Do this in honor of someone that you know who has lost a baby or for your own baby to remember National Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day. Thank you!

I will be doing this in honor of my sister, who miscarried twins in April 2008, my grandmother who lost her 10th child as an infant, for my mother, who lost a baby at 16 weeks gestation, for my brother and his wife, who wife miscarried their 1st baby, for my mother in law who lost her first baby at just 2 hours old, and for my friend Marge, who lost her baby Dekar at just 8 hours old.

www.October15th.com

2008-10-14T19:26:00.000-07:00

I post this in honor of my friend Marge's baby, Dekar, who lived only a short 8 hours until the Lord called him home... please copy and paste this into your blog to spread the word... THANKS!

H.R. 5979: Stillbirth Awareness and Research Act

(Please copy to your blogs so this bill gets more exposure. THANK YOU!)

October 15th is National Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day in the United States. More than 25,000 children are stillborn in the United States every year leaving mothers, entire families and communities devastated. Estimates of the rate of occurrence of stillbirth make it at least as common as autism.

Stillbirth is not an intractable problem. Greater research would likely significantly reduce its incidence, but good research requires good data. H.R. 5979: Stillbirth Awareness and Research Act is under consideration by Congress. This proposed bill would standardize stillbirth investigation and diagnosis, thus providing more data for the needed research. Better research means fewer children born still.

On October 15th, remember the thousands of unfinished children lost and the families who remain to grieve them. Honor them by taking action. Let’s help pass H.R. 5979.

Action Steps:
Step 1. Use Your Blog to Enlist Others-Copy the contents of this entire post and publish it on your blog immediately.

GOAL: Enlist 10 of your readers to spread the word

Step 2. Use Your E-mail to Enlist Others-E-mail 5 bloggers and ask them (nicely and in an unspammy way) to publish these action steps on their blog. Consider contacting celebrity bloggers, political bloggers, medical bloggers, or bloggers who are not part of your reading community.

GOAL: Enlist 3 bloggers outside of your normal blog sphere to spread the word in other online communities.

Step 3. Help Pass the Stillbirth Awareness and Research Act-By October 15th, publish a post on your blog supporting H.R. 5979 Stillbirth Awareness and Research Act. For maximum impact, title your post: “Stillbirth Awareness and Research Act.”

GOAL: 1,000,000 Google results on October 15th when that term is searched for. Currently, Google only returns 20,400 pages - most of which have nothing to do with the bill.

Thank you to Antigone for starting this movement.

More information HERE

Recipe Corner: Hot Chocolate Mix

2008-10-13T17:30:00.000-07:00

Every year for as long as I can remember my mom has made her own hot chocolate mix. And it is GOOD! One of my fondest memories from winters in Northern Illinois was coming in from playing in the snow with my brothers and mom would have popcorn and hot chocolate ready for us. It warmed us up from the inside out and was oh so chocolatey. We also figured out how to make the itty bitty crunchy marshmallows that you might find in the commercial hot chocolate mixes! So I decided that I would share this divine recipe and let you also partake in its delectability! Here it is:

Mom's Home Made Hot Chocolate Mix
1 large box of powdered milk
1-2 pound bag of powdered sugar
1 canister of cocoa powder
1 larger canister of non-dairy creamer

Combine all ingredients in a large plastic container and shake well. For an individual serving, mix 1/3 cup of powder with 8 ounces hot water or for an even creamier cup of cocoa, make it with hot milk!

Now, I also said we discovered the secret to the itty bitty crunchy marshmallows that you find in the commercial mixes.... dehydrate mini marshmallows with a food dehydrator! Then add to your cup of hot chocolate. Store in a sealed container in a cool dry place.
Enjoy!!

Too Much T.V.?

2008-10-13T14:24:00.001-07:00

I will be the first to admit that I believe my kids watch too much t.v. They also spend too much time on the computer. And they probably don't get enough exercise outdoors. So now that I have thoroughly exposed myself let me try and redeem. I have cut down considerably on their computer time by blocking their account page from them. They have to earn their computer time, unless it has to do with homework. The t.v. stuff we are working on, as well as trying to get more outside time. I try and limit the amount of t.v. the kids are watching, and I absolutely limit what they watch. My daughter likes to watch the ever popular Nickelodeon shows..such as Dora the Explorer, Diego, Ni Hao Kailan (sp?), etc... and she can speak some spanish and chinese now because of it. She regularly uses Spanish with me (vamanos mama, vamanos!) So since she hasn't started preschool yet I consider this educational and therefore it is allowed. But really how much is too much. Do I allow only 1 program (30 minutes)? Do I allow them to pick out up to an hour's worth of programming? Do I allow more if they spend some more time outside or doing chores? Maybe a combination of all of that. I do know that the current level of television watching is just not acceptable to me anymore and something has to change. I will keep you posted as to what has been decided.

Housecleaning vs. Housekeeping vs. Homemaking

2008-10-12T06:22:00.001-07:00

Is there a difference? I believe there is. Lets take a look...
Lets start with housecleaning. Well that is fairly self explanatory. Housecleaning is, well, cleaning house. Doing what needs to be done to make the house clean. If you are a mom it means picking up toys and clothes. Picking up the items that are on the floor that don't belong on the floor. Vacuuming or sweeping said floor and making sure it is clean, so washing the floor or carpet when needed. It means taking care of dirty dishes lying about. Making your living space clean. Most people do this daily. There are some who don't and they either don't have kids, pets, or spouses, or they live in a dirty house. But housecleaning is something that generally everyone needs to do on a daily basis.
Now lets look at housekeeping. House - keeping.... keeping house. What does that mean exactly. Well, part of it is the daily house cleaning, because if you are going to keep house, it needs to be kept clean. I also think that part of housekeeping is making it a comfortable living space. So that means going a little beyond the keeping it clean spectrum. Things like adding decor, a flower arrangement, an art piece, a decorative rug or throw pillows. So now we not only have a clean house, it is comfortable and clean. I think it also means making sure that there is toilet paper in the bathroom, light bulbs at the ready should one burn out... essentials like that. Things that you would not expect your hired housecleaner to take care of.
Now how about Homemaking. Making a home. That sounds so much nicer. This in my humble opinion is everything that is described above...the cleaning and the keeping... but then adding the special touches that make it home. What makes a house a home? Well, I think that would vary person to person. For me, its the pictures of my children on the wall, its their artwork on the refrigerator, its my favorite coffee on the shelf, the favorite cereal in the cabinet. The home made craft items made for me by my sister for a Christmas gift hanging on the wall. It means coats for all six of my family members hanging together in the entryway. This is home. It means there is sometimes an occassional doll or truck left on the floor. There is a coffee cup that my dear husband last drank out of in the sink. There are many times little fingerprints on the mirror. It means that a lot of time it isn't possible to have a clean house, but rather a picked up home. Because if there are children present, it becomes cluttered. And they are only children once. My great aunt once gave me a plaque for the wall that read "Cleaning the house while the children are growing is like shoveling snow while it's still snowing". I truly believe this, and my kids prove it to me daily. We try and stay ahead of the clutter, but I don't think we are ever done cleaning.

Weight loss before and after pregnancy...a confessional

2008-10-11T19:17:00.000-07:00

Before becoming pregnant I decided I needed to lose weight. I was not happy with myself. I hated how I looked. I hated the fact that in all my sibling's wedding pictures I was the overweight sister. It had to change. I have a daughter and and now 3 sons and I wanted - no - needed to get healthy for me and for them and for my dearest husband. I needed to lose about 50 pounds and it needed to stay gone. I was introduced to Sparkpeople by my cousin, who had also been on her own weight loss journey. This is a free diet and healthy lifestyle website, and it changed my life. I got on and explored the website. I entered my information and according to their BMI calculator I was on the edge of being obese. I didn't feel obese...just a bit overweight. So I decided it was time to get serious. I decided it would be easier to make my own menu's rather than try and follow theirs. I entered everything I ate. I exercised everyday and logged it. I made friends on my "Spark Team". And about 10 weeks into my new adventure I discovered I was about 8 weeks pregnant! I had been on the mini-pill for birth control and my cycles were a little off. So I didn't realize that I was pregnant! I was a bit devastated. I had already lost about 20 pounds and wanted to continue. I continued to watch what I ate and exercised when I found the energy. I ended up losing about 27 pounds before I started to gain baby weight. In the end I gained about 15 pounds above my pre-weight loss weight. The day after I gave birth (to a 10 pound 2 ounce boy) I was back to my pre-weight loss weight. By week one I was down another 15 or so. I told myself I would get 6 weeks to get back into the swing of things as far as eating lite and healthy. Well, 6 weeks came and went and I didn't get into the swing of things. In fact it was almost as if my mind and body were rebelling against the very idea. Needless to say I have gained back the weight that was lost. I need to get started again... keep me accountable. Please check up on me. Make sure that I am sticking with it. Weight loss after pregnancy has never been easy for me, as I am sure it is not easy for anyone. But we can do it! We can win this race! WE ARE WOMAN - HEAR US ROAR!!!

Staying Accountable

2008-10-11T19:10:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the premiere of my newest blog...Real Life Stuff. It is here that I want to start to blog about, you guessed it, real life stuff! I hope you'll stay with me as I journey through life with the same struggles that a lot of women have... mommy stuff, weight loss and gain, etc... And I hope that you will keep me accountable. Please, comment often, let me know that you are here. I hope to share recipes here, my goals as far as weight loss goes, and general life goals. I have hopes that I can eventually add contests for prize give aways, etc... Here we go....