Tuesday, December 6, 2011

Random Acts of Kindness

I grew up in a house where you were dragged along to volunteer. You really didn't have a choice. I remember organizing donated items for March of Dimes probably at 7 or 8. I probably complained about it, but my mom did an amazing job of instilling that passion to help others in my heart. So now that Ruth is 3 and getting a little more "eduacated" on the whole Santa thing, I feel pressure to keep her in the true meaning of Christmas. We have started doing a Advent countdown. We do this every year along with a Jesse tree (post on that later), but this year I mixed in some RACKs (Random Acts of Christmas Kindness). I am not sure she gets it really this year, but hopefully it will be a great tradition to continue on.

Here are some awesome sites with more information on this idea. It was not something I came up with for sure.

RACK Advent Calendar Some of her ideas are things like
- purchase toys for kids in need
- donate blood (parents of course)
- take goodies to the firefighters working on Christmas day (I hope to do this one this year)
- buy hot cocoa for the person ringing the Salvation Army bell.... we bought them a coke because we are in Texas and it was like 77 degrees that day.

Some of her ideas ...
- leave a gift for the mailman
- make treats for the dogs
- find the home with the best lights and write them a thank you card (want to do this one too)

Anyways, we have had lots of fun so far. I told Ruth we were going to buy a toy for a little boy. Of course she asked why and what is his name, and what is his mommy's name. After a discussion on giving to those in need, and pretending that I knew the name of this kid, I picked a boy so she could pick something she might not want herself. So she then told me he might have a baby sister too who also needs a toy. So we picked out something for the baby sister too.

Thursday, November 17, 2011

Hair

My hair is getting longer.... YEAH. And I am really inspired by all the awesome hair I have been seeing on Pinterest. Yes Pinterest, if you haven't seen it yet my advice is DON'T.... no just kidding. But really you will probably lead a more productive life if you do not discover Pinterest.

Ok but in case you haven't checked it out and you want to, here is a link.... Pinterest

So back to my hair...I am for sure someone who throws my hair in a pony tail way to many times. Now that it has gotten longer I have been trying to do more with it. Here are some ideas I have gotten from Pinterest. I linked them to the original website.


And here is my hair. By the way it is hard to take a picture of yourself in a mirror.

Here are some more ideas I love and look forward to trying....






So happy Pinteresting......

Tuesday, November 1, 2011

Technology and Robots

So our family is not the most advanced in technology. Travis and I do not have smart phones, Travis doesn't even have texting! We use our portable DVD player as our house DVD player, we do not own a GPS, and we use a desktop. BUT we stepped right in and bought a Toshiba Thrive Tablet thingy. Just the fact that I called it a thingy should let you know I am really not sure what to call it, I called it an IPad at first but was corrected.

Anyways, Travis loves it, the girls love it, I love it. We pretty much fight over who gets to use it in the evenings. But with all the shifting around I decided we needed a case for it, and not one that cost 30 bucks at Best Buy. I made one.

Here is the tutorial I used, I must admit all the numbers and measurements at the top confused me, I know me a self proclaimed math person was confused, but the pictures made so much sense to me. It is actually for a labtop but of course mine came out smaller.

So here is mine... Travis said, "no girly fabrics please."
And so I walked into the back room and looked at this large fabric stash to find that I have A LOT of pinks and purples and flowers and swirls and polka dots.
But I did find some ROBOTS!






So now to go to the other side, this is my next project, just looking for some old pots and pans to get us started.
via Soule Mama

How do you balance technology and good old outdoors fun with your kids?


Monday, October 10, 2011

Rainbow Party

Since the kids are finally catching up on their sleep (they will probably wake up now since I just typed this) I decided to share some pictures from R's rainbow party. It was a blast, and I actually tried to not "work" the whole time, but enjoy myself. I am reading this book, "Smart Martha's Guide." Relating to the story in Luke 10: 38-42. Trying to be like Mary instead of Martha while getting stuff done around the house.

This was the first party where we actually invited several kids that are Ruth's friends. They consisted of kids who's parents happen to be my friends, but that's how it is when you are 3.

So here are some pictures from the event....

Mackenzie made the cupcake cake. And it was so easy to serve, no plates, no forks, just grab and go. And check out the inside....

We got the idea online you should check out some of the awesome rainbow cakes  here.
Everyone was invited to wear their favorite rainbow color. Pink and purple were popular among the little girls.




I made Ruth's skirt. It had been awhile since I have completed a sewing project, but I was determined to make her a birthday outfit. This skirt was SO easy to make, I can't wait to make more, maybe even one for me, not rainbow of course.
Here are some tutorials for this style of skirt....
I honestly just kinda winged the whole thing and it turned out lookin good, so it would probably look great had I followed some directions.

Anyways everyone had a blast. I even made everyone try to line up in rainbow order to take a picture, the people at the bottom are a cloud.




Tuesday, September 6, 2011

Breastfeeding anytime, anywhere....

As Marie's 1st birthday has come and gone, weaning seems to come up in conversation and in my mind. Ruth nursed till about 14 months or so. A month later we found out we were expecting Marie. Some say the milk changes taste. I was ready to continue nursing while pregnant, but she led the weaning and I was left wimpering at the time we got to spend so close together.

So now here we are again, Marie is 1. We want to start planning for baby 3 (this may seem crazy to some, but we are so excited to have more children. Ruth and Marie are 22 months apart and it is working very well for us. Every family is different) Anyways we have introduced whole milk, mostly because Marie always wants what Ruth has. I was doing some reading up on the subject, just breastfeeding in general and I came across something I found very fun to read.

ALERT: it was fun to read because a) I am a mom b) I love breastfeeding c) I breastfeed anywhere I need to and d) I love reading stuff about women who breastfeed. So if you are say a man with no children and a fear of breast, this might not be all that "fun" to read.

50 Reasons for Breastfeeding Anywhere. Anytime.

I like number 38 - I hope the women in my life are more likely to try breastfeeding because of years of observing me.

Number 41 - My girls are growing up knowing boobies are for feeding babies. I love to watch R imitate this with her dolls.


And my favorite of the 50 reasons...
46. Because an awful lot of women show more breast when they are not breastfeeding than breastfeeding mothers show when they are breastfeeding.

Happy Breastfeeding Mommies!

Ladybug Party

So the fall is full of birthdays for us. M's is at the end of August and T's is at the beginning of September. And them R's is just a few weeks later in October. So we kicked the birthday season off with a Ladybug party. Here are some pictures of the day.

First let me just say the Birthday Girl looked like this about half way through the party. She's 1, I think this is common....

Ok but she was awake for some of the party.


I spent some time on decorations to help with the Ladybug theme, but not much. She's one and I wasn't going to go all out. The biggest time spended, making cake balls. Which sounds really easy, but it's not. I think they are suppose to look a bit cleaner and smoother. Oh well. It was my first try.


The birthday girl took a power nap and woke up to do cake and presents. You can tell she still looks so tired in these pictures. Both girls needed naps that day, and neither one got it. R pretty much cried about everything for the first hour. And then decided it was fun to get to open our sister's presents.
And here's one of R and A playing in the yard. So much fun.


So now we start planning for someone's 3rd birthday, and there has been a request for rainbows....

Oh and this man had a birthday last week too. We love him, he had a cake and we sang him happy birthday. He is a great daddy and husband, who thinks he is getting old. You are hun, that is what happens.


Thursday, August 11, 2011

Day 1... so good so far....

They advise you to change cloth diapers every 1-2 hours.

Also when we went to the YMCA I put her in a disposable.

But they have been easy peasy to use.

Wednesday, August 10, 2011

Uh oh, I think I'm hippie'ish

So we have decided to invest in something.....
No not diapers.com..... and we already had diapers (some of the time).... But a newer better diaper.

These are called gDiapers.

They are clothe.

Gasp! What?

Yes, we are trying out clothe diapers. The ones you have to wash the poop out of.

Yes, poop. I am aware that this will happen.


But look how precious they are. Marie is not home right now, but I bet her bottom is going to look adorable in this. And this is the back so the velcro is in the back, which will stop her from taking off her own diaper.

Now we did not decide to do this just because they are cute (but it was a bonus.) Though a more expensive investment in the beginning, clothe diapers still save money. And they are better for the enviornment. And yes we care about our Earth. I was raised in a recycling center...hehe. No but really I think my mom brought recycling to Needville. But anyways, we are going to try it out during the day while at home first, and see how we progress.

If you are interested check out these sites for more information on gDiapers...
A First Mom - About gDiapers
gDiapers Website
See Kate Sew - Handmade gDiaper Liners - and next I want to make some of these~


Aren't these adorable! Oh I am so in love. Ok now to get the babe and put them on her. Oh can't wait.

Have any of you used clothe diapers before?

Friday, July 8, 2011

Cauliflower

So in our attempt to eat more fruits and vegtables, I decided to try my hand at a cauliflower recipe. But trust me I am sure with butter and cheese cauliflower can take a walk on the wild side and become not so healthy. First let's look at some yummy pictures of other recipes!

gluten free mashed cauliflower recipeMashed Cauliflower Travis said he would be able to tell the difference right away, but I am thinking maybe a 50/50 might be a good idea the first go around. Half potatoes, half cauliflower.

Simple CauliflowerSimple Cauliflower Recipe -  This website also has some yummy recipes for eating healthy and using more natural and raw foods.

Cauliflower Dal with Panch PhoranCauliflower Dal - This is from the Fat Free Vegan Kitchen. Looks good for the cold weather, not so much during some Texas heat.

And then here is my cheesy goodness. I used a recipe from Jamie Oliver. Heres a link to his Website.
It was delicous, Travis ate 3 servings, and in the end there were no leftovers.

I even used the corning ware I got from my Papa after he died. Use it all the time.

So go ahead try cauliflower. Get creative.


Friday, July 1, 2011

Vacation

My husband is a workaholic, he works anywhere from 60-150 hours a week. I understand he works for the family business and really takes pride in the work he does. He also get frustrated when he is sitting in Louisiana just to sit at a site "on call". How he racks up so many hours amazes me. Because even when he works 80 hours a week he still seems to be home with us and the kids. Anyways, this is what he looked like for a week...




So we planned a vacation to go see this Laura. Kansas and Texas girl, met in New Hampshire while coaching volleyball at a summer camp for girls. God knew we needed each other. We have been together (though thousands of miles apart) through our good times and bad the past 7 years! So we planned to go up to Omaha to see her.

I love this one of us sliding down the huge slides, Laura beat me down. We had a good time, Ruth adores Laura, and it was great to spend some face time with my best friend. I love you Laura.

So we went through 6 states during our vacation... Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska, Colorado, and New Mexico.

Sunday, June 19, 2011

Quick Gardening

Our clothesline used to be attached to our house with these little circle skrews. But now the line is in the yard, but the circle things were still on the side of the house. So I decided to try to do some type of hanging plant thing there. Here is what I came up with....




Now any tips would be appreciated because I am wondering if this will be bad for the siding of the house?

Here are my sunflowers growing strong.

I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend.

Oh and I got the information on tying the string here.
Skinny Laminx used succulent, however I used herbs.
Check out hers...


Friday, June 17, 2011

Anniversary

Today it is our 4th Anniversary! Here we are on our wedding day.

It was an eventful day although I wasn't really planning much but to make some lasagna for dinner.

Travis was summoned for jury duty only to be dimissed at like 9am. So he joined us for Toddler Story Time at the library. We ran into our favorite coach from high school there, Coach Powers. Then we picked up Schulze's for lunch. Mmmm. Then Travis got called on a job near Boling. So the girls took naps and I figured we would pick up a few things at CVS. Well we walked out of the house without my phone or keys. And the door was locked. Thank goodness Gloria was home and the kids were able to play while I got some things arranged. So in my Nana's car we ran our errands and then went to Boling to get Travis' key. Originally he was going to be home around 6 so I thought we could run errands till then, but things changed and he wouldn't be home till 10 so we went to Boling on our own.

I threw out any plans to make lasagna when we got home around 7:30 or so. My stomach was achey just from anxiety, and Ruth had a small dinner. But Travis called on his way home, up for a Redbox and some lasanga. So last night around midnight while watching the newest Chronicles of Narnia movie, we enjoyed our lasanga. I really enjoyed the olive cheese bread I made (also from Pioneer Woman).




This was delicious! But that is coming from someone who craves green olives all the time, especially when pregnant. This recipe called for Mayo. I am not a fan of it, so I just used a small amount. Travis opted for the just cheese bread in the background.

And I wanted to share this. An easy way to make Creme Brulee. My friend Kathleen, Ruth's godmother, makes amazing Creme Brulee but I am sure her's is all from scratch. But I found this at Kroger's and thought I would give it a try. Delicious.

This is the main reason I tried it....

Tuesday, June 14, 2011

Infinity Dress

So I am working on an Infinity Dress for my sister... What is an infinity dress you might ask??

Check this out.....


or how about this...

So I am not sure exactly how it will turn out. I am using the tutorial here..

So I am working on something, went and got the fabric tonight, so when the girls are asleep I intend to start!

Monday, May 30, 2011

Kid Silhouettes with my Silhouette

Awhile back while researching all the amazing things my birthday present, the Silhouette SD, could do I came across this picture at Censational Girl's blog.


So I wanted to make some of my kids, but instead of pillows, framed. First I went and got 2 red frames and some scrapbooking paper. My intial plan was to spray paint frames from Goodwill and use fabric, but my plan changed when I walked into Hobby Lobby. Here is what I started with.



Then the hard part, taking pictures of the girls not facing me. R has already been trained when the camera is out give me a big smile, so it was confusing to her why I wanted her to look at her sister while I took pictures, and M, well she just moves ALL the time! But it got done.



Then I imported the pictures onto my Silhouette and using the program did a rough trace around their heads. Then it allows me to move lines so that they fit just along the outline of their faces. The first one took me awhile, but then I got it down. Here is the finished product.

I put them on a shelf in the living room, but I still think it needs something else, like an angel or bird or some type of knick knack.


Some pointers.... this was an easy project you could do it with freezer paper if you do not have a Silhouette. Little girls look adorable with ponytails. Mandy did A's with a ponytail and it was just so cute. And babies, well they just look like a baby head. I will have to redo M's when she get a bit older.
Here's a link to Simple Things where you will find a tutorial on how to do this with freezer paper.