laborofwonder

Where Whine Meets Wine

Mar 2

Thankful For Weekends

by motherofwonder

I’m aware today is actually Friday, but yesterday was a Friday of sorts for us. Biggest has been having some work done on his teeth due to… well, we’re not really sure. Either too much fluoride in the water when I was pregnant or something along those lines. Whatever it was, it caused his teeth to develop with spots of little to no enamel. So now they’re getting fixed, filled and pretty-fied. Today is his second trip (and he still has another one, or two visits after). He was scheduled for next week, but they had a cancellation today, so hubbyman decided to take the day off (*collective gasp* I know, right?!). So for us, last night was the beginning of our weekend!

I am thankful for a short week and a long weekend!

I am thankful for a husband who continues to consciously making an effort to make sure his family is at the top of his priorities.

I am thankful for a big, strong, brave big boy.

I am thankful for a dancing, talking, twirling, talking, singing, talking chatterbox of a MissE.

I am thankful for a littlest boy who makes an effort to make everyone around him smile and laugh.

I’m also thankful for dentists who are patient and gentle. Hubbyman’s been going with Biggest (because when I took him -to a different dentist- we had a horrible experience), so I haven’t witnessed it. But even after having to get the Novocain shot and work done, he happily went to the dentist again. He seems to really like his “tooth Doctor’s” (as he calls them).

I am thankful for in-laws who are coming tonight in for a visit. And how excited the kids are to see them.

And also the bottle of my father-in-law’s homemade plum port wine he’ll bring me (*fingers crossed*)- they’re good to me.

I’m thankful for a father-in-law (who not only makes wine!) but will be helping hubby with some projects

I am thankful for a day at the home & garden show this weekend- with Miss, Littlest, and my Mom-in-Law! So many ideas! And so many wine-slushy samples!

I am thankful that we finally have enough snow for sledding- and a hubbyman who’s made a point to come home early enough to go sledding with them (they’ve been promised another round this afternoon).

I am thankful for family and friends who keep me grounded and help my survival.

I am thankful for my virtual, blogging, interesting, funny friends that keep me feeling like maybe I am normal after all!

I am thankful for weekends!

May you find lots to be thankful for in your weekend too! Happy Friday!

Life According To Me Thankful Fridays

1 Comment »
Mar 1

Simply Sick

by motherofwonder

The last time I was sick (and of course a couple of the kids were as well), all I could think of was how I wanted some good, old fashioned, homemade chicken noodle soup. Of course, the last thing I wanted to do while I was sick was to make anything. And being gluten free, we can’t really just grab any old can. And the can of gluten-free, chicken noodle soup at the grocery store is over 4 dollars. For one little can. If I were desperate, I might pay that. But under normal circumstances, no way. That’s ridiculous.

So this last week,  my MissE had a day where we worried she was getting sick. I figured it was perfect timing to try my hand at making some soup! Even if she wasn’t sick; I could at least freeze some, so there’d always be some on hand for if when someone got sick. As any parent can tell you, when your kid is sick, you don’t get a lot of free time. Usually they’re in arms, or on lap, or both. Even when sleeping. So as I looked through countless recipes, I knew I needed something I could throw together quickly and relatively easily. Enter my beloved crock pot. (You know I recently read a “de-cluttering” article, and they actually said to *whispers* throw away your crock pot, because nobody ever uses them! *gasp* Oh the blasphemy! *More whispering* Don’t work ‘crock, I’ll never let you go…either of you.) I love crock pot recipes, they’re easy, they’re time saving, they’re not a don’t-stand-there-and-watch-the-water-boil-or-it-never-will type of recipe. Which for me, is terrific.

So in true form, I scanned through about 20 different crock pot chicken noodle recipes… and then did something of my own accord. (I just can’t help it! And you shouldn’t either! Why should you waste timing making something how someone else would prefer it? No way! Make it how YOU would!)

In the crock pot

Ingredients:

4 cups chicken broth

4 cups chicken stock

3/4 cup onion, chopped

1 garlic clove, minced

2 bay leaves

1/2 tsp dried thyme

1/2 tsp fresh ground pepper (do this to taste. I might have used more as we like pepper in this house.)

1/2 tsp basil

1/2 tsp garlic salt (my garlic salt has parsley in it. If you don’t have garlic salt, just add salt to taste.)

4 chicken breasts

at least 3 cups noodles, uncooked. (I really wanted to make my super yummy, taste like the chicken noodle soup noodles, but I didn’t have eggs. So I just used a -whole- bag of rice noodles. They worked perfectly.)

In crock pot/slow-cooker (whatever terminology you prefer),  combine chicken broth and stock, carrots, onion, garlic, bay leaves, thyme, pepper, basic, garlic salt/salt/lowry’s (again, whatever you have/prefer). Place chicken on top of vegetables. Cover crock pot with lid and cook either on low for 8-10 hours or high for 4-5 hours (I used this option, and prefer this option, because I don’t normally decide on dinner until just before lunch).

After cooking, take chicken out and put it on a cutting board. Also take out and toss the bay leaves. Add the noodles to the crock pot and put the lid back on and cook on low for about 20 minutes. While the noodles are cooking, shred the chicken (with a fork!). Return chicken to soup and serve!

*NOTE: You can also add celery, but I don’t love it in my soup (and my kids deem celery only acceptable with peanut butter on it) and I didn’t have any, so I went with what I did!  You can also use a whole -roasting- chicken (about 3 1/2 pounds). If you do, then you’ll want to remove the skin and fat and bones before shredding (obviously. I know you know this, but I’m sayin’ it anyway.) And after that you’ll want to skim fat from the soup and discard that. With the chicken breasts I used, they were very lean to begin with, so I didn’t really have the fat to skim off the top.  And you can of course use your favorite egg noodle that’s gluten-filled. And about the broth/stock. Hubbyman is not into soup. He always looks dejected whenever he looks in the pot and finds it filled with soup. Which is unfortunate considering that my girl and I love soup. And the little boys are always at least willing to eat it. So sometimes I just go ahead and make soup, even though hubby won’t be thrilled with dinner. Some recipes called for 8 cups of water (if you were cooking with a whole chicken) and some called for 4 cups water and 4 cups chicken broth. I wanted the stock for both the flavor and the consistency. And it turned out perfectly.

Hubbyman is not a huge soup fan. So I made his less soup-ish and mine more so!

 

Both hubbyman and I determined that this was the best chicken soup we’d ever had. So, so yummy. There was enough for leftovers and to freeze. It was still hot so I put it in the freezer container and put in the fridge until it was cooled through before freezing (nothing worse than freezer burn!). And it got eaten. By my non-soup-loving husband. I should note that with the stock it does change consistency after being cooled. (plus that and the rice noodles started to fall apart, just a little) So then it was more like another one of my favorite- chicken and dumplings. Either way, it was delicious. I will definitely be making this again. Especially since hubbyman gave him approval to add this to the list of regulars. So easy, so good. It’s a win for me!

mine (more broth-y)

with garlic biscuits

less broth-y

 

 

 

 

 

Chicken Gluten Free Homemade Impressively Simple Pasta Recipes

6 Comments »
Feb 29

Days Like These

by motherofwonder

our stairs are in there

the only face he's willing to have photographed, his winkin' face

the only way to get a non-wiggling picture

We went to the outdoor zoo a week ago, how come now we have to stay inside THIS zoo?

Welcome to winter... even though spring is 3 weeks away, winter decided to come last night. In the form of snow, rain, ice, sleet, and hail.

I’m tired, it’s cold, and everything is covered in white icy-ness. So a photo blog day it is!  I’ll be staying warm by folding mountains of fresh-outta-the-dryer laundry, staying inside because the idea of spending an hour getting them all dressed and ready to go outside only to come in five minutes later raises my blood pressure,  and I will be cuddling up with littlest trying to convince him to take a nap so he’ll stop unfolding all the laundry.  Hope your day brings you warmth like a cup of hot chocolate, the joy of staying inside, and someone to cuddle up with!

Life According To Me

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Feb 27

Coffee: You Can Sleep When You’re Dead

by motherofwonder

I stayed up late last night. And it wasn’t to read a good book or have a good talk with a friend. No, it was scrubbing counters, floors, picking up countless odds and ends, organizing, and laundry. Doing all the things that never seem to get done on the day to day, or have a hard time getting them all done in the same day. When you live in a house full of the under 5 crowd (ok, so I guess it’s the just-turned-5 and under crowd now), sometimes it’s hard to stay on top of it all. Especially when two are boys. Boys who leave a wake of disaster and destruction. By the time I switched yet another load of laundry, picked up the last dinosaur, train, and strawberry shortcake figurine and actually climbed into bed, it was after 2am. There was a time when that wouldn’t have seemed so absurd but when you have little people that wake like a lightning bolt and don’t stop until 9pm… you come to value sleep in a way I’m not sure you can really understand, unless you’re a parent. I thought about texting hubbyman, asking him to grind some beans (I don’t know why but I hate that part of making coffee) and set the coffee pot for me. But I was so exhausted, and -of course- Littlest woke up as soon as I crawled into bed… so I just fell asleep to the thoughts If he really loved me, he’d prep and set the coffee pot for me. (It would definitely be further proof as this is something I don’t think he’s ever done before.)

Insert a noise that may have been a cross between the words, I hate the sunlight and a curse word in a language undeveloped (Or just really-tired-mama-speak) when I woke to find that MissE was in bed with me (who is about as lovely in the morning as her father…. and maybe her mama) and Littlest was wide awake and mad. And it was only 7. I could barely even keep my eyes open. I tried to coax them into cuddling and just laying quietly, but they were not havin’ it. I got them cereal, turned on a cartoon, and stood in front of the coffee pot, willing it to magically make itself. And then I noticed a green light on it. That was the timer light! Which means that he really does love me! 

(photo credit: Keeling Korner)

I still have more on my list of things to do today that I had high hopes of crossing off… but my Miss has just projectiled apples all over the living room. So I’m thinking this day may have other things in mind for us. Good thing my sweet hubbyman made enough for more than one cup of coffee. I’m gonna need it.

Life According To Me Marriage

10 Comments »
Feb 24

Finding A Sense of Humor

by motherofwonder

With Monday being a holiday I keep thinking I’m a day behind. Well, I probably still am, but the week has continued without me! Which means that even though I keep thinking that today is Thursday… it is actually Friday! I’m not sure what to write today. Partly because I have about a million things that I could write about, partly because I have not been sleeping well lately (and am therefore completely exhausted), and partly because snuggling on the couch with my snugglers sounds a lot more appealing at the moment.  So I’ll keep this short and sweet. For your sake as well as mine. (As tired as I am, who knows where these mumblings could lead us?!)

  • I am thankful for a hubby who put all of the kids to bed last night. Next time, I’d suggest changing baby before sleep so that he doesn’t pee all over his mama in the middle of the night.
  • I am thankful for a baby/little man who peed in my bed at 4am. I’ve meant to wash the bedding all week. Now I have to.
  • I am thankful for a little man who now carries anything he can, everywhere, to use as a stool so that he can spend a ridiculous amount of time turning lights on and off. Just because he finally can. This is waaay cheaper than a babysitter. And just as effective. Maybe I’ll have enough time to put those sheets in the wash.
  • I am thankful for observant children. They noticed right away that daddy had tracked in dirt and snow that melts and turns into a mud puddle all throughout the kitchen.
  • I am thankful hubbyman remembered his lunch. My observant children have deducted from the footprints, that it happened while daddy was making his lunch.
  • I am thankful for a dog who chewed up one of biggest’s favorite dinosaurs. Leaving just a body. He needed a reminder of why we always have to pick up our toys. I wish it weren’t such a tearful one, but I’ll take what I can get.
  • I am thankful the dog choked on and then threw up the dinosaur parts. Maybe not he’ll stop attempting to eat them.
  • I am thankful that hubbyman surprised us by coming home for a quick lunch. I enjoy practicing patience, and maybe needed the practice. I’ve been given the opportunity, since now everything I say is countered with I want my daddy! Why did you make him go back to work?
  • I am thankful it’s still morning. It’d be a shame for a day like this to fly by.
  • I am thankful for a sense of humor.

Happy Friday everyone! Remember- there’s always something to drive you to drinking be thankful for!

*An hour after posting this, I went to put Littlest down for a nap. I came back to find something amazing. So I have two more thankful entries for you:

  • I’m thankful for children giving each other hair cuts. They needed ones and now I don’t have to do it.
  • I am thankful I didn’t have to give or attend MissE’s first hair cut. I’d probably be emotional about it. Big E just did me a favor.

Family Life According To Me Thankful Fridays Things Kids Say

1 Comment »
Feb 23

I Scream Simple!

by motherofwonder

Our family is not huge on sweets. Cookies we’ll eat, but cakes, pies, and anything else in the dessert family, tends to go stale before it gets finished. Every year we would order a big DQ Cake for hubbyman’s birthday. It’s his favorite. Last year I got him a tiny one that he and I shared after kids had gone to bed. This year we’re more conscious about US not eating things with wheat/gluten in it, so I needed a new plan. Thankfully, I have a firm and devout love of cookbooks. And the only books I’ve read the last couple of months have been my new cookbooks, and so I was well versed in which cookbook would work. And in true fashion- I combined my favorites! From two of my favorite cookbooks!

That's right, it has a bite out of it. Because it's so yummy, I couldn't even wait to take the picture before taking a bite!

Big E insisted Daddy would want blue sprinkles on his cake, and the M&Ms frozen in the ice cream middle layer, added a nice splash of color!  

The basis of this cake, I got from the Babycakes Covers the Classics (Gluten Free, Vegan Recipes from Donuts to Snickerdoodles –just typing that makes me want to go eat make some snickerdoodles!). The photos of all her baking is amazing. If I could get all my baker-y to look that picturesque, I could die happy.

However, pretty much the only thing about this recipe that I stuck to, was that it has cake with ice cream in the middle. But it was my jumping off point. 

One of my other favorites is my Gluten-Free Cupcakes book.  (This is my go to for desserts to make and desserts to bring anywhere. They are quick, they are easy, and they don’t contain a million different ingredients.) Elena Amsterdam has quickly become on of my favorite cookbook goddesses! She also blogs: Elena’s Pantry.

One of my favorite cupcakes to make is Red Velvet. I usually leave out the red, because let’s face it, that doesn’t change the taste. And food dyes really aren’t great for you. And (here’s the truth) I ran out of my red dye that’s natural and made from vegetables, and they’re pretty much always out of it at the natural food store. Anyhow, it’s yummy, it’s moist, and it’s easy. So I made two of them.

My Favorite Red Velvet Recipe

1/2 cup coconut flour

2 tbs unsweetened cocoa powder

1/4 tsp fine sea salt

1/4 tsp baking soda

4 lg eggs

2 Tbs grapeseed oil

1/2 cup agave nectar

1 Tbs red food coloring, made from vegetable dye (Or like a million drops of the fake kind. Although technically I think it calls for 35.)

This recipe is traditionally used for cupcakes, but I used it to make Big E’s Cat in the Hat cake a few weeks ago, so I already know it works as a cake! (A bit thin, but still really yummy. And perfect for a layered cake!)

Preheat oven to 350. Spray pans. In a large bowl, combine the coconut flour, salt, cocoa powder, and baking soda.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, grapeseed oil, agave nectar, and food coloring (if you choose to use any). Blend the wet ingredients into the dry with a handheld mixer until thoroughly combined (Truth= I used a spatula and that worked just fine).

Bake for 18-22 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with just a few moist crumbs attached. Let cool in pan for an hour.

I did this x2. Gluten free measures a little differently, so recipes generally work better if you make two batches, rather than just double. So I made it twice (that way I didn’t have to dirty 2 more bowls).

ICE CREAM CENTER

1/2 pint (I think I actually used about 3/4, but whatever) ice cream. I used vanilla, because that’s what I had in the fridge, but you can use whatever sounds good to you. Raspberry or strawberry would probably pair really well with the red velvet! Ok, after softening the ice cream, transfer ice cream to a medium bowl and fold in whatever you want. The original recipe used cookies. I used M&Ms and white/milk chocolate swirl chips. It was a fantastic decision.

Now make sure the cakes have thoroughly cooled. I thought mine had, but they were still just warm enough that they  made my ice cream layer melt a little more than I would have liked.  In a pie pan, or spring form, line with wax paper or plastic wrap. I cheated. I just used my silicone pie pan. It worked swimmingly. (And fit better in my freezer.) So put the bottom cake down and spread the ice cream on top. Smooth with the back of a spoon. Place remaining cake on top of ice cream. Frost (I used a really yummy whipped cream cheese frosting!) and freeze (covered) for at least 4 hours.  It is just so yummy. I’m not a big chocolate person, but I do love this! Hope you will too… you know, once a year, on your birthday. Or lunch every day for a week. Your pick.

So there you have it, I scream! You Scream! We all scream for simply ice cream cake! (Right?!)

Dessert Gluten Free Homemade Impressively Simple Recipes

6 Comments »
Feb 22

Winds of Change

by motherofwonder

Things are starting to get a little bit shaken up over here at the household full of E’s. (Seriously, I’m the only one in my house -other than the animals- that isn’t an E, did I ever mention that? My children think I feel left out, or that I should feel left out… I think it just makes me that much more special. Right?) Anyways, our house itself, is not in upheaval or anything. Ok, that’s a blatant lie. My house is pretty much always in a state of upheaval. Unless the children have gone to Grandma’s. What I’m really meaning is that things are changing over here.

Biggest is 5, and will be kindergarten age for this fall’s school session. We have decided (for numerous reasons) to homeschool. At least for kindergarten. We’ll take this year to feel our way out and see how we both feel about it. So we have been scouring the internet, fielding phone calls, and taking in numerous pamphlets via the good ‘ol USPS. It’s a little intimidating and a lot overwhelming. We think we’re settled. Now we just have to get our “school area” prepped and ready. Which means I need some more shelving. Which I’m hoping means a trip to The Container Store. (I love that place. Hubbyman took me there for Valentine’s Day last year- and I declared it the best Valentine’s Day ever. This is a true story.) So we’ve got that going on.

And… we’ve got the whole converting everything to homemade/non-chemical. I left some messages with some lovely etsy ladies yesterday on doing some reviews of their natural/homemade/chemical free home cleaning and personal products and in less than 24 hours I already have 2 in the works! This is SO exciting! Letjoy, of My Big Cloth Adventure, has been encouraging me to reach out to some retailers and start doing reviews. And I finally did it! So be on the lookout the next couple of weeks for a review and maybe a giveaway or two!

And… I’m going to be doing daycare for some very dear friends. They’re due in the fall. We just told them yesterday. They’re excited. I’m excited. We’ve been asked about doing daycare for a few other people. While I was always willing, it turned out, I didn’t always want to. And hubbyman has always been very adamant that my time at home be devoted to our children. He didn’t want them left out. And then there’s the deal of not being able to go places during the week. The thought of that always stressed me out when it was just the older 2. Now that there’s three. I really don’t do a whole lot of outings during the week. And I’m totally ok with that. I mean, we go to the park, we go to the farmer’s market, we go for walks, we play outside. We play inside. We do things, we just don’t drive places. And all the places I would feel I was “missing out” on (like walking to the farmer’s market, the park, or even the grocery store) are all walk-able. Even with an addition. And while, obviously, it won’t be the same as having my own brand new little baby. I am so happy to help with theirs. They are one of my favorite couples and I am so thoroughly excited for them. This was the first time where hubbyman and I were immediately like- we want to do this! And I’m excited to have a little baby I’ll get to snuggle on a daily basis! So while it will obviously mean some changes here, I am looking forward to it. Just as I am the rest of the changes goin’ on.  So bear with me as I’m trying to figure everything out and how to schedule it all out… and hold your breath until tomorrow. (Ok, don’t really, but it’s gonna be good.) I am going to share my super delicious ice cream cake that I made for hubbyman’s birthday a few weeks ago. And I may or may not have for lunch. (I got a piece out to have for lunch yesterday, and somehow ended up eating a salad. I’m not sure how that happened, but I promise not to let it happen again!)

Family Gluten Free Green Homemade Life According To Me Marriage Things Kids Say

4 Comments »
Feb 21

My Toothpaste Is Salty

by motherofwonder

Well, the long weekend is over. Boo. Hoo. Wah! And we currently have more snow in our yard than we have at any other point this winter (I think). It probably won’t happen, but I’m crossing my fingers that hubbyman decides to come home a little early to fulfill his biggest boy’s winter dream of finally going sledding down the hill in the backyard.

Even though it was a long weekend, it felt… short. Or maybe just compacted? No, it just felt short. Maybe because it was compacted? Whatever. Friday night we ran errands trying to get everything we needed to make our homemade cleaning products and personal care products. We didn’t find everything we needed at the local health food store or a local regular store. The next morning the Big 2 had Tae Kwon Do. Actually, they don’t normally have it on Saturday, but today was test day, and they got a new colored stripe on their belts. It was their first big test, and Biggest boy did so good- I was so proud! I’m normally banned (by hubbyman) from their lessons, because I’m “distracting.” (They’ll run off the mat to give me a hug or a kiss… every 2.3 seconds or so. I guess I can understand.). Anyhow, my boy did fantastic! My girl did… well, she did it. But their last test was in a small room with just Master Lee, so to be in a room full of other kids and their families, and extended families… it was a bit overwhelming. When he called her name, she immediately burst into tears and cried, I don’t want to go in front of everybody! (I don’t blame her- I felt self conscious up there in front of everyone, and I was just there for her moral support.) Anyhow, afterwards we went downtown St. Paul to a bigger healthfood store. And the rest of the ingredients we ordered online. Which is probably what we should have done to start with, because it was way cheaper. Way cheaper.

Hubbyman was so excited about the process, that he began to make some of the things that we did have all the ingredients for. We have shampoo, toothpaste for us, and toothpaste for the kids. He also shampooed the carpet with our homemade version (but we’ve been using that for a while). While I love the homemade carpet shampoo… that’s about where my love ends, so far. Ok, that’s not entirely true. I love the way the shampoo smells, and I love how clean my teeth feel after using the toothpaste. Seriously, the only clean that compares is right after the dentist. So we obviously have some work to do before any recipes are released. But I may just be feeling a little grinchy, because he also vinegar washed my coffee maker.  Now, that really is a good thing. And far be in from me to criticize a man doing some househelp. But I will admit that having to do all the flushes to get the vinegar out this morning, before I could have my cup of coffee, kinda squelched those feel-good, thanks-for-helping feelings.

I have found my Green Book! It’s not really called that, but to me, that’s what it is. What it really is:  Homemade! How to make everyday products fast, fresh, and more naturally.  702 ways to save money and the earth. It is pretty awesome. Everything from how to make things you love, but don’t want to spend the money on (hello, starbucks frappuccino) to things you want to make healthy instead of toxic. You can duplicate cough syrup, deodorant, aftershave, I even have a “recipe” for Oil of Olay’s all-day moisturizer (and wrinkle cream). And that’s without all the icky stuff that you don’t want in it or on you! The food recipes seem a little silly to me, except for the ones that are how to make this famous thing at home (like said frappuccino, or condiments- you know, things you wouldn’t find in your every day cookbook). But that may be just because I have to have some cookbooks I keep in storage, because I have that many. I love cookbooks. Seriously. And, it’s a collection that my husband actually approves of. More cookbooks = more cooking = satisfied hungryman, I mean, hubbyman.

Anyways, so long story still long… good weekend, filled weekend. Homemade stuff was not a total bust, but not a total success. But we will be working on it. And next batch of toothpaste will be minty instead of citrus-y. I think that’s my problem with the toothpaste. Minty freshness just feels cleaner. If you are wanting to start in on some homemade household things, I  HIGHLY recommend you check out the book. Lots of from scratch, lots of almost from scratch.    So even if you’re not going to be making your own toothpaste, or shampoo, there are lots of things you can do. Whether it’s your own cleaning products (imagine, safe to have around and you get to pick out the scent!) to homemade skillet meals (want the ease of the throw the frozen bag in the bowl meals, without all the gross additives and for a fraction of the price?).

And now I am off to fight the raging war on the evils of clutter… either that or I’ll just eat a piece of hubbyman’s birthday ice cream cake (which was also homemade, GF, and delicious!).

Dessert Family Gluten Free Green Homemade Life According To Me Marriage

5 Comments »
Feb 17

Does This Go Together?

by motherofwonder

Now I may have missed the actual time line to join in with all the bloggers that followed along with the 100 Way to be Kind To Your Children (from Toddler Approved!– who also happens to have totally awesome pinterest boards!). But does that mean it’s too late for me to work on being kind to my children? Absolutely. Not! Just in going through the list, I’ve found that not only will it be beneficial for my children, but it will be healthy for me too. It’s letting go of some of the pressure, some of the ideals… and just holding onto the fact that some days survival is good enough.

This weekend we will be creating like crazy! We are going completely organic (and homemade) in the cleaning products. I’ve made dishwasher detergent and laundry detergent before. (I liked the former but wasn’t impressed with the latter.) We use a homemade solution in our carpet cleaner. But as we continue on in our lives, trying to live with as much intention as we can… we came to the realization, did we really intend to put lots of chemicals on (and therefore into) our bodies, let alone our children’s? I think we all know the answer to that! So this weekend we will be traveling deeper down that path. Hubbyman made shampoo last weekend. He seems to like it. I’ll admit it does smell good. Hopefully I remember to charge up the camera so we can really document the process, as well as the outcome. An added benefit to making these things ourselves (other than the obvious health benefits)? Money. Pennies on the dollar, folks. Another benefit, you get to choose how they smell! Which for me and my smelly sensitivities is fantastic. My choices (of essential oils) lemon and tangerine. Together = heaven. Or pretty close to.

And since we’re on the topic, you might want to go ahead and read the 5 Grossest Things You’re Eating from the Supermarket. Or even better, The 15 Grossest Things You Eat. Might make you think twice. Or lots more. If you read those 2 alone, even without doing any further research, I don’t think you’ll ever question why we buy our beef from a family farm. Or why we buy organic milk. Or why we make just about everything from scratch. And why I like to can my foods myself.

On another note- I woke up thinking today was Thursday. So imagine my surprise (and delight) that today is, in fact, FRIDAY! (*insert a big WOHOO! here*)  And so… I’m going to start with my kindness, get my butt off of here, and make my kids clean their rooms! Hey, teaching them the importance of proper organization is showing them kindness, right? I like to think so!

*I am thankful for people I have never met, or have only met briefly. At least in person. I’m part of a MN Cloth Diapering Mamas group and they are so sweet (and just about the only group of mamas I have ever seen remain mama drama free. It’s refreshing!). And not only that, they have been willing to make donations to my brother & his expecting wife’s cloth diaper stash! Woohoo! It may not seem that exciting, but trust me when I tell you it is! And one of my absolute favorite diaper makers, Softbums (go ahead, like their facebook page too- tell them I sent you!), has offered to make a donation (in diapers)! This is incredibly amazing- and when I called my sister-in-law she definitely shared my excitment. (Plus, the softbum diaper style is her favorite. And out of the 2 diapers I got her for Christmas. One was a locally made by LetJoy Diapers (like her page while you’re at it too!), and the other was of course the adorable giraffe style Softbum. (I tried adding a picture, but for some reason, wordpress is not cooperating at the moment. Hopefully later I can add it in, because it is so cute that I really wanted to keep it for Littlest. Even though he has several softbum diapers himself, it’s the only print one that we don’t have!)

*I am thankful for girlfriends. With kids. Without kids. Girlfriends can be big lifesavers. And an evening with them can be so refreshing. Even without wine (last night it was *homemade* specialty lattes!). But let’s not kid ourselves, an evening with girlfriends and wine, well, only coffee can compete with that.

*I am thankful for children who love their mama. Possibly more than any other person in the world. (I say possibly, soley on the off chance hubbyman is reading this. I give them pretty  much all of my time and attention. And while Daddy is still their hero and the funnest of the fun, Mommy is the favorite.)

*I am thankful for children who are very independent. You know, for the most part. (And sometimes this backfires, like the other day when I caught Biggest teaching Miss who was teaching Littlest how to fly and be super heroes. Which, in reality, meant that they were wearing their hooded towels as capes while jumping off the top of the bunkbed to fly.) Remember this, closed doors = children up to no good.

*I am thankful that I enjoy cooking. Seriously, life would be a lot harder for this foodie family if that was not the case. Plus, my coffee wouldn’t have been quite as good without the homemade (yes, that’s right- you may now bow at my feet.), delicious donuts that I added a swipe of cream cheese frosting too. Yum.

*I am thankful to be married to a man who sees the big picture, even when I just want to focus on surviving the next ten minutes.

*I am thankful for any and every person who stops by, says hello, or just reads a line or two. I’m always surprised, humbled, and blessed by the people who (both in person and on-line) tell me they read what I write. And occasionally, they enjoy themselves. You are the people that keep me sane. (See, now I hooked you in- you can’t stop reading, or else I will lose my sanity. And then you’ll feel the guilt. Gotcha. I’m kidding. Mostly.)

Happy Day of Friday to You and Yours from Me and Mine!

Family Life According To Me Marriage Recipes Thankful Fridays Things Kids Say

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Feb 15

A New Kind of Love Day

by motherofwonder

Ok, so I intended to write a post for yesterday… but instead of writing about how much I love my husband, and my children- I spent time loving them. The kids and I spent the morning coloring and filling out and mailing Valentine’s (obviously we should have done this before the day, but what can you do?! Better late than never, right? I’m pretty sure the Grandma’s and Great Grandma’s will overlook the date when they open up the cards and coloring that are signed in the little one’s own hands.). We got a visit from my mom, enjoyed lunch with her, a quick stop in at my grandma’s and we were still able to beat Daddy home! (This was a major concern of the Biggest Boy- who loooves Valentine’s Day. In fact, this morning he asked Can today still be Valentine’s Day, puuhleeease? He will make some Hallmark Day loving girl very happy someday.) I was able to get the pizza dough made, the first round of personal (heart shaped) pizza dough cookin’ in the oven, and half of the chocolate-covered strawberries done before hubbyman walked in the door!   He helped top the pizzas (and by helped I mean he did all the topping stuff) while I dipped the strawberries, and then Miss E covered them in pink sprinkles. Big E covered them in blue. Our Valentine’s Day is all about getting along and loving each other, so we make blue a part of our Valentine’s. And hubbyman had brought home a free Valentine’s Day redbox movie (thank you facebook friends for sending me that!) for the kiddos to watch while we snuggled up on the couch with a glass of wine.

I was never really big into Valentine’s Day to begin with, and I think our first Valentine’s Day as a married couple is the only one we’ve ever done anything for. Usually we just make a nice dinner or something and then snuggle up. And by nice dinner, I mean homemade, heart-shaped pizzas. And I am totally ok with that. And holidays change as you have kids. Now it’s all about them and helping them find the joys in the little things. I love that my kids think Valentine’s Day is fun. We spent time making things for those we love, so they know they’re loved. Because let’s face it, it’s easy to lose sight of that from time to time. So it’s fun to give someone a reminder. And I believe that is the important lesson for the kids to learn. That we show our love to those we care about, that we show love to those we feel ambivalent about, that we show love to those we meet. Because we don’t know who they really are or what their lives are really like.

So maybe I didn’t get roses, and I didn’t get chocolates. But in all fairness, I requested he not spend the ridiculous amount on flowers this week, and he got me flowers twice in the last two weeks, just because he knew I was feeling sad. And, I don’t like chocolate. So he’s kind of off the hook on that one too. But I did have a terrific Valentine’s Day, celebrating the love that has turned two individuals into a family of five. And I hope you did too, no matter how you spent it.

Family Life According To Me Marriage Things Kids Say

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