My new blog, my new life...

I want to let you all know that I started a new blog. I feel my posts about minimalism should be in it's own category so that the people who enjoy my green tips can keep having those!!

So if you like my minimalism posts here is the new blog.

http://strivingforminimalism.blogspot.com/

It's not easy.

I will admit I am totally ready to purge my home of unwanted and unused things. But I will mention to you all that it is not easy. Just the thought alone of how much stuff I have makes you want to hide away and wish it away. But we all know this will not happen! Small steps are the only way to make this happen, and to keep it from happening again. It is also an on going process. Stuff just piles into your life, and you have to keep control of it, or you'll be back to number 1.

A good start for me several months ago was to pick 4-5 things everyday and give it to goodwill. I would have given some stuff to people who I "thought" needed it, but the truth is they don't need it either, and if they did I would know.

I constantly have a pile that is deemed the goodwill pile. Sure that pile in the corner gets annoying, even after a day or two, but it is a reminder of what needs to go. But the trick to this all, is saying NO to anymore stuff. And if you allow something in, one or two things go in it's place.

I know how hard it is... Especially when my grandma (bless her heart) calls every few weeks asking me if she can give me this and give me that.. It has been a hard lesson to tell her that I have no room in home for anymore things, especially with baby #2 on the way. I know that I wrote I would offer my stuff to people who needed it but in all honesty, not many people read my blog, and why would I want to pawn stuff off on people when here I am telling them that it's crowding their life?

It's good to think about things and change our minds. It shapes us.

Yoga...

Everyday!

Just do it. It has made a huge difference in my life, my happiness, my patients, and what I am thankful for everyday.

Minimalist baby!

Literally. LOL

Now that I've had a child, I can quickly realize what I needed and what I didn't! But also taking into account that all this baby gear is really just a parents way of pawning the child off. Again I say this not to criticise anyone, as I have every baby thing you can think of. I do however feel like there are lots of things that we don't need.

Baby floor play mats where the stuff hangs above their head... Whats wrong with a blanket and some toys? They will be more encouraged to roll over and explore.

A bouncer seat. It's just a chair you set them in. Whats wrong with your arms? If you need to do something use a sling. They will enjoy being close and seeing what your doing.

Baby bath. Sure I used mine with my daughter but to be perfectly honest the thing drove me crazy. It took up more space then we had. It was pain to clean. Why not use the sink or even get in the bath with them.

Wipe warmer... um yeah never needed it never will. Baby won't notice if you never used one in the first place. Plus they get all dried out. Again these are just my opinions, and I hoenesty don't care what anyone thinks of me and how I choose to live. Not to be rude or anything but why should I? I should live the way I feel is best for me. And you should live the way you feel you should.

Walker. This is iffy, I used ours a lot but it was mostly to keep my girlie from getting into stuff, and when I didn't have room that was where she ate. But I really just wonder what the point is. Wouldn't you rather teach them to walk and help them strengthen their legs, rather then relying on something else? It's a good arm work out for mom too!

Sit up bath seat... same thing as before...

This list really could go on and on. But I just needed to make a point. We are all crazed over getting what we think we need to be a good parent but all this stuff doesn't matter. Quality time with the kiddo's does.

Minimalism #5 Testing...

So every monday I find myself dreading doing the sinkful of dishes. Sure I leave it for myself so that I can spend that time with family. But the reality of it is that less is more. First if I have less dishes then there's less to do. Second, doing them right away saves a lot of water and time. Think of all the water that is used when trying to scrub a crusty dish.. Third, I have decided to pack away one set of my three, and see if I miss them in a month. I may even go for the second. When having lots of people over, don't buy paper plates and such, but do finger foods, or if you get a pizza people won't mind at all.

So the test begins.

As the new year, nears...

We begin to think about what our new years resolutions will be. For me, I always make them and then I do nothing. The best thing to do is when you want to do something like work out more, or eat healthier, why not start now? And instead of trying to do a bunch of new things at all one time, do one thing at a time.

Minimalism, plus natural

Today mother in law stopped by to grab something she needed for the holiday dinner tomorrow, and I couldn't help but notice she was rushing around and in a huge hurry. And this my friends is what it is like every year. Sad but true. Why do we spend the holidays rushing like crazed people all to get there and then it's over.

First, we make a lot of work for ourselves. Buying tons of stuff and spending hours wrapping them. Sending out a load of cards, which is nice but what about the impact that has on the world? Lets look at it. Tons of wrapping paper being thrown away after one use. ONE use. Cards being the same thing. It is nice to recive a card from a family member far away. But whats wrong with a phone call? And also I want to mention, I am writing these things as I think them, yes I sent out bunch of cards with pictures for lots of friends and family, I am not criticing you. I am only making my own realizations in hopes that I can change them for next time.

Second. I do not want to live my life rushing around. I want to have time to enjoy the things I choose to do. When we go for a hike do we run all the way, then back? No, we take our time enjoying each little sound, smell, sight. Why can't we do this now? I understand that the world we live in requires us to work and that makes it hard for us to stop and smell the roses, but when your home plan your time to do what you really want to do. So as my mother in law drove away, I embraced the moment, wanting to not forget what I had just witnessed and thought about the actions made.  I freshly squeezed, by hand no tools involved 2 oranges for my daughter to have a little drink of juice. Sure not a lot of juice came from it, but you know what? It felt good to this. It felt good to embrace the moment and remember that once in this life, that is how it was done without all the fancy gadgets and that doing it that way made them stronger.

There are lots of things we can do instead of this crazy rushing around, and be able to enjoy the very few moments we have on earth. Instead of buying presents, go do something with the people you want to give a gift for. The possibilities are endless. Offer to babysit, take a hike together, prepare a meal together.... There are soooo many things you can instead.!!! This cuts back on all the packaging, which is a waste, as well as the consumerism that takes place eash year, and is growing. The more people there are the more we take from the earth. You know we all say we love our kids but don't we want them to have a nice planet to live on like we do?

Minimalism #4

Today I will be hitting the bathroom. Yes you read right, the bathroom, who needs a whole basket full of chapstic. Thats all.

Minimalism #3 - Extensive cleaning

I will keep track of the cleanouts I do by writing it on here. It will not only give you a guide to go by but also something to think about.

Today I am cleaning out all sock and underwear drawers. It's a small start but while being pregnant and so close to the holidays I am taking it easy and step by step!

Healthful tip #5

Instead of filling your kids stockings with candy, put a toy or two (books are good) in it, with a little things of apple juice and muffins. You know kids want to eat first thing in the morning, why not provide a healthy eat? I am not saying don't get candy, just offer the healthy foods first! I am making this a tradition in my house!

Minimalism, post #2

The first part of my journey to becoming more minimal is to get rid of things we don't use and haven't used in a long time. Things that I have several of, who needs more than one? I want you all to know that I am not throwing these things away, I feel like it is such a waste. So I always goodwill it. BUT, before I goodwill anything I want to let all of my friends and readers know that they are welcome to it first. Maybe it's something you would like to have or maybe you even need. Here is a list, let me know if there's anything your interested in! After christmas I will be making a trip to the goodwill, so you have time to let me know! I will be adding to this list as well in other posts.

A crock pot
2 big stuffed animals
1 mini food processor
Baby bouncy chair, it sits on the floor.
Some placemats, made of cloth various colors
An office chair
A few christmas decorations
A bag of clothes
A mini tv
Some VHS tapes

I will keep you all posted! Happy holidays!

Minimalism..... The first of many posts to be..

First we need to think about what is really important in each of our own lives. Then take a step back and think if that is really important or just what we think should be. I look at the holidays and see people being crazed with buying tons of stuff, (yes I am a culpriut of it and even this year).. however, doesn't it feel like too much when it's all over and done? What makes us think we need all this? Is ther even a place in your home for it to go? Without moving a ton of stuff and cramming it in? There are many answers to this, this being one. The media, commercials, the famous/ rich.... We are all raised to think that we are nothing without money, but the truth is we are so much more than all that.

My husband and I have struggled for years to make things "better". But the truth is we make them work no matter what the circamstances are, because we are a family and we love eachother. We don't need some big fancy house, all we really need is a little place, just enough for each of us to be comfortable. And all the crap that comes with having a huge house, I don't need it either. To think of what we really need is what we use each day. Yeah things like waffle makers are nice to have but when I think about it, I have used it once. ONE time in over a year. I have no desire to dig it out of the cubbord or even deal with the amount of cleaning it will need. I would rather spend that valuable time with my children and husband.

When you really break it down, you start to see all the stuff around you and think about what purpose it serves. You may be attatched to it for sentimental reasons, like a lost loved one, but one material cannot take place of the memories you have with them.

I have read a significant amount about becoming a minimalist. And every day I want it more and more. I am not saying sell it all and live out of a backpack. I am simply saying that the more clutter we have the more time consuming it is to have it all.

The things we own end up owning us.

They take up our time we have so little of.

To have less means: less cleaning, less clutter, less things that break and are cheap. When you have less you are more likely to spend a little bit more money on something that needs replacing instead of having so many things to replace that you buy it as cheap as it gets and breaks again soon anyways.

There is so much more I can say about all this, but it's time for me to go. I treasure the time I have!

Winter wonderland...

We went for a nice walk in the nice weather, might I add it was supposed to be snowing but we got sunshine instead! It felt so good, and I know my body really needed it. So many people just bunk up in the winter but I have taken a vow, I have been walking every day, and doing my yoga and squats like I should to prepare for giving birth. But might I also say that sitting around all winter then getting your excercise thru the summer may be harder on your body. If you keep it up thru the winter then you'll be stronger when summer comes instead of starting over ever year.

She was refusing a picture, as she wanted to keep going :)

Having a greener christmas:

1. Use cloth bags for wrapping, you can get cloth ribbon and use for bows
2. Buy used if you can that saves packaging

Healthful tip #4:

Eating a salad with dinner ensures your getting plenty of veggies!! We usually eat ours first!

Healthful tip #3:

This might sound crazy but shop with out the kiddos! Anytime you can that is. Whenever I shop without the kiddo I come home with healthier foods and better planned meals. Without all the distractions you can think clearer and you also have those few extra seconds to think about what your buying and if you really need it. Did I mention my bill is considerably less?

Healthful tip #2:

Go for a walk everyday, even if it's cold. It's sooo good for our bodies to get moving.

Healthful tip:

Instead of eating ice cream all the time, grab some frozen yougurt, and boy is it yummy!

Thankful for everything.

Not only do I want to share how thankful I am for everything I have, like food, a home, a great family, but I also want to talk about forgiveness.

In this season we talk about being thankful and kind to others, helping the needy, but what about forgiveness? As hard as it may be, I think we need to take this time to forgive others too. We are after all, human, and we all make mistakes that we need to learn from. But I feel it necessary to accept what has happened in the past and forgive others for whatever might have happened. We don't live forever and holding grudges isn't good in the holiday season either. So for those out there, and you know who you are, even if you don't read this beacuse of what happened I want you to know that I forgive you and hope that someday you can forgive me too.

Happy thanksgiving everyone!

On my journey...

I am gonna have to clean out a lot of crap. I have a bad itch right now and I know I can't get it all done bit I have a few tips for this!

1. Clean out all clothes that don't fit or haven't worn in 6 months!
2. The clutter, the nick nacks, the what? It has to go!
3. The kitchen, how many duplicate sof things do we really need?
4. Um do I really need all that stuff from when I was a teen, nope hasn't even been looked at in years.
5. 5 boxes of stuffed animals... rediculous!
6. Do some organizing, like crafts in a craft cabinet.

Make sure to donate the old stuff to a place like charity so someone else can use it, whom is less fortunate.

Babywearing:

Since when do we want to strap our babies in something for hours with no contact with mommy? Yep, I am a babywearer! Baby is close and can hear your heartbeat, also close for breastfeeding, per say if we were out on walk, at the mall ect.. Lots of people just strap them in a stroller and push them along, most of the time baby can't even see you.
Here is the one I'd like to have:
 Breathable for baby, and cozy for mom, warm but not too hot!!

Greening christmas:

Not only can you save bows and bags from previous years to re-use, but you can sew or buy something like this:

ellaWraps

ecowrap.com

These reusable fabric gift-wraps are a green alternative to gift giving and there’s no need for paper, scissors or tape.

Keeping traditions....

Something my mom and I did every year, mom rolled out the cookies and cut them into shapes, and I got to decorate them!! So here's me and my daughter making one of the many cookies we will make this year!

Tis the season...

To be Jolly!! Fa la la la la la la la la la.

I am so excited this year! I already have several lists wrote up sorting out all my holiday stuff. Including to do lists, lists of places christmas cards will go, and shopping lists.  I have most of our month planned out, starting now before thanksgiving. I have been reading other blogs getting christmas ideas, and reading about the many different traditions that are out there, so that me and my family can have our own!!

Today we are going to bake gingerbread cookies and decorate them together. Pictures coming soon!

Family Traditions.

I am making this post now, because I know I will be pretty busy with all holiday stuff. So here goes. This is what we do every year mostly that is!

Our Holiday Family Traditions


1. At the end of summer we go apple picking.

2. Make apple butter with the apples.

3. Halfway thru October we go pumpkin picking

4. The day before Halloween we carve pumpkins and enjoy pumpkin seeds.

5. Start Christmas shopping in November.

6. Every thanksgiving we put every ones name in hat and pick one, that way every person gets a gift for Christmas but no one spends a ton of money.

7. Put up Christmas decorations the day after thanksgiving.

8. Take a family photo by the tree for Christmas cards.

9. Make Lumpia for Christmas day.

10. Bake and decorate cookies, while listening to Christmas music.

11. Drive around and look at Christmas lights on houses!

12. Watch holiday movies together and snack away!

13. Make an ornament for the tree.

14. Open 1 gift on Christmas eve morning (usually a dress to wear for the activities). Or do jammies that night.

15. Christmas eve night read: night before Christmas to kids.

16. Visit with family.

17. Christmas day we open gifts and make lumpia and eat pot roast!

18. Celebrate new years. With candle lit dinner.

19. Put our new years resolution in stockings and pack away.


Anyone want to share their favorite holiday traditions?

Having a green thanksgiving!!

Now we all love this holiday. But how can we keep it green and keep it somewhat the same? Just a few little reminders should help do the trick. I don't see why we have to overly concious about it for thanksgiving anyways...

1. Buy things with less packaging or packaging that will biodegrade.
2. Recycle what you can!
3. Don't use paper or plastic plates, forks, cups ect. In my family we never did, but some people do.
4. Visiting family members far away once a year (instead of several times for the holiday season) will reduce the amount of carbon dioxide and harsh chemicals released into the atmosphere while traveling.
5. Compost your stuff if you are into that.
6. Remind everyone to be thankful that the earth has provided us with such a wonderful meal for a family to gather and enjoy together.

Thats all the ideas I have for now.. So Happy Thanksgiving!

Life is amazing!

Today I felt my baby move for the first time. Nothing brings you to reality like this.  Was just so excited I had to share and record it of course!

My growing belly!!

This is for those who asked!!! Enjoy!

Starting at 10 weeks and going weekly to 14.

So glad the little bugger is showing!

12 week ultrasound!

The baby was just chillen with one arm behind the head and sucking it's thumb! Legs all kicked back. Not really moving but we could see the heart beating! I am thirteen weeks and two days now!

I don't really have much else to say today, as I am kinda cranky.

Turn the tv off already!

I have actually had enough of tv time, and clearly so has my daughter.  We have been cutting back more and more, and it has been such a relife, my sweet little girl then fills her time singing songs and making up games of her own. But low and behold the second that tv switches on she's like night and day and is instantly a little monster screaming her demands at us and expecting us to be her personal maids. I won't have it anymore. A little is fine maybe not everyday, some technology I belive is good for kids to have some contact with considering the world we live in here in the US. But not like I see everyday. People just flip on the tv and it babysits their kids, there are children who enter kindergarden not knowing their colors or what the ABC's are even.

I have taken an oathe to not be one of these people. Granted there may not be many, but when do your kids have time to use their imagination if they are glued to the tv?  What about people skills, as far as some kids know, they learned it all from tv. Anyways there is my rant for the day. I am just saying:

Spend time outside
Let them help prepare meals
Do crafts like coloring
Read to them
Teach them to clean up toys and wash hands
Play together

Having a schedule of when you eat and such helps kids a lot, they know that something will happen , keeping them from being completely bored. 

Here we are in our reading fort :)

My 8 week Ultrasound pics!

I am posting them here so that I don't have to have them all over facebook! Enjoy!

The baby was head down and had a nice strong heartbeat of 173 :)

I am now 11 weeks and will be posting my 12 week photos soon!

The pregnant womans guide to a quickly clean house..

1. Pick up toys
2. Vaccume
3. Do dishes
4. Sweep floor
5. Spot clean floors
6. Light a candle

This is my guide to having a quickly clean house when you get a phone call that family will be dropping in on you! It's amazing what these steps will do!

Caramel apple muffins

Caramel apple muffins




2 C. all-purpose flour



3/4 C. granulated sugar



1/4 C. (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted



2 1/2 t. cinnamon



2 t. baking powder



1/2 t. salt



1 egg, lightly beaten



1 C. milk



1 1/2 t. vanilla extract



1/2 C. apples, peeled and finely diced



3/4 C. diced caramel candy squares (about 12)



Preheat oven to 350° F. Grease muffin tins or line with paper cups.



In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon and salt.



In another bowl, combine egg and milk. Stir in butter and vanilla extract. Add flour mixture and stir just to blend. Stir in apples and caramels. Divide batter evenly among prepared cups. Bake for 25 minutes or until tops spring back when lightly pressed. Serve warm.



Makes 12 muffins.

Being pregnant!

While on the path to becoming a green family, you run into roadblocks. And yes I have definately hit a roadblock. When you imagine being pregnant you see yourself eating right, excersising, preparing in general for the arrival of baby! At least that was the plan. The next thing you know your pregnant and puking, anything you love to eat is totally revolting and the smell of just about anything sends you running to the bathroom. At this point in time anything that sounds good will be the only thing you can keep down, "at least it's something" you think. And while doctors agree that when having nausea that anything you eat (disregarding sweets) is ok for now until it subsides. So you tell yourself "it's ok" over and over. Weeks later you start to wonder, " this can't be good". When will it ever end?

It finally starts to go away you feel better about being able to eat a salad again. And this is where I am now. It's like starting all over, as far as eating right goes, and the excersise... well that will be even more of a work in progress.

So right now with small boughts of nausea, I can finally start eating better for me, my baby, and my family! I will post some new recipes soon :) Thanks for reading!

I know I know, It's been forever!

Sorry about the drop off in posts, I promise to better here soon! I have to announce that I am pregnant with my second baby! So thats why I haven't been around but in a few weeks I should be better and be more able to post! Thanks!

Berry picking!

I think it is very important for our children know where our food comes from. Then they can appreciate it more. We went to a friends house who a lot of raspberry bushes behind his house. Which is amazing. And we picked away! After all that work though, we were rewarded with a delicious healhty snack. It doesn't get any better than this :)

What a fantastic thing for a child to learn :)

Get excited

This is way cool, I encourage you to check this out.

I have always wanted to take my daughter ouside and do some star gazing, especially now that she is a little older. The stars are also a part of nature I'd like for my daughter to learn about and this website is a good place to start.  And I think where we live it will be even better! Check it out:
http://www.worldwidetelescope.org/Home.aspx

Becoming a raw foodist:

This seems more and more appealing to me everyday. I think about the health of my child, and my family. And even future children I could have. Think about how people used to live. Cooking was not an option. When people ate raw they lived longer, and had less health problems... All I am saying is do a search about it and read other peoples stories see how inspiring it is...

Check out my new blog: 

http://myjourneytogoingraw-fairysoul.blogspot.com/2010/08/my-journey-on-becoming-raw-foodist.html

My garden's first yeild:

Yeah I know in August, lol we have a short growing season up here in the mountains, this is my first garden ever and it took 3 trys to get anything going, especially with late frosts in the early spring, but I got my first yeild :)   Sugar snap pea pods :)

Boating

We go boating at least once a year and it's one of our favorite things to do.. I have to say not as eco friendly as we would like, but at the same time, it reminds us to slow down and take time with the family :)

On the shore checking things out.

My loves :-)

We did quite a bit of swimming, which was nice!

We had a great time bonding with the family and enjoying the beautiful, not too hot weather!

23 things of going green I'd like to achive by the end of November:

1. Complete the 20 days of no processed foods.
2. Do the yoga challenge.
3. Go for a day hike.
4. Start a compost.
5. Dehydrate snacks for the winter.
6. Get pregnant. :-)
7. Complete eating all raw foods, except dinner. (big step for the family as a whole)
8. Clean out the house, of clutter and all toxins like cleaners ect..
9. Watch less tv.
10. Less computer time.
11. Homemade gifts for the family christmas.
12. Make a raw recipe book.
13. Teach my daughter more about nature.
14. Help close famliy acomplish some of their goals.
15. Meditate every morning.
16. Journal my dreams after each night.
17. Plan next years garden.
18. Use eco friendly beauty products.
19. Plan a vactation.
20. Learn more about natural parenting, and using my intuition.
21. Celebrate the earths milestones, like full moon, and seasons..
22. Keep up our own family traditions.
23. Last but not least, keep an open mind and learn from my mistakes, keeping the positive at heart :) Did I mention do more photography? It's a passion of mine.

Enlightened

Today I want to talk about letting things be. Life will do what it will and you have to allow it! By fighting what is supposed to happen only causes more friction. Yeah some things might be painful but it is life filtering out what doesn't need to be. You never have loss and gain, it just is. I guess what I am getting at is let nature take course and do what you feel is right, let your intuition step in and set your ego aside. If you let in the things you want, your life will be better.  There's my rant for the day.

Natural parenting post #2:

Whining :

Ways to deal with the whiny child:

First things first...
Whining is a Symptom


Second: Find the root cause of the whine.

Common Reasons Kids Whine:


      Whining Works – Do you allow them to whine? By giving into the whine, your allowing it!

      Whining Manipulates the Parents Emotions

       Poor Adult Role Modeling – Do you whine? They just might be imitating someone they look up too.

        Lack of Sleep – Enough said!


Make a Simple Statement – When kids whine, say, “I’ll listen when you talk in a calm voice”. The most important part of this solution is follow through. Take the time to wait until you child uses a calm voice. This may take lots of repetition and practice at first.

You can also find the patients for them, they might be whining because your ignoring them!

Remember love and kindness goes a long way with children!

What do you do on a rainy day?

Grab any beans, rice, macaroni, anything and let them go to town! And when they get bored with this, get out some glue and paper and make a picture! You can also do counting and sorting. So far my daughter is loving it! We also use beans and fill up bean bags we have sewn, they make a great bean bag toss or put in freezer to heal those little owies :) Get creative, have fun!

Accepting.

It's a harsh reality to know that most people don't even care about the earth. It's sad that they aren't thankful of what it gives. But that's why we are here, we are here to make up for that. I do everything I can to save what's left of our precious earth. I came across this and it made me think:

     Studies show that organic produce actually tastes better, but there are other reasons for it as well. If all Americans would buy just 10% organic foods, 98 million daily servings of drinking water would be free of pesticides, 20 million daily servings of milk would be produced without antibiotics and growth hormones, 53 million servings of fruits and vegetables would be free of synthetic pesticide resides (that's enough for 10 million kids to get their five-a-day) and it would eliminate the need for almost 3 billion barrels of imported oil annually (that's equal to 406,000 Olympic swimming pools).


  Start by buying even just 2% organic and work your way up from there.

I think even the littlest things we do make a big difference. So even if your poor like me, you can still do your part!

Is this not worth saving?

Peanut butter play dough!

I used to make this stuff when I was kiddo, and now I can pass it on to my kiddo!

How to make:

1 18 oz jar of peanut butter

6 tablespoons of honey

enough dry milk to make plyable

Mix peanut butter and honey and add dry milk!

Make fun things and them eat them, like this:

I love my daughters creativity!

Yummylicious

These brownies were amazing. I got the recipe from whole foods.

Recipe:

http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/recipes/2594

How does your garden grow?

We had a pretty big storm last week, resulting in a flooded driveway and garden. Even though my garden got flooded, I could see how much stronger the plants are now. It just like life, whatever doesn't kill you makes you stronger. It's natures way of weeding out the week plants and keeping the strong to bear good fruit. Just like when animals hunt, they take the weekest... Here are a few pictures of our storm:

The driveway.

My garden.

The drainage ditch just feet from our duplex. May I mention that it normally doesn't have any water. and that right there is a few feet worth.

Dehydrating fruit:

Even though I really wish we had a dehydrator, I can still make do with what we have! I used some cheesecloth and taped it over a 9" by 13" glass pan. It got one day in the sun and then we had a rainy weeks, so I finished it up in the oven on the lowest heat setting. 4 days in the sun (bring in at night) 2 days one side and 2 days the other. Then if your oven drying them, 8- 10 hours flip and 8 - 10 more hours on low very low heat keeping oven cracked by wedging a spatula in the door.

They were delicious. Me and the family had to remember to share!

Pinto Bean plant

My daughters pinto bean plant, that I made a post about, is growing very well. It is now winding it's way across my window and weaving in and out of the other plants there. It really grew very fast, now I have a full understanding of the saying "growing like a bean sprout". When reffered to kids lol. It is also giving us pretty little white flowers!

I am so proud of my daughters surprise plant :)

Natural Parenting

I have been doing a lot of research about parenting naturally... I have read a lot of helpful things but what it all comes down too is what feels right for the parent. Not what everyone else tell you, you can listen to their advice but you certainly don't have to take it. I say listen to your intution, be patient, think things thru before acting and also loving, show that you love them each and every moment. Give them lots of attention, and don't worry about the house being a little messy, those dishes can wait I assure you. Would you rather clean, clean, clean, or clean a little and get to enjoy the little things your child does as they growing? Feel whats inside what is naturally there, parenting comes naturally if you let it.

Beeswax lipbalm

Make it yourself, it's money saving, fun, saves plastic, and you can make it how you want!

Supplies:

2 oz bar of beeswax from local farmers market
1 oz of coconut oil
and 5 drops of essential oil

You'll want to put a glass pyrex measuring cup in a pot of boiling water.
Add coconut oil first and let melt.
Next add beeswax and stir constantly till it's melted you don't want to stop stirring it could burn.
once it's all melted add essential oils, remove from heat and stir until you can touch the pyrex without burning yourself. and then pour into glass container and let cool, then you can put in in something smaler and easy to carry. I like to add a little olive oil to my mix when I add the coconut oil!

Breadmaking

I stumbled upon a bread maker and what a pleasant surprise it was!! This was my first loaf of bread. I made french bread and let me tell you I was impressed! It was sooo yummy! I decided, if I can make my own bread, think of how much money that saves!! And of how much plastic is being saved! I am stoked! This way I know that it is organic and I know exactly what is being put in my bread! No preservatives no pesticides!

Here is the recipe:

1 1/2 teaspoons of dry yeast

2 cups bread flour

1 teaspoon of salt

1 teaspoon of sugar

1 teaspoon shortening or butter

1 cup plus 1 tablespoon of warm water

Add in gredients as listed into machine or bowl.

Either machine does this for you or you can do this:

knead 10 min

rise 5 min

second knead 15 min

second rise 20 min

loaf shaping

final rise 55 min

bake 37 min

cool 1 hour

And then you enjoy it!

My garden does it's own thing...

Despite my troubles getting my garden going this year....

My garden apperantly has no issues giving mushrooms.. I have found several now which I find a little odd because most mushrooms like cool, wet dark places, and my garden gets full on sun everyday! It's amazing how nature can surprise you everyday if you let it!!

Make your own chips!

Making your own chips is as easy as buying a bag of corn tortilla's! Not only is less plastic but you can make many more things!

Here's what you do:

Cut the corn tortilla's into 8 pieces and fry them in your prefrence of oil, I prefer olive oil but it can get expensive. For taco shells you just fry both sides of tortilla and when it's golden brown fold in half to cool!

I like to make my chips and then use leftovers of all kinds to make yummy nacho's!!

Now I will admit the cheese is only unhealthy thing here, we got some from a friend who does a fourth of July food stand every year, and they needed someone to use some of the tons they had left. But other than that these nacho's are topped with: refried beans, leftover fajita chicken, leftover ground beef, corn salsa, tomatoes, avacado, and green chili sauce!!! YUM!  It's a fast easy dinner that is like new, but made with mostly leftovers :)

Why pay for the kids gym when:

You can go to the park for free?!

I've spent several times paying $7 per visit for my daughter to go the kids gym, just for her to get sick every time.. Don't get me wrong the kids need excersice but they need fresh air too. The positives in going to the park:

No fee
No time limit
Fresh air
Ineraction with other kids
You can join them on the slide!!
Most likely will not get sick!

Cons:
It may be cold
Might have to leave due to rain (but really thats what jackets are for)

I currently cannot think of anything else!
Have a picnic at the park and spend some time in the sun that provides a much needed nutrient! Rather that going to the gym.

If you really think about it, nature provides all you need!

Apple nut muffins

Made these today and they are fantastic!

Ingredients:


1 egg

2/3 cup apple juice or milk

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 cups flour

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup brown sugar, packed

1 tablespoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup chopped nuts

1 chopped apple

cinnamon sugar

Preparation:

In bowl, beat egg with the juice, oil and vanilla. Stir in flour, sugars, baking powder, and salt just until flour is moistened. Batter will be a little lumpy. Stir in nuts and chopped apple. Fill greased muffin tins or paper muffin cups about 2/3 full. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar. Bake at 400° for 20 minutes or until golden brown.

*To make cinnamon sugar, blend about 1 1/2 teaspoons of cinnamon with 1/4 cup of granulated sugar.