A Dress for Summyr

I have been wanting to make a dress for Summyr for Valentine's Day. I had the time yesterday while Jude was in school, so I decided to take advantage of it. I managed to get 99% of the dress done in that 3 hours...all but the ribbon....so I was very pleased. It turned out really cute, and I am super proud the final product. Here are some pictures. I hope you enjoy!

Without the Peanut Butter....

What are people going to do now that the peanut butter is being recalled???
Will children go without lunches?
Will jelly be lonely forever??
Will peanut butter cookies just be "cookies"?
Will bananas ever be able to be eaten on a sandwich again???
And what about all of those Chinese dishes that use peanut butter as an ingredient??
Is the world coming to an end?

I dont know....Jude is allergic to peanut butter.

Why Did June Cleaver Have to Make it Look So Easy????

This is another note from my Facebook account:


Being a SAHM is rough. I love my kids, but I am worn out!

I cannot remember a time in my life that I wanted to be anything but a SAHM. Ok, well except for in first grade, when I said I wanted to be a zookeeper when I grew up.

Amazing....I am a zookeeper!

Things that June Cleaver Did That I Just Cant:

• Wear a dress everyday....did she ever play on the floor?
• Wear a Necklace....my kids would break it!
• Do her hair nice....I am lucky if I get to comb my hair.
• Make a full breakfast.....my kids eat cereal and apple juice everyday. I eat nothing.
• Look glamorous....I struggle to look ALIVE.
• Speak in a low and soothing voice....No one would hear me if I did that.
• Keep her house spotless....maybe when my kids are older....maybe not.
• Go out with her husband and friends....We go out once a year...on our Anniversary.

Anyways, this is just a random note. I felt that I needed to let out some frustrations. I will write more later.

Building Walls...

This a post that I wrote on Facebook. I wanted to copy and paste it here, since it has real meaning to me:

What a shame when we have to build walls.

Some people may not know what I mean. They just aren't the type.Others know exactly what I mean. They are the ones with fortresses, like me.

I am a "wall builder". I do this mainly for my protection, and on occasion, for the protection of my family...especially my kids. In my case, I have an extremely tender heart. It is made out of the most fragile china, and needs to be handled delicately. When it is jolted, or in the worst case, dropped, disaster ensues. I immediately scramble to try and pick up all of the pieces that are salvageable. Never mind the fact that they need to be reassembled...no time for that! I must hurry and grab some stones, rocks, and mortar.

Keep in mind, this is not always the pattern I follow. Only in certain instances, do I feel the need to build. I don't cry over spilled milk, if you know what I mean.

The need to build, in certain situations, is immediate. I would like to say it is instinctual in my case. The urge is overwhelming.

After scooping up my damaged heart, I turn to grab the first brick I can find. And before you and I know it, I have surrounded myself with a strong fortress. Here I can sit down and cry, and feel angry at the world and at Satan for getting into people's minds and souls. I can talk to God, and let him know how I am feeling. And my wall allows those, whom I know care about me, to come in and comfort me. And even though I am fuming with hurt and anguish, I can somehow find the strength to put my heart back together. But only behind the walls.

And to the ones who cause the hurt....especially when it was caused intentionally....they will miss out. They lose the opportunity to share the same air I breath. To share my heart. And is some cases, to share my husband and children. The power of a hurt mother, and the urge to guard her loved ones from evil, is a power that is overwhelming. If necessary, I will take them into my wall with me...especially my kids. They are so little, and the duty to protect them from hurt, harm, and danger, falls squarely on me. Yes, one day they will have to face adversity on their own, but for now, they need to know that Mom will always protect them.

Despite what others might think or say, I am thankful for Walls.
And now I must return to my mine.

Thank you...

to those of you who read my blog....especially Erica! I am so glad to know that my time here is not wasted, and that my seemingly unimportant life, amuses so many people! You are appreciated.

My Girl....

Here are some recent pictures of my little girl, Summyr.

Making and Keeping Resolutions

Today was the official start for me to begin working on my "New Year's Resolutions".

In years past, I never really took the whole idea of resolutions very seriously. There were times when I simply forgot to make one, didn't want to make one, or felt like I didn't need to make one. This year is different though. I was determined to change some things in my life, so I made some resolutions that I am going to do my best to keep.

One of the things that has been bothering me a lot lately, is clutter. Especially papers and bills and the such. In my mind I had concocted a plan to get some boxes and label them appropriately, then have them stored away, collecting my papers in an orderly fashion. I just needed to find the time and place for this wonderful plan. I thought of a cabinet in my kitchen that wasn't being used for anything worth wild. Just collecting a bunch of junk.... you know those kind of cabinets. So I got to work today. I got my boxes....various ones here and there. Then I wrapped them in old wrapping paper left over from the holidays. Some that didn't look to wintry or Xmasy. Then I went to my scrap booking kit that Stephan and the kids got me for Xmas, and started to use the letters and some glue to label the boxes nicely. I wanted this to be more fun than work....well as much as possible. I cleared out the cabinet next. Funny how I was able to find a place for everything that was just piled under there! Here are my before and after pictures:

Now its nothing to fancy, but it gets the job done! Notice the papers....this was accomplished when Stephan and I spent an hour on the kitchen floor sorting through them. There were a lot of things to go through! But I feel good now that its done. I was even able to get Stephan to help me go through the other rooms in the house and grab all the papers...and de-clutter the counter tops. And the former clutter closet....where I kept baking dishes and the trash can...is now my "craft closet". I have all of my bow making stuff, ribbon, scrap booking stuff, sewing machine, and anything else that has to do with crafts in there. The great thing about this closet is that it has and outlet....so I can even plug in my hot glue gun up high where the kids cant reach it. And my stuff is not scattered through the house in various places.

I feel like I am off to a good start.

Oh, and props to Stephan for finally uploading Office onto my computer. Now I am able to share pics with you all.

Sharing Guacamole...

I just finished sharing a bowl of homemade guacamole with my kiddos. It was so yummy, and made a great, healthy snack. Now I will share some with you!

You need:
1 Ripe Avocado
Diced* Tomato
Diced* Onion
Finely chopped Cilantro
Salt
Lime Juice

*It helps to have this stuff chopped up beforehand....that way you can make it faster.

Cut open avocado and scoop out the inside into a small bowl. Save the seed....
Smash up the avocado with a fork....this is the old fashioned way!
Add in your tomato, onion, and cilantro to taste. If you like more of one, add more! If you don't like something, leave it out!
Stir in until well blended....this should make the avocado even more creamy.
Then add your salt and lime juice to taste. I like mine more lime-y!
Enjoy....and share!

If you want to save some for later, pop the seed into the bowl and seal tightly, making sure to get out as much air as possible. The seed will keep the guacamole from turning brown!

Saving Money Will Cost You Time...

My title is not meant to sound bad. It is just a fact that I have learned today. I am trying to take this lesson for what its worth, and find ways to implement the idea of saving money, into everything I do.

So since it is the New Year, one of our "resolutions" is to get our finances straight. What I mean by this, since it could be a broad spectrum of things, is that this year we are going to redo our budget, control our spending habits, and start making long and short term investments. I am learning the differences between an asset and a liability, stocks and bonds, buying and selling those, and a myriad of other items that I need to learn to become "financially literate". It's too bad that schools don't teach this stuff!!!

Today was one of my first lessons, per say. Let me add, that when I say "control our spending", I mean things like no more impulse buying, and especially cutting WAY back on eating out. One of the things I have done to stop the eating out trend, is making up a menu and shopping accordingly. Don't get me wrong. I have done this for most of the 5 years that we have been married. The problem is that we, and especially since we have had our kids, have NOT stuck to it. Plus, for some reason, I never thought to add lunches to the menu. We usually would eat out, or run through the drive through, or even toss a couple of frozen meals into the grocery cart. YUCK! But this last time....the first grocery list of the year, included lunches. Nothing hard to make. Stuff like sandwiches, hot dogs, quesadillas, etc.....things that could be thrown together.

So, back to my original sentence. Today was one of my first lessons. I went to pick up some stuff from the store that somehow did not make it on my grocery list. I thought I would just stop off at Randall's....the equivalent to "Tom Thumb" or "Kroger's". So with Jude dropped of at MDO, and Summyr cooperating happily, I pulled up to the store and grabbed a cart. In my mind, I am thinking about how convenient it is to just stop here since it is right on my way home. I make my way over to the produce section. Here is my list:

Lettuce
Tomatoes
Cheese - sliced
Bacon

I went to look for lettuce: 1.99. Then to the tomatoes: 3.99 lb!!! Then to the bacon: 3.50 on sale for off-brand. Then to the cheese: 3.99 for 16 slices of Kraft. I was feeling like this was not going to work out. Remember, I am trying to save money, pinch pennies, whatever you want to call it. I was not feeling like I was going to save. I started to total this items up in my head: 13 dollars and some change. Yikes! That's a lot for only four items. I decided to leave without the groceries. I headed to Wal Mart. Not on my way home, but I knew that I wasn't going to get robbed. Now not all people feel this way about Wal Mart. But in my opinion, there are a lot of families out there, including mine, that could not afford to buy groceries anywhere else.

Anyways, I got to Wal Mart and went straight to the produce section. First, I found lettuce: 1.00. Then to the tomatoes: 1.29 lb!!!! Cheese was 2.98 for 24 slices. And the bacon was 3.48....only 2 cents less, but name brand, black label and low sodium!!! So I decided to grab 2 avocados for 50 cents each, a small bunch of cilantro for 57 cents, a bottle of salad dressing for 1.98, and some Hershey's syrup for 1.74. Now I could make guacamole as a side, or snack, and use the lettuce and tomatoes that was for sandwiches and make salad too! But did I save, you ask? Yes! I was able to get 8 items from Wal Mart, for one dollar more than I would have been able to get 4 items from Randall's.

Ah, but the lesson did not stop at the store. I went home and put Summyr down for her nap. Then I went to work. Normally I would take a head of lettuce and throw it in the crisping drawer. Simple, right? The problem with that was that it never got used, or it was a hassle to take out each time and wash what I needed and then put it back in the baggy. So, I took some initiative and grabbed my big knife and cutting board, and cut the lettuce in half, washed it and divided it into two sections. The flatter top leaves would be separated and placed in a container for sandwiches, and the rest of the lettuce was chopped up and put in a Ziploc bag for 2-3 salads. Now my lettuce would be used for sure. Then I took one of my tomatoes and went to work. Slicing it thinly for sandwiches (put in a small flat container) and the rest of it was diced for guacamole. I felt so accomplished. Now Stephan would be able to make a sandwich for lunch, quickly, and NOT EAT OUT! Not to mention, that last night while I was making the kids snack from carrots and celery, I took the little bit of extra time, and diced a whole carrot, celery, and some onion left over from dinner prep, and put those into little individual containers for a later use!

I feel good. My veggies wont go to waste just sitting in the crisper, my bread wont go to waste in the closet, and I wont be rushing around trying to get stuff together when its time to cook. Yes, it did take 2 trips to 2 different stores and it did take about a half hour to wash, cut, chop and store, but I feel like I am finally making some steps in the right direction when it comes to trying to save money. Now if I could just get my laundry done....which by the way is being done in a new HE front loader washer and dryer (Christmas & Birthday gift)! We have already seen the difference in our utilities in only a month.

UPDATE 1/8: I ended up using the carrots, celery and onion in fried rice that we had with dinner tonight! It was great.

I hope that I will be able to find other ways to save here and there. Feel free to join me in my quest. Now I must go....the unfolded laundry is screaming my name!