Off

I had today (Thurs.) off work since I'm working on Saturday. I guess my mind and body took that in the literal sense. Motivation has been nowhere to be found today. Oh well, I deserve a day off I suppose. I'm going to make myself some tea and go to bed early.

Small Miracles

I feel very accomplished. I've had a small corner in my dining room collecting odds and ends of junk over the last month or so and It's nice and clean now. My vacuum now has a home again since I cleaned out the closet it belongs in (I found out I have 3 packages of extra vacuum bags, haha). My kids eagerly grabbed the spray bottles of cleaner again today and asked me what they could clean!!! There's miracles happening in my house, I tell ya!

As I get older.

It's funny how you come more and more appreciative of your parents as your get older. I feel this way about my Mom. I've always been very close to my mom but lately I feel like we are kindred souls. I talk to my mom almost every day. She's always there to listen to me vent or provide me with suggestions on how to over come things when they just aren't going my way. I've had some things weighing heavily on my mind (mostly about parenting) and come to find out it's exactly what she wanted (when she was raising my brother and I).

She has overcome a lot yet has alway stayed true to herself and what she stands for. It's natural for everyone to love and look up to their Mom. But my Mom is truly amazing. If my kids grow up to think of me as even half of what I think of her, I will be happy.

and she said, LET THEM CLEAN!...

We made two cleaners tonight. An all purpose disinfectant and a glass cleaner. They work great and smell good. We got a few supplies at Walmart and it only took a couple min to mix them up.

My wishful thinking came true. As soon as we finished mixing up the all purpose cleaner Ashleigh wanted to test it out and cleaned all the kitchen counters! After that she did the same with the glass cleaner on the mirror in the bathroom while I wiped down the counter. The two of us spend a good 30-45 min with two squirt bottles and a couple of old toothbrushes in our tiny little bathroom. I think we were enjoying each others company and cleaning was just an afterthought (since it really wasn't that dirty). But hey, it's not all that often that your pre-teen actually wants to clean.

We also boiled a dish of water and baking soda in the microwave (which steams everything) and wiped it out... which she did most of that too!

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For dinner tonight I made bacon cheese burgers. I thought I could pull a fast one over on Jackson because I make garden burgers instead of hamburgers. After about 3 bites he said he didn't like it much, pulled the pattie off and then ate the rest. haha oh well, I tried. Ash and I loved ours and at least I know he doesn't like them. Next time we'll make them with the organic beef we have in the freezer.

I'm going o'natural

 I don't mean stop shaving my legs and arm pits kind of natural so let me explain. However, before I do I need to do something...  

... Ok, I'm back. I just counted how many different cleaners I have. Between my bathroom and under my kitchen sink there are 10. Ten chemical, toxic, expensive, don't get on your skin or you have to call poison control, cleaners.  Why?!

There are so many natural cleaners and even disinfectants that we can make right at home. They cost next to nothing to make. You know what's in them and you wont need to wear rubber gloves that go to your elbows or a mask over your nose and mouth in order to use them! You can even add essential oils to make them smell however you want! You can't beat that if you ask me. With everyone being more health conscience and earth friendly there are new cleaners out on the market that are suppose to be more "green". But even those are silly if you think about it.

I've been doing some research tonight and I learned that tea tree oil is a natural disinfectant. (Well before scientific evidence was around The indigenous Bundjalung people of eastern Australia found the leaves from "tea trees" had healing powers for various ailments). I figured this oil would be quite expensive but I found that Walmart carries it and it's just under $5.00 for 2 oz. Most of the cleaning recipes I have found call for 15-30 drops of this oil per 16 oz spray bottle of cleaner. So, of course I was curious how many 'drops' are in an ounce, to my surprise the average is 600! By some quick calculations I figured one bottle of tea tree oil will last between 40 and 80 bottles worth of cleaner. Pretty darn good if you ask me!

I found a great website called, BlissTree.com with some great recipes. When I have time I'll look through more of their site, it looks like there's a lot of good stuff there.

We were planning a trip to Walmart tomorrow anyway but I'm going to add a few things to my list and make up some great cleaners when we get home. The kids will even be able to help! I'm hoping they will be a little more willing to help clean if they were involved in making the cleansers. (I know, I know, wishful thinking! haha).

New Challenge

To avoid fast food for one month.

For the entire month of March, I will not eat fast food.

This also means I need to plan ahead and have some (quick and easy) back up meals readily available at home for those nights I just don't feel like cooking.

Crazy Technology

I love the convenience of modern day technology but sometimes I wish I lived in a simpler time. I see commercials for some crazy new things. Did you know there are cars that can park themselves now? Vacuums that clean your house on their own? Did you know you can use your cell phone to turn on the lights in your house, raise the temp on the thermostat and get your hot tub ready for a dip, all before you walk in your front door? When is it too much?

I was happy playing with wooden blocks when I was a kid. I played outside... a lot and my little brother and I would spend countless hours stacking empty cans in towers or castles. Now a days it's hard to pry some kids away from the computers, TVs and video games.

I want the kids and I to go 24 hours without using electricity. I think it would be fun experiment. I'm thinking spring would be a good time to try it. I'll have to let you know how it goes.

On a side note.. the kids and I were driving in the car the other day and Ashleigh was talking about all these futuristic features a car could have and how cool it would be. The funny thing is... almost every single thing... already exists.

Quick...I need an intervention!

I had a horrible day at work. and I mean HORRIBLE. Despite the fact I was bound and determined to have a great day as I woke up this morning, it really wasn't so great. I don't know where these people come from but my co-workers and I named today as National Jerk Awareness Day. I tell ya, they were coming out of the woodwork!

I woke up this morning to blue skies. I did a little yoga. I made oatmeal for breakfast... and some green tea. I packed low fat string cheese, some sliced veggies and a bottle of water to take with me for a snack. I was healthy.

By the time I got off work I was craving a juicy, greasy, six dollar portobello mushroom burger from Carl's Jr. like you would not believe.... with fries......................and a drink.

I called my Mom and told her I needed an intervention. I explained my dilemma and she talked it out. Something about "picture 5 of those burgers added to your hips" was very persuading. haha. I love my Mom!

I decided on stopping at the grocery store on the way home for some whole wheat hamburger buns and some garden burgers. I came home and made a delicious lunch. I wrote down how many calories were in everything as I was cooking (because I was curious). I added in all the calories, including the butter I used to saute the mushrooms and onions in. The grand total: 585 Calories. I looked on Carl's Jr. website to see nutritional information. Had I gotten that burger and fries (not including drink or fry sauce that I would have, no doubtingly, drowned my fires in) The grand total....ready for this.... 1420 Calories!

So, I feel great. I avoided temptation. I can put my horrible work day behind me and enjoy what's left of the weekend. Here's a picture of my masterpiece:

Popcorn!

The kids and I had a movie night. We watched Flight of the Navigator, which was my all time favorite childhood movie and we made popcorn! My Mom gave this to us a while ago and we were waiting for the right occasion to make it. It was supper yummy!

Who I want to be...

I want to be that Mom who has an after school snack waiting for the kids when they get home every afternoon, the one that cooks a homemade meal every night, the one that helps the kids study for their upcoming spelling test everyday, and reads to them every night before saying prayers and tucking them into bed.

I want to be that Woman who eats right, the one that feels fantastic everyday...even in a bikini,  the one that hosts the best dinner parties...ever, and the one that always gets enough beauty sleep and wakes up every morning ready to face a bright new day.

I want to be that Person who everyone wants to be around, the one that inspires people around me, the one that volunteers to help the needy, and always does the right thing for my family, friends and our planet.

I know what I want, so why is so hard to actually do these things?

Food

I watched an interesting documentary called, Food Inc. last night. I think everyone should watch it. I've always been interested in eating healthy but this was a real eye opener to what really is healthy. The kids and I have been eating lots more veggies and trying new ones, along with tofu on a regular basis.

I have no interest in becoming vegetarian but I do want to eat healthy meat from animals that were treated well. I'm going to be looking into local organic farms.

Here's a great website I found for local, healthy food! Utah's Own

Spring Fever

We've had some nice days sneak in here and there. I can't wait for spring! I'm missing summer time in Iowa right now. Nice peaceful walks in the evening, fireflies & good company. Looking forward to going back this summer.

Davenport, IA

 Bridge over the Mississippi

Baby

The kids and I spent most of the day at Madsen's today. Playing games. Holding Charsty's baby. I would be lying if I said I wasn't slightly baby hungry. You forget how tiny newborns are.

Aurora

Random Blogs

I love looking at random blogs.

When ever I log onto this site and have a few extra minutes to myself, I click 'next blog' and see where it takes me. Often I glance at the title and scroll though the page quickly, to get the general idea of the blog, then click 'next blog' again and go flying though cyberspace to pop into another random person's life for a moment.

It never seizes to amaze me. I have seen more fashion blogs than I thought possible. I've seen blogs about family members being wrongfully accused of something and now spending time in jail, and blogs about bicycles or wight loss and a multitude of others.

Usually I only spend a minute before visiting another blog but every once in a while I put my feet up and stay a bit. I read though a lovely blog written my a farmer's wife tonight. She has posted beautiful pictures from around their farm and pictures of a handsome baby boy who they call "little sprout". It was inspiring.

Last week I heard a blurb on the news about a local stay at home mom's blog of local money saving ideas and freebies. I have been visiting that blog often!

Needless to say, I'm enjoying this world of blogging. I should write more often... and add more pictures when I do!