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Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Save the Candle!
I have a candle holiday candle holder with coordinating candle that I love! I am very sad the candle is showing signs up frequent use; but I am not ready to toss the candle. Nor can I find an exact replacement. My solution? I put a tea light in the center of the candle so I can still light my shimmery, glowing white candle without having to burn it down even more!
New Years Resolutions
It seems just as soon as I got used to writing 2009, it's time to change to 2010! I've certainly been through a lot this year (myself and with my family) so I'm ready to look at 2010 with some hope for change! I know that my only true hope comes from the love and faithfulness of Jesus Christ who died for my sins! However, I am hoping that as I pray for wisdom on how to approach some small tangible things in our lives, I will glean a little extra hope on how to plan, prioritize and put into action changes that need to be made!
The first thing I really want to work on this year is my thought patterns. Last year was a very difficult year for me emotionally, to say the least. There are so many facets of why and what can be done, but ONE thing that I CAN do that will help is redirecting my thought patterns from negative to positive. It is so easy to think, "it feel so unfair my husband gets to attend a meeting at church while I stay home to feed the kids, bathe them, and then get them to bed--I'd like to attend and have some adult interaction too!" It's harder to think, "I am so glad my husband has this opportunity because he doesn't get a chance to see his church friends as much as I do and there are a couple of small projects I can get done after the kids go to bed and before he gets home so we can maybe watch a movie or play a game after he gets home!" So, goal number one is: To counter each negative thought with a positive thought!
The second thing I want to work on is completing projects. I LOVE projects. I love buying a pattern, material, thread, notions and DREAMING of the beautiful creation that waits; only to have all the above still sitting in my craft box six months later. This is a waste of money and space. The worst part? I keep doing it!! So, goal number two is: complete 1-2 attainable projects each month. I will not allow myself to buy materials for additional projects until started projects are completed!
The third thing I need to help on is not giving up! For example, I will start an exercise routine but when it just doesn't work, I stop. I don't try to figure out how to make it better or try something different. Hmmm, probably will need some accountability in this one! :-) So, goal number three is not give up on road blocks!
What about you? What are some of your New Years Resolutions?
The first thing I really want to work on this year is my thought patterns. Last year was a very difficult year for me emotionally, to say the least. There are so many facets of why and what can be done, but ONE thing that I CAN do that will help is redirecting my thought patterns from negative to positive. It is so easy to think, "it feel so unfair my husband gets to attend a meeting at church while I stay home to feed the kids, bathe them, and then get them to bed--I'd like to attend and have some adult interaction too!" It's harder to think, "I am so glad my husband has this opportunity because he doesn't get a chance to see his church friends as much as I do and there are a couple of small projects I can get done after the kids go to bed and before he gets home so we can maybe watch a movie or play a game after he gets home!" So, goal number one is: To counter each negative thought with a positive thought!
The second thing I want to work on is completing projects. I LOVE projects. I love buying a pattern, material, thread, notions and DREAMING of the beautiful creation that waits; only to have all the above still sitting in my craft box six months later. This is a waste of money and space. The worst part? I keep doing it!! So, goal number two is: complete 1-2 attainable projects each month. I will not allow myself to buy materials for additional projects until started projects are completed!
The third thing I need to help on is not giving up! For example, I will start an exercise routine but when it just doesn't work, I stop. I don't try to figure out how to make it better or try something different. Hmmm, probably will need some accountability in this one! :-) So, goal number three is not give up on road blocks!
What about you? What are some of your New Years Resolutions?
Thursday, December 17, 2009
A Star for the Christmas Tree Craft
I decided to retire the big bow I'd been putting on top of the Christmas tree for the past ten years. I wanted a star! A silver, sparkly, but not too cheesey Star for the tree. Partially because, well, I think it's pretty and another--a reminder of the Star of Bethlehem! Evidently silver, sparkly, but not too cheesey stars are not in vogue this year because I couldn't find one ANYWHERE. What to do, what to do. . . .
A friendly sales associate a Menards suggested I make one and even suggested a kid friendly craft for the occasion! I wish I could remember her name because I would love to credit her with the initial idea!
Here's what you need:
Paper cut-out of star in size you want
Cardbord
Empty toilet paper cardboard roll
Foil
Silver Glitter
Scissors
Pencil
Glue
What we did:
We traced the star onto the cardboard, then cut the cardboard star out. Then we placed a thin layer of glue on one side of the star and smoothed out a sheet of foil (shiney side faceing out). Then carefully cut away the access foil. Ta da! A foil star! But, we're not done yet! Then place a another thin layer of glue on top of the foil and sprinkle, sprinkle, sprinkle the silver glue on! My kids thought this was the best part!
Then we put a thin layer of glue on the toilet paper tube and wrapped foil around it, carefully cutting the access away after it was sealed.
Then, glue the tube onto the back of the star. I will admit, I put a little extra super glue on for reinforcement after the kids went to bed. :-)
After everything is SUPER dry, then place on top of the Christmas tree!
So now I have a silver, sparkly star. Yeah, it's a bit cheesey, but cheesey is always ok when it's made by love from your kids (with some help)! :-)
A friendly sales associate a Menards suggested I make one and even suggested a kid friendly craft for the occasion! I wish I could remember her name because I would love to credit her with the initial idea!
Here's what you need:
Paper cut-out of star in size you want
Cardbord
Empty toilet paper cardboard roll
Foil
Silver Glitter
Scissors
Pencil
Glue
What we did:
We traced the star onto the cardboard, then cut the cardboard star out. Then we placed a thin layer of glue on one side of the star and smoothed out a sheet of foil (shiney side faceing out). Then carefully cut away the access foil. Ta da! A foil star! But, we're not done yet! Then place a another thin layer of glue on top of the foil and sprinkle, sprinkle, sprinkle the silver glue on! My kids thought this was the best part!
Then we put a thin layer of glue on the toilet paper tube and wrapped foil around it, carefully cutting the access away after it was sealed.
Then, glue the tube onto the back of the star. I will admit, I put a little extra super glue on for reinforcement after the kids went to bed. :-)
After everything is SUPER dry, then place on top of the Christmas tree!
So now I have a silver, sparkly star. Yeah, it's a bit cheesey, but cheesey is always ok when it's made by love from your kids (with some help)! :-)
The Cracker Meal
Say what, you might ask?
A neighbor dropped off some opened packages at my door on her way out of town. Since we're staying in town this year for the holidays, we are the candidate receiving the pantry and fridge vacation clean-outs! :-) Well, there were some crackers and pita chips among those items brought over and I had already had a loooong day so I declared to my family we were going to have a cracker meal! It actually went over well. More acurately, I think my kids were in heaven! :-)
Here's the result: Crackers, Pita Chips, cheese cubes, watermelon, clementine slices and banana.
Kid friendly, mostly nutritious, and easy to prepare!
A neighbor dropped off some opened packages at my door on her way out of town. Since we're staying in town this year for the holidays, we are the candidate receiving the pantry and fridge vacation clean-outs! :-) Well, there were some crackers and pita chips among those items brought over and I had already had a loooong day so I declared to my family we were going to have a cracker meal! It actually went over well. More acurately, I think my kids were in heaven! :-)
Here's the result: Crackers, Pita Chips, cheese cubes, watermelon, clementine slices and banana.
Kid friendly, mostly nutritious, and easy to prepare!
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Rice Crispy Train Craft
This was a ton of fun (and yummy). A friend gave me the idea and I kinda took it from there.
Here's what you need:
Rice Crispy Treats (make ahead of time)
Icing (it acts as the glue)
Whatever candy is in your cupboard or what you want to buy--be imaginitive!
I laid out all ingredients on our table (covered with the vinyl craft cloth). Then I let the kids decorate a couple rice crispy treats as their train cars. I then spread some coconut flakes on a cookie sheet,topped with some peppermint sticks as the tracks. Then we lined up our train on the tracks. My 5 yo dd, Bean, really got into this one! 3 yo dd, Boppy ate more than she pasted. 19 mo dd Bitty was handed out M & M's from the table from willing to share sisters and mommy! All in all a fun, simple and not too long craft for young kids!
Here's what you need:
Rice Crispy Treats (make ahead of time)
Icing (it acts as the glue)
Whatever candy is in your cupboard or what you want to buy--be imaginitive!
I laid out all ingredients on our table (covered with the vinyl craft cloth). Then I let the kids decorate a couple rice crispy treats as their train cars. I then spread some coconut flakes on a cookie sheet,topped with some peppermint sticks as the tracks. Then we lined up our train on the tracks. My 5 yo dd, Bean, really got into this one! 3 yo dd, Boppy ate more than she pasted. 19 mo dd Bitty was handed out M & M's from the table from willing to share sisters and mommy! All in all a fun, simple and not too long craft for young kids!
Product Review
I saw an add for Boiron products and requested the free sample with the understanding I would review it on my blog if and when I used the products. I have to admit, I've always rolled my eyes at homeopathic medicinal options, but not anymore! Here's what arrived several weeks ago:
There were three containers as shown above: the aids for colds, coughs and flu symptoms. I have not used the cough and flu symptom relief yet (and frankly, I'd rather not have to use ANY flu relief anytime soon because hopefully no one in our family will be GETTING the flu. . .). However, we recently used the ColdCalm great success.
Here's the story. A couple days before we were schedule to move, my oldest two kids came down with cold symptoms. I'm not normally a mom to dole out any kind of medicinal relief (even Tylenol) unless it's really, really, really really necessary! However, with the heavy packing we were doing, I thought this might be a great time to test out the products. I figured I didn't have anything to loose since I wouldn't normally give them anything for a cold! I gave my two daughters (ages 3 and 5) the dosage recommended of ColdCalm, though because of packing I wasn't able to adhere to the schedule dosing as well as I would have liked. However--Bam!--those colds were no where to be found less than three days later! I was stunned. Very stunned--especially since our 19 mo and my husband and I all came down with the cold as well. It turned out to be the severe cold going around town and it was NASTY!
What we DIDN'T like: The packaging. Sorry, but kids could so easily open and take to their hearts content! Granted, the ingredients are fairly safe, but I'd much rather see kid resistant lids on ANYTHING in my medicine box!
What we DID like: Effective, safe, non-drowsy, very easy to use and doesn't interfer with other drugs (thankfully, none of our kids have to be on medications for health issues, but I liked seeing that for other families I know). We give the ColdCalm two thumbs up!
I have noticed that our local Walgreens and Walmart sell the adult flu symptom version. You can visit their site at http://www.boironusa.com/default.aspx for more product information and a store locator new you! The website if pretty easy to navigate through as well! Highly recommend this company and product!
There were three containers as shown above: the aids for colds, coughs and flu symptoms. I have not used the cough and flu symptom relief yet (and frankly, I'd rather not have to use ANY flu relief anytime soon because hopefully no one in our family will be GETTING the flu. . .). However, we recently used the ColdCalm great success.
Here's the story. A couple days before we were schedule to move, my oldest two kids came down with cold symptoms. I'm not normally a mom to dole out any kind of medicinal relief (even Tylenol) unless it's really, really, really really necessary! However, with the heavy packing we were doing, I thought this might be a great time to test out the products. I figured I didn't have anything to loose since I wouldn't normally give them anything for a cold! I gave my two daughters (ages 3 and 5) the dosage recommended of ColdCalm, though because of packing I wasn't able to adhere to the schedule dosing as well as I would have liked. However--Bam!--those colds were no where to be found less than three days later! I was stunned. Very stunned--especially since our 19 mo and my husband and I all came down with the cold as well. It turned out to be the severe cold going around town and it was NASTY!
What we DIDN'T like: The packaging. Sorry, but kids could so easily open and take to their hearts content! Granted, the ingredients are fairly safe, but I'd much rather see kid resistant lids on ANYTHING in my medicine box!
What we DID like: Effective, safe, non-drowsy, very easy to use and doesn't interfer with other drugs (thankfully, none of our kids have to be on medications for health issues, but I liked seeing that for other families I know). We give the ColdCalm two thumbs up!
I have noticed that our local Walgreens and Walmart sell the adult flu symptom version. You can visit their site at http://www.boironusa.com/default.aspx for more product information and a store locator new you! The website if pretty easy to navigate through as well! Highly recommend this company and product!
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
We're here!
We made it!
Who would have thought moving just ten miles could be such a headache, literally?
We finally got everything packed even with our family starting to come down with Colds (and an extra migrane for my hubby). We were so grateful for many guys from our church coming out to help load up the truck and unload it at our new place in town (we moved from a farm just outside of town).
We celebrated our first week by unpacking and suffering through the severe cold that worked it's way through our family. I have to give a two big thumbs up for a homeopathic medication I gave our oldest two kids, they were through the cold in no time with very little symptoms--but I'll save more on that for another blog post. It also took a week for the internet to get hooked up. It was surprising to me how hard it was to not be connected. Hmmm, maybe I rely on the internet more than I thought I did? Definitely something to be pondered.
However, I am glad to report that aside from lingering sore throats for my hubby and me and just a couple more boxes, looks like we pretty well settled! We even got our Christmas tree set up this weekend! Now it definitely feels like a home! It was hard moving on a day I would normally be decking the halls and walls with Christmas galore! Thanksgiving/Christmas is one of my favorite times of the year!
Now, where are the Christmas cds?
Fa la la la la, la la la la!
Who would have thought moving just ten miles could be such a headache, literally?
We finally got everything packed even with our family starting to come down with Colds (and an extra migrane for my hubby). We were so grateful for many guys from our church coming out to help load up the truck and unload it at our new place in town (we moved from a farm just outside of town).
We celebrated our first week by unpacking and suffering through the severe cold that worked it's way through our family. I have to give a two big thumbs up for a homeopathic medication I gave our oldest two kids, they were through the cold in no time with very little symptoms--but I'll save more on that for another blog post. It also took a week for the internet to get hooked up. It was surprising to me how hard it was to not be connected. Hmmm, maybe I rely on the internet more than I thought I did? Definitely something to be pondered.
However, I am glad to report that aside from lingering sore throats for my hubby and me and just a couple more boxes, looks like we pretty well settled! We even got our Christmas tree set up this weekend! Now it definitely feels like a home! It was hard moving on a day I would normally be decking the halls and walls with Christmas galore! Thanksgiving/Christmas is one of my favorite times of the year!
Now, where are the Christmas cds?
Fa la la la la, la la la la!
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