Water Baby or Bobber

You decide

We sure had fun

I found a website with some "spelling beanbags" I thought they would be fun to have just to learn our ABC's and then later play spelling games with. After looking around the site for a while I also found these "math" beanbags to play math games with. I knew that we needed those too. So I will be busy making some for our house for sure. But the little girl across the street had a birthday and I needed something for her. I just whipped up a set of the number beanbags.
I love how they turned out. This was a tedious project as I had to cut the numbers out of paper, wonder under, and fabric. And then had all that appliqueing to do. But I love how it turned out and am excited to make them for our house!

And it was fun to use up some of the girly fabric I have sitting around the house.

We don't have a use for it for our kiddos!!!

Extreme

I like to coupon.

I don't have lots of time for it

because let's face it there is no time

to be a mom, keep house, craft, and find all the great deals out there.

I cut coupons, organize them to an extent.

I scan the ads and if something jumps out at me that a great deal then I go for it.

I don't have money to buy all these good deals every week.

Most of the time it's stuff that I would put in storage

but sometimes (like the bbq sauce)

it's something that is on "the list"

and that just makes me one happy girl.

The point of all this is that I got all this for $1.75

I know it's extreme couponing!

The only thing I actually paid for was the salad dressing.

It was a glorious day!

Sometimes Life is hard

Sometimes life is hard. You know what you want and have an idea about how to get it.

You reach, try harder, and reach some more.

you get really close to having what you want, but you just want a little more control.

So you try a little harder.

And you feel pretty good about what you have done.

but realize it's starting to slip.

 things get a little out of control.

you might have a little melt down.

but you just try harder.

Then you realize you have lost all control.

It's really hard.

And you are back to square one.

 


seriously the cutest chubby little hands!




Sometimes a little father away than when you first started. 

you try your hardest.

Then you realize something.

Maybe it's just a little too much for you to handle. Maybe it's not your problem to begin with.

Why get so hung up on it when there are so many other things in the world to be reaching for.

And you realize you can be happy without whatever it was.

That's when you just become ok with the way things are!

I just love how some days I can relate the little things the kids to do life and apply it.

Oh if only I could be so happy about not getting what I wanting when I wanted it.

Life in Spite of Me

                                                                        

This was an ok book.

Here's the premises of it:

The girl in the book, Kristen, in a whirl of a moment tried to commit suicide by laying on train tracks. She was run over by 33 freight cars, her legs were severed and she lost 8 pints of blood. She should have died, but she didn't. After a long struggle she devoted her life to God and now speaks to youth groups and is an advocate for suicide prevention.

I can really relate to this book. I have a good amount of stuff in common with Kristen. I found myself looking back on things that happened in my life that got me where I am today. Maybe it's because I have come so far, but I found the book to be a little much. I know that everyone handles things different and the way I have handled things in my life are much different than this girl, but I found myself thinking things like, "what on earth is the problem you have so much to live for." "How is it that if God spared your life once why would you keep contemplating suicide." That sort of thing. Maybe had I read this book 12 years I would have found it encouraging but as it is....it was just not for me, Maybe a younger crowd!
I received this for free in exchange for my review

What do you do

What do you do when it rains,

then the sun comes out...

then it rains some more

then the sun comes out...

Well you get the idea...

it was a "spotty shower"

kind of day!

We made the best of it.

It gave us a good excuse to put on the rain boots that are two sizes too small.

Where there's a will there's a way.

I said, "get some shoes on and let's go outside and play before the rain comes again"

That boy moved faster than the speed of light.

Not wanted to be left behind he found the only shoes that he can put on by himself and was at the door waiting for me.

There is something so sweet about watching that little body move, those hands dipping the bubble wand just perfectly, and those lips pursed blowing with everything they have.

Yeah, it's the best. Wouldn't change my job title for anything!



Thoughts on Homemade Baby Food

Ok so maybe one day I will take a few pictures and show the process on this but I thought I would just share my thoughts on the subject.

After I had Thing 1, I decided that I would do as much organic food for him as possible. I nursed him...but didn't eat organics myself...it's much too expensive. Then came the dilemma of starting solids. I decided that I would wait until he was closer to 6 months to even start rice cereal, just to make sure he was ready. Believe me He. Was. Ready. I did Earth's Best organic rice cereal. I had been researching homemade baby food for some time and if I thought I could do it I would have even ground brown rice on my own. As it turned out I just made everything the kid ate.. and now that he is 2 he is a very good eater and will try pretty much anything.

Now I have Thing 2 and he is now eating baby food. I absolutely LOVE making baby food. I have so much fun trying new things out. With this little kiddo I have been much better at exploring new things and adding a little bit of spice to what he eats.
The other day I baked a butternut squash down and as I was pureeing it I added a little cinnamon and nutmeg to the mix and .... mmmmm it was tasty!
I love knowing exactly what my baby is getting and everything that is in it. When possible I make stuff that I have grown or that has been grown on my grandma's farm..that way I know that there has been no chemicals used on it either.
At first I thought it was going to be hard to take food with us or time consuming. But I have found that it is not any more difficult that than remembering to grab pre-packaged baby food. I freeze everything I make in an ice cube tray, once it is frozen solid I put the cubes in a freezer bag marked with the month it was made and what the food is. Then, when I have to go some where and take the food with me I just grab whatever cubes I want, put them in a bowl with a lid and usually by the time I am ready to feed them the cubes are thawed out. It's a simple process.
As far as making it I just steam whatever it is that I have bought/picked then run it through my Magic Bullet.( I have heard that there is a Bullet made just for making baby food but what I have works just fine.) I add a little liquid, usually breast milk but some times just water, and then any spices and puree. Then I freeze whatever we don't eat that day.
The biggest plus to making my own would be the money saver it is for me. I recently went to Dieberg's and bought Organic carrots, butternut squash, and sweet potatoes. I spent about $8 (it was actually 7 and change) and that gave me about 60 - 70 meals. Had I gone out and bought those same meals in pre-package baby food I would have spent $20 - $30. So it is a big savings for me. There are too many benefits to not make my own baby food. And it's something I really enjoy doing. Even my now 2 year old Things 1 like to "have baby bites of the baby's food" It's a win for all of us.