What You Make of It

Project Simplify: Closet Cleanout

2011-03-13T19:45:00.000-07:00

I had planned on joining Simple Mom's Project Simplify right from the beginning, but life happened and the only closet cleaning I did last week was to give a jacket and a shirt to my mom while she was here visiting. But just thinking about it all week gave me the motivation to start trying on clothes Friday afternoon, and by Sunday night I was through the whole closet.

I realized that I'd been hanging on to a lot of clothes becasue they reminded me of who I used to be. I had a lot of clothes that I wore when I was teaching--6 years ago--that I didn't need or even want anymore. And there were some clothes from Hawaii--like the dress I wore when Ben returned from his first deployment--that just reminded me of who I used to be.

And so even though I never wore them, I didn't get rid of them. Until now. In all I got rid of
5 dresses
8 skirts
4 pairs of pants
10 shirts
1 jacket
3 belts

Woohoo!

Thoughts on joining a CSA

2011-03-05T12:16:00.001-08:00

I've been contemplating the advantages of signing up for a CSA for the last year or so, and am once again trying to decide if this would be worth it for our family. I really like the idea of getting produce fresh from the farm. And I like that I would be supporting local, family farmers.

But I'm still holding back.

Last spring, when the time to sign on came, I hesitated. I was pregnant, and would have a newborn when the crops started rolling in. Was I really going to have the energy to experiment with new vegatables? So I passed.

This spring I've gotten the hang, mostly of running a household with three littles ones under my feet, but I'm still hesitating. I have two main fears:

1. Will anybody eat the food we receive? My four year old is notoriously picky. My husband is generally a good sport about trying my new creations, but I'm not sure how long that would last. The two little ones will eat anything, so I'm not so worried about them. Would I try everything? Hmmm...I'm rather notorious for being picky myself.

2. Does the cost make if feasable? $250 is almost our entire grocery budget for a whole month. If I still have to supplement with fruits and veggies we need more of, this could put a serious cramp in my summer grocery budget.

I know the answers already. Yes, people will complain, but it would be good for us to stretch our palates a bit. And yes, the cost is substantial, but if I start squirling away extra grocery money now I could easily have enough by early summer.

The real problem may just be a generalized fear of doing something I've never done before. Which means it's high time I went ahead and signed up.

Super Saturday, but so much for Sunday

2010-10-17T19:03:00.000-07:00

Autumn is my favorite time of the year and yesterday was just a perfect day. The sun shone, the breeze blew. It was warm enough for shirt sleeves, but not so warm that I broke a sweat.

While the boys napped I took Anna for a walk in the stroller. She's almost three months old and I think this was the first walk the two of us had taken by ourselves. It made me think back to when Nick was a baby and I was out with him in the stroller two or three times a day...so much different now with the older ones around.

When we retruned from out mommy-daughter walk the boys came outside with us and played. I collected some flower seeds and weeded along the fence. Nick rode his tricycle and played parade. Luke pulled the wagon. Anna napped. We all enjoyed the sunshine and fresh air and felt good when we went in for dinner.

Today was not such a success. I started out running behind and never caught up. I did, grudgingly, let the boys play outside for a bit when we returned from church. I promised we'd be out more in the afternoon but we never went back out. Nick was dissappointed. I still feel guilty, especially knowing that the next week is going to be considerably cooler and rainier. Ah, mommy guilt.

CVS trip to roll ECBs

2010-10-15T18:43:00.000-07:00

After several failed attempts to get out the door on Wednesday, the kids and I finally made it to CVS just before dinner. We would have skipped it altogether, but I didn't want to loose the eight dollars in ECBs I had that were expiring that day.

Here's what we got...

2 Dawn dish soaps (free after coupons)
2 Colgate toothpaste (free plus overage after coupons and ECBs)
Brach's candy corn (free after coupon)
Dial soap 3-pack (.64 after coupon and ECB)
Envelopes (we were out of these and I needed something to put my total over $8)

ECBs spent: $7.99
ECBs earned: $6.98
Total OOP: $1.71

Outdoor Challenge

2010-10-15T18:35:00.001-07:00

The first full week of my "Get the Kids Outdoors" challenge is over. For the most part I think I was pretty successful. We spent a good chunk of time playing outside all but one very hectic, mixed up day. That day they probably only got to run around for ten or fifteen minutes; the other days were closer to an hour and some (like last weekend) they were outside the majority of the day.

Something I noticed this week is that when Lucas has had enough of the outdoors, he just heads for the porch, says, "All done" and in he goes. I like knowing that he really got his fill of fresh air and was ready for a change. Nick, however, always has to be told that it's time to head inside.

What a Weekend

2010-10-15T18:21:00.000-07:00

Last weekend my husband replaced the flooring in our kitchen and dinning room. Saturday morning I griped a little that, on what was sure to be the last really nice weekend of the year, we were going to be stuck inside doing home improvement.

By the end of the weekend I had to eat my words.

We were totally blessed with the beautiful weekend weather. With our two main rooms torn up the boys would have had no place to run. The "help" they offered Ben would have slowed the process down considerably. But with the temperatures in the seventies, I just opened up the doors and sent them outside to play.

Saturday they spent hours in the sandbox. Sunday we raked the few leaves that had fallen into a big pile to run through and toss into the air. They rode the tricycle, pulled the wagon, pretended to build a house. Oh, and they picked the last of the very green cherry tomatoes. (Oh well!)

Easy Preschooler Entertainment

2009-08-27T10:44:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I was working on a cross stitch for my soon-to-arrive niece. Nick curled up next to me and was very intent on knowing what I was doing. I told him I was sewing a turtle for Betsy. He asked if he could sew a turtle for Betsy too.

Not wanting to discourage his craftiness, I said sure. Then I had to come up with a turtle for him to sew! This is what I did.:

1. I drew a very simple turtle on a piece of fairly heavy (not-corrugated) cardboard. I cut the edges to shape it a little bit, leaving half an inch or so of space between the picture and the edge.

2. Using my three-hole punch, I made holes every couple of inches all the way around.

3. I gave him a shoelace and the picture and showed him how to push the end through the holes. He's been "sewing" ever since.

I know they sell these types of things (because I've bought them myself) but I'm happier with my homemade one. It's made of sturdier material, it can be made in whatever shape my son fancies at the moment, and when the baby gets a hold of it and gums it to mush I can easily, and cheaply, make another one.

Bananas for Baby

2009-08-19T11:31:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I was looking for a little something more to feed the baby; we're in that stage where we're waiting three or four days between introducing foods, and all I had in jars was new foods. I suddenly remembered some overly ripe bananas I had stashed in the freezer to turn into bread for funerals. And it occurred to me that after they are frozen bananas are smooth and mushy with no effort at all--perfect baby food! Sure enough, Lucas gobbled down half of one in no time.

I'm adding this to my mental list of "duh!" ideas. So much easier, and less wasteful, than trying to squish up fresh bananas with a fork.

Ahh...Vacation

2009-08-17T17:37:00.000-07:00

Today ended the first "real" family vacation I've taken (as a mom, not a kid). It was not entirely stress-free, but I am definitely more laid back now than I was two weeks ago. So now that we're all back to real life I am making a conscious effort to maintain that vacation state of mind.

I didn't get worked up when Ben's work schedule got changed or when he had to fix lunch because I needed to nurse the baby. I took the kids outside to blow bubbles, even though I hadn't finished the laundry and there were still two pans of cookies to bake.

So pretty good...except for totally losing my cool when I just could not locate Luke's birth certificate. Someday when I'm feeling especially zen I really need to clean out that office closet!

The Problem with Good Deals

2009-07-28T18:36:00.000-07:00

We eat a lot of sandwiches around here and I've been buying prepackaged deli meat for over a year now. There are several brands that I can always get at the commissary for $1.45 or $1.50 for 9 oz. after coupons. Not a bad price, and some of the meat is pretty good. Plus I get a free container out of the deal.

But on my last shopping trip I used a fantastic coupon I got from Sara Lee for a free product, up to $8.99. So I went to the deli counter and ordered up a pound and a quarter of sliced turkey. Last night DH made a sandwich and raved how good it was. I told him it cost seven dollars a pound and he said..."Worth every penny!"

Sigh...Now I'm going to have to retrain his taste buds for bargain sandwiches.

Bubble Bath

2009-05-14T18:06:00.000-07:00

Nick loves bubbles. When I wash his hair he wipes the shampoo out of his hair and rubs it on my arms and laughs. He rubs them on his arms and then shows me how to make them go away by dunking his arm in the water. So I thought I'd give him an extra special treat tonight with his first ever bubble bath.

He watched closely as I added the bubble bath under the running water. He listened and heard the fizzing noise as some of the bubbles popped. He almost forgot about dumping his potty into the toilet he was so intent on getting into the tub.

I picked him up and set him on his feet in the warm, sudsy water. He squatted down. He howled. "No bubbles!" he cried. "No bubbles!"

"Honey, you like bubbles. These are just like the ones you get washed with but there's lots of them to play with!"

"No bubbles! Get out." Tears start to well up in his scared little eyes. "Get out!"

So there was no bath tonight. So much for my extra special treat.

When I tucked him into bed he told me "Tomorrow bath. No bubbles." Then he smiled at me, "Silly Mom."

Little Things to Remember

2009-05-13T17:36:00.000-07:00

Overheard while Nick was "reading" in the other room: "X, A, F, B. Good job!"
But maybe it really was a good job, because reading G is for Gecko tonight I'd say Nick got 75% of his letters right. I knew that he knew some letters, but I was more than surprised at some of the ones he identified.
Luke has decided he loves his daddy. His face lights up with a big grin when Ben makes faces at him.
Nick twines his fingers through my hair when I sing to him before bed. Lately song requests have included the dump truck song, the cement mixer song, and the mac-cheese song.
If someone would hold him up, Luke would be perfectly happy to stand on his feet all day long. I'm cleaning off the exersaucer tonight. Tomorrow he'll be 16 weeks old. Already.

Beautiful Bouquets

2009-05-11T19:34:00.000-07:00

Are there any flowers so sweet as the dandelions picked by a two year old for his mommy? I wished I had a camera with me today to catch a picture of him running around the yard with two bright yellow flowers gripped so hard in his hand that the stems were broken and the heads dangling toward the ground. And he still held them up to show me, proud as can be, as he announced, "Picked flowers!"

Thankful Thursday

2009-04-30T12:47:00.000-07:00

Last week I made my first all-out, fill-up-the-cart grocery shopping trip with both boys. (How did I manage so long? I guess there are advantages to Ben being on 2nd shift.)

By halfway through the store Luke was hollering. I started just grabbing what I knew I needed and if someone else was in the way, well, that item could wait for the next shopping trip.

Since it was almost noon and I had no time to fix lunch, I picked up a rotisserie chicken on the way to check out.

The scan label on the chicken got stuck to my coupons. Got it off the coupons and stuck it to the handle of the cart so it would be handy to have the cashier scan.

With Luke in the sling, I tried to unload the cart. This was no easy task and the crying got louder.

The cashier came around to finish unloading the bottom of my cart for me. She chatted about having kids of her own and knowing how it was when they didn't cooperate with errands.

She dug the off chicken bar code, which had sealed itself completely to the handle of the shopping cart.

She was friendly while scanning my many coupons.

She waited patiently as I put my change away and dug out a tip for the bagger.

And she empathized when half the contents of my wallet then fell on the floor.

I realized on the way home that while she was being extra patient and friendly, I was so caught up in everything that was going wrong I hardly even answered her. I wanted to call the store and compliment her, but I hadn't bothered to look at her name tag.

So, thank you cashier at the commissary, for not making me feel worse for going through your line utterly disorganized with a screaming baby, but for actually making me feel better.

And thank you also to Nick, for sitting quietly while Mommy dashed around the store, bouncing Luke, and ignoring you.

Baby Noises

2009-04-30T12:26:00.000-07:00

Luke is over three months old and still sleeping in our bedroom. And Ben hasn't even complained about it yet. So the question is...why is he still in our bedroom?

I think it's the noises. Those beautiful sighs and moans and squeaks that come out when he sleeps. I love those noises. Already they have changed from his newborn sounds (I'm tearing up, just thinking about that). They are the noises of a little boy who is totally safe and secure and at peace and I love to be reminded of that.

New noises have started. He laughs at Nick and me when we get him ready for his bath. Another beautiful sound. I can't wait for Ben to hear it.

And now I can hear him crying from the kitchen. Not so pleasant to hear, but the kid's got a good comic sense of timing.

Quiet Time

2009-04-22T12:24:00.000-07:00

I spent half an hour sitting at the kitchen table with my son. Why? I gave him a shoelace and a couple handfuls of rigatoni, intending for him to string them together. Well, he wasn't real keen on that, but lining up the noodles, trying to stack the noodles, and counting the noodles all were great fun. And the best part was that since the baby fell asleep in my lap after nursing, I didn't even feel bad for just sitting there with him while ignoring the dirty dishes and not fixing dinner.

Just a Day at the Park

2009-04-20T18:12:00.000-07:00

We put aside the basement project for the day on Saturday and instead walked the few blocks to the park. I made sandwiches and threw some snacks in the backpack so we could sit by the pond and have a picnic. Nick thought this was pretty cool (it was his first picnic since he could eat real food) although he ate a total of about three bites. After we ate we put Luke in the stroller and played a few holes of frisbee golf. Nick would ahead run and pick up our discs for us. When we all got worn out we loaded Nick back into the stroller, Luke into the sling and headed for home.

It was the best afternoon I've spent since Luke arrived. I've missed doing things just as a family, just because they're enjoyable, not because they need to be done. It didn't require any planning or travel time. The hardest part of the day was finding the discs in the basement. I think I liked it for the simplicity of it.