Mmm...Mmmm...Apple Butter

I love the fall!  I love everything about it..the cooler weather, the bright colors, the falling leaves, the pumpkins, and our new favorite tradition- apple picking!  Two years ago we spent a week in New Hampshire in October.  Grace was only 18 months old, and we decided she would have a fun time picking apples.  We were right!  We spent an afternoon at an apple orchard, and Grace toddled around picking up all the bruised, rotting apples from the ground and put them in our bag (which we later removed), and then tried to carry it around all by herself.  It was such a fun experience!  Then, last year we found a fruit farm in the Columbus area that has pick-your-own apples, and we decided to try it out.  Once again, it was great fun! 

When we got home, we decided we needed to do something with all of our apples (there was no way we could eat them all).  I really wanted to make apple butter (both Jeremy and I really like it), but thought it was probably too time consuming and difficult to make.  But, I looked online and found a recipe for apple butter in the crock pot!  I should mention, that I have always loved my crock pot.  For someone who is not always that adept in the kitchen, I feel like you really can't screw anything up too badly in the crock pot.  So, we gave it a shot...with wonderful results!  We made two batches, which came out to about 12 jelly jars plus a large rubbermaid container full.  I had also never canned anything before (once again, it always seemed above my culinary abilities), but was surprised to find out how easy water bath canning is.  A year later, we just finished our last jar of last year's apple butter.  It lasted a whole year, and was much cheaper than buying it in the store!

Needless to say, when fall began approaching this year, we planned another round of apple butter making.  It's so good and so easy I just had to share the recipe with you all.  The original recipe can be found here, but here is our slightly altered version:

• Peel and core 6 pounds of apples*  
  

* I've found that slightly tart apples yield the best flavor.  Last year we used Golden Supreme (I think), and the apple butter was superb.  This year we used Honeycrisp, and the result was a little too sweet.

• Cut the apples into small chunks and place in a crock pot
• In a bowl, mix together 3 cups (approx.) of sugar*, 2 tsp. cinnamon, 1/4 tsp. cloves, and 1/4 tsp. salt and pour the mixture over the apples, mixing well.

* The amount of sugar will vary depending on the sweetness of the apples...3 cups was a little much for the Honeycrisp apples but almost perfect for the Golden Supreme

• Cover and cook on high for 1-2 hours

After about 1 hour of cooking

• Reduce heat to low and cook about 11 hours, stirring occasionally* until the mixture is thickened and dark brown.  Using a whisk may be helpful in increasing the smoothness of the mixture.  

 *It is important to stir every hour or so to prevent the apple butter from burning and sticking on the bottom.  I have a friend who used this recipe but let the apple butter cook over night.  When she woke up she had a burnt mess in her crock pot! 

After 5 hours of cooking

After 11 hours of cooking

• Uncover and cook an additional 1-2 hours to increase thickness.  
• To test if the apple butter is ready, put a small spoonful on a plate.  If there is little or no water separation from the apple butter (you may notice a ring of liquid around the apple butter), then you're done!
• Transfer apple butter to sterile jars (We used a measuring cup with a spout, but a funnel would also come in handy)

• Wipe excess apple butter off jar rims (otherwise you may not get a good seal)
• Place lids on jars and screw on the lid bands just until snug (not too tight)
• Using a jar lifter, place jars in a large water bath canner or stock pot of boiling water, ensuring that water is 1 inch above the jars and cover with lid

 A jar lifter

• Let the jars boil for 15 minutes

• Using the jar lifter, remove the jars from the boiling water and place on several towels on the counter to cool
• Within a few minutes you should hear a slight popping noise from each jar as they seal.  

• Once cool, tighten the lids on the jars and store for future use

If you like apple butter, I highly recommend trying this recipe.  It is so yummy and easy to make...oh, and it makes the house smell fabulous while it cooks!!  Happy Fall, everyone!

Quiet Time: Music to My Ears

When Grace was a baby I always said that I had the worst napper on the face of the earth.  No matter what I did I could not get her to nap.  She never took 2 naps a day like most babies do, and the one nap she took would be an hour and a half on a good day.  It turns out that since she slept 13-14 hours a night, she didn't really need long naps.  Good for her, I guess, but not so good for Mommy.  When she turned 2 she went through a month (or so) long phase where she stopped napping completely.  She was no longer sleeping 14 hours at night, though, so I was sure she really NEEDED a nap. I tried every day, and she would either cry and throw a fit or just sit in her bed and talk and sing at the top of her lungs.  I freaked out- "She is way too young to stop napping!" I thought.  Not to mention, I was pregnant and needed naps myself.  Thankfully, it was just a phase at that time.  She went back to taking naps, albeit short ones, most days. 

Then, a couple of months before she turned 3, it happened again.  No matter what I did, I could not get Grace to nap.  Most days we ended up in an all out battle in which she would scream and cry, kick and throw things (did I mention that I have a very strong-willed daughter?), and end up NOT sleeping.  After a couple of weeks of this, I though, "Ok, we've got to try something else.  This kid is not going to take a nap." I tried putting Grace in her room and told her to read books for an hour.  The problem was she "read" through every book in about 15-20 minutes and would then yell, "I'm done!"  Then, I decided to just have her "play quietly" in her room for an hour.  The problem with THAT was that my girl does not have a "quiet" setting.  She would stay in her room, but I would hear her singing and talking so loudly that she was waking Norah up from her naps.  Grrr... I was getting frustrated- especially after I took Grace to her 3-year check up, and after telling the pediatrician that she had dropped napping, she (the Dr.) told me, "That's alright, as long as she still has quiet time each day." 

I really was at my wit's end.  I knew Grace needed time where she was calm and quiet, and I DEFINITELY needed an hour of quiet to myself!  I finally got online and started searching around for ideas.  I found a couple of ideas on Pinterest and, after tweaking them a bit, decided to give "quiet time" another go.  I'm sure you all are dying to know what happened.........


.....Well, let's just say that I'm typing this blog in a relatively quiet house without a 3-year old asking me what I want to play every 2 minutes!

I finally found a method that seems to work.  I came up with a "Quiet Time" chart:  a piece of card stock on which I drew 8 different activities that Grace can play by herself in the basement for an hour.  The card stock is covered with contact paper (two pieces stuck together with the chart in the middle- cheap lamination!) and is clipped on the fridge. 

Every day before quiet time, Grace is told to pick three things from the chart to do, and then she sticks magnets on them.  Then, I walk her down to the basement, remind her of the 3 activities she has chosen, set the timer on my iPod (anywhere from 1 to 1 1/2 hours) and tell her I will see her when the alarm goes off.  We've been doing this for about 2 months, and it has been amazing!  There are still some days when she yells upstairs, "Mommy, how much longer do I have?"  But, for the most part, Grace plays quietly by herself and I have an hour to MYSELF! 

I found the idea for a chart on Pinterest, and got the idea of giving 3 specific quiet time choices in an article I read.  It has been a great combination for Grace.  She loves to look at the chart and stick the magnets on it.  And, by choosing 3 options on her own, I think she feels a sense of ownership in her quiet time.  She knows that if she finishes her 3 activities and the alarm hasn't rung, she is allowed to play something else as long as she stays in the basement and does it quietly.  She has even chosen sleep on occasion, and I've gone into the basement after an hour and found the alarm ringing and Grace out cold on the couch. 

I am so thankful that I finally found a solution to the "Quiet Time" predicament.  At least for now, our house is a much happier place in the afternoon, and we have less tantrum throwing and mommy-daughter battles.  And, I sure do love the sound of peace and quiet :) I'm gonna mark this one down as a win for the Mommy!

The Front Door

I've always considered myself a "crafty" person.  I like doing creative things.  I used to be an avid scrapbooker...but then I had 2 kids.  And, although, I have the perfect subjects of which to scrapbook, I no longer have the time that good scrapbooking requires.  Not to mention, there are so many cool ways to save and organize pictures digitally (even digital scrapbooks), that I feel like scrapbooking has sort of run its course, at least in my life.

I also love decorating.  Sometimes I think I should have gone to a college with an interior design program and majored in that instead of my what-in-the-world-do-you-do-with-it degree in communication.  But, that's another blog entry.  Anyways, I am,  somewhat to my husband's chagrin, constantly looking for new (and considering we are on a budget these days, CHEAP) ways to decorate our house.  I have for a while been looking for some new kind of wreath to put on our front door.  I don't want your typical spring or summer floral wreath- not that there's anything wrong with those.  I just wanted something different.  I've always wanted people to feel welcome when they walk up to and into my house.  Perhaps that's why I am always looking for ways to decorate and re-decorate my entryway...and why I've been on the lookout for a cool front door hanging.   While searching Pinterest the other day, I came across a really neat square yarn wreath.  I loved the idea because: 1) A square "wreath" is different and 2) I pretty much had or could very cheaply get everything I needed to make it.  The idea came from THIS BLOG, but I put my own twist on it.


Here is the finished product:

All it took was a plain picture frame (I found two of these collecting dust in my closet and was about to throw them away...but why waste them?), yarn (I chose colors to coordinate with our door and living room, but anything would work),  felt (for the flowers), buttons (for the centers of the flowers), a coat hanger (for the letter "B"), and spray paint (to paint the coat hanger).


Using a hot glue gun, I glued the end of the yarn on the back of the frame and started wrapping.  I put dots of glue occasionally as I wrapped to keep the yarn in place.  After that was finished, I cut several flower shapes out of pieces of felt and glued these down and then glued buttons on the center of them.

The final touch was adding the "B" (as my daughter says, "B is for Buskirk!") in the center.  This I made by simply cutting a coat hanger with wire cutters and then bending it into the shape of a "B".  I then sprayed it with a double coat of blue spray paint and - Voila!- I had my letter "B".

I attached the B with yarn and glue to the frame so that it wouldn't flop around too much. 

I am rather proud of my new "wreath".  I think it looks quite welcoming, and hopefully our guests think so, too!

My next craft involves the second of the two unused picture frames, so stay tuned for that... :)

7 Years

Yesterday Jeremy and I celebrated our seven year anniversary!  That seems like such a big number- 7!  We also attended the wedding of one of my childhood friends over the weekend, and it got me reminiscing about our own wedding on the same weekend seven years earlier.  It some ways it seems like it was ages ago and in some ways like it was yesterday.

 Like many (but definitely not all) girls, I LOVED planning my wedding, and to this day I still say that it was the best wedding I've ever been to (I might be just a slight bit biased).  I distinctly remember going to bed the night before the big day realizing that it would be my last night in "my bed" at "my house" and thinking that there was no way I was going to be able to sleep because I was so excited.  I ended up having one of the best nights of sleep ever.  And then I woke up to my wedding day.  I remember some details so vividly...doing my hair (and having to run to the drug store because I didn't have enough bobby pins), seeing the bright pink, orange and green bouquets for the first time (and thinking that they were PERFECT), using the bathroom off the church's nursery in my huge dress and not being sure I would find the toilet, holding my dad's hand at the back of the church waiting for the music cue, seeing my grandpa cry as he performed the ceremony.  Then came the reception, which was also extremely memorable!  In fact, I had several people remind me in the last few days that my wedding will forever be remembered as "the one where the power went out."  It was a very hot and humid day, and in the middle of the reception, during the dollar dance to be exact, there was a very brief storm with an intense bolt of lighting that knocked the power out.  Normally something like this, that goes against my plans, gets me all bent out of shape; but on that day I just laughed and thought, "Well, everyone will remember this wedding!" And they do.  I'll also never forget the way we started singing "Row, Row, Row You Boat" and "B-I-N-G-O" to keep the dancing (and cash flow) going.  I will also never forget leaving the reception and crying in the car because it had been such a wonderful day and because I was leaving my old life behind and starting a new one and because I didn't know when or even if I would see some of my college friends again.  It was exciting and scary!

Now, seven year later, I find myself looking back over the past years and being amazed at how far Jeremy and I have come, and how much we've accomplished, and how God has worked in our lives. Our first year was spent in a little apartment in the ghetto...literally.  My mom told me that if I wasn't married she never would have let me live there.  The apartment was nothing to brag about, but the rent was cheaper than most and allowed us to save up for a house.  I remember waking up one night, and many nights thereafter, to what sounded like a freight train and running to the window to discover a police helicopter circling our neighborhood with it's search light blazing looking for who knows what (I'm not sure I want to know).  I remember Jeremy and I eating every meal on tray tables in our living room because our kitchen was so tiny and having to wash all our dishes by hand because we didn't have a dishwasher.  I remember wondering if we would EVER have any friends and then meeting Justin and Michelle who became our first and now, years later, some of our best friends.  I will never forget Jeremy working long hours for the State and me working at Dr. Tom's dental office and my very first time as "Clown Smiley" (yes, I had to dress up like a clown and do dental presentations to pre-schoolers).

Finally, a year-and-a-half after we got married we got out of the apartment in the ghetto and bought our first half.  I will never forget waking up that first morning in my very own house.  I was giddy!  We finally had more than one bathroom, and a dishwasher, and a GARAGE!  I was so thankful that we spent that first year in that little apartment saving every cent so that we could buy a house.  Soon after this, we started attending Heritage Christian Church and met several other wonderful couples with whom we founded the "Life Group of Awesomeness," which we are still a part of today.  I remember Jeremy applying for the district accountant job at Dublin City Schools and waiting anxiously to hear if he got the job.  Then one day, while he was in the shower, his phone rang and someone left a voicemail.  Like any good wife I listened to it and discovered it was the treasurer of Dublin City Schools who wanted to talk to Jeremy.  I ran upstairs and told Jeremy that he had to get out of the shower NOW and call the guy back!  He did...and discovered that he got the job!  We were thrilled!  Soon after that, we went through a tough time.  Through a somewhat random sequence of events, it was discovered that I had some type of tumor in my chest next to my heart.  After meeting with many doctors and having MRI's and CT scans I was told by one doctor that I had a parasitic infection (supposedly contracted from my time in Egypt in college) and needed to have surgery.  Because of the rarity of the condition I was convinced I was going to die on some operating table in a foreign country with a foreign doctor trying to remove the tumor.  Thankfully, that didn't happen.  The tumor turned out to be a teratoma (a very rare, but thankfully benign, tumor) that did require open-heart surgery, but it was performed at OSU, not in Peru.  And, the worst part of it all, was that I had to spend Christmas with my head over a puke bucket, as the anesthesia made me horribly sick.

But, God got us through it.  Next came our struggle to get pregnant.  After 9 months of trying, I was convinced we weren't going to be able to have kids.  But God had other plans and 3 years ago we welcomed Grace Olivia into our lives.  I will never forget that first night in the hospital with Grace asleep in her little bassinet beside me on one side and Jeremy asleep on the sofa bed on the other side.  My heart was so full that I thought it would burst.  It was probably the happiest night of my life!  I quit my job to stay home with Grace and love that I got to witness her first smile, first crawl, first steps and all the other little moments that come with being a mom.  She has brought so much joy to our lives. Then, 8 months ago we welcomed little Norah Hope.  I honestly panicked before she was born because I truly did not think I could love another child as much as I loved Grace.  But, somehow, my capacity to love grew immensely, and I can't imagine my life without her. I have to admit, the past few months (up until just over a month ago) have been a bit of a blur as I have been severely sleep deprived.  Norah has been a challenging baby, having issues with reflux which led to lots of sleeping troubles.  But, she has finally turned a corner and has become a much happier baby in the last month.  She is such a giggly, wiggly, curious little bundle of energy.  I love her to pieces.

So here we are 7 months post-wedding, and I couldn't be more thankful for what God has done in our lives.  It's been a full seven years, yet I know that many more great things lie ahead.  I can't help but wonder what another recap with look like seven years down the road.  I am so thankful that I said "I Do" to Jeremy 7 years ago.  He is my perfect match and everything I could ask for in a husband!  I'm glad I'm on this ride with him and look forward to seeing what's around the bend!

Getting Fit

It's been way too long since my last post!  Things have just been crazy busy at our house.  But, I'm really excited about a new habit (well, hopefully it will stay a habit) that I've been getting into.....wait for it....WORKING OUT!  I know, this shouldn't be a habit that I'm just now starting, and, quite frankly, I've started and stopped this habit many times in my lifetime.  This time, though, I'm really trying to stick with it.  I've been very consistent for the past 8 or so weeks, and I'm loving the results!

I should start out my saying, that I'm not working out to lose weight.  Fortunately, I've never really had to worry about my weight.  I've always had a fast metabolism and, other than the 10 pounds I put on in college, have pretty much been about the same size since high school.  I was concerned both times I got pregnant that I would put on a lot of weight and have trouble taking it off.  Thankfully though, both times, between breastfeeding and just having a good metabolism, the baby weight came off very quickly.  But...that, along with wanting to sleep in (I mean, I do have a baby that doesn't often sleep through the night) became a good excuse for me to be a bit lazy and definitely not be as healthy as I could be. I realized one day while looking in the mirror that, although I was not overweight, I had a lot of flabby areas that I wished were not that way, particularly my arms and my baby "pooch," and I always felt run down with little energy.  I knew I needed to do something.

I guess I can thank my husband for getting my butt in gear.  He just finished his second round of the P90X workout system, and faithfully gets up before 5:00 each morning to do his workout.  One day I said to him, "Why don't you just sleep in with me occasionally?"  His reply was, "Because if I don't get up and do my workout I won't have the energy to make it through the day." (So he apparently is also suffering from baby wakings at night).  I, too, realized that some days I have so little energy that I don't think I'll make it through the day. On top of that, Jeremy is also a runner and has completed 2 half marathons.  We have some good friends who are also runners, and as they often discuss their training, I have found myself thinking- Wow!  I sure am lazy!  I also remember watching a TV segment on one of the morning shows a while ago about being healthy.  It showed two women who were about the same size and both looked thin and "healthy."  The one woman worked out regularly and ate healthy.  The other woman they called "skinny fat."  In other words, due to good genes, she was not overweight, but neither was she very healthy.  She never exercised and didn't really pay attention to what she ate.  I realized that she could be me.  So, I have been on a quest to get fit and healthy. 

My goal has been to work out at least 4 days a week.  During the week I try to be up at 7 a.m. (half the time I am up by this time or earlier with Norah anyways), and I do a workout video.  I've been doing Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred.  It's been a perfect workout for me because it's only 20 minutes (I can't manage much more than that in my schedule), and as she describes it herself, it's "no joke."  It's pretty intense, and I'm definitely seeing the results.  I've worked my way up to Level 3 (of her 3 level system) and at one point she says, "If you've been sticking with the program, you should be seeing a 6 pack right about this time."  I thought- She's right!  I can see my abs for the first time maybe ever!  Along with these workouts during the week, I try to do a 2-mile run once or twice over the weekend.  I've never really enjoyed running (I'm never going to join my husband in a half-marathon), but I do love the way I feel after I finish. 

Now that I'm a couple of months into my new "routine," I can honestly say that I feel better, have more energy (I don't feel ready to crash at 2 p.m.), and am definitely healthier!  I look in the mirror and can actually see the muscles in my arms and legs and wonder why I haven't been doing this before!  Now my only dilemma is which workout to start next.  Jillian Michael's is getting a little boring after 8 weeks....so, that's my new quest!

A Daily Struggle

As of a week ago today, my baby is officially 5 months old!  In some ways it has gone incredibly fast, and in other ways they have been 5 LONG months.  I mentioned earlier that the transition from 1 to 2 children was more challenging than I expected.   EVERYTHING became harder...making dinner, doing housework, playing with my 2-year-old, running errands, even taking a walk.  All of this has been  exasperated by the fact that I have a VERY fussy baby!

It all started when we discovered, within the first few days of being home from the hospital, that Norah would scream every single time we laid her down on her back.  After talking with the doctor, it was determined that she had reflux.  We were given some tips to help such as elevate the head of her crib, use a sleep positioner to keep her on her side, and keep her upright for at least 30 minutes after eating.  After a couple months without much improvement, her pediatrician put her on medication for the reflux.  This seemed to help at first- her screaming spells seemed slightly fewer and shorter- but it didn't really solve the problem.  On top of having reflux, she had other tummy issues which seemed partially due to sensitivities to things I was eating (since I was breastfeeding).  After trying to cut various things out of my diet but being unsuccessful in locating any specific cause, I decided to switch to formula.  This, too, seemed to help initially, but after a week or two the long crying spells returned.   I should mention that Norah eats great, and other than spitting up excessively, doesn't exhibit any other physical symptoms. We've talked with the pediatrician, but considering she's gaining weight (she has some of the chubbiest cheeks I've ever seen :) ), she doesn't seem to think there is anything "wrong" with her...some babies are just overly fussy and have sensitive systems.  Grrrr.... Not that I want there to be something wrong with my child, but I was hoping for a better answer than that.

At the beginning I would tell myself, "I just need to get to the 1 month mark, then everything will get better."  This turned into, "I just need to make it until she turns 3 months.  Everything improves once they hit 3 months!"  Then it was 4 months...and now here we are at 5 months, and I am currently listening to my baby scream uncontrollably from her crib.  I find myself wondering, "Will she ever outgrow this?"  The crazy thing is, she can cry for hours on end, and then suddenly without warning get happy and smiley.  These moments are wonderful, but don't do much to ease my frustration. 

It's especially hard because I'm often dealing with this on a severe lack of sleep.  Norah has also not been a good sleeper at night.  Around 10 weeks, she started sleeping through the night....for about a week.  Then she was up twice a night, sometimes for extended periods of time.  Then she would sleep well again for a night or two, then it was back to screaming spells in the middle of the night.  The longest she has ever gone sleeping through the night is 5 days.  I'm pushing for at least a week- we're currently on day 4 of this stretch...I've got my fingers crossed! 

I'm not writing this to complain...I do my fair share of that, trust me.  I'm simply trying to explain why I'm at where I'm at.  I've gradually seen my anger and frustration towards my children building.  When my 2 year old starts whining or misbehaving while I'm trying to calm a screaming baby, I find myself yelling at her far too quickly.   In the middle of the night when Norah has been screaming uncontrollably for an hour, I find myself screaming right back at her!  I know this is not the right response, definitely not the response that Jesus would have. 

This past Friday night, I attended the Women's Night of Worship at church.  I debated about attending (even though I helped set up for it), because Norah had a very rough night the night before and I was running on 4 hours of sleep.  But, my husband, encouraged me to get out of the house.  He was right...I needed it.  It was so wonderful to spend time worshiping the Lord without the distractions of kids or a to-do list.  It the midst of this service, God really convicted me about my anger.  I realized that, especially at this young age, the only "Jesus" my kids really see is me.  I'm the one that is with them 24/7, and if I don't show them what Jesus is like, who will?  My yelling and screaming in anger at them is not how Jesus would react.  My 2-year-old is especially strong-willed and prone to throwing temper tantrums (like, several a day), and I realized that my reaction to her behavior is not much different than her tantrums.  And I definitely do NOT want to encourage that response.  I've had to ask the Lord for forgiveness, as I realize the sinfulness in my attitude.

So, I've been really praying that God would take away some of the impatience and anger I have been harboring inside.  I'm to the point where I don't know if or when Norah's fussiness will go away.  I may just have an extremely high-needs baby who needs constant attention.  While this doesn't exactly excite me, I can have a better response than what I've been having.  I can see the situation for what it is, a chance for me to grow in patience and love and a chance to show these traits to my children.  God has given them to me and I need to be a good steward of His gifts.  I love my children so much, and I only hope that they can see how much I love them and how much Jesus loves them, too!

Who Knew?

I discovered something new the other day.  Let me preface this by saying that I hate wasting things...especially food, in particular, produce.  I HATE when a recipe calls for some type of fresh herb (most recently, thyme) or some other kind of fresh food, but it only requires a very small amount.  First of all, most kinds of produce, especially herbs, are expensive.  This means that not only does the particular item go bad before I use it, but I've also spent money on something that I didn't completely use...bugs me every time!

Well, recently when I was at a friend's house, I noticed that she had something growing in a glass of water on her windowsill. Upon closer inspection, I realized that they were green onions.  "What's that all about?" I asked.  "Oh, it's something I saw on pinterest," she said. 

-- Brief interjection here.  Have I mentioned how much I LOVE pinterest?  I get so many great ideas from it.  It's AWESOME!  Ok, I think that will be the subject of my next blog.  Interjection over.--

"You can put your used green onions in a glass of water, and the roots will grow and so will new shoots of onions," she explained.  Really??  I had no idea.  So I decided to try it.  And guess what?  It works!  Amazing!  They grow really fast, too.

The onions on the right have been in the water for only 2 days.  

The ones on the left were put in last night.

Do you know how many times I buy green onions, or scallions, for a recipe, only use one or two, and then the rest go bad?!  What a waste!  Now I can regrow my own instead of buying them all the time.  And, if unused ones start to wilt, I can chop off the green part and grow fresh ones!  I don't know how many times you can do this, as this is the first time I've tried it.  The roots grow quickly, so before long, I'm sure they will overtake the glass of water.  Maybe the roots can be trimmed, too?  Hmmm...I guess I'll have to experiment.  Nonetheless, this is a handy little trick that I plan to use.  Granted, green onions are on the cheap end of the spectrum when it comes to fresh produce, but I'll take it.  Try it for yourself.  It's always nice to have green onions on hand!

It's a Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

I knew it was supposed to be warm today, I just didn't realize how warm!  Let's face it, we haven't had much of a winter this year.  Normally this would sadden me.  I've always liked snow, at least up through February, but I just don't handle the cold as well as I used to.  It seeps into my bones and I feel like I can never get warm.  But, it is nonetheless still winter, so I couldn't believe it when I looked at my thermometer and saw that it read 69 degrees!  "Holy Cow!  What am I doing inside?" I thought. 

So, I grabbed my tennis shoes and Grace's and said, "How about we go for a walk?"  "Yay, Mommy! A walk!" said Grace.  I grabbed the moby wrap (lent to me by my good friend, Sarah), tucked Norah inside, and off we went.  I couldn't believe how beautiful it was outside!  Ok, the ground was soggy, the grass was brown, but the sun was warm and the breeze felt and smelled so good!  I hadn't realized how much I had been longing to be outside.  One of the worst aspects of winter is being cooped up in the house. Grace must have felt the same way because the second we got outside she took off running and jumping down the sidewalk.  "C'mon, Mommy!" she kept yelling...I couldn't quite keep up with her while toting Norah. 

And, speaking of Norah, her reaction was probably the most beautiful part of our journey outside.  She was looking around like she'd never seen the world outside before...and, I guess, essentially she hadn't.  She was born in October, and although we've been on several walks since then, she's always been bundled up and shut inside the stroller without much of a view.  Today, though, she was taking it all in.  Every time we walked under a tree she would just stare up at it with her big blue eyes.  And, every time the wind blew, she would gasp and then give a huge drooly grin.  It was priceless! 

I had such a wonderful time outside with my girls.  Thank you, Jesus, for days like today.  I'd be totally okay if spring was here to stay :)

The Power of Positive Thinking

Anyone who knows me well can tell you that I'm a natural born pessimist, a bit of a Debbie downer, if you will.  I like to think of it as being "realistic" or "practical."  Whatever spin you put on it, though, I typically see the glass half empty.  I've known this about myself for a long time, and it's not something I'm proud of.  In fact, I really wish I was more of an optimist.  Let's face it, optimistic people are typically much more enjoyable to be around and usually find more overall joy in life. I've been working on being more optimistic for a while now but have been falling miserably short.  I always chalk it up to my personality or say, "That's just the way God made me."  But, I've been realizing that it is possible to become more optimistic and find more joy in the circumstances around me.  This, however, does not happen on its own or even easily.  Rather, it takes a conscious and concerted effort.

So, I'm on a quest to become a more positive thinker. This started a couple of weeks ago after the "favorite things" edition of my MOPS group, where each woman shared something she found particularly useful or enjoyable.   One woman mentioned a devotional book that had really spoken to her about being thankful for all of the gifts God gives us.  To be honest, I don't even remember the name of the book, but it was one of the items in the raffle that was held at the end of the session.  While I didn't win the devotional book, I did win a small journal that went along with it.  On the front of the journal is the Bible verse, "Every good gift and perfect gift is from above," James 1:17.  I took it home and didn't think much about it...until later.  That same afternoon, Norah had her worst afternoon to date.  She started screaming at 1:30 p.m., and no matter what I did  (feed, rock, sing, change her diaper, etc.) she WOULD NOT STOP!  This went on for over 4 hours.  By the time Jeremy got home from work I was a wreck.  I had even put earplugs in to try to block out the screaming and keep myself sane.  I had been wanting to get my hair cut for a while, so I told him, "Your turn," and went to the salon to free myself from the chaos.  Needless to say, I wasn't feeling very joyful or optimistic at this point.  As I was waiting at the salon, I picked up a magazine.  I think it was Family Circle, but I don't remember for sure.  It was the January edition, so it was discussing ways to a healthier, happier you in the new year.  One of the tips it mentioned was writing down 3 positive things that happen to you each day.  "Interesting," I thought.  That night, after I got back from Great Clips (which, surprisingly, gave me a very nice hair cut for only $12 as opposed to my usual $60 salon trip- but that's another story), I saw the journal laying on my nightstand and immediately flashed back to the magazine article.  And that's when I made the decision.  I was going to write down 3 positive things that happened to me each day in that journal.

For the past 2 weeks (and hopefully for the rest of the year), this is what I've been doing. It has been a wonderful discipline for me.  Some days I think, "well, there was nothing positive that happened today!"  But, then as I sit and think about it, I realize that many positive things happened.  Sometimes it's just small things, like- Grace didn't throw a fit at nap time.  And sometimes, it's more exciting, like- Norah slept 12 hours last night- or - I got to go on a date with my husband.  Whatever the case, this journal has forced me to focus on the positive things in my day for at least a short while.  Even on the worst of days, I realize that God always gives us something to be thankful for.  He has given me so many wonderful, positive things in my life if I could just take the time to recognize them.  Already this has helped me be a little less glum and a little more joyful.

So, I'm working on seeing the glass half full...or at least seeing those pretty frozen berry ice cubes floating inside.

Simplifying

So, I've come to the realization that I need to do something to encourage more smoothness in my days- less agitation and frustration, more calm and peace.  Some days I feel so frazzled and bent out of shape, and I can't even figure out how I got to that point.  I should start by explaining two things.  First, I am an anxiety-prone control freak.  I like it when things go a certain way (which is always my way, of course), and when they don't, my adrenaline starts pumping, my heart starts racing, and the anger starts boiling.  Second, the transition from one to two kids has been much more difficult than I expected.  My two-year-old has always been rather high-strung and demanding (hmm...wonder where she gets that from?) and I now have a high-needs baby who is fussy much of the time and just as demanding.  I feel like I'm being pulled in forty different directions and find myself often saying, either out loud or to myself, "I'm only one person!  I can't do it all!"  Well, duh?!  No one person is meant to do it all.  Maybe I am just trying to do too much (definitely part of it, I think) and maybe I'm not bringing alongside the Person who promised to help (yup, think that's part of it, too).

Our life group is currently going through the book of Colossians.  And, for once, I actually participated in part of the study this week (after feeding and rocking a fussy baby and finally getting her to sleep).  The passage we were looking at was Colossians 3:1-17.  At one point we split into groups and had to define the various traits we are to clothe ourselves with in verse 12: "...clothe yourselves with with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience." We then had to share which attribute we struggled with the most and pray for each other.  Well, for me it was a no-brainer.  I struggle with patience...every day...which, in turn, causes me to lack gentleness, especially when dealing with my kids.  The study this week has really challenged me to work at being more patient.  But, I've realized that it takes more than just saying "I'm going to try to be more patient today." I've realized that I need to take some practical steps in my day to help towards that end.  

So, I'm trying.  The one part of my day that has always been exceptionally stressful (as most moms, and even many women who don't have kids but work, can relate to) is dinner time.   Finding recipes, planning meals for the week, making grocery lists, actually going shopping, and finally preparing meals can be so stressful for me.  Every week I felt like I was spending hours poring through cookbooks and magazines looking for easy recipes to make that week; but after coming up with little, would end up just buying whatever at the store, which subsequently resulted in me staring at my pantry shelves blankly during the week trying to come up with some wonderful idea for dinner, and feeling like I failed miserably.  So, after joining (and becoming rather addicted) to pinterest, I found a wonderful idea for a menu board that I immediately made and now use each week.   I think it's FABULOUS, and it has really simplified dinner time for me:

The menu board has a clothespin for each day of the week to which I attach a self-laminated card with the name of a meal on the front and the ingredients needed for it on the back.   I now have about 20 (and hope to compile more) meal cards that are my "go to" meals for most days of the week.  This has taken the guesswork and extensive planning and prep out of my dinner-making each week and made shopping much easier, too!  As mentioned, I got this idea from pinterest, so I cannot take credit for it, but I LOVE it!

This is just the first of hopefully many steps I can take to simplify my days and hopefully encourage more patience in my attitude.  I'm definitely on the lookout for other practical things to help me in this endeavor. Obviously, I know that the most important thing I can do is to keep looking to Jesus for help.  I know that without the Holy Spirit working through me, I can never accomplish the goal of a patient spirit.  But I'm working on it...and learning as I go.  So, here's to more patience!  And, if anyone has other brilliant ideas of ways to simplify life at home, I'm all ears!

Sweet Moments

Lately I've been feeling about a split-second from a meltdown.  I went from a week of no sleep due to Norah going through a growth spurt, followed by a week of no sleep due to both girls being up all night with colds and coughs.  I should mention that I am a person that requires no less than seven hours of sleep at night to function the next day and no less than nine hours of sleep to not just function but feel good doing it.  Needless to say, I haven't been in the best of moods.  I've been exhausted, grumpy, and feeling somewhat like a zombie.  I've even found myself wondering why in the world I ever wanted children!  But God has a wonderful way of reminding me why having children can be such a joy and blessing.

The other morning I was having one of those "just trying to survive" mornings.  Norah was down for a nap and Grace was watching a movie, so I decided to take a quick shower.  Go figure, the second I got out of the shower Norah started screaming from her crib.  Grace came running to inform me that "Norah's cryin' mommy!' I though- Great! I don't even have clothes on or my hair done.  Then, Grace told me "I'm going to go read Norah a story."  So I said, "ok."   Several minutes later I realized that Norah wasn't crying anymore.  I went into her room and this is what I found:

Grace was "reading" away and Norah was absolutely enthralled with her big sister!

What a sweet moment this was for me as a mommy!  Not only did I get a few moments of peace and quiet (and time to put my clothes on), but I found my two girls ENJOYING each other!  It brought a huge smile to my face.  It also reminded me that, although some days are hard (especially at this stage), children are a gift from God and should be cherished.  I'm so thankful for moments like this when I see a glimpse of His glory through my kids!

Vick's VapoRub: My New Friend

It's been a rough week out our house.  Really rough.  It all started when Grace came down with a cold on Sunday.  Her nose started running, and I was hopeful that would be it.  But then the infamous cough came.  I woke up to incessant loud coughing coming from her room around 2 a.m. Monday morning.  The only way I could get her to stop coughing was to sit with her in the recliner downstairs, which she thought was really fun but meant no sleeping for her...or me.  Then, this entire scene repeated itself Monday night.  I knew I couldn't survive another night like that, so I started researching what to do for a cough for a 2-year-old.  Unfortunately, pretty much all cough medicine is not recommended for kids under 6.  The only other remedy I read about was to put Vick's VapoRub on the soles of your child's feet.  This supposedly works wonders for coughs and congestion.  Yeah, right, I thought.  Sounds like an old wives' tale to me.  But, when Grace woke up Tuesday night hacking up a storm after only an hour and a half of being asleep, I raced to Kroger at 9:45 p.m. (only 15 minutes to closing time) in my pajamas and bought some Vick's VapoRub.  I hurried home and opened it up.  I felt rather ridiculous slathering it on her feet, but I did and then put socks on and tucked her back in.  She slept until 9:45 the next morning...no coughing!!  I will now sing the praises of Vick's VapoRub.  If you have a toddler with a cough or cold, try it, and hopefully you'll be as amazed as I was!  I will say, I used it on her feet again last night and she was up at 5:00 a.m. coughing, but that's still much better than being up at midnight (and 2 a.m. and 4 a.m....). 

Now, I have a 3 month old who is really congested.  We've been running a cool mist humidifier, but unfortunately, it really isn't helping, and Vick's isn't recommended for a child under one.  So, if anyone out there knows of a good remedy for an infant cold, please share!  Just when I get one child under control, the other one keeps me up all night.  Here's to hoping we get rid of the sickness in our house soon and Momma can get more than 4 hours of sleep a night!

Play-Doh Veggie Style

Having a new baby in the house has not exactly been the easiest adjustment for Grace.  She was definitely used to being the center of attention and having someone available to play with her all the time.  Now, I feel like all I do is tell her, "I can't play now. I have to feed Norah." or "In a few minutes, I need to rock Norah." or "Mommy has to wash the dishes and then put Norah down for a nap...maybe later."  So, I've been trying to make sure that when Norah is sleeping I make time to play with Grace, just the two of us.  I'll admit, my first inclination once Norah goes down for a nap is to frantically start cleaning any one of the rooms in the house that hasn't been cleaned in weeks or to tackle one of the many loads of laundry.  But, instead I'm trying to consciously make an effort to take special time for Grace.  As my husband tells me, "The cleaning will always be there."

So today, while Norah napped, Grace and I had Play-Doh time, and Mommy decided it would be fun to make Grace's favorite Veggie Tales characters.  These were the result:

 Bob the Tomato and Larry the Cucumber

 Junior Asparagus

Pa Grape

Mr. Lunt

I think my watching the sculptors on Cake Boss and The Next Great Baker has helped, don't you?  Give me some gum paste or cereal treats and I could have a new job :)

The Infamous Budget

My husband and I are both what you would call "fiscally responsible" adults.  I, in fact, grew up as a rather fiscally responsible youngster.  I would always save up my allowance to get something I really wanted instead of spending it the first chance I had.  When I was older, I spent my summers working to save money for college rather than having fun but having to pay off student loans later.  When we got married we moved into an apartment that left much to be desired, but with a monthly rent of less than $500, we were able to save up for a down payment on a house and moved into one less than 2 years after our wedding.  We never use credit cards, except for cash back on gas,  and even that we pay off every month.  I've often prided myself on managing money better than many young adults in this day and age.


That being said, I've never really lived by a monetary budget.  We are not rolling in dough, mind you, but I've always relied on my (and my husband's) own good sense to make wise choices about where to spend money.  God has blessed us richly, but we are starting to realize that, as our family grows and I am no longer working, we need to be more conscious of where our money is going.  Thankfully, other than our mortgage, we are 100% debt-free: Praise the Lord!  But, this is the first year that we have had 2 children and that I am not bringing in any type of income.  And, with several large purchases looming on the horizons my husband decided, and I agreed, that we needed to make a spending budget for the year.  So, here we go...a new year and a new budget. 

I've realized that some things are going to need to change for me.  For instance, I am by no means a shopaholic, but I do enjoy buying new things occasionally.  But now, when I see a cute shirt at Target (which is probably my favorite store of all time and where I do most of my "guilty pleasure" spending) on sale, instead of just splurging I need to ask- is this in the budget?- and if not, I need to say no.  Another thing the comes along with seeing the numbers layed out in a budget is worry.  I'm prone to worry by nature, and I suddenly find myself thinking:  how in the world are we going to afford a new roof?- we were told a couple of years ago that our current one only had 3-5 years left.  And how are we ever going to save enough to buy a new, bigger (and thus more expensive) vehicle?  And what about the paver patio we wanted to replace our falling apart deck?  or the ceiling fan we wanted to keep our bedroom from being positively stifling in the summer? 

As overwhelming as this can all seem, it also provides me with a new opportunity to trust the Lord.  He never promised to give us everything we want (ok, the paver patio and ceiling fan and even the larger vehicle can wait), but he does promise to provide for our needs.  And in doing so, this new budget also provides a way of teaching me some self-discipline.  And who doesn't need that, right?  I am also reminded that my not working, which drastically cuts our income, is a choice I made.  I CHOSE to stay home and raise our girls instead of going to work, and I believe it is what God wants for our family.  I am incredibly thankful that God has put us in a situation (and my husband in a job) that allows me to do that!  So, here we go...a year on a budget.  We'll see how it goes and how I do!

T.G.I.T.

Thank God it's Thursday!  That's typically how I feel this day of the week.  I also like to call Thursdays my "sanity saving day".  While most people use this phrase in regards to Friday (don't get me wrong, I also look forward to Fridays with great excitement...the hubby is home for the weekend, we spend more time together, and I usually get more sleep), I often feel like Friday is just one day too far away. Thursdays, however, hold an excitement all their own. 

 First of all, every other Thursday I attend a MOPS group at church.  For those moms out there who have never tried it, I HIGHLY recommend it!  For 2 hours I get to sit with other adult women and have real conversations without a 2-year old vying for my attention (granted, I currently have a 3-month old on my lap, but she's usually a little less demanding).  On top of just getting some time to socialize, we also get to eat yummy breakfast food, drink coffee, and discuss mothering topics that we all deal with.  And, I GET OUT OF THE HOUSE!  Yippee!  That can be a task, in and of itself, with a baby and a toddler, and I'm often (ok, pretty much always) running late.  But,  because all of us moms are in the same boat, I can usually be assured that I won't be the last one there, or even if I am, no one will think less of me :)

The second reason Thursdays are great is a little tradition we call "Thursday night with the Coles."  When we first moved to Columbus, we lived in a little ghetto apartment and had zero friends.  Then we met Justin and Michelle Cole at church and invited them over for dinner.  They came over on what happened to be a Thursday night, and a tradition was formed.  Now, 6 years and 4 kids later (2 for them, 2 for us), we still get together every Thursday night.  We alternate houses and cooking, and we eat and chat and have fun! 

So, when my week starts dragging on and I feel like I haven't gotten out of sweats or worn makeup in days, I realize I only have to get to Thursday and I'll be ok!  Speaking of which, I'm cooking tonight, so I gotta run...

Joining the Ranks

I've thought about joining the ranks of the millions of bloggers out there for quite a while now.  Quite honestly, though, I never thought anyone would read my blogs...and probably not many will.  But, for my own sanity, I thought it an endeavor worth undertaking.  As many moms would probably agree, sometimes you just need to take a break, take a breath, sit down, and if necessary, vent (or simply share some grown-up thoughts).   Since I am currently experiencing my normal after-the-holidays, middle-of-winter slump, it seems like the ideal time to try something new.  So, Hello, blogging world!  I'm here!