peace in the midst of chaos

See those sleeping little boys? They look so peaceful as they rest together in our guest bed this afternoon.

See those clothes at the end of the bed? Those are part of the clean clothes that are waiting to be folded and that haven't been thrown all over the room, by those peaceful little boys, right before they went to sleep. That's the chaos part of this picture:)

memorizing scripture

I have never like memorizing anything. When I look back at my education, I realize that I was not trained to memorize. It was not a priority other than cramming for a test. Our Classical Conversations homeschool coordinator often says, "We train the brain to retain," reminding me that memorization is a discipline.

Author of the "Classical Conversations" curriculum, Leigh Bortins, writes,

Modern education scoffs at he first tool of learning- memorization. Why learn to memorize if you can just look it up? Isn't critical thinking more important than rote facts? My response is, "What can I think critically about if I know no facts?" I can offer only opinion, my point of view. Yet shouldn't truth play a factor?

Our classical homeschool education involves a lot of memorization, including historical dates, scientific facts, and skip counting upto 15, so far! I'm amazed at how easily my children memorize and soak up information.

In addition, we attend a local AWANA program that rewards scripture memorization. It has helped our children to put together a "Scripture Memorization" book for each of our children. Each morning they go through all of their scripture memorization with Big Man and each week I add more verses based on what they are memorizing in AWANA. As a result, we have seen a major improvement in their ability to retain the scripture they memorize each week.

My kids also learn scripture easily when it is put to music (for that matter anything put to music seems easier to retain). Lately, my kids having been listening to GT and the Halo Express and they love it-in fact, it's our most requested CD in the car.

Below is a short list of some of the best resources to help kids memorize scripture:

GT and the Halo Express
Psalty (Big Man grew up listening to this and loved it)
Seeds of Courage (I've heard that this one, in particular, is better than the others in this line)
Hide 'Em In Your Heart

I have also recently heard from my friend, Kalen, that Adventures in Odyssey is awesome and great for those long road trips. Even though, our car has a DVD player in it, I think I will get a few Adventures in Odyssey to get a break from DVD's for our next trip to the beach.

What are your favorite listening resources?

big man, pumpkin pizza tonight!

We're roasting pumpkins today because we are making pumpkin pizza tonight. Is your mouth watering yet? Mine is.

I like my pumpkins roasted in the oven on 350 degrees with a drizzle EVOO on them. It gives them a rich, smokey taste.

Then, we roast the seeds, with a hint of EVOO, and sprinkle the best salt, "Real Salt" on them.

The best part: the little ones get to help scoop the pumpkin out and puree it in our mini food processor. Anything with a motor means a fight amongst the siblings, for sure, and the constant cry, "It's my turn!".

easy weekend project

It seems I am always at a loss with what to do with all the art work my children make. I frame some pieces, put some away for keepsake, and then there's the stuff that they are so proud of that I want to display for a week or two. I got this idea over at Noonan News.

I used kitchen twine and an eyebolt that I bought at my local Home Depot. Once I had the materials, it took me a total of ten minutes from start to finish.

It was so easy and the kids love seeing their creations on display!

it's almost the weekend...

Ahhhhhh, it's almost the weekend and I'm finally sitting down to write my only blog post this week. Currently, the brothers are watching TV on our guest bed (Friday afternoon priviledge) and Ruth is asleep, which means I have time to myself and time to write (well sorta, if you don't count that I still haven't taken a shower and dinner hasn't been started).

I have stumbled across some pretty good deals this week and want to share them with you before the ads change over on Sunday (with the exception of Target, which don't expire until into November).

TARGET
I used these printable Target coupons from Hot Coupon World:
-$1/1 Archer Farms Bakery Purchase of $1 or more
-$.50/1 Archer Farms Artisan Bread
-$1 off 2 lbs. or more bulk Apples
-$1.50 off 1 lb. or more Archer Farms deli meat

And paired them with these coupons from I found at Target (see pics).

I then bought:
5 Archer Farms macaroon cookies (Big Man loves these), .99 cents each
2 Archer Farms baguettes, .99 cents each
4 Archer Farms mini scones, .99 cents each
2 Laura's Lean ground beef, $4.79 each
1 lb. Archer Farms deli turkey meat, $9.58
1/2 lb. Archer Farms deli sliced cheese, $3.23
1 - 3 lb. bag organic apples, $4.49

Total OOP: $14.38
Total Saved: $22.64

WALGREENS
I also did the Quaker Oatmeal deal that I read about over at Money Saving Mom. I started out with $18 RR's, but now I have $30 RR's and 16 Quaker Oats in my stock pile and a few more chapsticks and Trident gum, see all RR deals here.

KROGER
I haven't been to Kroger in a few weeks, but I had a little extra time and I wanted to use my Playtex glove coupons before they expired, since they are on sale this week. I didn't realize the Playtex Gloves were part of the "Buy 10, get $5 off" event, so I actually went into the negative and had to grab 2 candy bars at the last moment.

I bought:
24 Playtex Gloves, $1.00 each
2 packages Laura's Lean Beef, $3.51 and $3.55 (Manager's Special)
2 Hershey's Special Dark chocolate bars, $.79 each

Total OOP: $.11
Total Saved: $59.11

I hope you have a great weekend with family. This weekend is always the worst for eating empty calories and poor nutrition. I will look forward to Monday when I can help my kids detox from the weekend and get back on track. How about you?

For anyone in the Atlanta area, who's looking for some Halloween fun this rainy weekend, go here to see what's happening for FREE this weekend.

favorite post on "real food" this week

May I refer those of you who join me in the quest to understand what real food/good nutrition is, to go over to Passionate Homemaking for a book review on, "In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto". She's one of my favorite bloggers because she combines her faith and passion for natural living with factual, informative information.

...so BIG

I frequently talk to Torbin about nutrition and explain why I give him an apple instead of chips for a snack, water instead of juice, etc. I usually follow our talks about nutrition with the tage line, "If you want to be BIG and strong like Daddy, you have to feed your body real food."

So, yesterday he walked into my room, where I was just finishing getting dressed and said, "Mom, you are really getting BIG (looking at my stomach), you must be eating a lot of fruits and vegetables because you are so BIG!"

Nice.

publix this week: coupons make all the difference

After I got back from Montana last week, I quickly went to the grocery store in an effort to refill the fridge with fresh food. I was in a hurry and I didn't use any coupons. I ended up spending $60 on a 10-15 items. See the contrast of the shop I had yesterday with coupons. The difference is awesome!







I bought:
5 Stacy's Pita Chips
4 Sundown Vitamins (overage)
2 Bumblebee Tuna Pouches (FREE)
21 Oikos Greek Yogurts (overage)
10 Cascadian Farms Granola Cereal (rain check, FREE)
2 Knox Gelatin (overage)
2 Bertolli EVOO's
6 Ronzini Healthy Harvest Spaghettis
1 lb. Publix Greenwise Ground Chuck
1 Sorrento Cheese Stick
3 lbs. Bartlett Pears
3 Peter Pan Peanut Butters
6 Band-Aid Travel Size (overage)
2 pkgs. Portabello Sliced Mushrooms
4 Neosporin Lip Health (overage)
1 Oscar Meyer Turkey Bacon
4 Old El Paso Taco Seasonings (FREE)
4 Arm & Hammer Baking Soda Tooth Paste (FREE)
2 4-packs Energizer AA Batteries
2 Sunday Papers

Total OOP: $5.57
Total Saved: $198.72

Note: some of the items I bought only because they were FREE and/or produced overage.

friday afternoon: lemon chicken

This afternoon, I am making one of my favorite chicken recipes, Lemon Chicken (thanks for the recipe, Mom).

I'm also nibbling on my new favorite Lindt Dark Chocolate with chili bar and listening to my new favorite song (#3, Prayer for the Broken Hearted), while I cook. It's peaceful 'round here today.

Lemon Chicken:

Brine chicken a day prior by soaking in salt water (I usually stir 1 cup of sea salt with 2 cups hot water until salt dissolves, then add chicken, then fill with filtered water). See all the yuck in the water? That's the stuff that comes out when I brine the chicken. I like to brine my chickens because it adds a lot of flavor to the meat.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Remove chicken from water and place it in a dutch oven, slice 2 lemons, and cut fresh thyme from the garden.

Take lemons and squeeze the juice over the top of the bird and inside the cavity of the bird. Place thyme inside the cavity of the bird. You could pepper the top of the bird, but there is no need for salt since soaking it gives it enough salty taste. Bake for approximately 1.5 hours or less depending on the size of the bird.

Note: If I know that I am going to let the chicken sit in the pan for a while after it comes out of the oven, I will let it finish cooking inside the pan after it's been taken out of the oven, or if the bird is already done, I will take the top off of the pan, so it doesn't continue to bake.

I'll post a picture of the finished product when it comes out of the oven!

montana wedding

I made it home from the wedding last night. In spite of the fact that I loved being in Bozeman, I was glad to be home. It was so good to see Big Man and my children's shining faces.

The children think that every time I'm gone, I have gone to see my parents, so they always ask, "Was there lots of snow at Nanny's house? What did Nanny get us?". Even though I try to explain to them that I wasn't at Nanny's and that it was I who bought them the gifts, I am content to let them think I was visiting Nanny.

The wedding was beautiful, worshipful, and Montana cozy. I must admit that I was more than a bit weepy and am still embarrassed about it. I tried to hide it, but I don't know how I could hide the constant stream of tears flowing down my face. I can't explain it nor do I understand it, but sometimes, I am just like that and I do my best to go unnoticed so no one feels uncomfortable.

Highlights included: Seeing my friend in her dress (stunning), the groom's cake with hand-picked, by the bride, huckleberries on top, french truffles, dancing with the bride's teenage niece (she's a nut), seeing the smile on the groom's face (he looked like the happiest man in the world), and seeing the bride's little brothers pick her up to take the above picture.

Tomorrow, I get to go to the wedding of my old room mate/dear friend. It also happens to be my parent's anniversary. Happy Anniversary, Mom and Dad!

Tonight, was the rehearsal for the wedding and afterwards, we went to a cowboy/barbecue type place. It was cool and the people in Bozeman seem to be friendly and down-to-earth. The ribs were awesome!

Afterwards, the bride, tried on her dress and shoes. To your left, is a sneak preview of what she will look like tomorrow. She is going to be a very stunning bride.

More later...

indelible grace

I'm so thrilled and little shocked that it took flying to Bozeman, MT to hear about this group, Indelible Grace.

This group puts old hymns to new instrumentals. It's amazing and I sense a music revival coming on in our home.

I wonder why none of my reformed friends have mentioned them to me before?

Just another reason to live in Bozeman...friends tell other friends about great music.

clean mountain air and perfectly brewed coffee

Hi friends, I'm in Bozeman, Montana all week for a dear friend's wedding. It's fabulous. I love it here. I love the mountains, the clean air, the subaru cars everywhere, the fleece jackets, worn blue jeans, and no makeup! I love it, love it, love it. The only thing I don't love right now is that I'm only twenty-five minutes from some of the best skiing in the world and it's not open yet!

I know I was created to live in a place like this.

Unfortunately, my family is not here, so I miss them terribly and, in between sips of perfectly brewed coffee, I am calling them and texting them often.

Be back later...

publix shop

Yesterday, I went to Publix in the city so that I could use Whole Foods coupons as a competitor coupon. Conveniently, Big Man ran a half marathon in the morning, so we left for the city at 5:45 a.m. (all five of us)!

After eating breakfast at The Flying Biscuit Cafe (one of my favorites), the family headed to a park and I headed to a nearby Publix. See details of my shop below...





Moneymakers:
3 Healthy Choice Frozen Cafe Steamers
11 Chex Mix
10 Back To Nature Granola (rain check)

FREE (after coupons):
2 Green Giant Frozen Peas
4 Publix Reusable Bags
14 Cascadian Farms Granola Bars
5 Cascadian Farms Granola Cereal
6 Pillsbury Crescent Rolls
2 Pillsbury Cinammon Rolls

Nearly FREE (with coupons):
2 Egg Beaters
6 Progresso Soups

Other items:
1 $15 Starbucks gift card
1 Nature's Own bread
1 Publix Organic Mixed Greens
1 Organic Grapes
1 Lime
1 Garlic head
1 Spaghetti Squash

Total OOP: $18.67
Total Saved: $192.24

Note: 3 of the Pillsbury Crescent rolls were not part of the 10/$10, so I'm going to return them and get approximately $9 back, since I would never normally buy these and only bought them because they are FREE. With that said, my total OOP should have been somewhere around $12 or so.

beans and cornbread

For a while now, I have been stalking The Pioneer Woman (thanks Molly)-mainly for her recipes.

In particular, her Beans and Cornbread recipe stuck out to me because of how inexpensive and easy it is to make, not to mention that it could feed a small crowd.

I added some breaded tilapia, but next time I think I will serve it alone with a salad to add some greens.

I took her advice and kept the beans simple by seasoning them with only salt and pepper and they turned out better than any other beans I have ever made before. I think this will be one of our staples this fall/winter!

Next, I think I'll make her Crash Hot Potatoes with steak or her Tres Leches Cake.

Have you tried any new recipes lately?

mammogram

Today, I had a routine mammogram. Apparently, women over thirty-five years of age need to have one in order to know what the breast tissue looks like when it's normal, so that if it is ever abnormal, doctors could easily detect it.

Have you ever had a mammogram?

I had one when I was sixteen and it was quite traumatic. I don't remember why I had to have one, but I remember feeling totally humiliated as male technician placed my breast on top of a shelf-type thing while another shelf lowered and clamped down on me, sandwiching my breast.

It was no different today. In fact, at one point I wondered if I would return to my normal shape or end up looking like a pancake the rest of my life.

The worst part? They put stickers on a particular part of that area so that they would know where it was in the x-ray. Afterwards, pulling the stickers off made me lose my breath, sorta like the first time one of my babies clamped down to nurse for the first time.

Fun. Fun.

ask the reader: recipe suggestions please

Last weekend, we went bowling with friends and I couldn't resist sharing some of my favorite photos with you.

I took these pics with my eye phone and used an application called, "Camera Bag". I just started using it and I like the special effects is gives photos.

On a different note, soon I'm going to be leaving my precious family for almost a week to travel to a wedding in Montana.

With that said, I have a lot to do before I leave, including preparing 3-4 dinners for the family . I must admit that I am at a loss of what to prepare for them in advance that they can eat with no preparation. My one idea is soup, which I will most likely do.

Big Man is going to have his hands FULL and I want these meals to be a reminder to him and the

children that I am thinking of them and miss them while I am gone, not to mention providing them with valuable nutrition.

Any ideas?

To see more pics, click here.

rethinking anthropolgie

Hi again! I have been missing all of you. I'm not sure what I've been doing that has kept me so busy, but it seems that the days have passed quickly and it has been an entire week since I last posted.

This past weekend, I had the treat of going jeans shopping- something I rarely do and/or enjoy. Nevertheless, it was long overdue, and I made a b-line for my long-standing favorite store, Anthropologie.

This time, when I entered Anthropologie something went awry for me. I'm not sure if it was the overpowering smell of perfume, the loud somewhat annoying music, or maybe it was the fact that everything seemed to have ruffles attached to it in some form or another? Ruffles were everywhere and women of all ages were gladly draping themselves in ruffles from head to toe. Seeing all those overdone ruffles on everything kinda made me feel sick, like when I am excited about dessert and instead of creme brulee or home made apple pie, there's a marshmallow creme dessert made with oreo cookies and other processed foods. Can anyone relate?

Also, while I was there, I saw a pair of chic, dark-washed, skinny jeans with a thin, elastic waistband, and they weren't maternity! I'm totally serious and I actually thought about trying them on, because they looked so comfortable, but I knew that if I came home with a much awaited new pair of jeans that had an elastic waistband, Big Man would surely send me back to Oregon. Afterall, I did wear my elastic maternity jeans for much too looonnnnggg, like for 5 years straight (minus a few months here and there). I tried to find them on line, so I could show you, but I didn't see them. I promise you, they are there.

Who out there is still ga-ga over Anthropologie or do you have another favorite?

p.s. I did end up buying a new pair of jeans from Madewell. They didn't have elastic but they are soo cute and comfy. Yah!

look, mom, i got first place!

No, one of my kids is not announcing they got first place in a race. That would be me! To my recollection, I have never gotten first place, in any individual physical competition, in my entire life.

Saturday, I reluctantly ran another race with the family. This is not to say that I don't like being with the family, but more that I sometimes dread running the race. Running for me is a discipline rather than a pleasure and I struggle to make myself do it.

This was a first annual race and there were only about 150 participants. This is important to note because I won first place in my age division.

Friends, the same girl that was a couch potato growing up, never ran further than the couch to the refrigerator, didn't break a sweat until she was in ninth grade, and whose first 10k race kept telling herself to s-l-o-w down for fear of finishing too fast (ha!), got first place in a running race! Are you laughing with me?!

Seriously, I was almost too embarrassed to accept the award because I know that I am no real runner and I know that my time should not have won first place. Regardless, Big Man told me to receive it so that I could give my plaque to Thomas.

Big Man pushed Thomas and Ruth in the baby jogger and Torbin and I ran. Torbin got second place in the ten and younger division (and beat me), so he got a plaque too!

Here's to 2009 being a year of firsts!

LJ, can you believe it?

so-weet deal on pull-ups @ rite aid

I haven't posted my shops in a while, but this one is simple and sweet, and I thought you might want do it too. Plus, you can learn from my mistakes. See below...


I bought:
1 Huggies Pull-Ups @ $8.99
2 Airwick Kits @ $6.49
4 Covergirl eyeshadows @ $3.39 (on sale BOGO this week)

Used:
-$5/25 Rite Aid printable
-$2 Huggies Pull-Ups
(2) -$6 off Airwick starter kit
(2) -$1 off any Covergirl Product
(2) BOGO on any Covergirl Product

Total Saved: $27.78
Total OOP: $2.98

Mistakes:
1. Forgot to use Rite-Aid -$2 off Huggies Pull-Ups coupon in this week's circular (available in stores), which would have made my total less than $1!
2. Bought Airwick's because I thought I need them to bring my total to $25 in order to use the Rite-Aid -$5/25 coupon, but I really didn't. Instead, I should have purchased higher priced Covergirl products, which would have easily got my total to $25.
3. Wet Ones (my favorite) are FREE this week when you print off a coupon here. I had my coupon, but forgot to put them in my basket.

Anybody need to Airwick motion sensor starter kits?

For coupon match-ups go here.

P.S. Save your receipts because Rite-Aid is running a deal that gives you money back based on the total you spend this month.
-

abby's sage & pumpkin pizza..looking forward to pumpkin season

This pizza is delicious. So delicious, in fact, that when I made it for a skeptical Big Man, he ate the whole thing and requested more.

At first glance, I think the recipe is a bit intimidating, but it can be made rather quickly.

Last year, after harvesting our pumpkins (see pic of Thomas and Ruth), we cleaned them, baked the seeds, and pureed the insides to make this recipe. This year, our pumpkins had worms and had to be thrown out:( Nevertheless, we still plan to make it to kickoff our October activities.

Sage and Pumpkin Pizza
Makes 2 (10-12 inch) pizzas

3 medium shallots, finely minced
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 Tbs. butter
3/4 cup canned unsweetened pumpkin
1/3 cup finely grated Pecorino Romano cheese
2 Tbs. Sage Brown Butter (see below), divided
2 Pizza Crusts
1 cup (4 ounces) shredded Fontina cheese
2/3 cup diced, seeded tomato
Cornmeal

To make Sage Brown Butter: Combine butter and sage in a small saucepan, and cook over low heat about 6-8 minutes or until butter solids are brown and nutty.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Saute shallot and garlic in butter over medium heat 5 minutes or until soft and beginning to brown. Combine with pumpkin in a small bowl. Add Pecorino Romano cheese and 1 tablespoon Sage Brown Butter. Spread pumpkin mixture evenly onto crusts. Sprinkle with Fontina and tomato. Place pizzas on a baking sheet or pizza stone sprinkled with cornmeal. Bake for 10-15 minutes or until dough is browned around edges and cheese is melted. Drizzle with remaining 1 tablespoon Sage Brown Butter, if desired.

Mmmm.

ironkids: alpharetta, ga

As usual, I'm a bit late posting after a weekend away, but what a great weekend it was!

Torbin, our 6 year old, participated in his first triathlon. Ironkids is for children ages 6 to 15 years old.

He was sooo excited and nervous, too. He has seen Big Man do a few triathlons this summer so he understood that he was going to swim, bike, run, but this is only his second race (his first race was a few weeks ago).

I had to take a picture of his transition area that Big Man meticulously setup. It made me smile.

There was a lot of waiting, cheering on of other participants, and watching the other overly-enthusiastic parents as they ran around, with toddlers in tow, from event to event.

Then came the swim (it started an hour late). Amazingly, Thomas and Ruth never complained about the wait. They were so excited to watch brother.

Torbin passed four kids in the swim. He finished 12th in the swim.

He had a very s-l-o-w transition from swim to bike (I think it might be time to teach him how to tie his shoes).

He rocked the bike, and only passed others. He was smiling the whole ride:) He finished 6th in the bike (including transition time).

As usual, I was cheering so loud during the run (and tearing up) that I forgot to take pictures. I have never seen Torbin so determined. He finished 2nd overall in the run.

Torbin finished 6th place for 6 year olds (out of 56) and is anxious for his next race!

To see more photos, go here.

redeem this day

re·deem \ri-ˈdēm\: to buy back; to free from what distresses or harms; to free from the consequences of sin

Today I just couldn't seem to pull things together and I don't know why. Big Man had the brothers until noon and sister and I had a leisurely morning. However, the afternoon I had hoped would be a peaceful, reading-aloud, sister-resting-in-her-room and productive turned out to be totally chaotic. It seemed I could not catch my breath between cleaning up "accidents", breaking up fights, and entertaining someone's question or concern. I/we didn't get anything accomplished.

With the chaos came lots of frustration. I was quick to anger, quick to speak, and quick to lash out. In other words, I completely failed to nurture my kids. My kids noticed and so did I, and I can't help but think that Big Man could feel the tension in the air when he walked in the house.

It's days like today that I wonder why I am a mother? Why did the Lord bless me with three children despite my incapabilities? Why do my kids have to be subject to my impatience, bad attitude, complaining heart, and hot temper? I often think they would be better off with another mother.

As I was thinking this, Torbin called from the other room, "Mom, will you forgive me for my bad attitude? I forgive you." Without waiting for my answer, he told me that he forgave me. He knew that not only did he need to be forgiven, but I did too.

Then the thought came to me that it might be through my failures that my kids will see the gospel being lived out in real life. Through repentance, forgiveness, and reconciliation between us, I have hope that my children will understand the power of the Cross despite my failures.

My closing thoughts for today are that I am so glad I'm forgiven and the Lord can redeem anything, including my bad days.

"For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins." Colossians 1:13,14

knox coupon still printing...

Coupon-friends, this is just a little reminder that the Knox coupon is still printing (one per registrant per computer). It's a great coupon to have because it produces hefty overage.

Knox Gelatin, $1.39 ea.
-$4 off Knox Gelatin product (FREE plus approximately $2.61 overage)

labor day weekend, part 2

We had a fun-packed weekend, one that I'm still recovering from. You know, the mounds of laundry, the grocery that need to be planned for, bought, and made into something tasty, and the house that needs to be put back in order.

Regardless, it was a blast and partially because we got to witness one of "the brothers" dreams come true...to go to a NASCAR race.

Sunday night, we surprised them (baby sister stayed home with Meme) and went to the Nascar Pepboys 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway.

They got to take pictures next to their favorite race cars, wear headsets that let them listen to the drivers, and eat lots of snacks (meaning the food that mommy doesn't let them eat when they are home).

I heard the two men behind me talk about how one was married to the other's ex-wife and how they had never met until they started talking at a Harley Davidson meeting. I was offered a few beers from friendly patrons, saw a man passed out, saw shirtless men who maybe shouldn't have been shirtless, and I got to witness first-hand just how much people love this sport!




Of course, there were cranky times, too!







But then, silence, the only thing that could be heard was the sound of thundering engines race around the track (325 times around the track to be exact). Beautiful!

labor day weekend, part 1

Yesterday our boys participated in their first road race. It was called the "Kid's Classic" and consisted of a .5 kilometer run.

The run was broken up by age group, 3-4, 5-6, 7-8, and 9-11 years old (top ten finishers in each age group won a medal). We had two friends, Taurus (8) and Betty (11), with us so we had children running in each age group!

Thankfully, they allowed parents to run with the little ones (see Big Man running with Thomas towards the finish line).


Big Man running besides Torbin as he sprints to the finish.














Thomas, Taurus, and Torbin finished 3rd, 1st, and 1st in their age groups!










Waiting for Taurus' sister, Betty, to come towards the finish line...








Brother and sister pose for a post race pic. Both finished in the top ten of their age groups.Road races are generally fun, but children's road races are an absolute blast. Our family loves racin' (in more ways than one). More on a different kind of racin' coming soon!

To see more pics of the race, go here.

what's a mama to do?

What does a mother do when someone (and I'm not naming names) doesn't seem to have an enough imagination to play alone for more than 5 minutes?

Seriously, this little guy is the sweetest little muscle man ever, but I don't think he could be more in my business (or his big bro's for that matter).

Our learning centers help (thank goodness he loves puzzles), but most of the time he just wants to "help me".

Any ideas?

our favorite afternoon snack

Most afternoons, I read to my boys while Ruth sleeps.

I like to make my boys a snack to eat while I read because it keeps their little hands busy, plus it's just so cozy to curl up on the couch together and read a book while eating a snack.

Inevitably, our boys ask for popcorn. It's their (and my) snack of choice, albeit not the most nutritious.

In an effort to make popcorn a better choice, I started buying organic popcorn kernels from the farmer's market (most corn is genetically modified), I bought this popcorn popper (read "saying goodbye to plastic") from Walmart, and I started making it with coconut oil.

The result? A light and fluffy popcorn that we quickly inhale (ha!) during our afternoon reading.

Ingredients:
1 Tblsp. organic virgin coconut oil
1/3 cup organic popcorn
Sea salt to taste

Heat pan on high with oil. Once oil is melted and pan is hot, turn pan down to medium-high. Add popcorn. Cover pan, turn handle until popcorn is barely popping. Remove from stove, transfer to bowl, and salt to taste. Enjoy!

favorite new skin care discovery: aloe vera

Last summer I started taking my own advice an applying aloe vera to my skin after being in the sun. It quickly help repair skin and turn a burn into a tan.

After applying it to my face, I was surprised by how smooth, hydrated, and sort of like "sealed" my skin felt. It was awesome.

With the heat and humidity during the summer, I hesitate to add any moisturizer to my face since I feel like it gets too oily. However, I now use aloe vera because it hydrates and gives my face a smooth, not oily, surface to apply makeup. I also like to apply it on those no make up days because it seals my skin and gives it a protective barrier. It's my favorite new beauty discovery and for about $8.99 I can buy enough to last me about a year.

To read more about the benefits of aloe vera, go here.

What's your favorite beauty/skin care tip? Any new discoveries?

ask the reader: favorite christmas picture books

Last year, The Crafty Crow created a Christmas book and activity advent.

I love her ideas and know that it will take some serious planning to pull it off. So, I thought I would get a head start by getting books and craft supplies in order. I'm so excited and I know that my children would LOVE something like this.

I would like to use her ideas and possibly replace some of her choices of books with a few of my Christmas favorites and yours (hopefully you'll make some suggestions). Suggestions?

P.S. For a peak at a mom who gets down and dirty with the crafts every single week, go to Katherine Marie Photography. She's inspiring!