Garden update

Almost totally done with planting.  Just waiting for my "Sweet Autumn Clematis" vine and Jasmine to come in. So fun to watch this change every day, and so glad it'll all be coming back bigger and better next year (yay for perennials!)!  :)

Pressing Flowers with MomMom

Today we spontaneously did a fun craft with my mom.  She and the girls had pressed flowers about a month ago when they were just starting to bloom, so we decided to open the flower press today to see how they turned out.

After ooohing and ahhhing over what we found, Mom brought out a couple of frames that she had gotten at the Goodwill, and the girls went to work creating their very own pressed flower arrangements.

Fun and easy craft!  The girls were so proud of what they had made!

Flower Bed Update

Here's a picture of my flower bed that I've been working on.  Things are starting to grow!  I have some bulbs planted in the back that have yet to appear, but it is slowly getting better :)  I'll post another update in a month or two!  Love this time of year!

Every Little Girl's Dream: A Twirling Skirt

 

Thought I'd share my latest sewing project.  My girls (Claire especially) have been all about dancing and twirling lately, so I thought it would be fun to try to make a skirt that really twirls!    I looked up "twirling skirt" on Google and found out that they are actually called "circle skirts."  I used the instructions from this tutorial: http://www.danamadeit.com/2008/07/tutorial-the-circle-skirt.html and found them to be very clear.  This was the easiest skirt I've ever made and the most enjoyed by the girls!

Here's Kate taking the skirt for a spin (I made it for Claire, and fortunately, she loves to share). :)

 

 

 

 

And here it is when not in motion (a rare occurance) :)

 

 

The only thing I did differently than the tutorial was I decided to cover the elastic with fabric because I wasn't happy with how it looked when it was exposed.  Can't wait to make another one!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

You Aren't the Only One

I'm not sure that there are many things more encouraging than talking to other moms that are honest about what life is really like.  These "real" women have helped me to see that "it's not just me," and there is something so nice about knowing that I'm not alone in my struggles as a wife, mother, and homemaker.

Just today, I was at my daughter's school visiting with some of the other moms, and we got to talking about the nitty gritty of our job as mothers and housekeepers.  Mountains of laundry, days worth of dishes, and endless mahem are the norm, but for some reason we dupe ourselves into believing that we are the only ones that deal with endless chaos and even downright filth (just admit it). 

It was so neat to see how the conversation progressed.  It's amazing how honest admission to failures and not having it all together can all of a sudden bring women together in a unique way.  After several people shared stories, and we had some really good laughs, one of the ladies said, "I thought I was the only one!"  How many times have I thought that...

So, I guess what I want to say in all this is this: 

You aren't the only one. 

 

You aren't the only one that forgets the clothes in the washer.  You aren't the only one that fixes peanut butter and jelly for dinner.  You aren't the only one that has a basket full of socks that never get sorted.  You aren't the only one that feels like if you have to go to the store with your kids one more time, you might have a meltdown. You aren't the only one whose kids ask, "who's coming over?" when you clean your house.  You aren't the only one who loses her temper.  You aren't the only one who, at times, doesn't know if she can make it through another day...

 

Jesus said, "Come to me, all who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest."  He knows.  He knows what you face every day.  He knows that you don't measure up, but he doesn't condemn, he says, "Come," and he offers rest, because he knows we need it.  We need rest in our souls-- rest that says, "Even though you don't have it all together, all is well.  You are loved."   



My Real (little) Flower Garden

One of the things that I would like to get better at is gardening. 

 

When I envision what I would like my flower garden to look like, images like this come to mind.  I am often a tad bit unrealistic when I think about what I would like to accomplish (can you tell?).  I mean really, this picture was probably taken at Buckingham Palace or somewhere like that....  Because I tend to have unrealistic goals, I am often disappointed by what I have the time, money, and energy to do. Every year, I have had grand plans of turning my entire front and back yards into my own little mini pieces of heaven, but I have realized that lack of time (and lack of palace) make it impossible for me to do what I would REALLY like to do with my yard.

So, this year, I'm aiming low.  Low expectations = less chance of failure and disappointment. I know, I sound like a real go getter. ;)  I am finally realizing that I can't do it all, and that's ok.  There will be a time of life that I will be able to have a large flower garden, but that time is not now.  So right now, I'm doing what I can.  I have decided that instead of making plans for every square inch of soil in my yard (and only actually following through with about half of it, and doing a pretty bad job with that half), I'm going to pick out one flower bed, yes, just one; and I'm going to do what I can with that, and not worry about the rest.  I'm excited to see what I can do when I only have one small section to focus on.  So, here is what I've done so far:

Before

After

I know, it doesn't look very grand yet, but this is just the first step.  I just decided what I wanted to keep and pulled everything that I didn't want.  The next step is to put some compost on the bed.  I am also planning on researching the types of plants that will do well in this part of my yard (it gets morning and some afternoon sun).  I'm excited to see how it progresses! 

Disclaimer:  Before you think to yourself, "How does she have time to do that along with everything else?!  I need to get my act together," just know that I would not have gotten this done if not for my husband who watched the kids and my gardening loving mom who came over and helped me...and, I thought about posting a picture of the inside of my house, but I chickened out.

Also, if anyone would like to join me and take the time to make your own little flower garden, I would love to see pictures of your progress!!  Happy Gardening! :) 

A Guaranteed Trick to Get Your Kids to Eat Their Vegetables*

If you have kids, you know the fight.  The standoff at the end of every dinner.  Your child has eaten everything but his/her vegetables.  Then starts the crying and fit throwing and pleading, and often, after a long day, getting them to eat those veggies just doesn't seem worth it.

Here's a little trick that we use at our house to get our kids to eat healthier, and it's seemed to work well for us.  This is NOT a sure fire way to cure a picky eater.  If you know how to do that, then fill me in (PLEASE!), but it IS a way to get the kids to eat the healthiest part of their dinner first, and avoid "the fight" at the end.  So, here it is: we serve the kids in "courses."  I know, it sounds weird and proper and a little snobbish, but it works for us.

 We start with the veggies or salad.  This is what the girls had for their "first course."  Tonight was easy, because they like all these things.  If we were also having something that they didn't like, like peppers, we would either put a little piece there for them to try or skip it all together (they're still eating veggies, they don't need to be made to like everything).  So, once they eat that, it's on to second course.  Sometimes we don't tell them what the courses are going to be, and they like the surprise, but if they are having a hard time with the first course, it might be a good idea to tell them what's coming in the next courses (as incentive).

Second course tonight is spaghetti.  No problems here.  They love it and ask for seconds.  On to the third course:

The third course is usually something like bread.  Kate LOVES bread and hurries to finish her first and second courses whenever we have bread.  Claire doesn't like bread, and we don't make her eat it.  If your kid doesn't like something unhealthy, don't make them eat it just because, "You need to eat your food."  Why make them eat something that isn't that good for them? (there's my two cents).  And on to the fourth course: dessert!

I know what you're thinking.  You give your kids apples for dessert???  No, not always.  I did tonight because Kate had a bunch of candy at her Valentine's party at school today.  Sometimes we have cookies, or yogurt, or blueberries, and sometimes we don't have dessert at all, just depends.  Most of the time, dessert is just that extra little incentive they need to eat a good dinner. 

So, there's our trick.  The only drawback is that there is a risk that your child may ask for the "next course" the next time they go to someones house.  Be forewarned. :)
 

*The title of this blog was a shameless attempt to get you to read it.  There is no guaranteed trick to get your children to eat their vegetables.  ;)