This morning my son and I were playing Candyland when my husband walked in with the piano tuner. It was a very long game for some reason and after a few minutes I suddenly felt very grateful to have this moment with my son to talk about colors.

Our piano tuner is blind - born that way- so it was one of those smack me across the face moments that he never got to do that with his Mom. He's in his 70's now so I think he's made it just fine, I'm not pitying him he's told us much about his life and he is a wonderful man. It all just seemed so ironic, my son and I sitting chatting about colors and he in the other room chuckling when my son said NO when I asked if he wanted to help me fold laundry as we cleaned up.

When he was finished he and Adam engaged in some small talk about the piano, its smooth finish etc. and I hear Adam say, "it's also a really nice warm burgundy, sort of a cherry, color." And the tuner said, "huh, it's not a black one."

How on earth would you describe color to someone who had never seen it?

Hello - I'm supposed to have all the tricks up MY sleeve!

Alternately titled - a three year old comes in handy at times!

Two nights ago I was sitting on my son's bed reading books with my daughter sitting next to me. She's sitting up pretty well now - not well enough to be unsupervised but I was right next to her. I moved my arm to turn a page and whack back into the wall she fell.

Out comes this delayed pain cry and I ever so delicately shoved my son off my lap to get her clear access to the feel goodIness of getting momma's milk. Well, she refuses apparently happier to scream!

She finally through sobs starts suckling when big brother comes over saying, "Poor baby sister you'll be okay, tickle tickle tickle." She looked over at him and her sobs turn into the biggest giggle and smile I've ever seen. I a bit enviously thank my son for his help and then get him settled in to finish the story when she glances up at me and gives me a little whimper.

What exactly was I thinking

saying I could teach four classes in one week? I haven't officially exercised in going on 11 months or so - other than walking! I'm really glad I didn't say yes to all seven classed they offered me, I'm teaching some yoga and pilates classes and boy am I more out of shape than I thought! Today was my third day in a row teaching a class and can I just say to my screaming muscles that I hear you and you have until Monday morning to stop so we can do it all over again!

Other than being hard to leave my little ones (just an hour at a time) it is SO fun. I think I'll get in to shape way faster this way, since I have no choice! It's also pretty fun to have people actually listen to my instruction...but alas I digress.

Pick Up the Checkers!

I'm on the move!!!

Fashionably late...

It's party time again at 5 minutes for mom I'm fashionably late this year but head over to the Ultimate Blog Party 2008!. Last year I found some fun new blogs so I'm sure this year will be a blast as well. Not to mention they are giving stuff away!!!

If you're new here, I'm Heidi - Butterfly Mama. I'm mommy to two gorgeous kiddos a three and a half year old son and a six month old daughter. I mostly just blog about stuff my kids do or say along with things that are going on in our lives. A few unique things about me - I have faith in God (that's probably not so unique!), I have a worm composting bin in my shower., I'm into the environment, gardening and pictures - mostly of the kiddos.

So stop by, have a cup of tea and it's wonderful to meet you!

Today my son asks...

"Mommy am I driving you happy?"

Oops - can you guess what I've said too much lately!

Later, stopped at a red light I randomly ask my son if he's feeding his cracker to his baby sister. He says, "No Mommy." Content I begin to drive and he adds, "she doesn't open her mouth."

Yet she won't sleep in the car????

Yes, we are in the shower - and her head and hands are doing a fairly good job covering everthing - I've seen bathing suits that cover less (unfortunately). I find that the only way I can ever get my legs shaved is to wear her in my water sling from Nest. I usually nurse her while I'm shaving - no I have never figured out completely hands free nursing but at least her weight is supported and then I support her head in the crook of my elbow so one hand is free.

This particular day she fell asleep - luckily my hubby was home to snap an unforgettable picture before the camera battery died. I've been debating about putting it here for a couple of weeks and finally decided that in b/w it dosn't look so revealing. There's just alot of skin tone in the colored version.

Well, this is I'm certain WAY more info than you wanted about my shower babywearing and probably more of me than you ever thought you'd see on this generally G rated blog!

Ever washed a pull-up?

Can I just say, eeeewwwwwwwww gross to the gel clumps in my washing machine. I've accidentally washed the Seventh Generation diapers before and they seem pretty sturdy and hold up to it - of course they are free of chemicals and the like anyway.

The pull-ups were left over from our trip this past Thanksgiving and since he's only in diapers at night I thought I'd use those up. I guess one ended up in the hamper - he is notorious for that as well as putting them in the cloth diaper pail. I've pulled out most of the clumpy gel balls and have rewashed the load. I'm sure it will happen again but I'll be more watchful - 'till it falls off my radar again!

Bye-Bye Wheat

We added wheat back into our diet two days ago and it appears to affect both my son and I. We both get flushed cheeks - mine is rosacea like - and crabby. I also got a headache and the next day all my old joint issues returned. (I have struggled with tendonitis from my dancer days in just about every major joint below the waist.) The sad thing is that I never really noticed the crick in my knee or the twinge in my ankle go away, but boy did I notice them come back. We will try adding it in a few more times just to make sure these aren't isolated incidences but from the looks of things wheat will be something we eat in extreme moderation. Ah, bagels I sure will miss ya!

Happy Bithday Da Da Da

It's official, our little baby's first word is da da! Now, I'm not going to tell you that she's all super baby smart and everything and say that she actually associates it with daddy. But she does say it more around him and even at her Dr's appointment yesterday the Dr asked if she was saying ma ma and da da and right on cue she said, "da da da."

Just in time to wish daddy a happy birthday - thanks for being the best dad and hubby ever, we love you!!!

Grace

Today my heart was filled with gratitude and it was a wonderful day. I always feel at the end of days like these if I can only have this grateful heart every day my perspective might shift to make every day just as wonderful. Even thought I try to focus on the positive stuff around here, I am living in real life you know!

Today, I am grateful for a morning at the movies with only my husband! The first time we've been out just the two of us since our anniversary in July. I was thankful for a free movie (thanks to the Realtor who sold our house last summer), a more than experienced baby sitter, and a movie that didn't disappoint (National Treasure: Book of Secrets.) Oh, my what fun it was to have three blessed hours all to ourselves, I had almost forgotten what it was like.

I am so grateful that the Signing Time DVD starts over by itself. It doubled my couch nap this afternoon and really, I don't mind if my son watches again how to say things like "set the table" and "may I be excused" in sign language.

I found myself again moved to tears during tender bedtimes with each of my children. My son sleepily asking to sing silent night just one more time (about 5 times) and me wonderfully willing to complete the task while nursing his sister and rubbing his back. I walked out of his room hearing his muffled voice saying, "See you in the morning time Mommy" and I had a tear streaming down my face realizing that I've been pretty hard on him lately and he is SUCH a great kid. Oh, it's these moments that I hope I remember (and my kids too) until my last breath.

1 Peter 3:8-22 especially verses 8 and 9.

Finally, all of you, live in harmony with one another; be sympathetic, love as brothers, be compassionate and humble. Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing.

We are richly blessed indeed. Now sweet dreams to all of you, and see you in the morning time.

A day of wheat, sugar, dairy and everything but taste free recipes!

Eating wheat, dairy and sugar free has had its challenges but I've become much more creative in the kitchen and we've begun to enjoy foods with less alteration. These are a couple of recipes that we've enjoyed recently. I love the enchilada one and all you wheat and dairy eaters can adapt it to be a fairly simple and nutritious meal too.

Fruit Sweetened Granola

• 3 cups rolled oats
• 1/2 cup sunflower or other seeds (I also added about 1/4 cup pumpkin seeds
• 1/2 cup almonds or cashews (or other nuts) halved or coarsely chopped
• 1-2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 cup almond, sunflower or other oil
• 1/4 cup pineapple juice (I used apple)
• 1/2 cup mashed banana
• 1 tsp. vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 F. Combine oats, seeds, nuts, and cinnamon in a large mixing bowl. In a blender jar combine the oil, juice, vanilla and mashed banana, and blend briefly. (Or just mash together well.) Pour over the oat mixture and blend well.

Spread on a large jelly roll pan and bake for about 45 minutes, stirring about every 10 minutes. When light brown remove from oven - it crisps as it cools. Store in a cool dry place.

Enchilada Casserole

• 4 spelt toortillas
• 1 16 ounce cans of vegetarian refried beans (or 2 cups of homemade)
• 1 batch of Mexican sauce (recipe follows - or bought Mexican red sauce)
• 1 cup shredded cheese (optional)
• option to add leftover cooked shredded turkey, chicken or ground beef
• Sliced avocado or guacamole
• sliced black olives

Place on tortilla in the bottom of an 8 or 9 inch round baking dish, spread it with 1/3 of the beans, top with 1/3 cup Mexican sauce, and 1/4 cup of cheese (meat if adding - it's great vegetarian - either way!) Repeat the layers two more times. Top the casserole with the last tortilla, 1/3 cup of sauce and 1/4 cup cheese. Bake at 350 F for 30 minutes or until bubbly. Cut into wedges and serve with more sauce, olives and sliced avocado or guacamole if desired. Makes 6 servings.

Mexican Sauce

• 4 1/2 pounds ripe Italian plum tomatoes OR 1 28 ounce can tomato puree or sauce
• 1/4 onion, finely chopped
• 1 clove garlic, finely chopped
• 1/8 -1/4 tsp ground cumin
• 1/4 - 1/2 tsp oregano
• 2 teaspoons chili powder or more to taste
• 1 tsp salt

If using fresh tomatoes, quarter, remove seeds and puree in blender or food processor. Saute the onion until it is soft. Combine the tomato puree (fresh or canned), onion, garlic, cumin, oregano, chili powder, and salt in a saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally until it is thickened. About 1 hour for fresh tomatoes, and 30 -40 minutes for canned. Makes about 3 cups of sauce.

Foaming hand soap

My husband came home with some foaming hand soap over the summer and I just fell in love with it. Not to mention my son was slightly more eager to wash his hands with it as well. It has since bugged me that you can't get refills for them - hello it's better for our pocketbook as well as the environment!

A frugal friend of mine shared this tip - now you all might know this already, but it never occurred to me! You can refill your foaming hand soap with about one part of your favorite liquid hand soap and three parts water. Mix well and viola - more foaming suds! Then the odds of your three year old actually rubbing the soap on his hands and it not just slipping through his fingers increases a bit. Plus you won't go broke buying the more expensive soap - just a larger refill bottle!

Anyway, it works for me. Have an idea to share or need some ideas visit Shannon's place.

We seem to be doing better today. Not so much in a coma from lack of sleep anyway! I'm certain tomorrow will be even better.

I played with my son for about an hour today with these picture word cards that my sister gave him for his birthday. I was absolutely amazed at how many letters he could recognize. I was equally amazed that it held his interest for as long as it did.

I'm not meaning to brag or anything (really) about seemingly boring details but this made my sleep deprived day today extremely wonderful. I resisted the urge to turn on the tv and I was vastly rewarded with quality time!

This morning after her fever broke...

Her dry seal bark cough is the saddest little sound along with her hoarse cry. Oh, my aching heart for her, she's probably got croup like her big brother had around this age. Thankfully she's down to a low grade fever now and took a three hour nap in mommy's arms today we're praying she's on the up swing now.

Hopefully tonight we all can sleep soundly!!!!

Six Months!

It's funny the difference in parenting the second kiddo. When my son turned six months I was ready with the mashed banana so eager for each new stage. Don't get me wrong, I'm eager with this one too it's just that I don't feel like rushing it. I'm ready to start feeding her solids sometime soon, just not right on her six month birthday. I'm not ready for the extra time it will take, the mess, nor the change in her poo! ;) It is the first step in the separation of our relationship and her becoming more independent and I just want a baby for awhile longer!

My MIL (who I only refer to as in law on this blog to keep track of everyone) made this wonderful necklace for me my daughter. She has scratched herself with another one of my favorite necklaces too many times to count, so I stopped wearing it. I'm thrilled that my MIL agreed to make this one for us. She's holding a bigger beautiful stone that you really can't see, it's nice and smooth and perfect for little fingers while nursing and makes a great chew toy for her while in her sling. Not to mention the fact that it's gorgeous, I'm so lucky!

Well my little six month old I don't know your stats for the month since we missed our mother baby circle. You have grown, and we have all grown in love with you even more!

UPDATED: I had to add this picture - I meant to put it originally be forgot!!! On 2/27 you were 26 inches long and 19 pounds 4 ounces

Here's what I looked like last month.

Happy Heart Day!!!

"I LOVE YOU!!!"

I'm really not the biggest Valentine's day gal. I like an excuse to go out to dinner together or something but the whole buying of cards and flowers - for me it's a HUGE wast of money!! Needless to say I like kids crafts and such - homemade stuff to me is the bestest!

If you are a relative please don't click on the link that I'm providing - lest you want to see your card before it gets to you. They are in the mail just - you know me - a bit late! So we did something similar to these really cute cards this year.

Can I say...

...that my husband is the sweetest! For the last three nights in a row my little gorgeous baby has been up every hour and nursing constantly. This morning my wonderful Adam got up with my son and daughter and let me sleep for almost three hours all in a row - the longest stretch I've gone yet without seeing my wee one! Wow, sleep (or lack off) can really affect my level of sanity! Ah, now to finish tackling some projects!

I watched that Oprah with Peter Walsh and I'm motivated to get our kitchen decluttered for good! Especially with the way our kitchen has been used on this diet - THE MOST EVER - I need it to be way more organized. Off to declutter, start dinner and make a batch of spelt crackers!

Tonights Table Prayer

"God, nank you for Mommy and Daddy and baby sister and me. And nank you for my plate and nank you for something and something and you and you and me. And nank you for Jesus. Amen"

My Personality Painting

I saw this around at a few different places and thought it looked like fun. So is it me?
Click here to create your own painting.

A Day of Milestones!

The most important one, my daughter rolled from back to front for the first time with her brother there cheering her on!!! It was so adorable. Having missed (from the next room)the first few times when she rolled from front to back it was nice to see her little effort to get over. She's just too cute!

The second first of the day was that I cut my hair. I've been wanting to just even it out for a few weeks. I didn't really like the way the layers were growing out but with my hubby looking for work I didn't really want to go spend the $25 just for someone to do it. You should have seen my bathroom floor. I know it's not perfect but I've decided that the best thing about doing it myself is that I'll always know how to "do" the style.

For some reason my hubby took all close up pictures - ack!

Sweet Dreams

Especially since our baby girl joined the family my hubby has done most or all of my son's bedtime routine. It's a nice special time for them - my hubby is a wonderful singer and I love listening to him sing to our son each night. I'm always around and sometimes I even read the books and sing some songs too or bathe them both, but much of the time I'm sitting nursing the babe distracted.

Last night I had the rare privilege of doing it myself. (Well, Daddy did come up to kiss goodnight and say prayers.)

Another rare occurrence was that my daughter fell asleep in the car seat on the way home from church at 8:20pm and slept there until 10:30pm. (Usually she awakens when either the car stops or withing 5 minutes of coming into the house - and that's only IF she falls asleep in the car in the first place.)

Convinced that she would wake up soon, I left her downstairs with Adam and I went up to get my #1 son ready for bed. It was SO nice to have some alone time with him. He was very tired because of the late hour but it was so nice to be the one that started him on his journey to sleep. I lay there singing, rubbing his back and his hair adoring is little face still seeing my little baby and choosing to ignore the boy he's becoming. I was thankful that I hadn't had time to cut his hair yesterday as I had hoped, it was so soft, I decided not to buzz it all and to try and do a longer cut today.

Well, I didn't succeed and you know what, he still looks too darn cute!

Did you see??? 5 minutes for mom is giving away this Oreck XL Ultra. Click on the link above to try to win too!!!!

Brotherly love

And even more...

"Mommy, my hands are sharp." For some reason it took me awhile to figure this one out but I finally clipped his long nails!

"Mommy, I flushed a washcloth, I flushed it down!" WHAT!!! Yes, I think he did actually flush the washcloth that was on the back of the toilet. Miraculously, the toilet still is in perfect working order so hopefully it stays that way and the washcloth made it's way out of our plumbing.

UGH!!!

A few things that have been said (and thought) around here

"Ah, you're not going to cuddle me for sixteen hours!!!" (If you'd lie still for that long son, I'd cuddle you!)

"Mommy, I love jicamon." (Is that like in Jamaica when they say ya mon?

"Please Mommy do not speak to me like that please." (Amidst such laughter it's difficult to strangle a small boy.)

(singing)"Leaning, leaning, safe and secure from all of 'em."(All of who?)

Perserverance

This yeast cleanse diet has been putting us all to the test and for some reason I haven't prayed much about it until this morning when I stumbled upon this verse:

"Seek the Lord and His strength, seek His face always." 1 Chronicles 16:11 (emphasis mine)

It seems so obvious now to seek the Lords strength as David did and not try to do this all on my own.

Amazingly, last night at dinner we all happily ate plain sweet potatoes and realized just how sweet they actually are on their own. (Previously we'd been adding cinnamon - no sugar or sweeteners, just cinnamon for flavor.) I never thought I'd see the day when my husband said, "You know, I'm not even craving ice cream tonight!"

Granted, we are taking one day at a time but I'm very happy that we've decided to do this - I'm sure we are losing weight as well, an added bonus! We don't own a scale - I don't really feel they tell anything. Personally, I've always weighed more than it looks like I do, probably dense bones run in our family and heavy muscle mass. My son weighs more than some other kids his size too. Even still just weighing less to me isn't an indicator of the "in shape" factor so I find having a scale around annoying! Now that I've gone way out on a tangent here...

I do have to say shame, shame, shame on you food industry. I've been reading and researching and I don't like what I'm learning. Processed food items have sugar and other sweeteners hidden in them - almost all of them. Today, I wanted to save a little time by purchasing store bought chicken broth instead of making my own. Only one brand did I find (even the natural/organic ones) without sugar or cane juice or some sweetener. The food industry is smart, very smart, and all about their bottom line. They know if there is sugar or sweeteners in food we will eat more of it - and that means more $$$ for them and more pounds, weight and health issues for us. I've seen this first hand in my family, we are all getting full faster and staying full longer eating more whole, less processed foods.

The food industry isn't going to change on their own, it's going to have to be us that does the changing. The average American eats (I've found conflicting numbers here) from 20 - 40 teaspoons of sugar a day. (Even if it's just 20 that's 300 empty calories a day). To give you an idea how fast it adds up, a 12 ounce soda contains about 10 teaspoons, a 2 ounce package of candy contains about 11 teaspoons of sugar and frosted flakes cereal provides more than 4 teaspoons of sugar. By the way none of these number include the sugars naturally occurring in milk or fruits.

We've started using stevia which is an extraordinarily sweet herb -- 200-300 times sweeter than sugar. It has a slight licorice-like flavor that is only evident in bland recipes and we are getting used to it's sweet flavor. It is almost calorie-free, does not cause tooth decay and is a ZERO on the glycemic index so it does not trigger a rise in blood sugar. You won't get a sudden burst of energy followed by fatigue and a need for another "fix." Most importantly, it does not feed yeast or other microorganisms, and it increases energy and aids digestion by stimulating the pancreas.

The yeast connectionis a good place to start if you are wanting of more info. this link explains a simple saliva test that you can do at home. If this is more information than you ever wanted to know about sugar or Candida (yeast) please just ignore!!!!

I love being the one to witness this stuff!!!!

Sometimes while I'm nursing my daughter my son will bring me his "amaganadoodle" and we'll write stuff together. He really likes it when he thinks of words for me to write, then as I write them he says each letter. (It's really helped him to learn the lower case letters better.)

This afternoon we were writing words and letters and he drew a happy face. He's drawn them before but you see he frustrates easily. Generally if it doesn't look like what he thinks it should he gets frustrated (we are working on this). He giggled as he drew a big HUGE smile inside the circle. Then he added two little eyes and a nose, his own eyes filled with pride. With each addition there was more giggling and "Mommy look,(what) I can do." After ears, hair, and appendages he was just glowing and I don't think I have ever seen him be so proud of what he could do.

I don't think I've ever been more proud of him either and then in a split second it was gone as the fickle three year old fingers swiped knob to the opposite side of board saying, "Let's do it again!"

What a blessing it is to stay home with my kids, here's a picture from last week - going exploring! Yes we were still in our jammies at noon - another blessing of staying home!

Five Beautiful Months

This picture was closer to four months old!

Since I didn't make an official entry of her stats last month (The first week of December) she was 16 and a half pounds - the first week of this January, she's just over 17 and a half pounds. Since we've made an educated choice not to vaccinate either of our children thus far, we don't do the whole well child check up thing. We do go to a mommy - baby group once a month at the birthing center they were born and they let us weight our babes! It's nice to sort of keep up with her growth still, otherwise, I'd have no idea!

Click the following links to see how much I've changed:at birth, at a few days, two months, three months.

My darling, gorgeous little one, you've found your hands and your feet. You love exploring with those tiny fingers and it's cute to watch you figure out how to get the part of a toy you want into your mouth. You try many times before crying out in frustration but you mostly succeed! You especially like to chew on a favorite pink block's corner.

Your first Christmas!

Your big brother gave you the hiccups the other night by "sneezing." He's realized that when he says, "a-aaa-aaa-aaaaaaaa-chew" you giggle like crazy. We all think it's a very adorable little giggle. You are enamored with your Daddy and always give him this wonderful little grin - it melts his heart every time.

While baby feet are my favorite I just adore the pudge on your forearms, it is SO soft and squeezable - and very KISSABLE! We are so grateful for you what a blessing!

Love, Your Mommy

Five months with your cutie toes!

NOTE: I am in no way criticizing any other parents choices regarding vaccines. I do feel that each and every parent should take the time to educate themselves and then make an educated decision. Each family is unique and each parent needs to make decisions that meet the needs of their own family.

On my plate

A month has past as a marble rolling down my driveway - all too quickly.

It's more a lack of time thing than a lack of things to say, I miss my writing outlet. But it has been a nice break. Happy New Year!

I totally wanted to blog about my son's first Christmas program performance - signing I love you to me during a practice he just about melted my heart and falling in the front row while singing, he brought me to hysterical tears.

And his first time really enjoying sledding, and arranging all the figures in the nativity scene to huddle and be "close to Jesus." I spoke last year of a tradition my Mom did with hiding Jesus for us to find on Christmas eve then singing "happy birthday" to Jesus. When I hid Jesus, my son was very concerned saying adamantly that "Jesus wants to be with his family."

Currently we are all on a yeast cleansing elimination diet. We are on day 8 (it feels like month 8) without ANY sugar or sweeteners, wheat, yeast, corn, dairy, soy, fruit or eggs. Since I have been struggling with thrush since my son was an infant we decided to get serious. We are eating more veggies than we ever have and surprisingly my son has eaten almost everything I have offered him. We are treating the protein of the meal more as a side dish and having seconds of grains and veggies instead. The first day was the worst day skipping my handful of carob chips in the afternoon I don't miss them anymore. I'm still fighting with a sweet tooth in the evenings and would love to puree some fruit to top amaranth or barley pancakes.

We are going through a "die off period" currently where the yeasts are dying off and releasing their toxins into our blood stream for our body to filter out. We are fatigued and a bit depressed. Last night I had night sweats - and comparatively we don't eat a lot of sugar. We don't ever have candy in the house (Halloween excepted) but sugar is hidden in EVERYTHING. Including the "all natural"- no nitrate sandwich meats. We do eat a lot of fruits (more so than veggies especially for snacks) so yeast also feed on those simple sugars. We should be able to add them back shortly but I feel like the most horrible Mom saying no to my son that he can't have an apple.

Since breakfast has been my hardest meal of the day (we can only have oatmeal once every four days) today I added eggs back into our diet without noticing any setbacks so that will at least add some texture to our baked goods and a nice snack.

Let's see, I hope to have some pictures to post shortly, and I'll share some recipes just for fun!. Oh and my daughter's five months old so I'll need to write about that soon too!

In our heart

Why is it that when I don't have time for blogging the most "blog worthy" stuff happens?

Last week my son and I heard the song that starts out with little kids singing happy birthday to Jesus on the radio. He got all excited that Christmas was Jesus' birthday and then he started singing the song "Happy Birthday to God" which I thought was adorable.

Later that same day he asked me "Mommy, where's God?" I was somewhat distracted at the time and replied with, "God is everywhere, he's always with us." That wasn't the answer he was looking for however because he asked me twice more. After starting to give the same answer for the third time I gave him my full attention, realizing I was almost missing a big opportunity here. I explained how God is in our hearts and we ask Jesus into our hearts. His resounding "okay" was enough for me to figure that he got whatever he needed out of this answer.

Then today we were talking about how even though Daddy is at work he is still part of our family. Just because he's not in the car with us, we are indeed still a family. My son joyfully exclaims from third row of the car "Daddy in my heart just like God!"

Yeah, he really is listening all the time!

Taking a break

from vacation pictures (I do have a few more to edit) to share some current stuff. I slept for 6 hours in a row last night! The scary thing is that I went to bed an hour and a half after my daughter fell asleep nursing at 9:30. She slept for 7.5 hours and I'm so not ready for that - I'm just now feeling like my supply has leveled out for the day. Think Dolly Parton but more on the scale of Angelina Jolie really (I could only wish.) Alas, I digress.

On Saturday we went to a local learning center that has environmental events once a month and this one was about "how to have a green Christmas." It was fun and free, we all made ornaments out of used items. I even made (a quite ugly) one out of little red and white legos. In theory I think it might be nice to have one ornament that it's okay to play with since I only glued some of them, the rest can be rearranged. We'll see how that works out.

I also was pointed to this website, Eartheasy.com. It has tons of great information, I've been reading off and on all day. They have some great information on how to have a green Christmas. Amongst tons of great ideas my favorite fact is, "Over a 30-day period, lighting 500 traditional holiday lights will cost you about $18.00 while the same number of LED lights costs only $0.19." Talk about savings.

We also made an oregami gift box which was fun. My son keeps asking me to make more out of magazine pages. Click on the link for directions. Just thought I'd share, hope all my 'puter friends are having a wonderful Christmas season!

One is never enough

There's no way one picture could actually sum up an entire 10 days of multi-generational family fun so we'll test out just how many I can put in one post ;o)

Let me back up for a minute, before our trip we took out some books about vacations and airplanes to prepare. My son was prepared for everything, check in, security, waiting at the gate it couldn't have gone more smoothly. Boarding and finding row 11 even buckling and unbuckling the seat belt was a breeze. Taxiing out to the runway, he knew take off was imminent. "We're taking off, we're taking off." Was gleefully heard at least 4 rows either direction.

We got above the clouds and I hear this little, "Mommy we going to land now?" Apparently no book can prepare you for the 2 hours 20 minutes of flying time in between those two great airplane trip events. I'm just grateful it was so short because he kept asking about every 10 minutes or so until we were about to land. On the return trip it was after we landed that he kept saying, "Mommy I want to take off again."

We arrived midday on a Sunday and spent the rest of that day visiting with my wonderful Aunt and Uncle who kindly let us turn their house upside down with kiddo stuff. The next day since we were still well rested we decided to go to the zoo which was a ton of fun. Our little girl slept the entire day away in her carrier and our big kiddo was off to the races, excitedly exploring snakes, elephants, koalas, pandas and polar bears to name a few. I was tired at the end of it all and he walked almost as much excepting one small piggy back ride from Daddy. Here's a couple pictures of the zoo day.

Our 3 year old thought the Gorillas were in a time out sitting with their backs to the glass viewing wall.

My Gram and my son during one of their many play times. It's awesome for me to see her playing with him since I have so many memories of her playing with us. And hello how many Great-grandparents actually get down on the floor to play with their great grand kids! She's so awesome and while I won't mention her age she'll be 81 years older than my son at the end of this month. She is another one of our many blessings!!!!

This one was taken the next day when we were at the beach I described yesterday. a rouge wave had just knocked him down as happens to us all when we turn our back on the ocean. Mom and Dad were both yelling RUN and he stood there looking at us blankly. It really wasn't that big but more of the surprise factor for him.

Making holiday rolls (a family tradition) with, from my son's right: Great-Gram, her sister Aunt Lucille and Aunt Mimi (her back to us).

Hangin' out with the guys.

Since it's getting late, I'll end with this cutie one for now.

If one picture could define our vacation

this one is it.

This little rocky outcrop is just up the road from where Adam and I were married. It was so nice to breath in the cool ocean air and reminisce. Looking out to the buoy from here (you can't see it in the picture) that we used to swim to and dive down seemed incredibly far. I'm not sure how we did that with all that gear on. It seemed odd to have kids in tow at all of our old favorite places and odd that we never noticed one of our favorite places to have calamari was a bar so we had to get our food to go and eat it at the beach (oh, the suffering!).

We walked down to the beach from here even though it was one of the coldest and windy days we were there and it was just so peaceful. There weren't many people and we almost had the little cove to ourselves. Afterwards we walked up the steps and over to the street carrying our shoes and I was brought back to my wedding day carrying my train and veil over one arm and my shoes in the other going back to the reception after taking pictures on the beach. Looking at the two wonderful blessings we've been given since our wedding day was completely wonderful and overwhelming. Stunning places God provided, wonderful companionship and two amazing children. We are indeed blessed beyond measure.

It's our fifth day back from our San Diego visit and we are getting reacquainted with freezing temperatures and caught up on stuff around here. Plus we enjoyed having my hubby's Mom here for a weekend visit and desperately trying to remember this feeling...

More pictures and stories to come. It was so nice to visit our old haunts, I've been in denial of just how much I missed the beach. It was weird again to see Christmas lights on palm trees and to have shorts on in November. But now I'm rambling when I should be folding laundry and starting dinner.

Our not so traditional tradition

Last year I mentioned some of our Holiday Traditions but I never shared my recipe for the yummy Salad Spring Rolls that we make most every year for Thanksgiving. They are so delicious I actually get a craving for them and the peanut sauce is really yummy over rice noodles too!

Peanut Chile Dressing

• 1 Cup good peanut butter
• 1 T honey
• 1 Cup boiling water
• 6 tablespoons cider or unseasoned rice vinegar
• 2 tsp minced garlic
• 1 T Chinese sesame oil
• 1 T Soy sauce
• 1 tsp salt (I omit)
• 1 small (2 inch) serrano chile, minced (seeding optional for milder)

Place peanut butter and honey in a medium- sized bowl. Add about 1/2 cup of the boiling water and mash with a spoon until uniform. Add the remaining water and ingredients, stir until well blended. Store in a tightly covered container in the fridge(will keep well for weeks) Whisk vigorously from the bottom before using.

Vietnamese Salad Rolls

• 12 round (8-9 inch diameter) or 24 square rice paper wrappers
• 6-8 leaves romaine, cut into very thin strips
• 1 C mung bean sprouts
• 1 large carrot, julienned or shredded
• 1/3 C cilantro leaves
• 1/3 C mint leaves
• 1 C firm tofu, cut into thin strips (about 6 oz.)
• 1/4 C peanuts, minced
• Peanut chile dressing

I can find the rice paper wrappers in the Asian section of my grocery store but you may have to look at a specialty store or Asian grocer. You can improvise really any small cut veggies that you have on hand.

Fill a pie pan with lukewarm water. Place rice paper wrappers in the water one at a time in the water for a few seconds, then tranasfer to a dinner plate. Lightly moisten a paper towel and lay on top of the wrapper. Continue layering covering the last wrapper with a paper towel and set aside. (The paper towels keep the rice papers from sticking irreparably to themselves or each other.)

In a large bowl combine all veggies, tofu and peanuts with about 1/4 C Peanut Chile Dressing and gently toss. Place about 1/4 - 1/3 C on the half of the wrapper that is closest to you. Fold in the sides and gently roll up and transfer to serving plate. Repeat for all rice paper and salad mixture.

Store in the refrigerator or at room temperature tightly covered with plastic wrap. The recipe says they will keep for up to one day but I think they are best eaten within a few hours.

Serve with peanut chile dressing for dipping and you can just devour them whole (hee, hee) or slice diagonally in half for a nice presentation. Enjoy!!! I can't wait for Thursday now!!!!

Have a Happy Thanksgiving!

Three Months Old!

Boy time really flies, I have no idea what happened to October and now November is half over too. Our little one is three months old and just a joy!

She's perfected the sweet art of smiling mid suckle with milky white corners and gleaming eyes. She'll follow big brother around the room with her eyes wondering what he's up to - is it any wonder she has been rolling over from front to back pretty regularly for about a week and a half now! Last Wednesday she weighed 15 and a half pounds and 3-6 months clothes are getting snug with or without cloth diapers.

What a reminder she is to just stop and enjoy every day. She LOVES to make eye contact and when she catches my eye, it's impossible to pull away. She's beautifully captivating!

Big brother still gives her the most kisses of anyone and other than being a touch rough at times still, is just the sweetest sibling ever!

We are to that point where I almost can't remember what life was like before two kids. (Not that I'd really try.) This is one time when it's okay to say two is better than one! I know they both will love to have each other.

I know I'm a goof

We recently rented an Elmo goes potty video from the library and I got a kick out of the end when like on Sesame Street they said "this was brought to you today by the letter P and the number 2."

I know I'm a dork but it made me giggle!

Speaking of potty training, I would consider my son mostly potty trained. We are leaving on Sunday for a 10 day visit to my Aunt and Uncle's in San Diego and I'm not sure what to do as far as taking a newly trained boy out of his usual environment. Anyone have any advice on what to expect?

Of late, the only days he seems to have accidents is when his number 2 is not regular, i.e. he doesn't go first thing in the morning. And for weeks and weeks now he's been keeping number 2 in the potty. He's still in a diaper at night and training pants for his nap so I'm basically just a bit concerned about bladder control during the day.

Granted for much of the time we will be at my Aunt's or other family member's place so there will be laundry access but I don't want to be ruining my Aunt's rugs and or be in the middle of the Zoo (of course I'll have a spare) and not have enough clothes.

I guess what I'm asking is do we revert to pull ups (which really didn't work for training since he'd just go in them) or do we just go for it! Don't worry Aunt Mimi, he's been going 4+ days without accidents I'm just trying to cover all my bases here! Thanks for any input you have on training travel :)!!!!

Make it from scratch carnival is up at Laura Williams' Musings. There are many seasonal contributions this time and I'm currently into 10 Home Improvement Projects that Actually Pay off from the Frugal Panda and Make Your Own Refrigerator Magnets from Mental Mosaic.

Is there just no end to the amount of things I can learn from fellow bloggers? I hope not. Blogging fills many different things but my quest for knowledge is certainly overflowing! Enjoy your Tuesday!

Fire Starters

Growing up we had a wood burning stove for awhile as well as a fireplace. My Dad was a pro at making a wonderful fire. I have fond memories of standing by his side carefully rolling newspaper and stacking kindling. Later I can remember my Mom making fire starters to help things along.

We have a gas fireplace in our current house which is I'm sure better for lots of reasons but lacks the ambiance of a crackling fire. I love how homey a fire makes a room with it's popping and crackling and warmth like a giant hug. So a couple years ago my hubby got me a little fire pit chimney for outside. I love it and so I decided to make some fire starters to use out there this winter.

How to make firestarters...(They are SO easy!)

First collect a couple of cardboard egg crates and your dryer lint for a week or so, depending on how many you want to make and how much laundry you do. ;)

Take the lid off the egg carton and recycle it or use it as kindling. Then stuff the egg pockets with the lint.

While you are doing this you can start a double boiler melting some wax. I just used some candles I've never used and some small ends of already burnt ones. When the wax has melted pour over the lint allowing enough to soak a bit into each section of lint in the carton.

When dry cut each section out and you're done. Depending on the size of your fire you may need more than one, but one is usually enough to get things going. Just light a corner of the cardboard on fire and it will burn for about five minutes.

Sleep has done us all well!! Here we were last night! :) Enjoy your day!

Keepin it real

Today is a wonderful day. Lord I am grateful you have given me this day. Thank you for these two little blessings and especially my hubby! Please bless the rest of my day as well!

It really is a great day, it just feels forced. This morning I woke up to my son saying that he needs to watch TV. Adam was getting ready for work and suggested that he needs a month long break from it. I agree but I think one 30 minute show a day is more realistic

When the little one came along TV became a nice way to let us all rest during the day, or first thing in the morning. Boy am I regretting it now. Along with those days that we were in pj's all day. Still when I say "It's time to get dressed." His reply without hesitation is, "Where are we going?" But that's another story.

Needless to say, if I don't want him to watch TV first thing I have to get up at 7am when he does, ugh. I am indeed grateful for this time we have to share. On many mornings I can sneak out of bed to feed my son and I breakfast and spend some time with him while baby sis stays asleep in our bed. Today she slept for awhile so we had time to eat and play. I put him in the ergo baby carrier while I did some things and he kept asking me to run or go up and down the stairs, which I obliged. Seriously my quads are now on FIRE! It was fun though having him attached to me while I did things - I knew where he was and he loved getting a birds eye view. Plus it also appears to have been a wonderful workout!

When the little one awoke I met all of her needs which lead to and exorbitant amount of spitting up and two changes of clothes for both of us. By the time were were ready to leave to go to Costco it was already 10:OO and I wanted to go to Fred Meyer afterwards which mow meant I needed to pack a lunch - 5 more minutes. Loaded all of us and an ice chest in and off we went. My son and I singing merrily, lulling my daughter to sleep.

With her asleep in the sling the shopping was fairly easy. 45 minutes and we were in line. Here's where we hit a snag. See my I'm not actually a Costco member. I snagged my hubby's card because I didn't want to waste a Saturday going together. Apparently they don't like that, to say the least. After a bit of arguing and begging (my daughter was awake by now) they let me pay for my stuff - hello do you want to lose the business or make some money? Seems silly but it worked out anyway.

After a diaper change and nursing in the car (involving more spit up), my son and I ate pb&j on the way to our next stop. When we got there, another little snack for my daughter and we were off. I seriously get stopped by every Grandma telling me how smart it is to have my baby a carrier, or how cute my kids are etc. Today, I just wanted to get in and out but that didn't happen. First thing I took my son to the bathroom, he's doing really well with his potty training but it had been awhile. The womens bath was closed for cleaning - the wonderfully nice Fred Meyer employee let us in anyway. Finally, we were back out in the store getting the many items on my list - plus a few. When my daughter wouldn't settle down in the sling - we were only half way done.

I see a bench at the front of the store - I'm still not terrific at sling nursing. We sit on the bench and nurse as my son counts the number of people and everyone smiles back at him. Too cute, and I was pleasantly surprised at the number of smiles and approving nods I got from people walking by since we were right in the front by the cashiers there was lots of people.

Back to the bathroom - the guy was still trying to clean it - for a diaper change. What no diapers. I could have gone and bought them but that would have required two trips through the check out. Not an option! I ripped through the diaper bag and found a diaper cover and receiving blanket...should work. And back out we went to attempt to get this all finished.

The baby fell asleep in the sling shortly and we made it through produce and the rest of the shopping! I find my favorite checker and we're out of there! It was then almost 2pm. I took us forever and when I got home all I wanted to do was sit, my legs are seriously very sore!

Once I decided there were enough leftovers for dinner, I relaxed a bit. Finishing a book about attachment parenting and nursing while my son played outside. It seriously was a wonderful day and I think I'm just tired. It's also just exhausting to make two grocery shops in one day, maybe next time I'll plan ahead and order from Amazon or something.

Seriously though after the last year, I'm so grateful that my hubby has a good job to pay for groceries and that I'm healthy enough to carry my kids around and truly appreciate life, even if it's forced. I used to work with a gal who would smile and say "fake it till you make it." That's sort of what I felt like today, I'm not sure if I'm explaining it well but I'm betting if I get off the computer and get tot bed it will do me some good.

Oh, did I mention that when Adam came home I had my son on my back and my daughter in the sling talk about almost 50 extra pounds. It was fun and someday soon I might upload the pictures. Not now though, sleep is beckoning!

Seriously!

An actual conversation with my 3 year old. (My hubby just happened to be on speaker phone at the time so he didn't have to miss out!)

He comes inside and says, "Mommy I eat two bugs in my tractor, I really, really I do."

Insert awkward silence here.

I say, "You really ate two bugs?"

He says, "Yup, they yummy in my tummy!"

My reply, "Thank you for telling Mommy, next time lets just leave the bugs alone I think they are yucky." He expresses more interest to go play outside I say sure and then say, "Hey, you have no problems eating bugs, but spinach and broccoli you have trouble with?" A little "Yup" follows as he runs back out and Adam starts cracking up!

After about a half hour he comes inside and says, "We don't eat spiders blaaaaah. We do eat bugs they yummy." After taking off his shoes and sweatshirt he asks me. "Mommy what do spiders eat. (This is a very common question that he's asked about every animal he knows - I've actually had to look up the answers to some like, "What do Beavers eat?") Anyway, he says, "What do spiders eat?".

I say, "Um, spiders eat bugs and flies."

Maybe for next Halloween Spiderman will be more appropriate.

Crunchy!

Caution

There may be many days when parenting in this manner will leave your house a wreck similar to this!

Which is why today I've tackled the laundry. I try to do two to three loads a day (one each on Saturday and Sunday) so that laundry isn't so daunting a task. However the daunting task lately is finding the time to fold and put it away. Clean loads first get dumped on the chair in the back left corner and move counter clockwise around the other sitting surfaces. My one task for the day in between nursing, playtime and during quiet time was folding and putting it away.

It's not all put away yet but at least the baskets are upstairs and we can once again live in our family room! It will be nice for my hubby to actually have clothes in the appropriate places tomorrow morning! I am so lucky that he never complains when the house looks like this. A couple days last week all I was able to do was take care of kids and get dinner going and I was a little upset. I actually said' "What if someone stops by." He said they'll know that I'm taking great care of my kids! Am I lucky or what! I do feel good having gotten some housework done too.

What makes a GOOD baby?

Why does our culture judge a good baby on sleep? Why are we so geared up to get a newborn independent after week one of life? They spent 9 months inside their mother and then we expect them to be sleeping through the night at 9 weeks. Hello! How does that really make any sense. I may be throwing you all for a loop but I'm an attachment parenting mama and proud of it!!

I don't believe that crying is good for a baby's lungs. I do believe it is a cue that the baby has a need that only it's primary caregivers can meet.

I don't believe that a baby needs a feeding or sleeping schedule. I do believe that babies should have their needs met when they need them, when they are hungry, tired or need the comfort of Mom or Dad.

I don't believe that my child needs to sleep in a lonely dark room down the hall. I do believe that we are very comfortable and safe sleeping together in a oneness where we both wake and sleep with a rhythm of togetherness.

I don't believe that my child should be put in a pack and play or play pen so they won't get into trouble. I do believe they are safer close to me and/or in a sling carrier.

If meeting my babies needs on cue means I'm spoiling her then gosh darn it I'm spoiling her every minute!!! I find it impossible to believe that my baby is manipulating me by wanting to nurse often, only that she is hungry, growing, or needing comfort. I believe manipulation is more of a learned behavior.

I by no means am judging you if your parenting choices differ from mine I also believe that each set of parents are THE best decision makers for their own family. Each parent must listen to their own intuition and do what is best for each individual within what is best for their entire family unit. Each family has different situations.

I could go on but this loving, happy and healthy baby is worth letting her nurse all day and night for a relatively short while. Before I know it she'll be three and telling me to take off my shoes when I come inside, spelling words and having way less time for cuddling her Mama!

The Battle of Toys

Why is it when I go through his toys and commit to getting rid of two of the three different types of building blocks does he consistently play with the two I was going to give away????

I'm not sure if three years old is too young for this but I've already told him that after Thanksgiving he and I are going to go through his toys and he'll need to pick out 3 to give to kids who don't have many toys. He just looked at me and said, "oh." I'm sure that he doesn't really have the life experience yet to understand but I thought we'd start this year and see what happens. I went through some of his toys the day that I put them away and already have a pile started to be given away.

I've noticed now that there's less toys, not only is there less mess but he plays with more of a variety of them every day. They are also much easier for him to put away. Though it still takes 20 minutes for him to put away what would be 3 minutes of work for me I know that I'm enabling him to be responsible for his things and his own mess by it being his job.

My 3 year old loves to play with my neighbor's kids. They have four boys ages ranging from about 4th grade down to 4. On most of the nice days lately my son goes out to play in the backyard while I'm getting dinner ready - even if it's cold. The other kids are usually out then too so my son calls their names until they climb up on the fence to talk to him - they are really nice kids. I'd love to be able to say yes one of these days when he comes in asking to go over to their yard or play out front with them. (He does play out front with them but only if one of us is out in the garage or in the front yard too.)

These evenings, I just can not say yes - they have a trampoline in their yard and many times I see multiple kids jumping at once and I can't expect them to look after my son. Their Mom is also preparing dinner or housework inside so she's not watching either. It just pains me that my kiddo wants so badly to play with other kids and he's surrounded by them, yet can't see or play with them, only hear them having fun. He does play well by himself but I just really want him to get to play with other kids. I'm planning on setting up a play date with my neighbor but we have nothing in our yard to entice them to come play over here...motivation to bug my hubby to build that swing set we've been talking about I guess!

Anyway, I am sticking to my gut and keeping him in our yard - plus it's funny to watch him try to pull things over to the fence to see if he can climb over. One of the other kids directs him to try different items and I chuckle my way through food prep keeping a good eye. He's a Mr. Steady though as soon as he doesn't have sure footing or good grip he stops, it makes it easy to trust him.

Trick or Treat!

Inquiring Minds Want To Know

Are you the type that digs in and gets your hands dirty or no thank you I don't want that under my fingernails?

I love to run my fingers through wonderful smelling, soft earth. (Locally ours is like clay so it needs a bit of amending to get to that nice soft dirt that I remember from childhood.) With finger paints I'm not so fond of them getting under my nails but I do have fun doing it and getting messy. So yes, I'll get my hands dirty, how about you?

He recently received a book that he loves to read that has mud pies in it...you can guess what we were doing in the pictures!

Wonderful Service!

If any of you are considering ordering custom cards I would highly recommend checking out weelittledesigns.com. The owner Jamie blogs at all things avery and her daughter is just the cutest thing ever.

Last Saturday I finally went through our pictures to pick some for our little one's birth announcement. The hardest part was deciding on one design because I loved so many. We ended up choosing the Mia birth announcement and it is just perfect.

I don't want for forget to mention that as I said I ordered last Saturday and I had proofs in my inbox on Sunday afternoon AND the finished prints are sitting in front of me right now. I am just so thrilled with the service I received from Jamie, the quality of her work is impeccable!

Thanks!!!

Little Giggle!

Finding time to fit in exercise with a wee one is trying. I've been able to go for a couple of walks this week but I need to fit in some toning exercises. Since we were all playing on the floor earlier I thought I'd take the opportunity to squeeze in a few minutes of abs and buns pilates exercises.

Soon I find myself on my back, knees bent doing shoulder bridges lifting the two kids sitting on my lower abdomen, talk about a work out! And what wonderful motivation my sweet daughter and son were. My son was laughing and my wee one was all smiles and even let out her first giggles!!! We tried to recreate it for the video camera tonight and got the smiles but no giggles. My buns are already sore and even still I may do more tomorrow!

Sending prayers to all my family and friends in Southern California. I've heard that much of San Diego County has been evacuated or is on alert. My hubby and I lived in San Diego for 6 years and the last large fires there came within a mile of our home so we can relate. But these fires are exponentially worse and we pray for those families who have lost their homes and hope they can find comfort and pray that God will keep the firefighters and residents safe in his hands.

We have plans to spend the Thanksgiving holiday next month with my Aunt and Uncle and other relatives who live in San Diego - you are all in our thoughts and prayers!

UPDATED:While we're on the prayer subject, please pray for my blogging buddy Lisa, she just had her baby girl! There are some complications so keep her in your prayers too!

If you have a minute

Please join me in telling the EPA to reverse it's approval of methyl iodide . It is to be used as a fumigant pest control by farmers and despite more than 50 scientists opposition (including 5 Nobel laureates in chemistry) the EPA approved the use of it. Fumigants are some of the most potentially dangerous pesticides in use because the toxic gas can evaporate from the soil, exposing farmworkers and drifting into neighborhoods. Studies have shown permanent nervous system damage, miscarriages, and thyroid tumors.

It would be used primarily on strawberry fields and the scientists, mostly chemists, warned that "pregnant women and the fetus, children, the elderly, farmworkers and other people living near application sites would be at serious risk." There is plenty of info on the link above - let's ask the EPA to help farmers find healthier more sustainable ways to fight crop pests and diseases.

Ahhhhhhhhhhh

Thanks for your comments and support! I just pampered myself with a long shower while my Mom took care of the babe and my Dad took my 3 year old to the park. What a difference from my typical 3-5 minute shower with the door open and curtain cracked. Shaved and exfoliated, I feel wonderfully human!!

I plan to go out with a couple friends on Thursday, with the baby of course, but adult conversation will be nice. Yesterday I remembered that I used to take baths every once in awhile with my son as a baby. It was fun bonding time and water is just so soothing for me. I'm scheduling one of these baths with my baby about once a week from now on and hopefully these little things will help maintain my sanity!

It must be normal?!?!?!

I love my kids with all my heart but I'm feeling overwhelmed and like I need a break. I cried when I said it out loud to my hubby today who said that it was normal to feel like I needed a break and understandable. For some reason I feel like a bad Mom if I admit that I need some time to myself.

So tell me, what are some ways that you find time to rejuvenate in your life??? My parents are passing through tomorrow so I'm hoping to get a bath in or something.

The Little Stuff Counts

Today is blog action day and the theme for this year is the environment. I must admit that lately I've been tired and some weeks I just don't want to sort my recyclables. Then I look at the reasons I'm tired and remember that I want them to be able to enjoy the Earth too. So I drag myself out to the garage for five minutes of sorting on trash day and my paper, cardboard, plastic and metals all get sorted. Glass I save up in a box and take to my local recycling center since they don't pick it up.

Americans waste enough wood and paper to heat 50,000,000 homes for 20 years!

What I've been trying to figure out is how to convey the message of reduce, reuse, and recycle to my three year old. He knows where the paper bags for recycling are in the pantry. He sees me sorting, using reusable shopping bags, taking the few plastic bags we do get back to the store to be recycled, vermicomposting, buying used items so as not to let good things go to waste. Still I really didn't know how to convey to him the beauty of our planet that is God's gift to us.

It takes 200-500 years for an aluminum can to decompose!

Then I realized that it is in all these little things that he will see the bigger picture. By exposing our kids to the wonders of nature; collecting fall leaves, planting seeds, picking noxious weeds, smelling flowers and sitting in the shade of a huge tree watching squirrels all help kids learn about the beauty of what we've been given. I think it's important for little people to see that even though they are small, they too can make a difference.

We could save about 555,556 trees every Sunday if we recycled all our newspapers!

I was reading an article in the Dr's office a couple of months ago about how to get your kids to go green and there was a wonderful idea that we are having fun with. It spoke of a family that had a basket were they kept scraps of paper, cardboard, bits of broken toys, fabric. or yarn. Anything that can't be used by itself and they look through it when they have crafts or art projects. Since my son is into gluing lately we've been doing this and it's great, he doesn't really care what he's gluing or making and I don't have to buy any extra supplies, it's all stuff that would have ended up in the landfill already!

It takes about 450 years for a plastic 6-pack cover to decompose!

When I look at all these little things individually it's easy to think "Nothing I can do will actually make a difference." In reality though if you add it all together these little efforts our children see us making by using cloth diapers or even less paper towels by using washable cloths and dish towels in the kitchen, it all matters. Our grandchildren just might thank us one day that we took responsibility for our gift.