Thursday, April 7, 2011

Kids say the darndest things.

Yup. I was driving Lucy, Alex and 2 of Alex's friends to the movie theater last week, and this is what I heard.

"You know I like motorcycles." I nod in agreement. "I am getting my husband one, even if he doesn't like it." - Lucy
Guess we know who will be in charge in that relationship!

The boys are talking about a poetry assignment they had in class. "My poem is this: I have a dog named yoda.
He likes to drink soda.
He only likes cookies
If they taste like my sister Gabby." - Friend 1
"Luuuucky! I want a dog that will eat my sister!" - Friend 2

Pot pretties... coming soon to a blog near you!

Pot pretties.. hmmmm. Whatever could she mean? *sweet dorothy gail voice*

Remember these pots from last year? Well, they are getting a make-over. Oh yeah. Check back.

Friday, March 18, 2011

Apple Avocado Pudding

I made some apple avocado pudding for breakfast the other day. Total huge FAIL. It was lots too avocadoey. Kids and spouse turned up their noses. I ate some, but after a while it was just no good. Next time I will use a quarter of an avocado to each apple.

Thursday, March 17, 2011

Facebook - Friend or Foe?

I seem to have this crazy love/hate relationship with Facebook. I feel this obsessive need to check in at every hour of the day. I say, "Oh, it's just a great way to keep up with old friends and family. It's a great way to meet the local people on this post."

But really, it's just another excuse for people to be mean, nasty and catty. It's like they think since it's online and not face to face, they can say whatever they want. Military wives in general are unkind to each other, but throw in the distance and impersonality of the internet and they are assholes.

People follow you around and post nasty things on your statuses. They post cryptic statuses to get attention, and usually the meaning behind is a dig or mean comment about someone else.

It seems that a lot of the people I meet through facebook are full of drama, looking for attention and bring chaos with them. I don't need that crap. I have enough drama and chaos in my own home.

BUT it is good for some things. I have found some nice people through facebook. I enjoy hanging out with them and i feel that I satisfy that need for companionship. Facebook is an easy way to connect people. EVERYONE and their grandma has a facebook account, and all our events and fun things are posted on Facebook. No Facebook, no notification.

Overall, I am undecided and conflicted.

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Jack and my Juice

that sounds kind of wrong, but it's really just two completely unrelated topics.

Jack is the cutiest cute baby I have ever seen. He is loving, cuddly, sweet and quiet. (Quiet is a big issue in our house... I seem to have some noise sensitivities). I totally love that he knows when he is tired and ready for bed. He will be fine, just bouncing along with a smile, and then he squawks that he is ready for bed. I just hold him in his sleep time position (face in my armpit) and he is out! Done. I <3 him.

Okay, Juice. I like to start my day with some juicy juice. It is green juice, and super hydrating. Yum. Some people find the taste very vegetabley, but i guess it is a taste you work up to. I think it tastes fresh.

I have a fancy high powered juicer, and it wasn't cheap, but if you are going to juice veggies every day, the investment is worth it. I also have a centrifugal juicer, and it worked for a while. I still use it for fruits.

My fave juice recipe:
1 head of lettuce (never iceberg)
Handful of spinach
3 carrots
3 stalks celery
1 cucumber
1 apple (I like granny smith)
1 lemon, peel removed
handful of cilantro for zing

Monday, March 14, 2011

Really Real Raw

Anybody that knows me, knows that I am a vegetarian. Some people think I am lame and wonder why I just won't eat like everyone else, why I have to be so picky. Well, it's about to get worse, baby! Monday next marks the first day of whole family raw-ness. As a family we are moving to a vegetarian, 90%-95% raw diet.

So, common questions from the peanut gallery.

Yes, we will be getting enough nutrition. Yes, even the kids. To ensure optimum nutrition, we will be supplementing with vitamins D3, K2, B12, calcium, DHA, and soy lecithin. Also, the kids will probably have 1 or 2 eggs a week and we may all have some organic yogurt on occasion.

Yes, the kids will pack lunches, and we will bring food in to any event that SAD (standard American diet) will be served.

Yes, the kids are on board for the most part. We have talked about nutrition and and healthy bodies, immune systems and weight. My kids are used to a vegetarian life style already.

Yes, the kids will eat the food. As mentioned, they already eat a mostly vegetarian lifestyle. I won't be cooking anything. I will be un-cooking. Eat it or don't is my philosophy. Dig it.

No, we won't be dining on carrot sticks and sprouted sunflower seeds. It is a delicious and healthy way to prepare food. And we won't have to eat any mushy, overcooked broccoli.

Yes, it is going to be a hard transition for a while. I have a serious sugar addiction, and so do the kids. The first step is acknowledgment, right?


On to the recipe from yesterday!

Raw Cream of Tomato Soup

So this may sound kinda icky, but it really wasn't. It made a creamy frothy soup and the apples were a great sweet contrast to the tomato.

4-5 fresh fragrant tomatoes, quartered
1/4 c. cilantro
1 avocado, pitted and scooped out
1 packet stevia
1 t agave nectar
sea salt and fresh pepper to taste
1/2 c. chopped apple
1/2 c. corn, fresh off the cob

In the blender, blend all ingredients, except apples and corn, until creamy.
Divide apples and corn between two bowls.
Ladle soup over corn and apples.
Eat. Enjoy. Eat some more.

Monday, January 31, 2011

Garden for 2011

Last year's garden was a bust. We were supposed to move to NC so we gave away everything.. including my precious dirt! So I have to start over now. That's okay.. it will be worth it!

Garden is mapped, and planting and harvest dates are put on the calendar.

So I will have 15 6-ft x 3-ft garden boxes.

The plants this year are:
Early Snowball Cauliflower - 2
Farmer's Extra Early Snowball Cauliflower - 2
Green Magic Broccoli - 2
Green Sprouting Calebrese - 2
Coronando Crown Broccoli - 2
Cherry Belle Radishes - 48
Green Arrow Peas - 136
Purple Pod Beans - 136
Blue Lake Pole Beans - 64
Sugar Snap Peas - 72
Bush Beans White Half Runner - 8
Gotta Have it White Corn - 32
Golden Cross Corn - 36
Boston Pickling Cucumbers - 4
Straight Eight Cucumbers - 4
Big Boy Bell Peppers - 6
Mortgage Lifter Tomatoes - 6
Roma Tomatoes - 6
Golden Rave Tomatoes - 6
Gurney Girl tomatoes - 6
Sweet Baby Girl tomatoes - 6
Danvers Carrots - 80
Nantes Carrotes - 64
Envy Carrots - 64
Nantes Coreless - 80
Crimson Sweet Watermelons - 3
Sugar Baby Watermelons - 2
Field's Sweet Cantalope - 3
Gurney's Giant Cantalopes - 3
Multipik Crookneck Yellow Summer Squash - 1
Black Magic Zucchini - 2
Jack-o-lantern Pumpkins- 3
Lumina Pumpkins - 3
Gurney's Giant Pumpkins - 3
Spinach - 42
Bibb Lettuce - 8
Iceburg lettuce - 8
Black Seeded Simpson Lettuce - 8
Buttercrunch Lettuce - 8
Bright Lights Chard - 4
Lettuce Blend - 8
Strawberries - 72
Thyme - 1
Dill - 1
Cilantro - 3
Mint - 3
Basil - 6

and flowers:
geranium - 7
Nasturtium - 25
Marigold - 4
Sunflowers - 15

Saturday, January 1, 2011

Farm Birthday featuring sock horses

In october we had an amazing birthday party for Lucy, who turned 7!  It is hard to believe my girly is 7 already!

My friend Beth made an awesome 3-D farmhouse cake. Recipe wasn't too hard and was found here: Family Fun Farm Cake. The cake was a big hit with all the kids and we had to ration the "farm animals".


At the party we made some cute hobby horses, roughly based on thesehobby horses. Of course, I forgot to take pictures of any of the finished horses, so use your imagination. If I can find anyone that did take a picture, I will post it. I got some string mops and crew socks from the dollar store. The dollar store mops were perfect because they were super short. Like mops for little people (it's not cool to say midget, is it?). We took a sock and stuffed it over the mop so that the strings filled the bottom of the sock forming the horses, um, snout? nose? muzzle?. I just left the socks loose and open around the handle of the mop. The strings did not try to jump out of the sock at all, and it worked very well. Next I cut some lengths of string and using a plastic canvas type of needle, i pulled the yarn through the sock and then back up very close to where i went down. Then I tied the two ends together. I did this all over the mane area. I cut 2 triangles from felt and hot glued them where ears should be. Finally we sewed buttons on for the eyes.

Then we raced horses. Fun.

Lucy's favorite part: Beiber posters for her room.

2010 Projects in Review

Projects from 2010

Fabric Strip Curtain, rug and curtains - Jan. 2010

Sun on a Snowy Day Wreath - Feb. 2010

Coffee Cup Rack - March 2010

Pretty Pots - March 2010

Plant Cell Cake - April 2010

Teacher gifts on the fly - May 2010

Summer Dresses - June 2010

Water Bottle Carrier - June 2010

Iron on wall "vinyls" - July 2010

Operation New Board - July 2010

Hang up laundry separators - Sept. 2010

Menu Board - Oct. 2010

Scary Spider Wreath - Oct. 2010

Hobby Horses - Oct. 2010