Texas Relays

Our sweet and talented Jessie-bear was competing in the Texas Relays again this year, but this time on a collegiate level!

We packed up the kids and headed to Austin (home of the competition) to watch and cheer her on. We don't road-trip as much as we used to before the kids were here, and it always surprises me how well it goes.  This time was no exception!

Jessie didn't do as well as she wanted; she holds herself to very high standards - the way most athletes do, but we had a great time watching her and seeing all the family. 

The competition started early Saturday morning so we got up earrrrlllly and headed out.  It was no fun!  I thought, *hoped*, that the kids would go back to sleep after we got them loaded up but they were excited and wide awake.  They ended up sleeping a little on the way but not nearly as long as I hoped. That made for a long day!

Sleepy Alaina loved snuggling!  She was passed around and snuggled up by a couple of Aunts, a Gigi, and of course her mommy. 

 

After Jessie was done we all rendezvoused for lunch at On the Border - all 20 of us!  I know they have to cringe hard when they see us coming! We decided to rent a little house for the same price as a hotel room, and that way we had more space.  So we headed over to unpack after lunch and start our tour de Austin area friends from college.  

I'm SO glad I got to see Jessie compete and look so awesome in her Auburn blue and orange!  I know that girl is going places...you just watch and see.    

Imagination is king around here.  I swear, I can't turn around for one second without the whole kitchen table being taken over with pretend plastic food and monkeys.  Lots and lots of monkeys. 

Boy they look hungry.  They're licking their plates clean!  

Now someone clear the darn table so I can put our real dinner down.... 

For Me? You Shouldn't Have!

I love stopping by the discount flower section when I'm at the grocery store and seeing what they have.  I rarely buy fresh flowers, but if there is something that I just can't pass up then I'll treat myself.

These roses were speaking to me the other day and went right into my shopping cart!  The colors were just perfect to brighten up the kitchen.

I fixed them up in a sweet little vase that I found at the antique mall one day.  It's one of my favorite vases because it has a lid with a floral grid on top.  It makes a beautiful little arrangement.  Whenever I see floral frogs I always debate on whether or not to pick one up and I always pass them by, but I think I may pick one up next time since tools like that make arranging flowers so easy. 

I hope these beauties brightened your day too!

I had these pictures sitting on my computer from a fun winter backyard play day.  When it's that time of the season when there is lots of rain and cold cold temps, and you have two antsy munchkins, anything above 40 with low or no wind is a perfect day! 

I was thinking about taking Alaina to have pictures made for her 2nd birthday (in two weeks! agh!) but the more time I spend with my camera learning all about manual mode, the more I think I might be able to get some good shots without spending the dough.  Sometimes though it's just nicer to have someone else worry about getting the money shot, good lighting, and editing.  I would love to set up a tea party on the ground in the back yard and see what I can get though. 

And definietly dress her in red for it.  I am really liking red on her these days!  It's so bright, fun and kinda wild, but still sweet when paired with little flowers...just like her.  That little red bow in her hair with those big blue eyes just melt my heart! 

And this guy...this guy will not be invited to the tea party because I have a feeling he will Incredible Hulk-Ninja-Tranformer-Pirate his way through the sweetness of it.  Or maybe a special appearance at the end would be just perfect if we need to spice things up a bit. 

I wish I had sound effects to go with this picture.  I'm sure there were some good ones during the live shot! 

This day I am so glad I pulled out my camera and got a few shots.  These of the kids loving on their daddy are the coolest!

Lil' Punkin says 'Come on spring!'  We've got lots of exploring to do.

Eight Crazy Nights

Belated Happy Hanukkah and Merry Christmas to all!  Belated might be an understatement on this warm, beautiful March day but I choose to post late rather than not at all!

As I do every year, I kinda panicked at the thought of Haunkkah and Christmas right on the heels of Joseph's birthday and all the stuff he would be bombarded with.  I know he has no complaints, but I'd rather give him situations to act gracious and humble rather than spoil him with 'stuff'. With eight nights of fun and presents, there isn't much room for humility from a five year old.  ;)

Joseph's "big" present this year was a scooter.  He has really been wanting one and as much as he loves his bike we thought it would be a good present.  He rides it fairly often, but definitely prefers his bike.  He soars on his little green bike!  The scooter fold up nicely for storage though, and often gets played like an electric guitar as such.  Ha!

Alaina's "big" present was a cute pink doll stroller.  It took some time for her to figure out it wasn't meant for her to sit in, but now the miles that it has been pushed are immeasurable!

We also took the kids to Chuck E Cheese as one night's present of "time together".  Some good ol family fun is always a great idea.  We'll have to do that again next year for sure too!

I thought all in all we did really well not spoiling them too much.  Most importantly, it's not about the presents and I want my kids to understand the religious meaning first.  Even though I'd like for them to have nice things too, there is only so much room for lots of stuff.  We ended up doing a house-wide donation cleaning spree after the first of the year.  It's soooo nice to see the clutter go and make room for new or more special possessions! 

 

Enjoying the lights with dinner!

Even St. Nick and some reindeer celebrated with us, then we gave Santa a new home at Gigi's on her tree.

Our children are very well-rounded!   ;)

Green and Clean

In my life quest to live more healthy and green, I kept coming across more and more stories about making your own laundry soap.  It's one of the hundreds of conveniences that I've come to depend on, rarely questioning it's toxicity, purity, or purpose.  Have you ever heard how "technically" we don't need soap at all and simply water and the agitation of a washing machine is as effective at removing dirt as using detergent?  Josh read that awhile back in an article and it really stuck with me.

Now don't get me wrong, I don't think laundry soap is killing the whole human race or anything, and I won't be washing my clothes in just water either....I'm simply in a stage of life where I've become acutely aware of all the unneccessary chemicals and toxins and carcinogens that flood our life.  

Here is another example ; I found a "recipe" online for microwave popcorn using plain kernels and a brown lunch sac.  It never occurred to me that I could create the same effect as store-bought microwave popcorn - but without all the chemicals.  Why not?  I've become lazy and complacent!  I am part of the masses that have trained ourselves to go, grab, hurry to the checkout (...before children melt down or hubby gets home from work) eat chemicals and hormones and processed food, rub toxins on body and repeat.  It's frustrating to me that I've let myself come to the point that I don't question things like I should. 

It just doesn't make sense to me anymore.  I've never liked all the processed foods we eat and chemicals we put on ourselves everyday and I think it's contributed to some of my anxiety issues.  (It's like a leaf from a twig on a branch anchored to the trunk supported by a massive system of roots on the tree of my anxiety issues.  But that's a whole other blog post.)  It's contributed both by literally creating anxiety from messing with my body's natural hormones and processes, and by feeding my anxiety because I find myself obsessing over the chemicals I bath my family in and fake foods I fill their bellies with.   For me I've had to really decide to make the time to actually think about what I bring into my home.  Most of the time, I feel completely overwhelmed thinking about how to become more green and clean with all the information overload on the internet, and frankly - change is hard man.  Habits are hard to break! Plus, now I have to actually think (aw crap!) and the real kicker, take action.  But I know that small changes can make such a difference over time, so I'm starting small.

So I searched, and read, and research ingredients, and scribbled notes, and compared and contrasted several homemade laundry soap recipes.  I've made this one twice now, the second batch being a double batch, and I have no complaints so far.  This one is a powder and there are also recipes for a gel (my SIL makes and has used the gel kind for ages) but the gel is more complicated to make and store and remember, I'm starting small! Baby steps!  An added bonus, the kids think it's fun to make our own laundry soap.  

There are many soaps that work for this purpose but for the first couple of batches I choose Fels-Naptha.  It's an old-school household soap for stain removal that smells great! However I started reading more about what it is made up of.  It's all not cut and dry because (as one of the main reasons for my quest to get off store-bought soaps and lotions, etc in the first place) they are not even required by the government to list all the ingredients.  But it's very clear that naptha (and listed ingredient stoddard solvent) is petroleum based, so I decided to try a more natural option this last time I made some.  Perhaps in a perfect world I would have checked that first...but these are baby steps here!

This time I tried a good ol' basic castile soap.  I understand exactly what the ingredients are in castile soap without having to find their definitions and there is no question about it being made with any kind of petroleum by-products like naptha. "The simple nature of the soap means a lesser environmental impact due to reduced waste stream during manufacture and also faster biodegradability." (source)  Kirk's Castile bar soap ingredients are coconut soap, water, vegetable glycerin, coconut oil, and natural fragrance.  Now we're on to something! I'm kinda loving castile soap and it makes me really sad that there is so much faith placed on other products that are so toxic - and most people don't even know.  All the things I've been reading about soap in the past couple of months make my head spin.  We're only a couple of weeks into the castile batch but so far it's cleaning and performing wonderfully.  I'll keep you posted!  

Aside from trying the two different soaps, I also tried different ratios with my last batch.  It seems like the ratios can be switched up based on your water hardness, clothes dinginess, etc.  I think I'm trying yet another recipe that I found on the Kirk's Castile website next time.  Here are the basic ingredients in homemade laundry soap:
-Super Washing Soda - detergent enhancer, freshener, and all-natural!
-Borax - detergent enhancer, natural whitener, odor remover (there is controversy out there among the nit-pickers over the safety of borax, but based on my own research I'm leaning toward the side that says it's better than petroleum based products and it is not toxic in the quantities used for cleaning purposes, but I'm still reading on it)
-Grated soap flakes (Ivory, Fels-Naptha, Castille, etc.)
And that is it! How happy does this make me?! Happier than a hippie in a field of wildflowers!  You can also add baking soda for odors and freshness, vinegar for stain fighting and softening (to the rinse cycle),  or essential oils for all-natural fragrance.

This adventure of laundry soap (let alone food or personal care products) has been eye opening and kinda fun.  It's very gratifying to know I'm taking charge of my family's well-being.  I'll have to share my findings and the changes we've made with bath soap, shampoo and conditioner soon too.  Have you ever been on one of the sites that rate your toiletries and cosmetics based on toxicity?? Scary stuff, sister.  Check out http://www.ewg.org/skindeep/ or www.goodguide.com if you want to see how your favorite cosmetics are rated.  That can be your homework for our next gathering of Urban Hippies in Training!

The Party! No. 5 2012

Warning:  Lots of photos ahead! Grab a cup of something tasty and relax...

Party time!  I love having all the kids here at the house running around and having a good time.  Even though every year I'm determined to have all the planning and decorating done days in advance, and every year I'm up until midnight icing cupcakes or making banners.  It's all for the best cause in the world... 

...this guy!  And no matter what or whom I'm cursing late the night before, I love every minute of it.  With inspiration like that face, planning a fun party for his birthday is "icing on the cake".  I can tell beyond a shadow of a doubt that he will grow to be a wonderful, honorable, special young man.  He has a special energy about him that makes me think that no matter what he does or where he goes in life, he will always be ok.  When he smiles I see such happiness and contentment.  When I look into his eyes I see a pure heart full of goodness.  Five is a really cool age, I'm seeing changes in him that can actually fit in the category of "mature".  I'm catching little glimpses of the man he will grow to be and I just have to be cliche for a second here...it gives me such an inexplicable sense of pride and joy.

But you know what also gives me pride and joy?  Maneuvering through and mastering the scrapbook aisle at Hobby Lobby!  I love me some cool paper, and I had so much fun finding paper for Joseph's Firetruck Party theme.

The Details!

I found a fabulous blogger through googling 'firetruck party' who made super cute decorations for her child's birthday - and she linked up the printables that she created for everyone to use for free!  I used her 'Happy Birthday' letters in circles, and added different patterned paper to make his banner.  The problem that I'm finding with making detailed, cute things like this is that I don't want to get rid of them.  So since my birthday storage box is quickly expanding with these things, I need to make more generic colored and patterned ones in the future that will match a plethora of themes...right?!  Yea, right.  We'll see about that. ;)

 

(Loving the chevron trend right now!)  I was really pleased with the vintage, classic yet fun look!  Perfect with a little boy's love for firetrucks!

Alaina was up during the six o'clock hour that morning so I had a little extra time on my hands that I hadn't originally planned for.  During that time I was able to cut out and glue some flames to paint stir sticks for the front yard.  But I mostly love this picture for the chalk square man in the background.

  

 

The Cheesing!

Bounce house hilarity!

 

 

Let Them Eat Cake!

I couldn't help myself when Joseph said he wanted a fire truck cake.   I really tried to pace myself, plan small, not expect too much so I wouldn't be let down should disaster strike.  But alas, *darn you google*, I found www.coolest-birthday-cakes.com and the idea for a 3-D truck cake was born.  It's a great website to peruse for inspiration.    

It was funny too, because he wasn't grasping that I was going to make it 3-D and as this one was being built, I could tell he was confused.  He was expecting an iced 9x13 cake with a picture of a fire truck on top.  So on birthday party morning I was so excited for him to open the fridge and see it.  He loved it!

Overall it was pretty fun to make and I would totally do it again.  Especially now that I have some suggestions and helpful hints for my future self.  For those curious to know, here is the short list of how we did it.
Truck body and cab:  stacked pieces of a 9x13 cake (I read about using a loaf pan instead and that sounds like a good idea too), and used dowels to hold it all steady.  Even with the dowel support it still had a mean lean to it.  Ooops. (Notice the pickle jar lid 'support' under the edge of the cake board!) The cake board is just a wrapped cutting board. 
Icing: normal grocery store cream cheese flavored, dyed red, and a little dyed black
Outlining:  have to rave about the icing "pen" I bought and used for the first time.  It's a plastic contraption that holds the decorators bag full of icing (with tip and all that jazz already attached), and it has a squeezer/masher thing that allows great control of how much icing comes out.  Love it!
Wheels:  oreos, we left on a little of the white cream center as hubcabs
Buttons and lights:  various candy and m&ms.  This was probably one of the biggest energy wasters about this project...cause I tend to over think this kind of stupid stuff.  I wasn't sure if I wanted the flashing lights to be all red...or red and yellow...or orange not yellow...checked online for ideas...looked at pictures of fire truck lights...try it one way...try it the other...try it back the first way...aghhhhh!  :) 
The windows and windshield:  I decided to try out marzipan.  I've been wanting to play with it and figured starting small (i.e. thinly rolled plain squares) would be good.  It was really sticky but I haven't had much luck getting creative with fondant so marzipan wins this round.  It was super easy to work with.  The big 5 on top of the cab is marzipan too painted with yellow food coloring.
The dalmatian and fire hydrant are candles we already owned from Joseph First Birthday. 

 

The loot!  Thanks to everyone who made this day so wonderful!

 Let's Hit It! Pinata Time:

As darkness fell, the last guests left and we unplugged the bounce house.  Alaina and Joseph were both super kids this year and both had a ball.  Who wouldn't?!  With happy hearts we got cozy to play with new toys and check out all the fun new stuff from his gifts and be super grateful for special friends and family in our lives.  And like I said earlier, with a face like that how can I not be grateful for my little guy.