Clutter Free in 2014

I hate clutter, clutter in my home clutters my mind. I don't function well in a cluttered home or environment. My brain doesn't know what to do and I can't seem to keep up on my daily chores when I see clutter through out my home. I neglect my daily cleaning because with too much clutter I don't know where to stop. With Christmas coming and the onslaught of toys I know will be home soon I wanted to tackle this sooner than later. With 2 kids we are out growing our little home. But alas it is our home and I like it neat and tidy. I made myself a list of all the rooms and areas I wanted to work on. I've made some good progress and hope to post some before and afters soon. I've give lots away, which I think is always a great first step. Hoping to be clutter free in 2014

Martinmas

Cold weather lantern walks, stories about St. Martin helping beggars and the poor. Lovely first celebration of St. Martin. A lovely tradition hopefully next fall we can do some more.

Fall is in Full Swing

The leaves are red, yellow and falling down on our heads every time we are outside, walking, playing or just enjoying the sights. The sound of crunching leaves, the smell of the autumn air, burning wood and the morning frosty dew. I just love fall. So far we've baked pumpkin cookies, pumpkin pancakes (best thing ever!), pumpkin bread and pumpkin muffins. We collected leaves, glued them in our nature book and identified what trees they came from. We drew each leaves and colored them. We painted trees with falling leaves, painted and carved pumpkins. Gone on a few gnome walks and walks in our own yard. We made a leave pile and jumped in it. We climbed trees. We played in the park and on the playground as much as possible before it gets too cold. We danced in the rain, splashed in puddles and felt the rain drops on our hands. We trick or treated. We collected pine cones and made bird feeders. We collected nuts and acorns. The weather this fall has been a well deserved blessing and I'm so glad I've taken the time to enjoy as much time out and about in it. And I hope to continue til we need winter coats and gloves, but then I still hope I can make it out to enjoy the seasons and outdoors.

Indian Summer

With the horrible, rainy, cool summer we have its such a blessing to have this extended summer going well into Fall. This week it is going to reach in the 80s and I have no complaints. We have been enjoying as much time as possible outside in the warm sun. The leaves have slowly started to fall and some are changing, but it is still mostly green here. The best part about this warm sunny weather is its giving my peppers a chance to grow. I finally have a few green ones ready to harvest. But I'm holding out a bit til they turn red. I also have some yellow ones almost ready to be harvested. They should be ready at the end of the week. This excites me even more since its an old variety an elderly man gave to my dad. He brought the peppers all the way from Hungary. I will do my best to try to save the seeds and pass on Nick's Peppers for more seasons to come.

Baking Blunder

There is an old saying "Anyone who can read can cook" and in part I do agree. I have rarely failed if I can take my time and follow directions. This is why I usually enjoy baking better than cooking, while cooking you can't really go slow. But with 2 little girls running around baking is rarely a leisurely activity these days. A few nights ago I made soup for dinner and realized I had no bread so I thought I'd whip up some of Paula Deen's Biscuits. Nice and easy, no need to wait for it to rise. During my baking a fight broke out, a common occurrence when you have a 2 year old and a 4 year old. I ran over to break it up and returned to my baking. I lost my mental place and skipped a simple step. I didn't realize it til the biscuits were done, flat and gross. I added the baking powder, I just forgot to mix the dry ingredients before I added the wet to them. I have never done this before but can't believe what a crucial step it must be. The biscuits were inedible. I've made them before, doing nothing different but not forgetting to mix and they were wonderful. Lesson learned, but who knew that each step is so carefully written out, really makes such a huge difference. This is how they are supposed to look, not like the hockey pucks I had. :)

Back to School

Liv is back in school, 3 days a week of pre-k. While part of me still dreams of homeschooling I just don't know if it will ever work out for us. One huge part is I know myself and know I crack with out a break. I need some time with out fighting, yelling, biting (well that's Eve not Liv)whining and just time for me. So far everyday Liv's been in school I've hit our local trail for a run/walk. (I can not run even half of it, but hey I'm trying) I'm not alone, Eve is in tow. But its much more peaceful of a walk since she has no ones hair to pull or no one to poke out when she gets bored half way through. Today I just walked with 2 other moms, and boy was it nice. We walked, talked and enjoyed the fall breeze in the air. Talking to two other adults while the toddlers enjoyed the leaves falling and Eve some coloring and snacks too. I'm hoping to stick to this work out schedule, since it feels so good and maybe, just maybe I'll get back in those skinny jeans. 3 hours with one child, yes that is a huge break and relation for me. Funny to think of one child being a break, but any parent of more than one will tell you it really is. Is also nice to get to spend some one on one time. And Eve actually really enjoys playing alone, something she rarely gets to do since Liv wants to always play with her. I get so much done not having to play referee. I give so much credit to those homeschooling moms and dream of maybe a part-time way for me. If I could afford it I would maybe pay for some classes during the day. They actually offer so much around here. Dance, art, natures, music. But for me to afford all of that I need to work. But those classes would give me the break I need. And hopefully some socialization they love. People around here are very "modern" full time pre-k, preschool at 2, dance lessons, swim lessons and soccer. All of that doesn't leave too many friends around for playdates. That is a huge reason I put her in school and even if I had the money a big reason why I still might hesitate homeschooling. The homeschoolers here are far and few inbetween. Right now I feel like I'm living my homeschool dream. She's out a little bit, but still home enough so I can enjoy time with her. On non school days I homeschool pre-k stuff with her. Right now we are working on phonics. Next week we'll be starting "Teach your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons." Pinterest is also an amazing homeschooling tool. I have so many cute crafts planned. Liv being home more also helps me do religious studies with her. Its important to me that she understands her religion and is raised with good Christian values. Part of that for me is having her home enough to show and teach her that. As their mom I feel I am best to teach them, as I feel most other moms are their own children's best teachers. So for now I'm enjoying the part-time school part-time homeschool life and dreaming of lotto winnings, a move to a cheaper state or a big fat inheritance to make that dream come true.

Summer is Ending

Summer is almost over, school starts soon and we are trying to finish up all the summer fun we had plan. My husband took off the week so we can take some daytrips. The zoo, the beach, the park and summer fun in our own backyard. Also the girls joint birthday party. But alas, we are home, day 2 and home. Its Murphy's Law in my house and of course something on my car broke. The expensive problem is something my husband can fix, but again, he notices more problems and needs more parts so the quick fix is now into its second day. So I played soccer in yard, frisbee and cleaned for the girls party. Summer memories are what you make of them. No beach this year, but Liv learned how to catch a ball, hit a ball with a bat and Eve can kick a soccer ball. I'd say even with all the problems, horrible weather and things breaking at home it was a pretty nice summer and ending on a nice at home note.