Splash Pad Fun!

We had a fun afternoon with our wonderful friends Kim and Tessa at the Splash Pad - have I mentioned already that I love summer and all of the fun things there are to do?!!! Well, I will say it again - I LOVE SUMMER!!!! Eva and Jaden both had a blast running through the water! I had just as much fun!!! We are blessed to live in an area that has so many fun things to do and wonderful friends to do them with!

A few snapshots:

Jaden LOVED the water!

Our little Peanut cooling off in the water!
Can you tell they are having fun?
Eva and "Baby Tessa" - forever friends.
Our little guy taking a break from all the fun to smell the flowers.

We hope you are having a fun summer and also taking the time to stop and smell the flowers too!

Simple Joy #5

This may sound like a crazy simple joy, but I love shucking corn with my children. There is something about shucking corn that gets back to the good ol' homegrown roots of summer! In this picture we had spent the entire day swimming and playing outside and together we were working on getting dinner ready. Again, so simple....but it brings me so much joy.

"Summer afternoon -summer afternoon; To me those have always been the two most beautiful words in the English language"

--Henry James

How Often Do You Use Coupons?

The results of the poll:

Always - 0%

Often - 52%

Rarely - 43%

Never - 5%

I personally rarely use coupons. Unfortunately, I just find that a lot of the products I use do not have coupons available. I do use them for diapers and wipes, but the types of foods that we eat and the cleaning products that we use never issue coupons. For those of you that use coupons often - way to go! I think coupons are a great idea and any way you can save money in this economy is fantastic!

Just a side note - I think a lot of my readers are hesitant to vote on the poll. No need to be - I can not trace who votes for what! It is merely for fun and I love seeing the results (I hope you do too)!!!

Vaccine Debate

The vaccine debate is something that all parents deal with...whether you are completely for vaccines or completely against them (or like me where you are stuck in the middle). We can not deny that this is a HOT topic for parents right now.

This is a topic that I have actually done a LOT of research on. It is important to me that I am as informed as possible so that my husband and I can make the best possible choices for our children. As a former teacher I totally understand the idea of vaccines and protecting our children from childhood illnesses. We all want our children to be safe and healthy. On the other hand, I completely understand why some choose NOT to give their children vaccines. There are many negative side effects, and the research showing the possible link to autism is really scary.

Eva had all of her vaccines, except the MMR. Our original plan was that she would have that vaccine before starting school. Jaden has not had any vaccines. Our original plan was that he would start the vaccine schedule on a delayed plan. I could go into all of the "why we did what we did" for both of them, but I really don't think you are overly interested in that. What I DO want to share with you is some new information I found!

I found a facility in this area that specializes in medical AND holistic medicine (if you want to know where please contact me directly). I called them right away and set up an appointment to go over all of my findings regarding vaccines and to see what they could do to help me navigate the vaccine puzzle. What I really loved about this place is the mixture of traditional medical beliefs and holistic beliefs. In the past I have found that doctors trained in traditional medicine feel that children should have ALL vaccines - no exceptions. I do not agree with that. I have found that truly holistic doctors think that children should have absolutely NO vaccines - no exceptions. I also do not agree with that. I was anxious to find out what kind of information this facility that mixes the two beliefs could tell me.

After my appointment today I was elated. I felt like we had a plan! They really took the time to go through my children's medical histories and help me come up with a vaccine plan that was good for my children. In short, my children will be receiving some of their vaccines, but not all of them. Here are some other tips they gave me:

* Thimerosal was taken out of vaccines by government mandate, but it was never mandated that doctors had to pull it off the shelves. When you take your child in for a vaccine ask to see the vial it comes in to verify that it does not contain Thimerosal.

* Do not start vaccines until after age 2

* Do not give your children any vaccines within 3 months of an X-ray.

* You can have vaccines spread out (for example, you do not have to have the MMR in one dose. You can have the measles vaccine, then the mumps vaccine later, and finally the rubella vaccine after that)

* Never have silver fillings put in your children's mouth - they contain mercury (this obviously did not have to do with vaccines, but we ended up talking about a lot of things).

* Do not give your children fluoride drops. I have read this before and I make sure our children do not have fluoride in their toothpaste, but it was interesting to hear it from a medical doctor!

These were merely some topics we talked about today. I am fully aware that not everyone will agree with everything I believe or have posted. Regardless of beliefs regarding this issue we are all trying to do what is best for our family and I completely respect that! If you do want more information on any of my findings please contact me!!

Our Little Flower Gardener

Just a little update on Eva's Garden Camp. She is really enjoying herself and today brought home her potted flower in her hand-painted pot! Two more days left of camp! Such a cutie patootie - I could just hug her to death!!!!

Garden Camp

Eva and her friend Jordyn are attending Garden Camp this week. It started today and Eva was quite excited!! The camp is 2 hours a day for 4 days. They will spend their time learning about how to plant and care for flowers. Each day they will walk somewhere near to learn more about different flowers and observe them. Today they toured the grounds and then painted their flower pots - too cute! I am including pictures of the girls as well as the grounds that the camp is being held on - just beautiful!

The campers getting registered and seated.

The cutest campers around!
The grounds that they will be learning on:

"Let us dance in the sun, wearing wild flowers in our hair."

--Susan Polis Shutz

My New Favorite Find....

My new favorite find is the store Once Upon a Child. It is a consignment store that specializes in quality children's apparel, as well as furniture, strollers, toys, etc. The thing that I found so great about this consignment store is that they only accept quality clothing (no stains, tears, shrinking, etc.). I stopped there today and just look at the two adorable sweaters I got Jaden!! The snowman one is Gap and the flag sweater is Polo and they were $17 TOTAL!! I was so excited! Our little man is going to be looking pretty handsome this winter!

"Shopping is a woman thing. It's a contact sport like football. Women enjoy the scrimmage, the noisy crowds, the danger of being trampled to death, and the ecstasy of the purchase."

--Erma Bombeck

Salsa Recipe

My friend Stacey asked for my salsa recipe so I posted it below. This recipe comes from a family friend of ours that moved here from Mexico - so it is quite authentic! However, just like all good recipes that have been passed down through generations there is no real "recipe" as far as amounts of ingredients. I would encourage you to alter it until it suits your tastes. I love the smoother texture and blend of flavors! Enjoy!!

Salsa:

1 large can crushed tomatoes
1 regular size can of mexican tomatoes
sliced jalapenos (I've used the kind in the jar, as well as fresh and both turn out great however if you use fresh you need to grill them and peel off the skin....obviously the jar variety is much easier)
garlic powder
cilantro (again, I've used both fresh and dried)
lemon juice

In blender combine a handful of jalapenos, cilantro, a dash or two of garlic powder, and a small squirt of lemon juice. Blend. Add mexican tomatoes. Blend. Finally, add crushed tomatoes and blend until smooth. This keeps in the refrigerator for up to a week.

It's Strawberry Season!

Eva and I made strawberry jam yesterday. We had so much fun and Eva really did do a lot of the work...she loves helping mommy out in the kitchen! The jam has to sit for 24 hours at room temp and it was hard for my little 3 year old to wait that long to try it out!! After a long 24 hours, tonight we had a "breakfast dinner" and had some of Eva's special jam!!!! She was SOOOOOOOO excited!

My little helper washing all of the strawberries

Cutting off the stems with her safety cutter (thanks for the idea Sarah)!
Mashing as only a 3 year old can mash!
The finished product...a pretty jar of jam.

Negativity

Negativity and feeling sorry for yourself seems to be so common in this day and age. It honestly drives me nuts. Let me make this clear - I am not saying that I don't feel sorry for people - I often do for various reasons. I am also not saying that feeling sad makes me irritated. I also occasionally feel sad for various reasons. What I can't handle is when people feel sorry for themselves because of the situation they are in or their lot in life.

This is something that has been a pet peeve of mine for a long, LONG time. When I was in high school my parents went through a very long, very difficult divorce. I think it was about that time I realized that I could CHOOSE my attitude regarding it. I could either become bitter and wallow in self pity, or I could use it to make me a stronger person. I chose the latter. I remember it vividly and it was a very conscious decision. That decision alone made a huge impact on my life. I make a conscious choice every day to see the bright side of things, not to dwell in negativity, and to realize that God is in control and puts us in certain situations for reasons. This isn't to say I don't have bad days. I do. It also isn't to say I don't have days where I feel down. I do. But I've also realized that drowning my sorrows in self pity is never going to make anything better and I become instantly irritated when someone thinks that it will or attempts to solicit pity from other people by moaning about their problems.

This is not always a good thing. Sometimes it has got me in trouble. I've been called "fake" by some who view my outlook as unreal. I've been called "calloused" because I have no sympathy for people that wallow in self-pity. I have honestly tried to be empathetic to people when they are feeling sorry for their lot in life, but to no avail I just become frustrated (this is where people think I'm calloused). I try, but I just do not understand it. I am not a big Dr. Phil fan, but he stated it so perfectly when he said, "you are just burning daylight". I've come to the conclusion in my whopping 32 years on this earth no one (except God) can change your situation for you....if you are not happy with something in your life YOU need to do everything YOU can to make it better. You may say that I feel this way because everything may be going right for me RIGHT now - but my family can attest to the fact that this feeling is deep in my soul and not a fleeting emotion. There is SO MUCH in life to be happy about and thankful for...God is good.

Family Watchdog

I just checked out the website www.familywatchdog.com It's a fantastic site that lets you track sex offenders in your area. Once you pull the map up of your area little squares will appear where offenders live. You can then click on the square and see a picture of the offender as well as quite a bit of useful information. I would encourage all of you to check it out. We must do all we can to keep our families safe!

Simple Joy #4

You have to love falling asleep with a good book!

Loving the Warm Weather!

A lot of my recent posts have been about what we have been doing....but I can't help it - there is just too much fun to be had when you have beautiful weather like this!! So enjoy a few more pictures of how we have spent the last few days....

Taking her brother for a walk

Swinging at the park
Handsome little man!
Playing with "Baby Tessa"!
A picnic with friends
I hope you are all enjoying this beautiful weather as much as we are!
Have a wonderful weekend and a HAPPY FATHER'S DAY!!!

How Often Do You Eat Out or Order In?

The results of the poll:

Once or less per week - 41%

Twice a week- 41%

Three times per week - 17%

I have to be honest, the results kind of surprised me - and I'm not really sure why! Our family usually eats out twice a week. Matt and I have both said that eating a meal out is a family activity we honestly enjoy - we love the event of eating out. We also feel that it is important for our children to learn how to behave in restaurants (staying seated, being patient, quiet voices, etc). That said, I totally understand the importance of eating at home too. For one thing, I don't want our children growing up on restaurant food - eating home is healthier and definitely saves money. I also want both of our children to eventually learn to cook and I feel the best way to do that is to model it and make it fun for them even at a very young age. I'm curious...what are your reasons for eating out or cooking at home?

Summer Memories

Our neighbor recently purchased this water slide. It's huge and the children on our street had TOOO much fun on it today! It just made me sit back and think about how fun summer is when you are a child. Don't get me wrong, I love summer now too, but there is a certain quality to summer that you experience as a child you just don't have as an adult. Maybe it's the innocence of childhood...I'm not sure. I sat there and watched the children today and my mind started drifting back to all of the fun memories I have of growing up on warm summer days just like today. Watching the children laughing and sliding made me hope that when these children look back they think of days like this....days of playing, laughing, and eating lunches on beach towels. Days when your biggest worry was mom saying it was naptime and your "house" was a fort made out of sheets in the backyard. I feel blessed to have children that let me recapture, if only for a moment, that innocence that makes summer such a special time.

Swimming Lessons

Eva has started her summer swimming lessons! She loves to get in the water and was excited to find out she was in the same group as her friends Maggie and Jaxon! Her instructor is even the same instructor she had when she was in the infant classes! She is doing a fantastic job and mommy could not be more proud!

Enjoying her lessons!
Her group with their instructor!
Eva and her instructor as Eva practices kicking!

"The water is your friend. You don't have to fight with the water, just share the same spirit as the water, and it will help you move!"
--Alexsandr Popov

Windy City Welcome!

Wow...what a fun weekend! My friend Kim and I took our annual overnight trip to Chicago and had an awesome time! Every year we do this and we are blessed with husbands that are more than willing to take the kiddies for the night so we can enjoy some quality girlfriend time. We always say our husbands wouldn't enjoy going anyway because we literally talk and giggle the entire weekend (can you picture them just wishing we would be quiet for just 2 minutes?)!!! We shopped downtown all day Friday, had lunch at the Cheesecake Factory, and after more shopping and a bit of relaxing had a late dinner at Rosebuds (no little ones bedtimes to worry about)! Saturday we went to the spa for massages and then hit the Michigan City Outlets on our way home. It was a wonderful weekend with a wonderful friend!

A few snapshots:

Cheesecake Factory for lunch (and a mid-day cocktail for Jamie)!
The only cocktail my pregnant friend could have all weekend (a rootbeer)!
Goodies in our hotel room from our husbands....seriously the best husbands ever!

"Friends are the relatives we pick for ourselves"

--Anonymous

God's Sense of Humor

You know how people say brown is the new black? Do you ever think that age 3 is the new 2? People told me ALL the time, "Just wait until she turns 2" and age 2 was a breeze for us. I was beginning to get a bit of a big head thinking we just must be awesome parents. Oh, how God must have chuckled at us. Age 3 has by FAR been our biggest challenge as far as behavior goes. Eva will become quite stubborn because she wants something and then turn around and throw a fit because she doesn't want it. Irrationality runs rampant in our sweet little angel. I've also learned that a toddler's will is an iron one. Just this morning Eva wanted something in the supermarket. When I told her she couldn't have it she proceeded to pull down her pants AND her underwear and just stand there in the middle of the aisle. I was struck speechless (which is rare). What exactly WAS she thinking? Did she think I would say to her, "OK, now that you are naked for the entire grocery store you can have it?" I have to laugh sometimes because it's really the only thing you can do. Needless to say after we had her clothes put back on and she realized she STILL wasn't getting the item she wanted we proceeded pretty uneventfully through our grocery shopping. Please tell me the rest of you have stories like this -I am not the only one! And just so you all know...this little memory will be recorded forever in Eva's journal I keep for her so that someday when her son or daughter does something like that I can say, "Ah, yes...the 3's"

Also, I still am looking for advice on cake decorating (please read my last post) or anyone that wants a free cake - I can even deliver it!

Free Cake Anyone?

Well, I mentioned in an earlier blog that I am getting into this whole cookie/cake decorating thing. I was inspired by my friend Katie that makes adorable cookies. I made cupcakes for Jaden's first birthday and loved them. Now I am ready to tackle making a layered cake. I watched Ace of Cakes and was totally inspired....and also became a little overly confident (evident when I began thinking I would just whip up a wedding-type cake...they make it look so easy)!! I also decided I want to use fondant to decorate my cake (again, inspired by the cool cakes on Ace of Cakes). My friend Jami gave me a great fondant recipe that worked for her. I've purchased a book on decorating cakes with fondant, but I am still looking for ANY and ALL advice anyone can give me. If you have ever decorated a layered cake or used fondant and have any advice to give I would really appreciate it. Also, I am looking for a family that would enjoy the cake that I make - it would be wasted around here because we don't eat sweets. Please post comments if you have advice or would be interested in a free cake (I'll even deliver it)!!!

"Approach love and cooking with reckless abandon"

--Anonymous

How Often Do You Have Fresh Flowers?

This is the way the poll regarding how often you have fresh flowers in your house finished:

Never 15%

When Someone Gives Them to Me 15%

A Few Times a Year 46%

A Few Times a Month 23%

Always 0%

I rarely ever use to have fresh flowers in my house. Matt and I both felt like they were too pricey and they just died eventually anyway. If Matt DID send me flowers (which was very rare) he always sent them to me at unexpected times - just on a random day - and I liked that. I would much rather get them for no reason at all than for a holiday he felt like he SHOULD send them (Valentine's Day is the one that comes to mind and I think it's CRAZY the way florists jack up their prices during this holiday).

As I've gotten older my tastes have somewhat changed. Matt still doesn't send me flowers a lot - and I want to make it clear that I am PERFECTLY fine with that - I would rather have other signs of affection than flowers ANY day. On the same note, however, I do love the way fresh flowers look in my home - not a bouquet of them, just a few stems. I've found our supermarket has a beautiful supply of flowers at VERY reasonable prices - some even as low as $1.00. Soooo...yes, I often have fresh flowers in my home. They are flowers that I have picked up at the supermarket, and rarely do I buy more than 2 or 3 stems, thus costing only $2 or $3. I feel that a simple daisy in a jar is the perfect little bit of added sunshine in my home.

"Earth Laughs in Flowers"

--Ralph Waldo Emerson