Scrapping Again! Whoo Hoo!

Using a few new and free kits, here's my layout with some recent pictures of my daughter:
So Big! (click for credits)

And finally, using the new Crafty ART Snippets #3 by Jopke, this page celebrating my husband finishing the Air Force Marathon, his first ever, under 4 hours!

Bucket List

I have no desire to run a marathon, I admit.  

A half is about all I ever intend to do...  Unless there's a zombie apocalypse of course...

Roll Up!

There are days that my house feels like a three ring circus without even heading out to the big top!

I love the new, bright, happy kit Roll Up! from Edeline Marta over at TwoPeasinaBucket!  Featuring all the things you think of when you think CIRCUS, but still practical for every day scrapping.

 Here's what I created with it.  We were selected to host a Fisher Price House Party and here's one of the toys that was included with our party box!

Three Rings!

 

Since I have been getting back to scrapping, which is good because I am VERY behind, I took advantage of a Facebook Freebie from Bella Gypsy and a template The Space Between Vol 4 from EH Studios.  Word Art is by Britt Ish Designs.

Shabby Sheek Sistas

 

 What have you scrapped lately?  Hook me up to your favorite recent layout and I'll leave you some love!

Scrapping has returned!!!

My girlfriend returned from California and we are now having a weekly scrapping date!  I am so excited to be getting moving again.  So without further ado, here are some pages!!!

Using the new kit Homeroom by Dianne Rigdon Designs at TwoPeasinaBucket.

First Week of School

And then You are my Sunshine (I know, cheesy, but seriously, she is) using Shine by Karen Funk Designs at Design House Digital.

So, what do you think?  What are you hoping to make time for this week???

Till next time!

A week of real food

We all get lazy sometimes, right?  I know I do.  I try to do things I know are good for my family but sometimes I fall behind.  News flash- I'm human.  
Notice my lack of menu planning posts lately?

Yeah...

A while back, I Liked 100 Days of Real Food on Facebook.  But, I didn't really do much else than that, I admit.

I have had some recurrent minor medical issues for about a year now and while I was seeing my doula in follow up after my daughter's birth, she commented on something else that would be an external sign of an internal imbalance in my skin.  And I got to thinking...

I am believer that it's all connected.  And I knew I wasn't in balance from what I was putting in to my body to what I was doing with my body (exercise) and maybe it was just time to draw the line in the sand.  She suggested a cleanse which I like the sound of what it could deliver, but not really practical for a nursing mom who hates veggies and fruits in raw form and pretty much lives on carbs, protein and fats (and craves sugar).

So, this 10 Days of Real Food looked like a good starting point.  The goal is to get away from processed foods.  Nothing with more than 5 ingredients.  No artificial crap.

We started with her 1st week menu, with some modifications (egg salad is a no go in my house as well as the gumbo.  But, with list in hand, our family of 5 headed to the small farmers market in our town.  We finished up our grocery shopping at Earth Fare.

While it's a bit too early for real results, I have noticed:

• My sugar cravings are there but already much less than the first 2 days.  And I'm still adding sucanat to my coffee in the mornings, I confess so that probably helps.
• My kids are eating more.  They're not eating and liking everything I put in front of them, but what they do and don't eat is surprising me.  It's not what I assumed it would be.
• I am eating less.  Mostly because the stuff I am craving is stuff I can't have so I don't eat anything.  So far, hasn't been significant- I just wait a bit and then find something I do like.
• The bill was less than I thought it was going to be because she focuses on her blog of doing this on a budget.  And the basic nature of many recipes is appealing to my family and to our lifestyle.

So far, we've made and liked:

Squash Peanut Soup

Zucchini Muffins

Whole Wheat Tortillas

Modified Fajitas (made with some ground chuck and green pepper- not all vegetarian as the menu calls for)
Whole Wheat Banana Pancakes

Almond Crusted Tilapia (kids loved this)

So, I'm curious.  Are you trying to get away from the processed stuff?  If so, what's been the hardest thing to give up?

Personally, all the Facebook updates about Pumpkin Spice Lattes are killing me a little inside.  *sigh*

Our first week of school

I kept meaning to get around to writing this post earlier but just didn't over the long weekend.  So, please forgive me!

First, thank you for the words of encouragement on my previous post about homeschooling the kids! It was very sweet to get some positivity that day!


Second, the week went well!  There were ups and downs of course.  I have been searching the "interwebs" to find good posts about staying organized with Sonlight as there are a lot of materials.  But, I find that it is helping my kids by not using the same material for a long time.  A little of this, a little of that.



Our day looks like this:
Breakfast with Daddy
Get dressed 
Get water bottles filled and go upstairs for school
Review calendar, verse and song
Re-aloud time while they color a picture
Language Arts for E
Science
Math
Done!

The kids still love and are fascinated by their school caddies and all they contain.  I'm ordering zipper pouches for their pencils with their names on them so these can stay on the shelf during book activity time.

I imagine that I will start supplementing with more activities but so far, I like how compact we can keep this.  And how flexible it can be.  We may end up moving school time to after lunch especially as my baby goes towards 1 good nap/day.  It's a bit harder to get anything accomplish with her glued to my side, I admit.  But, so far, so good.

Gymnastics starts up for the kids this week too which will be a HUGE plus I think!  

Do you blog about your adventures in Homeschooling?  If so, hook me up!  Have a great week!