The rest of Tuesday

New arrangement made this morning.

11:45 off to the bus stop.

12:05 eating lunch

1:02 lunch cleaned up, 2 kids down for naps, one kid doing homework, one reading a book at the table.

2:20 working on church books some more, a friend over to play with the kids.

2:50 swept (again) and vacuumed.

3:15 all kids up from naps, back to working on books (well, at least trying).
3:53 books done! Zac home, kids playing outside. Off to the grocery store with Aida, found some cool gourds for the front porch.
5:20 having dinner (and, unfortunately, several tantrums).
6:30 bath time and daily charts

7:30 bedtime for kids, and back to the books with a little bit of help, reading for Zac

Now: bedtime for me! Today was a challenge, most days I don't have as much to do but I wanted to get things in order because of my meeting with a helper. And we have to get those invoices out for our business. Glad it's all done, tomorrow should be a bit calmer!

Miday Tuesday

Today:
Alarm off at 6:10, stayed in bed until Zac's alarm went off around 6:15.
Levi up at 6:45, crawled in bed with Zac and played with the new iPod.
Zac and Cayden up by 7, Cayden crawls into bed with Levi. Wants to play with the iPod too.
Coffee going at 7:06, I try to get a few quiet minutes to myself before Seth comes over.
7:10 quiet time over, kids fighting over iPod.
7:15 Aida is up.
8:00 everyone's dressed and ready for breakfast, start laundry and Zac heads out the door.

Off to school.

9:09 back home, switch laundry, Seth napping, sweep kitchen, get invoices ready to mail while the girls do workbooks.

10:03 off to the mail box with invoices ready, gathered some fall branches for a few arrangements.

10:51 snacks for 3 kids.

11:29 getting lunch ready.

11:45 off to the bus stop.

Busy morning, we'll see how the afternoon works out.

Monday Thoughts

I jotted down thoughts for today in list form as the day went on.

Forgot to start this project this morning-finally remembered as I was paying bills and getting stuff in order on my desk.

Noticed the changing shadows as I read outside this morning, a sign that fall is definitely here.

The end of the month is really busy with all the book work that needs to be done between our personal stuff, the business stuff and the church's stuff. Yuck.

Forgot to take the camera to the bus stop to pick up Levi.

Baked some really yummy pumpkin cookies for youth. I found the recipe in Vegan with a Vengeance. I didn't really want to share, they ate every last bite so I plan on making more soon.

Had a full house again for youth, including us 5 adults and 15 youth.

Had a veggie sandwich for lunch, felt grumpy that we're out of olives.

Three girls had naps today!

Food for Cayden today: Koala Crisp cereal for breakfast, PB & B with apples for lunch, spaghetti with fresh tomato sauce and corn on the cob for dinner. (I'm sure there were several cookies in there too).

See you tomorrow, I'm off to bed.

Muffin Tin Monday

I found this from a feature on Today's Creative Blog and instantly loved it. My kids aren't picky eaters, but they sometimes get bored with the usual lunch. This is just what we need to shake things up a bit. For more ideas you can click here to see all the Muffin Tin Mamas. It's easy to play along-I found my muffin tins at the dollar store, minimal investment here. What a great idea.

This week I'll be playing along with Ali's week in the life challenge, I say this to let you know there will be lots of posts coming up as I record my thoughts and pictures from the week; and because if I say it I'll be more committed to doing it! Here's her post with some info on that if you'd like to play along to.

Off we go today-bills to pay, mail to mail, girls yelling for help upstairs-gotta run!

Works for Me

So, we’ve learned a few things since school has started last week. Well, learned some and been reminded of some others that help the day run a bit smoother. Here’s a few ideas, tips and thoughts we’ve gathered this month.

Lay clothes out the night before. Yep, I know this is one we’ve heard often but it bears repeating. It’s so much easier (usually) for the kids to get themselves dressed if they know what to put on.

Plan, plan and plan ahead. This goes for meals and food in general at our house. Grocery shopping is not a chore I readily enjoy but since I’ve been meal planning I usually only have to go every week and half or so. This is huge with three small kiddos underfoot. (Well, we do utilize Playland and the cookies at our local Fred Meyer, but still it’s quite a chore nonetheless).
What do we get at the store? Well, a lot. Most of the time I stick to one store, unless there is a killer sale somewhere else. But I‘ve usually found that when I shop around in different places I end up spending more money and always end up at Fred Meyer for the things they have that I couldn’t find elsewhere.
I plan for at least five meals at a time. With the inevitable leftovers that goes a long way. Sometimes we eat leftovers for a few days or plan to have company for a big meal, or stash what’s left in the freezer. Sometimes the leftovers don’t stick around on account of me trying a new recipe that ends up being a disaster. I also get and stock enough stuff to throw together something quick and brainless at the end of a long day. For us that’s usually burritos or sandwiches or breakfast. Of the meals I plan for I try to have at least one Crockpot meal, ideally two. It’s really so nice to have it ready when you are, you know it “cooks all day while the cook’s away.” Wasn’t that the catch line once? I don’t know but it’s a lifesaver for us. You can check out some great recipes for the Crockpot here.

On the topic of meal planning, one thing we try to do is have dinner ready by 5. I can do this because I’m home with the kids all day. It wouldn’t be even close to possible if I worked outside the home. As it is, I’m grateful to be home. The kids are usually ready for dinner much sooner than the adults are so we’d like to feed them when they’re ready. This is nice for several reasons. One, hungry kids are not happy kids. Two, hungry kids want to eat and if my hungry kids have a snack at 4 they almost never eat a good dinner at 6. Three, hungry kids who are no longer hungry are happy to play while hungry moms and dads have a dinner together with adult conversation. Really, this is a win, win, win. It works for me.

Speaking of dads, one thing this mom tries to do daily is prepare for the dad to come home from a long day at work. This really looks different for a lot of moms I know, but what I do is really simple. I straighten the house a bit. Getting it done before he’s home means there’s more time to play later. I also try to straighten me. Fix my hair, put on some lipstick or something, and some days even fix my attitude. Here’s my thought on this: How would you like to be greeted when you come home? I like to come home to peace and order and people who are happy to see me. My husband does too.

These are a few things we've found helpful, I thought I'd share and maybe they'll be helpful for you too.

today...

Today times are troubling. We read today about a financial bailout for our beleaguered economy and we hear words like recession and even depression. Then there's the increase in gas prices and just about everything else. How do we sort it all out? As a Christ follower, how do I respond to all of this?

I know I don't have any answers to our country's troubles, I also know it does no good casting blame or analyzing how we got here in the first place. All I know is that right now it is time to pray and time not to worry. In his book, The Celebration of Discipline, Richard Foster talks about studying current events with the newspaper in one hand and the Bible in the other. As I did that this morning two verses came to mind. Ecclesiastes 1:9 says that there is nothing new under the sun and Matthew 6 instructs us not to worry. Verse 27 of this chapter says, "Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?"

Now is the time to make a choice to pray and not worry. Pray for our financial issues of course, but also for our country in general. We need God. We are to pray as Daniel did in Daniel 9:20. We see here a model of how to intercede on behalf of our country. In this verse Daniel was "...praying, confessing (his) sin and the sin of (his) people Israel and making (his) request to the Lord (his) God." He started with himself and his own sins and then turned outward to his country. As we read on in that chapter, as he prayed an answer was given. (See Daniel 9:23)

Today, let's do as Daniel did. Let's pray as our country as Moses did for his. There is more going on here than a financial crisis. We need God's help. Today I'll be asking for it. Would you join me?

Welcoming Fall

Fall is officially here. To welcome in the season we had frost the other night. There's that certain fall feel and smell in the air. Love the crisp feeling of it. Even though we're trying to enjoy the last bits of warm weather outside, we're getting ready to bundle up inside.

This week fall has come to our home.

Love a cloche filled with small pumpkins and gourds, I've got one our kitchen windowsill too. It looks so pretty when the sun shines through.
The orange wall is something I love about our home, even more so this time of year. Everything looks so cozy up against it.

Aren't those beautiful apples? We gathered a bag full at Zac's parents the other day, they seem quite happy on the kitchen table.
So, I had other plans for this letterpress box, but it seems like there's always something better to do. (You know, things like laundry and parenting, and just being and living.)

It works well for a seasonal display. We did seashells in the summer, what to do for winter? Good thing there's a few months to think about it.

Ahh, a few more pumpkins on the yummy orange wall. They stay nice and cozy by the fireplace.


Fall is in the air for sure. Next on my wish list is finding more pumpkins, especially white ones. If I can't find white ones then I'll just pull out a can a spray paint. Look here for some tips on how to make dreamy white pumpkins.

For some other great fall ideas visit The Inspired Room. Be sure to look for the Fall Nesting Week post. There's tons of great ideas there as well.

Autumn Decorating

Slowly getting fall stuff out around here. The little pumpkins caught the kid's attention, and mine too. Found a home for the new wreath and couldn't resist the mums. Now, need more pumpkins.

Next week we'll work on the inside, of course that includes more pumpkins and a trip around town with my snipers to look for interesting greens to put up. Of course, I'll ask first. Gotta remember my manners!

Bringing in the warm colors of fall makes things feel cozy and inviting, ready for the glow of candles and the fireplace, I think the weather will even cooperate. It was in the 90's early this week but it's slowly cooling down. That definately helps with the fall mood.

So does the start of The Office on Thursday. Whoo Hoo! Or "Woot Woot." As my three year says, it's "whoo hoo" in Spanish.

One Little Word

Love.

Here's my layout for this week's word. I lifted the heart journaling from something I found in a magazine a while back. It seemed like the perfect opportunity to try something new. Love a good challenge for that.

This was how Zac and I celebrated my birthday this year. Hiking, hanging out, enjoying each other. Love is what we've got and I'm so grateful for it.

Thanks for looking.

Saturday

Today...Morning run, good cup of coffee, fresh picked tomatoes, fun baby shower, trip to the store, cake in the oven. Nice, run of the mill Saturday.

Love that.

Also loving the last burst of summer heat. I like what it does for the garden, Zac likes what it does for the business.

Happy Weekend.

Faking It

Yep, it's true.

I am a POOPIE.

Don't you wanna be one too?

POOPIE is People Opposing Objectionable Pretend plants In the Environment. It's a very big deal. You can read all about it here, then look at what we did yesterday. Well, what I did. It's a long way from the swags of my newlywed days. Seriously, those are my hubby's exact words. You know what? He's right. Those were awful.

This is not.

Isn't she pretty all dressed up for fall?

All I needed was a naked wreath (for shame, put some clothes on!) and some wire cutters.
A bunch of fall-ish garlands that I had stored away and this new find from the craft store.
And something to keep the kids busy.
There you have it.

Don't you want to be POOPIE too?

Thanks Nester, for letting us all be POOPIE together.

First Day

Today was the big day.

We've been counting down the days, answering endless questions of when it would be here, packed the backpack, cut the hair.

Now it's here.

THE first day of Kindergarten. It seems like it snuck up on us. Just yesterday he was a butterball of a baby and now he's off on a brand new adventure. Man, still getting a bit misty about that.

Go man, go. We are so proud of you. We'll always be behind you, cheering you on, supporting you and taking lots of pictures. "Dad, she's taking too many pictures," he said as we loaded up to leave this morning. Sorry, can't escape that one. It's a big deal.
We love you, and we're so glad of this new adventure in your life.