The other half of our weekend. Super exciting.

Oh, Monday, you've arrived too quickly. Well, I guess this is the weekend update. You already know my Friday night and Saturday morning pantry experiment so I will pick up with Saturday afternoon where I did nothing. Okay, so I did stuff, but not really anything exciting. I spent a great amount of time just sitting with D while he felt miserable. (He's feeling much better now!) I put clothes away and then replaced those clothes with another stack of clothes to be washed and put away (the circle of laundry), I watched some football and some movies with the kids and got the kitchen cleaned (shiny sink and everything just so I could mess it up Sunday).

Sunday T went to help CLB work on a fence, I had a mini meltdown (apparently spilling coffee is a REALLY big deal for me), I started to make cinnamon rolls only to be thwarted by my almost empty yeast jar (this may have contributed to the mommy meltdown), watched a movie that I failed to understand (probably because I didn't see the beginning), made pizza and then went to my sister's house to plan Thanksgiving. I am baking and bringing an apple pie and cinnamon rolls and bringing various ingredients for side dishes. This means another trip to the store... preferably tonight or early tomorrow. Visiting the grocery store during Thanksgiving week is bad enough, but after Tuesday at 12pm it's just painful.

I see today is moving swiftly by (I've already been up 4 hours? How is this possible?) so I better pump myself up with some vitamins and get a movin'. I'll leave you with a picture of Rose being incredibly stylish.

fashionista in the making

Hoping Monday is kind to you (and me)
Mama

Honey, Oil and Pumpkin

Hello! I'm having a nice Saturday playing nurse/mother to a sick child. I have a little window of opportunity to share some things right now so... real quick:

 uno

This morning I made this pumpkin spice creamer. It turned out alright, I think I'll need to add more syrup/sweetener to it for my taste and maybe a tad more pumpkin? It just wasn't as pumpkin-y as I'd hoped for. Still, I think it's a great base to start from. 

dos

Since I had the pumpkin open and was making waffles for breakfast I went ahead and experimented some more. I was going to make them from scratch, but honestly I've been feeling a little worn out so I made them from Bisquick. To that mix I added 2 tablespoons of pumpkin puree and a couple of dashes of pumpkin pie spice and a teaspoon-ish of vanilla. They turned out great, but again, not pumpkin enough. I'll probably add more spice next time. However, delicious with maple syrup! Liked them better than plain ol' waffles.

tres

In response to my hair's cry for help yesterday Grace sent me a link for a shiny hair mask. First off, I was ecstatic that it was 2 ingredients and I had them on hand! So, I went with 4 tablespoons of olive oil and 2 tablespoons of honey (after some more research about honey and oil hair masks with Ms. Google). Guys, it was messy. After I stood there contemplating how exactly to apply it to my hair I grabbed my silicone basting brush and applied it with that (to dry hair). I focused on my ends; they needed the most care. Oh, I should mention I warmed this concoction up to slightly above room temperature before applying. After I had saturated my hair I proceeded to wrap my hair in saran wrap and then totally creep out my husband for thirty minutes. (hahaha)
I'd advise you, if you have children, to not do this in their presence. Rose already likes to put ketchup, gravy, applesauce and such things in her hair while eating.... this would only encourage that behavior! Also, your hands are going to be covered in oil and sticky from honey so any attempt at child wrangling while trying to beautify yourself is likely to go awry.

When my thirty minutes was up I hopped in the shower and used a 2in1 shampoo & conditioner (2x) and did a final rinse with cool water. My hair feels nice and soft (so do my hands) and it's a bit more shiny (not like in the advertised pic in the link, but I have coarse, wavy hair and didn't expect that). I let it air dry and my ends are definitely more subdued and not frizzy and straw like. If I actually styled my hair I bet it would look really amazing, but I have sworn off my hair straightener (except for special occasions) so that's not happening right now. My hair feels silkier than usual, even with that 2in1 shampoo (it usually feels really coarse when I use that) so if I used my regular shampoo and conditioner it'd probably have an even better result. I was worried about using it since it's a shine booster and I didn't know how well the honey and oil would wash out. (It rinsed easily for me.) My hair is just below my shoulders, so I'd recommend using more if you have longer hair. This was just enough for me.

Okay, well, I have to go take care of the children now. I hope you are all having a lovely weekend.

The Week In Pictures

Taken Tuesday after we had some rain and were feeding the chickens.

I finally found Corduroy as a board book and the kids love it. I love that they can't rip the pages.

These were from a couple of weeks ago, but I see it everyday.

Ry was in a really silly mood Wednesday at his appointment. He couldn't stop moving.

I didn't want to go on rambling about my boring trip to the grocery store this morning, hence the photos.  Unrelated to the above pictures I need some advice:

• what is a good home remedy for a deep conditioning hair treatment?
• how do I get a child I know to stop whining?
• other than the obvious (nudity) how do I stop all this laundry from accumulating? I wash laundry every stinkin' day. It's tiresome. 
• I think I've been half asleep all week.

I hope everyone has a marvelous weekend! G'bye for now.

Spectacles and Gratitude

Yesterday was full of adventure! Okay, not exactly, but it was fun and a tiny bit scary for a second...

Ry-Guy had an eye appointment and D was getting his glasses yesterday morning. I decided to have my mom watch Rose while I took the boys. My sister was home when I got to my mom's house and she needed to run an errand in the city, too, so she came with me. We took my mom's suburban and I had just enough time to get us to the doctors office on time for the appointment. Halfway there D says he is hungry. I sort of dismissed it with a "we'll eat lunch after the appointment" because he had already eaten a healthy breakfast. (no, really, scrambled egg and some yogurt.) (that sounds gross but was eaten like an hour apart) We are driving along and I hear D cough, which is not a big deal because we've been feeling cough-y and stuffy nosed lately. My sister turns around and says, "I think he's throwing up!" So I pull off the road and yes, indeed, he has. Luckily my mom keeps a large blanket and sheet in the back and we clean him up as best as we can and I took his shirt off... Now I needed to decide whether we should proceed on or turn around. After checking his temperature (the old fashioned way: back of my hand) I decide he is probably okay and we give him a bag in case he feels sick again. And pray it's just a weird combo of foods and he's not really sick. (Thankful for my mom's "emergency items" and my sister being there.)

Obviously his clothes are pukish so I have to stop at Target and run through the store and grab a shirt and pants and some baby wipes (to assist in more thorough clean up). The guy at the register asks how I am doing and I respond with a out of breath-ish reply of not exactly how I planned but okay. He asks how old he is (he is ringing up the clothes) and I say five, he spilled something all over him and I had to come in a grab some new clothes... I didn't say what he spilled. The guy responded with a "yeah, I've been there with my daughter!" (thankful for an understanding cashier and that my budget allowed this. Thankful I could leave D with my sis instead of dragging a puked on shirtless boy through Target.)

We make it to the doctor's office 3 minutes late. (thankful they aren't a super busy office) Ry goes in for his appointment and my sis and D wait in the front while he gets his glasses adjusted. (Thankful D is playing and is in really good spirits about his comfy corduroy pants and football shirt.)

Ry waiting for the doc

D sportin' his new eye wear. (and new shirt)

Everything went well after our car sickness episode. (was it car sickness????) We stopped a few more places and then headed home. (Thankful D is feeling back to normal and loves his glasses.)

Hopefully a nice day today. I have some stuff to catch up on + the usual "stuff". It should be lots of fun!

Applied Reading

Yesterday I linked to a Bible verse. Mm hmm, I did. And guess what? It helped me. Lately I've been using the Bible like a inspirational/encouragement quote book and sometimes it works well and other times I forget what I read. However, yesterday at the most trying parts of the day when I wanted to get frustrated and raise my voice and just sort of lose it this is what popped into my head, "be compassionate." It just so happened that Rose would get really fussy right when I was feeling a tad overwhelmed and I'd want to just give everyone a time out right there, but I picked her up and held her and took a deep breath and released it slowly and remembered that I am a mother. Not just any mother, but hers. And the mother she needs is kind, gentle and compassionate (which is, coincidentally, how I want to be). The mother I want to be is loving, caring, considerate. I am not always those things. Sometimes I am cranky, frustrated, short tempered. Sometimes I am quick to hush the loud boisterous laughter, to get upset over the many, many interruptions while I'm doing very (un)important things.

photo unrelated, but it rained this morning!

The past couple of weeks I've had two verses that have struck me hard. I try to think about them often, especially in the morning and then during the trying points of my day. It's sort of like a meditation? I don't know. I just know I like reading these two verses.

Pleasant words are like a honeycomb, sweetness to the soul and health to the bones. Proverbs 16:24 (nkjv)

 Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Colossians 3:12 (niv)

 Oh, and two other quotes that I like reading

Be the change you want to see in the world. Mahatma Gandhi

(I'm just going with "be the change I want to see in myself" right now)
And something to tell my children:

You is kind. You is smart. You is important. Aibileen Clark in The Help

  Do you have any quotes that you love? Care to share?