Stepping Stones

Just dropping by real quick to post some pictures of the stepping stones we made on mother's day weekend. Instead of buying kits from the craft store we bought a big bag of quick cement mix, plastic plant bases, and pebbles of various colors and shapes from the dollar store. We ended up with 7 stepping stones, total cost of about $15.00. Much cheaper that buying the kit!

each of us selected our favorite glass pieces

adding them to the cement was a no-brainer after laying them out on paper plates first

My oldest son's design! I love it!

hand print stepping stone

The final product! This was truly a great day!

Hope you enjoy the pics and the tips!
Thanks for reading
beijos
allypye

Homemade Halloween

MY favorite month ever!!! Not growing up having Halloween sure makes a kid out of me in the early Fall! I love everything about it, the costumes, trick or treating, hay rides, apple cider, pumpkin carving, and... the chance it gives me to be CREATIVE on my own and with the kids! This year money is SUPER tight, so I have had to come up with frugal ways of decorating and re-using stuff that I have around the house...I would love more ideas for Halloween crafts, so if you have any, let me know...

My little love (the 6 year old) and I making a Spooky Scene on a shoe box lid and threading leaves gathered from our neighborhood. Going outdoors for supplies is one of my favorite things to do, since it gets them to see beauty in places never before imagined. Plus, it gives us a chance to say hello to the neighbors...

Other stuff:

Hanging Halloween Scene: I finished this one last week and it was so much fun! Probably two or three hours from beginning to end and pretty much the same procedure as the little pillow (see below) with the exception of the batting;

Little Ghost Pillow: I love this little guy!

• Felt, Embroidery floss, Ribbon, Quilt Batting and Felt Glue. So easy, and you can be done in a couple of hours.


• Just get some felt and draw the patterns with a sharpie pen, cut them out and glue you scene on the felt piece that will be sewn into the pillow; then sew three sides of the 81/2 x 11 felt sheet and stuff it with the batting; sew the little pillow shut and add embellishment stitches with the embroidery floss.DONE!

Pumpkin Mosaic: Did this one with the three year old last week.

• All it takes is some construction paper, a glue stick, some crayons, ribbon and a hole punch.



• Draw a simple outline of a pumpkin on a piece of paper and let your child go nuts with the ripping and tearing; glue the pieces on and add the details with crayons! We did this after reading the book "Pumpkin Circle: The Story of a Garden" http://www.amazon.com/Pumpkin-Circle-Garden-George-Levenson/dp/1582460787

Little Ghosts: These little ghosts were done by my boys last year, but they are in great shape, so I am putting them up again:

• You need round circles of white tulle (dollar store), tissues (yeah, like Kleenex), a black marker, small Styrofoam balls (other more environmentally friendly option would be better, but that's what I had), black pipe cleaners. I thought it would be cute to add ribbons to the necks but I didn't have any at the time so they are tied with black string.
• To make them, just cover each ball with one or two sheets of tissue paper, draw the eyes with the marker and cover it with the tulle. Stick the pipe cleaner through the little ghost's head and make a loop at the top for hanging.
  

That's all for now, thanks for reading!

beijos, allypye

Get up and do something!

This is what happens when I go through rough patches: Things get done. I cry for a short while, hide from the world for about a week, and focus all my energy on things that I wanted to do but left behind to take care of others. We won't go through the details of my visit to the pit last week, lets just say that it was bad enough to get the entire entryway of my home remodeled. So, all I have to say to the ones who hurt me is "thank you!" first pics are the "before and after" of this small wall just past the real entryway area of our house (which is almost finished too, I just need some final touches yet). We needed a cute area that could be used for the kids' chore charts and reward charts, plus, a couple of baskets to hold backpack junk that comes back from school and has nowhere to go. The trick was to make sure we didn't have to look at that stuff all the time, so here is what we came up with:

Very boring, useless wall!

Added some color, hung a cute curtain and the new sconce

(stuff that has been waiting in the basement FOREVER)

plus got some baskets big enough to hold the backpack junk:)

Sewing (hardly) their new rewards chart

(these are the days of the week chips)

FELT ROCKS!!

Final product, I like the colors...

All four charts hanging on the wall

I love this because when we are not using the charts, the wall still looks super cute with the shades drawn in. The hubby thinks it is kind'a weird because there is no window there, but I think he will grow to like it don't you?

Anyway, I will post pics of the rest of the project as soon as it gets done. I would love to hear what you think...

Thanks for reading

Beijos

allypye

Balancing Life with Kids- Part 2: Meal Planning and Shopping

Hello, and welcome back! Today I will try and sum up some facts and useful tips on meal planning and shopping for groceries (the latter being the one household obligation I loathe, and would give my right arm if someone offered to do the job for the rest of my days!!! Yes, it is that bad, surprising for someone who adores cooking!) Anyway, this post is divided in these three sections: what to eat?/ lists and shopping (as I cringe with the thought of it) and tips and variations... And remember, this is just advice that I gathered from my own looking around for better, simpler ways of living and the suggestions of friends. I quoted some ideas and thoughts from Lisa and Beth whom I've mentioned on yesterday's post.

No, we are not experts, everybody is in the same boat here, so if you have more ideas, throw them at me would ya?
With that said, here we go:
What to eat?
Tired of standing in front of the fridge and asking yourself "what should I make for dinner"? You are not alone! Erik (the hubby) and myself have done that so much, the result almost always being a quick fix that isn't healthy or satisfying!
I have two words for you: MEAL PLANNING- stress free, healthier and money saving, this is what we need to be doing.

write it down, and put it up

• I am now using an excel spreadsheet that outlines the days of the week, snacks for the week, plus a grocery list and room for notes all in one page.If you want to see it, just let me know, I will e-mail it to you, just couldn't figure out how to post it here...
• You can do this anywhere, just make sure it is easy to see and to use- people get super creative with this stuff, poster board, magnet boards or just a neatly drawn meal plan on computer paper.
• use your own cookbooks and online recipes, but if you are new at this, just do one week with meals that your family is used to, so you can get a hang on the process rather than worrying about what recipes to make.Do this for as long as you need to make it a habit, and then add some jazz to the deal!

Beth suggests: "When you bake, double the recipe. Then eat one and freeze one for later. Most pasta recipes make way more than our family eats in one sitting, so by dividing it into two meals saves time down the road...Plan your meals for the week and do the grocery shopping all at once. There are lots of great meal planning sites online. Keep a list of meal ideas you can rotate to keep from getting in a rut. "

Lisa's tip: "It’s amazing how much time and money can be saved by simply planning ahead on your family meals. Food costs can vary greatly from month to month and with no planning, our family’s monthly food bill could easily be double that of our house payment! What I’ve found works best for is to plan one week at a time. I make my shopping list based on the meals I planned for the next week. I rarely come home from work thinking, “what’s for dinner?” A fun meal-chart generator is on http://www.lotsofkids.com/."

Lists and Shopping

• Beth's Grocery list is simple and helpful: she writes it so that it corresponds to its location at her preferred grocery store. That way you don't have to go from place to place like a monkey with your head cut off! Simple, just so simple...
• clip coupons if you are going to use them. I hate doing this, so I probably never will for lack of patience, but if that's your thing, go for it!
• NEVER, I repeat, NEVER shop hungry! Always, always eat before you shop! I am not going to say the name of this Brazilian woman I know, but I will tell you how she shopped hungry, bought a jar of nuttella (it is heaven I swear!)and finished it off before she got home...pathetic!!
• Clean out the fridge BEFORE you go to the grocery store. There is nothing worse than coming home exhausted from wrestling with an overflowing shopping cart and have to go through leftovers and other yuckies! If you don't clean it, you will risk doing it like this Brazilian woman I know, and just shove all the new shiny sealed items in the fridge only to have to perform an emergency evacuation in your home a week later, when the yuckies you pushed to the back of the fridge can no longer contain their foulness inside.

Other things to think about

• Have a couple emergency meals for when stuff comes up. Stuff comes up now, doesn't it? Got home too late to make what you planned or forgot to defrost something? EMERGENCY MEAL TIME! I like to have chicken nuggets available for babysitters that can't cook:) Oh, well, its the truth...
• Have the kids help plan the meals. Beth says " Let your kids help pick the meal for the next day. If you have the time, let them in the kitchen to do some cooking. It is amazing what a picky eater might try if they have a hand in making it."
• Eat together. Eat together. Eat together. Some of the best conversations, discoveries, and bonding experiences I have had with my children and husband were at the dinner table. We do this religiously. And I know it helps us be a closer family.

This is it, I know, it was long, but I hope it helps, feel free to e-mail me or post your comments here if you have more to add! I am going to bed:)

beijos

allypye

Balancing Life with Kids - PART 1

Cone Flower- photographed by me this weekend

It all began with a routine trip to the library. Eager to leave the house, we jumped in the mini van and headed downtown for a relaxing couple of hours of reading and learning

...Or so I thought...

The kids were cranky; the 12 year old vanished in the teen room the second we arrived, while the 6 year old pouted about wanting to go in the teen area, and the 3 year old decided it was a good idea to sneak up two flights of stairs for a game of hide and seek.
Soon after, they were all accounted for and taken to the appropriate location in the library (that being the children's room, what a concept!!) There's crying, pouting and eye rolling (may I add that at this point everyone in the library is engaging in the rolling of the eyes, as they watch the spectacle!!), not to mention us walking out with at least 20 items (I forgot the canvas bag at home) and setting off the security system!!! Back in we go, with the crying, pouting, rolling of the eyes reaching record levels... I just wanted to sit right there and cry.

How do other mothers do this?

That was all I could think about that day. I felt exhausted, overwhelmed, defeated and inadequate. And this was not the first time!
In my mind, I am adding to this catastrophe of a trip the following: 6 loads of laundry in the basement, bills to pay, movies to return, groceries to buy, dinner to make, art projects to plan, and much, much more!
The truth is that balancing life with kids is something that everyone struggles with, and I found that perhaps sharing valuable tips with others isn't such a bad idea. I asked a couple of moms (these are moms you look at and go, "wow, she really knows what she is doing") to share their wealth of knowledge in making life work.
It was important for me to gather info that could be modified to different family set-ups and lifestyles: husband or no husband, full time stay-at-home or full time job. It is my hope that whoever reads this will be able to gain something or add something to the conversation.
Throughout this week we will discuss Meal Planning and Shopping, Housework and Organizing, and Time to be YOU. Though it may sound meaningless and too "domestic" of a talk for some, life's chores and obligations are said to be the cause of most couple's sense of unhappiness and overall sense of burden in Americans. So why not share ideas?

Thanks to Beth and Lisa, who will be featured in this series for the next three days. Your help is appreciated and the love you share with your family through your dedication is inspiring!

Thanks for reading, hope to have you stop by again tomorrow:)


beijos


allypye