Tiny Talk Tuesday

Tiny Talk Tuesday helps parents focus on one of the many joys of parenting - the funny things that our little ones (and sometimes big ones) have to say.

Join in the fun and record the Tiny Talk overheard in your house! Publish a post on your blog and link us to the laughs. Then be sure to link to the blog carnival on this post so more bloggers can join in the fun.

The guidelines can be found here if you need them.
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I was reading, "The Spooky Tail of Prewitt Peacock" by Bill Peet to the girls.

For the first time, K (age 8) said, "Oh I get it. It's the spooky tail and tale".

Then I began reading. The first page of the story sets up Prewitt and his lame tail. T (age 6) announced, "He just needed to know that God made him special and there is a reason."

As I continued on to the second page and K (age 8) stated, "Pride goeth before the fall" when I read about the pride of the peacocks.

Their little commentary just cracked me up!
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C (age 20 months): Where? (while putting his hands in the air)

C has also perfected the word, "NO". Unfortunately, he uses it to answer every question, even when he means, "YES". This can be quite confusing, but funny to watch him repeat, "No. No. No." while he continues to do the thing he is saying, "No" to.

C is trying to make sentences these days. He continually babbles on with "phrases" and words that have definite syllables and inflection, but no meaning.
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Whenever someone does what D (age 4) wants them to do, then he declares, "You're my buddy!"
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D (age 4) told me today, "I love you mommy. I love daddy and K and T and C and our whole family."
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Your Turn:

Raising Awareness

After reading, Simple Compassion by Keri Wyatt Kent, I was SHOCKED at my own ignorance of the problem of Human Trafficking. I could not believe the state of modern day slavery, especially in regards to children, AND that it was going on right here in the US.

Immediately, I attacked "google search", obsessed with learning more about this issue. I was google searching for groups to get involved with as well as more information. I desperately wanted to DO something.

After all of my research, I felt overwhelmed, sad, and heartbroken. Yet, I still wanted to do something. I wanted more people to KNOW what was going on and I wanted to help out.

Thankfully, there are a TON of groups addressing this issue and working hard to fight against human trafficking. Unfortunately for me, there were limited ways to be involved.

Somehow, somewhere along the line I came across the group, Women At Risk International. Their webpage offered a lot of different ways to get involved with their organization and I was compelled to get involved after reading their vision and mission.

This organization partners with women in foreign countries who are at risk of being trafficked or have been rescued from a slavery situation. These women are safely moved to safe houses where they are taught a trade, such as glass blowing or jewelry making. These products are then sold at a store in Michigan run by Women at Risk, The War Chest.

The products can also be sold through women hosting at home war chest parties, raising awareness of the problem of human trafficking AND raising support for the women in the safe houses by selling their products.

Immediately, I knew this was the way I wanted to be a voice in the battle against human trafficking. I decided to host a WAR chest party.

All of the proceeds from the sales at the party go directly to WAR International, and 90% of that money goes directly to support the women at the safehouses. In fact, $250 in sales supports one woman for one month in the safehouse, providing for her training, food, and housing.

I truly enjoying hosting the party! The products were unique and there was quite a variety. The attendees were appreciative of the opportunity to learn more about this issue and shop with a purpose.

Here is a friend modeling the triple strand pearl necklace as well as some pretty eyeglass holders. The triple strand of pearls are part of the Pearls of Hope line of jewelry and were very popular.

Prices ranged from $10-$100 for jewelry. This meant that everyone found something they could afford and enjoy! The magazine beads from Uganda were creative and inexpensive.

There was a beautiful variety of necklaces!

I wish I had taken picture of the AMAZINGLY beautiful hand blown glass ornaments. I sold out of them on the preview night! They were gorgeous and affordable at $15 each.

There were purses, scarves, keychains, bookmarks, and even friendship bracelets from the Threads of Hope line. The friendship bracelets were only $2, a perfect gift for a teenage or young girl.

K(age 8…my daughter) fell in love with a little doll on a keychain. I surprised her by purchasing it for her as a Christmas ornament this year. She adores the little doll and will remember to pray for girls who are less fortunate than she.

The jewelry party was a HUGE success! Over 30 women attended and ordered products. Many ordered online after the party as well.

I was so encouraged by this opportunity to raise awareness for this cause. The party was in November (late blogging) and I think it was great timing for gift shopping! I hope to do another one next year.

If you are interested in learning more about Human Trafficking, there are a ton of great resources out there. I follow the following groups on Facebook: Women at Risk International and Traffic Jam. Both groups link to articles and various events.

Obsessions of a one year old

C (age 19 months) is obsessed with water.  He loves to pour it, drink it, spill it, and dump it. 

Usually all over my kitchen.

A great location for this activity is the open dishwasher, which spends most of its time open anyway.  He lines up his cups and pours water from cup to cup.  This is a great solution because all of his spills end up in the dishwasher.

The downside to this “solution” is that he will stand at the refrigerator DEMANDING his water.  This means mommy is constantly walking over to the fridge to fill up his cup.

Of course, if you don’t give him cups for the dishwasher, then he will demand the sink. 

DEMAND the sink.  With a cup in hand, ready to play.

And he does this ANYTIME he hears the sink running.

ANYTIME someone walks into the kitchen.

ANYTIME I begin to unload the dishwasher.

ANYTIME I begin to cook.

ANYTIME he wants to drive me crazy!!!

Which is turning into ALL of the time.

He will take a chair from the kitchen table and haul it over to the sink.  If there isn’t an empty chair, he’ll begin screaming at people to get them out of their seats.  Then, he’ll steal their chair and make for the water.

And while it drives me mad most of the time, it does entertain him.  And keep him busy and quiet for a little while.

Until he dumps the entire water bottle on himself and the floor.

  

So we change his clothes, grab a beach towel, and start over…

Tiny Talk Tuesday helps parents focus on one of the many joys of parenting - the funny things that our little ones (and sometimes big ones) have to say.

Join in the fun and record the Tiny Talk overheard in your house! Publish a post on your blog and link us to the laughs. Then be sure to link to the blog carnival on this post so more bloggers can join in the fun.

The guidelines can be found here if you need them.
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Sorry we are off to a late start...rough weekend - crazy stuff!

Make me laugh folks:

Accidental Chef speaks about plain yogurt

One of the first adjustments we made during our detox was to stop buying any flavored yogurt. It is filled with sugar and all sorts of other stuff. This was tough. Yogurt was one of my “low cal diet” snacks. And now, it wasn’t allowed.

We only purchased PLAIN yogurt. And I can’t eat that stuff on its own. YUCK.

Eric began making his own flavored yogurt. He would blend up strawberries, blueberries, or a combination of both in the blender with a little honey. Then he would add that to the plain yogurt. Both he and C love this yogurt!

*I have been told that you can blend up the fruit and honey and freeze this puree in ice cube trays. Then you can keep a stash of fruit cubes to thaw and mix with plain yogurt. I’d love to try to do this during the summer with some fresh berries!

I began making smoothies with the yogurt every morning. I use the plain yogurt, fruit, milk, ice, and a little honey. DELICIOUS!

This is one of the first things that “stuck” in our house. We have not bought the flavored yogurt for the adults ever again. Period.

But, we had to give a little for the kids. T (age 6) and D (age 4) in particular are very picky eaters. And they both seem to have desperately a horrible sweet tooth.

Our compromise for them is vanilla yogurt only. I stopped buying Trix yogurt for D. (yes, I admit, I had bought him Trix for months, happy that he was at least eating yogurt) Now he doesn’t eat yogurt at all, but I think that it will change as he gets older and is willing to try a few things.

T eats vanilla yogurt daily. I’d love for her to eat some of the fruit flavored yogurt that daddy makes, but she claims that she doesn’t like it. So we let her have the vanilla.

We also continue to allow T and D to eat Danimals. They just didn’t like my smoothies. I looked at the ingredients on Danimals and decided that we would let that ride for a bit longer. Afterall, it was much better than the Trix yogurt.

On the other hand, K, C, and I LOVE a smoothie for breakfast pretty much everyday. YUM! These days I use half plain yogurt and half plain Chobani yogurt (the Greek yogurt). I tried using all Chobani, but that was WAY overpowering, so I use only half. I like incorporating this into the smoothie because K doesn’t eat a lot of meat and the Chobani has a HUGE amount of protein in it!

My smoothie recipe (makes 2.5 smoothies…Daniel eats about .5):

2/3 cup plain yogurt

2/3 cup Chobani plain yogurt

1 cup milk

1 cup crushed ice

9 strawberries and 1 whole banana (or whatever fruit you like)

*I love to use fresh during the summer, but right now we use frozen berries.

honey, to taste (I like a decent amount)

I blend everything EXCEPT the honey in the blender. Then, while it finishes blending, I add the honey (as the blender is blending). I have found that if you add the honey early, the blender just spins it to the side and it sticks there. In order to get it all blended you have to add the honey while the blender is spinning.

And that was the first healthy change that has stuck. Plain yogurt only, other than the vanilla exception for T and D. Easy breakfast. Easy snack. Full of calcium, fruit, and protein!

I’d love to try some more smoothie recipes and ideas. I tend to be a creature of habit, so if you have something to suggest, then please feel free!

Tiny Talk Tuesday

Tiny Talk Tuesday helps parents focus on one of the many joys of parenting - the funny things that our little ones (and sometimes big ones) have to say.

Join in the fun and record the Tiny Talk overheard in your house! Publish a post on your blog and link us to the laughs. Then be sure to link to the blog carnival on this post so more bloggers can join in the fun.

The guidelines can be found here if you need them.
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On the way to the mall we were talking about the name, "Stoic the Vast". K (age 8) thought that "The Vast" was his last name, so I explained the name. We came up with some examples...

Mom: Tricia, the blonde. David, the four year old.
D (age 4): Mommy, the fifteen year old.

(LOL...oh funny...if only 15 still seemed old)
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D (age 4): When I grow up, I am going to have 4 cats and 2 children.
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Your Turn:

Wordless Wednesday: Hot Homemade Sourdough, fresh from the oven

Tiny Talk Tuesday

Tiny Talk Tuesday helps parents focus on one of the many joys of parenting - the funny things that our little ones (and sometimes big ones) have to say.

Join in the fun and record the Tiny Talk overheard in your house! Publish a post on your blog and link us to the laughs. Then be sure to link to the blog carnival on this post so more bloggers can join in the fun.

The guidelines can be found here if you need them.
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Daddy has introduced D (age 4) to the world of addicting games dot com. D LOVES it, but the deal is that he can only play when daddy is home. Mommy doesn't want to fight that battle during the school day.

His favorite game right now is called, "Trajectory".

D calls it "Rejectory".
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I have mentioned that my father calls D, "Dah-bead".

I took T, D, and C to visit my parents one night. We walked in the door and D announced, "Here are two Dah-beads and one squirrely girl!"

I cracked up! Yes my dad calls the girls, "Squirrely girls". Apparently D thinks that the nickname, "Dah-bead", is a general nickname for boys.
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Your Turn:

The Accidental Chef

I have always hated to cook.    And everything about it….the planning, the shopping, the actually cooking, and the cleaning.

Now, I still dislike the cleaning aspect, but my feelings toward the other aspects have undergone some major changes.   This former dreaded activity has become more of a hobby these days.  I am not ready to say that it is a passion, but it seems to be heading there.

So how on earth did I go from hating the entire process of cooking to soaking wheat flour overnight in order to make fresh homemade biscuits in the morning?   Let’s just say that it has been a VERY SLOW process.

I have always tried to “keep up” with modern day “food rules” for moms.  I limit the trans fat, avoid the high fructose corn syrup, keep fresh veggies around, and all that good stuff. 

And then, we had our food makeover weight loss time period.  During that time I read, “The Maker’s Diet” by Jordan Rubin.  Some of the information was interesting enough that I wanted to pursue it.  No, I didn’t think I needed to buy his “dirt” products and I didn’t really pursue the healing oils and all of that.  But I was shocked by some of the information I read. 

The two things that really stuck out were:

1.   Refined Sugar has horrible effects on the body, especially sugars high in fructose.

2.  The Phytates found in whole wheat products prevent the absorption of certain minerals and vitamins.   Grains should be properly treated through soaking.  You can read a little more about that  on this post if you are interested…and the explore her awesome recipes!

It was actually quite eye-opening because this is NOT the type of health food information you will find if you only look at mainstream media.  Whole wheat is such a HUGE push in our mainstream health messages, yet I had never heard of a phytate or the idea of soaking my flour. 

And sugar?  Sugar?  OH. MY. WORD.  It is in EVERYTHING!  Of course, in health food stores it is cleverly disguised by phrases like “cane juice” or “brown rice syrup”. 

In fact, I took my girls on a field trip to “Whole Foods Market” just to show them that everything in a “Health Food Store” is not necessarily healthy.  You have to be a wise consumer wherever you shop.   Sugar is still the second ingredient in the majority of the “boxed” items at the health food store – cereals, granola, chips, dressings, etc. 

Even the Bare Naked brand of granola is far from Naked when it comes to sugar…

So I began another “pantry overhaul”.  I can’t say I was enjoying any of the cooking, but I was enjoying the education, after all I am a teacher, so I love to learn!  I had gotten lazy about what I was willing to feed our family and now I was ready make another change.

Now, while I was tossing things left and right, let me assure you that I know that there is also balance.  I have 4 kids and I realize that they aren’t going to grow up and never eat a chip, have a bowl of ice cream, or enjoy a bagel made from unsoaked flour (gasp).  The same is true for me.  But I needed to do a better job of weighing down the scale on the healthier side.

So that is where we began.  Me, tossing out food all over the place and trying to find acceptable substitutes.  But it led to so much more…slowly, over time…and that is where I will pick up later this week.