Lovely Easter Eggs

Look at these eggs!!
Every year we do the same thing with the boxed egg

decorating kit and maybe a crayon or stickers for added effect.

All our eggs end up looking the same year after year.

Oh well, at least the kids enjoy it, right?

NOT THIS YEAR!

I will be putting a little more effort into my Easter eggs

after I found these puppies.

And most of them are so simple! See for yourself and click the

picture if you'd like to go to the original website with instruction.

1. Sharpie Eggs - SO cool!

2. Glitter Dot Eggs - These are so fricken adorable.

3. Marbled Eggs - Um, awesome!

4. Mustache Eggs - Why didn't I think of that?

5. Speckled Eggs - Just use a metallic Sharpie!

 6. Googly Eyed Eggs - My kids would love this!

7. Post-It Note Eggs - Who would've thunk it?

8. Glitter Glam Eggs - Speaks for itself.

9. Natural Dye Eggs - Probably my favorite out of the bunch.

10. Czech Kraslice Eggs - Hollowed out, amazing!

It's settled. I need to go buy a few more dozen eggs.

Whether you have kids or not, get in the spirit this weekend

and make some Easter eggs! (If you do any of these, I want to see!)

Curriculum '13-'14

I don't think I've ever researched anything as thoroughly 

as I've researched 1st grade homeschool curriculum.

There are SO MANY options.

I was so intimidated and overwhelmed in the beginning,

but then it got fun. I've actually really enjoyed piecing

together Kayden's curriculum for the 2013-2014 year.

Of course we had the option of just purchasing a boxed

curriculum that had everything we would need, but I quickly

discovered that I was way too picky to do that. I couldn't find

anything that I was 100% satisfied with.

One reason I want to homeschool my kids is to have

the ability to sculpt their curriculum to fit their needs.

By doing Kindergarten this year I've been able to see my

daughter's strengths and weaknesses. I've gotten to know

her learning style and what works best for her.

So after months and months and hours and hours of

researching, I believe I've found a fit for her 1st grade year.

Math

I've chosen Horizons for our math curriculum. She's already

doing Horizon's K workbooks and we love them!

Language Arts

I've decided to go with All About Spelling and All About Reading.

I knew for sure that I wanted to do AAS this year but it took me a while to

choose a reading curriculum. We will give AAR a try and see how it goes.

Science

Building Foundations of Scientific Understanding has rave reviews

everywhere I look. From what I've read, its a completely new approach

to learning science. What I liked about it is the ideas and guidance offered

to adapt what you're learning to the student's every day life. I really wanted

a fun science curriculum, outside of a textbook, and I think I've found it.

History

Kayden's been learning about history this year through the American

Girl books. The first series we finished was Felicity, which took place

in 1774 in Williamsburg, Virginia. She learned a little bit about the

Boston Tea Party and Revolutionary War and how America began.

I wanted to continue studying history of the United States so I chose 

Adventures in America for our history curriculum.

So that's it! If you are an experienced homeschooler, I'd love your

opinion on my choices! This will be our first official year of school

and I want to make sure I have all the bases covered.

I love homeschooling :)


****EDIT****

Doing both AAR and AAS ended up being more than I could afford this
school year. So I have changed our spelling curriculum to Soaring With Spelling. 

Liebster Award Round 2

 YAY I got another nomination. I feel so loved!!

Thank you Justina Who...!

I am breaking many rules with round 2 though.

Please forgive me.

Since I just nominated a bunch of people I don't know,

I'm going to nominate my friends.

But I don't have 11 friends that blog so there will only

be a couple nominations.

However, I do recommend doing the work to nominate 

11 more people during your turn.

It's a good way to connect with other bloggers and make friends!

Also, I'm asking my friends the same questions I

asked my last nominations because I liked those questions!

Have fun!

The Rules
{1} Each blogger should answer the questions the tagger has set for you.
{2} Choose 11 new bloggers to pass the award on to and link them in your post.
{3} Create 11 new questions for the chosen bloggers.
{4} Go back to their page and tell them about the award.
{5} Each blogger should post 11 random facts about themselves.
{6} No tag-backs!!

My Questions From Justina Marie
{1} What is your middle name and do you like it?

My middle name is Mae! (Surprise!) And I actually

really do love my middle name. It was my Grandma's

middle name and I passed it on to my youngest daughter.
{2}Who are you inspired by?

Good moms inspire me. Those moms who seem to have

it all together but are grounded enough to admit their struggles

and faults. It reminds me that we all have challenges but should

continue to strive to do our best for our family.
{3}What is your favorite brand of jeans?

I literally only own 2 pairs of jeans and I have no idea where I

got them lol
{4}Why did you start blogging?

I started blogging because I needed something to do!

I had so many ideas I wanted to share with everyone, I felt

I could reach more people and maybe even inspire a couple if

I started putting it all in a blog!
{5} Watch T.V. or read a book?

Tv. I love tv. I love books too but I love tv more.
{6} What's your favorite holiday?

Christmas. I love shopping for everyone. I love the holiday

spirit. I love the excitement on my kid's faces. I still feel the magic

of Christmas every single year.
{7} Where would your ideal vacation be?

One of those rooms on the water in Fiji!
{8} What is your favorite 'throwback' movie?

The Wizard of Oz :)
{9} What celebrity would you like to meet?

Oprah!!
{10} If you could only choose one: Facebook or Pinterest?

Facebook. I love my people too much to give them up.
{11} What do you 'splurge' on?

Kids clothes. I'm glad they grow so fast so its easy to justify!

My Random Facts
{1} My sister is a redhead and her daughter is a redderhead.
{2} I'm terrified of crickets.
{3} I used to have a horse named Scooby.
{4} I got my ears pierced at the age of 11.
{5} I have no tattoos or body piercings except my ears.
{6} I met my husband on myspace.
{7} My fav drink at Starbucks is an iced white mocha.
{8} I never go in the ocean but I'll spend a lifetime on the beach.
{9} I hate going outdoors after cricket-thirty (sundown)
{10} I'm a total night owl and I have to force myself to go to bed so I get a good night's sleep.
{11} I'm entirely too skinny for the amount of food I eat.

 My Nominations
{1} Becca
{2} Shantel
{3} Kelly
{4} Melissa
{5} Lizzie
{6} ghost
{7} ghost
{8} ghost
{9} ghost
{10} ghost
{11} ghost

 My Questions For You
(1) Did you play any sports in high school?
(2) What made you smile today?
(3) How many kids do you have or want?
(4) Taco or burrito?
(5) What is one word you would use to describe your life?
(6) What kind of music do you listen to?
(7) What is the last thing you ate?
(8) If you were stranded on an island with just a beach chair, what would be your drink of choice?
(9) Are you a morning person or a night owl?
(10) Do you prefer hot weather or cold weather?
(11) Where do you see yourself in 10 years?

Spring Cleaning Pt 3

It has taken me 5 whole days to clean 3.5 rooms.

So I guess that means we will be going into week 2!

I'll take the weekend off.

I had a friend babysit today so I could actually feel

accomplished. I was able to finish all 3 kid's rooms

and start on the kitchen.

I cleaned out a couple of cupboards, including my

spices. Wow. I had no idea I had so many expired

spices. We cleaned out our cupboards last spring but

apparently didn't feel like looking at expiration dates.

Some of them expired in like 2010 lol.

I threw out so many spices. This is what it looked

like when I was done...

I guess I'll be restocking soon!

Liebster Award

 

I was nominated for a Liebster Award!! Yay!!

Thank you Pam at The Patriotic Pam for the nomination!

The Liebster Award is given by bloggers to bloggers who have less than 200 followers.

The Rules

1) Each blogger should answer the questions the tagger has set for you.
2) Choose eleven new bloggers to pass the award on to and link them in your post.
3) Create eleven new questions for the chosen bloggers.
4) Go back to their page and tell them about the award.
5) Each blogger should post eleven random facts about themselves.
6) No Tag Backs!!!

My Questions From Pam

{1}  What made you start blogging?

As a stay at home mom and wife, I wanted to find a purpose outside 

of these four walls. It is not the right time for me to go to school or work

so I thought I'd give blogging a shot. It turns out I LOVE it!
{2}  Who do you admire most?

Am I allowed to say Oprah? :) I absolutely love her and always have.

I just love her story and how she uses her fame and wealth for good causes.
{3}  Favorite vacation?

A houseboat at Lake Powell, AZ when I was about 14.

I'm dying to do it again!
{4}  Your most admirable trait?

This is such a hard question to answer about yourself lol I would

like to think that I'm selfless. I'm genuinely happy to put others ahead of myself.
{5} Sweats or Dresses?

I've got to say dresses :) I love getting dressed up. That is when I

feel most confident.
{6} Dogs or Cats?

Dogs. My answer would not have been the same if you had

asked me 7 years ago ;)
{7}  What is your favorite thing to do with friends?

Grabbing starbucks and chatting. We do this regularly and always

end up laughing and having a great time. It's good for my soul.
{8}  Grilling or Crockpot-ing?

If I'm doing the cooking, crock pot. If someone else is doing it, grill.
{9}  Tell us your favorite Sports team? 

San Diego Chargers! I bleed blue and gold.
{10}  How many states have you lived in?

2, California and North Carolina
{11}  Since these are all military spouses, favorite thing you LOVE about being a milspouse?

I love so much about this lifestyle. I think my favorite part is the sisterhood 

among wives. Complete strangers become family so fast and support one another

in ways no one else can understand. I don't know what I would do without these ladies!

My 11 Random Facts

• I hate strawberries.
• I was the statistician for my high school football team and walked the sidelines in heels.
•  Pit Bulls are my favorite breed of dogs. I believe in them.
• I want to be a surrogate mother someday.
• I love to cook but I suck at baking.
• I forget to take the trash out to the street every week and end up going out in my pajamas when I hear the truck coming. That's usually Andrew's job.
• I overuse the words "like" and "omg" when I talk.
• I could live off of Redbull and coffee...I probably really couldn't, but in my dreams it would be possible.
• I love people and laughing and making others happy.
• I've had asthma almost my entire life and have to take medication every day for it.
• My favorite color is pink!

My Nominations

1. Meara at My Home Is With You

2. Kathy at Carys & Charlie

3. Alison at Military Wife

4. Laura at Four Little Penguins

5. Carrie at Mizell Mayhem

6. Abbie at Rise to find the sun...

7. Tina at ThriftingWithCake

8. Kailyn at Smalls The Blog

9. Rachel at Raves + Revelations

10. Audrey at Standing By Him

11.Kaylee at Moore Kaylee

Since I was nominated by someone I don't personally know, I decided to only

nominate people I don't know either :) I scoured through blogs and found a few

that I really enjoyed and wanted to share with my readers.

I do have a few personal friends who blog and they are listed on the right.

If you have a moment, please check them out!

My Questions For You

(1) Did you play any sports in high school?

(2) What made you smile today?

(3) How many kids do you have or want?

(4) Taco or burrito?

(5) What is one word you would use to describe your life?

(6) What kind of music do you listen to?

(7) What is the last thing you ate?

(8) If you were stranded on an island with just a beach chair, what would be your drink of choice?

(9) Are you a morning person or a night owl?

(10) Do you prefer hot weather or cold weather?

(11) Where do you see yourself in 10 years?

So fun! I'm so excited to make new friends through this!

Wordless Wednesday

Spring Cleaning Pt 2

At the rate I'm going, my spring cleaning week is

going to turn into spring cleaning two weeks.

Gah!

It's so much more difficult to deep clean with 3 little

busy bodies running around craving your attention.

My goal today was the kid's rooms. All three of them.

I got 1/3 completely done. The other 2 I probably got 1/4 done.

I don't know what that is in math language,

but I know it doesn't equal 100%     >:(

One insanely fussy baby and one crayon mural over my

entire dining room floor and I decided I was done for the day.

Instead of feeling frustrated about what I didn't do,

I need to pat myself on the back for what I did get done.

It's better than nothing.

So aside from routine cleaning, here's what else I like

to accomplish when spring cleaning the bedrooms...

Kid's Bedrooms

Empty all drawers and clean out clothes that no longer

fit, are old, or beat up.

Reorganize clothes back to where they need to go.

Replace pillows.

Shampoo mattress.

Shampoo carpets.

Clean windows, inside and out, including tracks.

Clean out toys, toss/sell/donate/reorganize.

Replace batteries in toys that need it.

Wipe down walls and baseboards.

Clean ceiling fan.

 A few months ago I got really sick of the mass amount of

toys my kids have collected over the years so I went to 

Home Depot and bought a few organizational bins.

I allowed each kid to have 3 bins and we labeled each one.

Kayden has Polly Pocket, Littlest Pet Shop, and Barbies.

Davin has Trucks & Bikes, Tools, and Legos.

Any toy that didn't fit into these categories was outta there.

It was a huge relief and made cleaning up so much easier.

They still had a couple "big" toys like dolls and car tracks but

those weren't a problem to begin with. It's those tiny Happy Meal

useless pieces of crap toys that they forget about in 5 seconds but

gets lost in the toy box forever. Those are the problems!

Here is Britty's closet after I cleaned it out.

Organizing her clothes took some time.

At that age, they are cycling through clothes so fast!

In her dresser is 12-18mo stuff.
The bins in her closet are 2T summer and 2T winter.

There is also a huge box in there with everything 3T+.

The pink basket is full of shoes.

 

Ps. If you haven't already, please "like" my Facebook page :)

I enjoy keeping in touch on there too!

Spring Cleaning Pt 1

It's that time of the yearrrrrrr!

Spring officially starts this week, that means it's time for

SPRING CLEANING

yay!

Oh man, I have no motivation.

Last year hubby was home to help me.

I'm not quite sure how I'm going to manage this with the

kids around but it needs to get done!

A part of me looks forward to this every year because

it is suuuuch a good feeling when it's all done.

I decided to just start off with the small task

of the master bathroom today. It is Monday, afterall.

I shouldn't over do it on a Monday.

About halfway done with the bathroom I was over it lol

The only thing keeping me going was knowing I had to post

about it at some point! So thank you, dedicated bloggy readers,

for unknowingly motivating me.

Spring cleaning for me isn't just cleaning.

Its perfecting every single inch of my living space.

I keep two lists while I work. One for items I need to restock or replace.

And one with things I need to call maintenance about.

Master Bathroom

Clean out drains.

Take everything out of shelves, cabinets, and drawers, wipe down.

Throw away expired medicine, old soaps, etc.

Wash shower curtains and bath mats.

Clean light fixture, replace light bulbs if needed.

Wipe down walls and baseboards.

Here's my bathroom cupboard's "after" photo.

All of our medications are on the highest shelf.

I added an organizer for our first aid stuff.

The second shelf has all of my hair and beauty products.

The third shelf is my asthma stuff and Britton's eczema stuff.

I keep our prescriptions stocked here since we're both on regular medications.

I also stored some miscellaneous medical supplies we have.

The fourth shelf has our scale, hair clippers, and humidifier.

TOYBox April 2013

Yay for our first month of TOYBoxes!

I know a couple ladies will be smiling this month

and that is enough to make me want to continue pushing this!

We didn't have very many participants for the month of March

so I would really like to boost up the numbers this month!

If you're new and not familiar with our TOYBox project,

click here for more info.

April is National Stress Awareness Month and we all know

military wives understand the meaning of stress!

Long separations, caring for the kids alone, moving, being

responsible of every household detail, deployments,

being away from family, Tricare (lol)...

So our theme for April is DESTRESS.

Send this lady some love in a box! Yoga DVD, coloring books,

a funny movie. The possibilities are endless and chances are your

recipient NEEDS some destressing! Feel free to get creative. Handmade

items are always nice to get :)

I also added some ideas and inspiration on Pinterest.

Links to sign up to send or receive a box are at the bottom of this post.

Sign ups are monthly, so if you signed up for March for either one,

you will have to sign up again to participate in April :)

RULES

1. We are not responsible for anything that occurs after

your match has been made. 

2. There is a $20 max spending limit on the package

you create. This does not include shipping costs.

3. Lost or damaged boxes are out of our control and

we recommend adding tracking to your package.

4. If you have been matched with someone but never

receive a box, please let us know so we can contact

the person responsible.

Click HERE to sign up to send.

Military spouses click HERE to sign up to receive.
Deadline to sign up for April is March 31, 2013!

Update 1.0

I'm about 2 and 1/2 months into this blogging thing

and I've made quite the list of goals/projects I'd like

to accomplish.

I thought I'd take a moment to let you all know how

things are going around here!

1. The Laundry Room Makeover - Click HERE for the post.

The makeover is taking a little longer than I expected. I forgot I wasn't made of money and some of the plans I had for it actually requires some shopping. I live in the middle of nowhere and shopping is a rare occasion but it is coming along! Slowly but surely.

 

2. Deployment Countdown - Click HERE for the post.

We have been going out for ice cream every month and we are over half way done with this deployment!

3. Snowballing Our Debt - Click HERE for the post.

One credit card paid off completely!! And I still use mint.com religiously :)

4. Two Hundred Situps - Click HERE for the post.

I got about half way done and then I got REALLY sick. I never picked it back up again. Hmm maybe I will start this again soon.

5. Dr. Phil's Relationship Rescue - Click HERE for the post.

Its a work in progress. Haven't finished it yet though.

6. 101 in 1001 - Click HERE for the post.

Click the link to see how I'm doing! I update it periodically.

7. Our Bug Farm - Click HERE for the post.

Well our sea monkeys didn't last long, I'll tell you that. I also forgot a step with the butterflies. I was supposed to take them out of the little container when they went into cocoons so they emerged inside the container and were kind of screwed up lol oops. One had really bent wings.We named it Curly. They died soon after. The ants were cool for a while but then they started dying.

8. TOYBox Project - Click HERE for the post.

Not as much of a hit as I had hoped for but still got a few people participating! I will post about April soon.

9. 7 Bank Accounts - Click HERE for the post.

I did it! When I got our tax return I opened our 7 bank accounts and put a little bit into each one to get us started!

10. Time With My Kids - Click HERE for the post.

We have done game night a couple times. We've done movie nights a few times since that post too. I'm not doing too good about eating dinner around the table but this post reminded me about it. Hopefully I'll remember tomorrow.

11. Project Backyard - Click HERE for the post.
I JUST started working on this since the weather is getting nicer! I'm clearing out the weeds and sticks and trash and filling holes that my beautiful dog dug. Then I will spread new seed. 

12. Gardening - Click HERE for the post.

I planted my flowers in the front. They've sprouted :) Haven't planted anything in the garden yet, hopefully this weekend!

13. Healthy Smoothies - Click HERE for the post.

Still going strong with this one!! I love, love, LOVE my smoothies! This morning I blended a whole pear, half a banana, a cup of mango and almond milk. That's a lot of goodness in one cup!

14. Living Positively - Click HERE for the post.

My best friend, Sam, and I have made a promise to keep each other positive. It is so much nicer to be positive! It makes the days more enjoyable, and, well, people don't like to hang out with someone who's always negative. So I think this mission is going pretty well.

Wordless Wednesday

Here's Some Motivation For You!

On Sunday I went to a home party thrown by Ms. Rikka,

a friend of a friend who recently signed up as a Team Beachbody coach.

 

The party was a "Shake and Share" where we got to learn a little

bit about the products Beachbody sells, the purpose behind

the business, how to get ourselves on the right track to health and

wellness, and learn about their Shakeology health shake.

 Rikka shared her personal story with us as well as some before and

after photos of her own transformation. She signed up with Team Beachbody

to help other people achieve these same goals in their lives.

She showed us previews of some of the workouts Beachbody offers

and we got to taste the different Shakeology flavors. I must say, I loved

the chocolate one. It tasted like a rich, thick, chocolate shake mmmm.

(And vegan options available!)

The amount of vitamins and superfoods that are packed into each shake

is crazy! By replacing one meal a day with Shakeology it will help curb 

cravings, promote weight loss, increase energy levels, improve digestion, 

support your immune system and support cardiovascular health.

They are so sure that you will notice a difference in your health that they 

offer an Empty Bag Guarantee. If you are not satisfied within 30 days, you can

 return it for a full refund, even if you're returning an empty bag!

I was very interested in the Challenge Packs Team Beachbody offers.

P90X, Insanity, TurboFire (that's what I ordered) and more.

With the Challenge Packs you get the workout DVDs, you get a nutrition

plan, you get a workout calendar, you get a 30-day supply of Shakeology,

you get a 30-day membership to the Team Beachbody Club (discounts,

online support, message boards, personalized meal plans, live chats

with the trainers, etc) and a bunch of other stuff to keep you on track.

There is soooo much offered by Beachbody, you will have to check

it out for yourself. A huge selection of workout DVDs, supplements, 

gear, even skincare! I wanted to help Rikka in her new venture which is

why I'm posting this blog. As a coach her job is to inspire you, motivate

you and hold you accountable. I know Rikka would love to help you so 

whether your goal is weight loss or to live healthier, sign up online 

to create a profile and join her team!

 Ms. Rikka herself, go girl!

OH and check out the Kale Chip recipe on her FB page. She served

these at the party and they were sooo good! Crunchy like potato chips

but so much better for you!

Rikka's Team Beachbody Website

Rikka's FB Page

Shakeology

21 Questions to Ask Your Kids

Inspired by Shantel at Just Another Marine SAHM

And just a disclaimer, I asked them these questions totally

separately. So much cleaning and nothing's ever clean!

1. What is something Mommy always says to you?
Kayden: "Say polite words."

Davin: "I love you."

2. What makes Mommy happy?

Kayden: "Hugs."

Davin: "Happy."

3. What makes Mommy sad?

Kayden: "No hugs."

Davin: "Mean."

4. How does Mommy make you laugh?

Kayden: "Tickle me."

Davin: "Tickle."

5. What was Mommy like as a child?

Kayden: "A love heart."

Davin: "Go in the crib."

6. How old is Mommy?

Kayden: "How old are you? 17?"

Davin: "10."

7. How tall is Mommy?

Kayden: "15."

Davin: *puts his hand on top of my head*

8. What is Mommy's favorite thing to do?

Kayden: "Clean the house."

Davin: "Cleaning up."

9. What does Mommy do when you're not around?

Kayden: "Go run errands."

Davin: "Leave."

10. If Mommy becomes famous, what will it be for?

Kayden: "Cooking."

Davin: "Letters."

11. What is Mommy really good at?

Kayden: "Changing Britton's diaper."

Davin: "Cleaning."

12. What is Mommy not very good at?

Kayden: "Cleaning the dog's teeth."

Davin: "Not cleaning."

13. What does Mommy do for her job?

Kayden: "Runs errands."

Davin: "Not cleaning."

14. What is Mommy's favorite food?

Kayden: "Meat."

Davin: "Fish."

15. What makes you proud of Mommy?

Kayden: "Baking cookies."

Davin: "Cleaning up."

16. If Mommy were a cartoon character, who would she be?

Kayden: "Belle."

Davin: "Kayden."

17. What do you and Mommy do together?

Kayden: "Go run errands together."

Davin: "Be proud."

18. How are you and Mommy the same?

Kayden: "Our noses."

Davin: "Matching."

19. How are you and Mommy different?

Kayden: "Our hair."

Davin: "You're the mommy and I'm the kid."

20. How do you know Mommy loves you?

Kayden: "You snuggle with me."

Davin: "Giving me some hearts."

21. Where is Mommy's favorite place to go?

Kayden: "The commissary."

Davin: "Work."

My daughter Kayden is 5 (almost 6!) and my son Davin is 3 :)

Do this with your own kids and share! It will be great to read at their wedding or something lol!

Keep Your Head Up

How are you doing?

I'm doing ok. I'm visiting my parents for a few days.

My dad broke his hip and I came to help him.

I guess this is going to be a somewhat personal post.

Hope you don't mind.

My dad's always so positive, jovial, fun to be around. 

That's what he's known for. He is always on the go, 

working and riding motorcycles on the weekends.

It's been over a week since he fell off a ladder and got

injured. A week of not being able to get out of bed. A

week of pain. A week of not being able to sleep. 

I'm starting to see the frustration getting to him 

and its hard. I feel bad. I can fetch him coffee and serve

him lunch but there's only so much I can do for his spirit.

I see him trying to stay positive, look at the bright side

and all of that. But I know he's just ready to be normal

again and get back to work. I just keep reminding him

that every day is that much closer to normal. It is hard to

see your daddy laid up though. All this time I thought

nothing could hurt my daddy!

Coming back to my hometown is always nice.

It will always be home.

But after a while, you start to remember why you left.

Some of the people I grew up with are still in

the same place in their life that they were when I left.

The thing about small towns is people like to talk.

And most of it is negative gossip about other people.

The rumors around here are always flowing.

Gossip is natural, I get it. Everyone does it. That's fine.

But if your whole mission in life is to constantly point

out everyone else's flaws and focus on the negative aspects

of other people, that's sad. It's truly sad. I feel sorry that you

cannot hold your head up high enough to see the good in people.

We all know people like this and it's easy to get caught

up in the bashing. It's easy for your mind to lower itself

to that level when you're around them.

Since I am someone on a mission to live my life positively,

I'm going to make a better effort at avoiding these situations.

I'm not promising never to voice opinions about other people,

like I said, that's human nature and it's not a bad thing. But I will

not allow my mind to stay stuck in those negative thoughts. If I

have a problem with someone, I will also take a moment to identify

positive things about them. I will also do this the next time I

find myself in a conversation where a negative light is being shone

on another person. Instead of getting sucked into it, I hope to have

the conscience to pull out of the moment and switch it around.

Who knows, maybe doing this will influence that Negative Nancy

to change the way they speak about others.

This kind of goes along with my Positive Living post.

We need more good in this world and we only have control over

one person, ourselves. Let it start with you.

Fab New Fad

Juicing is all the rage right now.

I'm not exactly sure what brought on this new fad

but I'm not complaining.
I love seeing people make the effort to do 

something good for themselves.

I knew I wanted to jump on the bandwagon but I

wasn't sure where to start.

The juicers I found were kind of expensive and I

was worried about the cost of all those fruits and veggies.

Then my friend added me to her group on Facebook

Balanced Beings.....Fitting it all in!

I started reading everyone's tips and comments and

suggestions and I really got inspired.

Someone mentioned the Ninja blender for blending your

fruits and veggies into a smoothie instead of juicing and

I decided this was more my style.

I headed to the PX the next day and picked up the Ninja.

I love that you can blend right into the cup, pop the lid on

and take it with you on the go. So convenient!

I was soooo eager to try it out but I hadn't gone grocery

shopping in a few days and I was in dire need of fresh

produce in my house. But I scoured the fridge for something

and came up with this concoction of  blueberries, cucumber,

and cranberry juice. Not too bad if I do say so myself.

After a trip to the store I made this smoothie. Banana, pineapple,

the juice of one lemon and vanilla almond milk. YUM.

 I continued experimenting for the rest of the week and

I now plan on making this part of my daily routine.

I wanted to do this for a few reasons.

1. I have this weird dislike of fruits. It's rare that I find

a fruit that I will actually eat, especially in large quantities.

It kind of bums me out because I still want the vitamins and

antioxidants from them. I will, however, drink a fruit

smoothie no problem.

2. I don't like to eat first thing in the morning and by the

time I get hungry I'm usually too busy to stop and make

myself something to eat. If I do eat, its something quick

and most likely unhealthy. Since I got the Ninja, I've been

making myself a smoothie around 10am every morning and

another one mid-afternoon. That's wayyyy more fruits and

vegetables than I usually eat on a typical day.

3. In November 2011 I had a pretty big surgery on my gall bladder.

I had a big gall stone stuck in the common bile duct and had to

have emergency surgery to remove it as well as the gallbladder 

itself. My digestive system took a little beating during the whole

deal and although I can stomach most foods, I do get sick sometimes

with bad stomach pains. I read about the benefits of juicing/blending

and how easy it is on your digestive system and that's really what had me sold.

Not only is the process of juicing/blending good for it, but the foods

I add to the smoothies have their benefits too.

I'm really excited about this change in my lifestyle.

For more inspiration, check out the documentary 

Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead on Netflix!

Wordless Wednesday

TV Junkie

My favorite thing to do after the kids go to bed

is lounge on the couch with my computer and the

TV. My husband hates it. He thinks its a waste of

time. But it is definitely my way of winding down

after a busy day.

I do watch a lot of shows though.

Probably too much.

I am so grateful for the invention of DVR!

Some of my current favorites include:

American Idol

Teen Mom 2

16 and Pregnant

The Amazing Race

The Bachelor/Bachelorette

Catfish

Real Housewives of Orange County
Big Brother

I'm wracking my brain trying to think of something
I watch that isn't reality tv lol I never realized this before!

I used to watch shows that weren't "reality" but they
keep cancelling them!

Desperate Housewives
Friends
ER
House
and I stopped watching The Office
when Steve Carrell left

I also have a couple shows on my future watch list that
I plan to catch up on with the help of Netflix.

Grey's Anatomy
The Walking Dead
(Started it with hubby and waiting
for his return to continue)
 Doctor Who

 Not only do I love watching tv but I love talking about
it with other people. So I get really excited when someone
I know watches the same show I do lol

I know this is kind of lame but I don't care!

What shows do you watch regularly?
Do you recommend anything for me? :)

Why is there so little yellow brick road?

Last night I was browsing the internet for curriculum
options for next year's homeschooling.

I was checking out the Moving Beyond the Page site,
(which, by the way, I am a fan of)

and I came across this video.

It's a lecture by Colin Stokes that explores how popular
movies, books and other media affect our children's character.
He specifically talks about gender bias and how this is shaping
the minds of our young boys and girls.

He uses the Bechdel Test to determine gender bias in a book, show or movie.
It's a simple 3 part test that goes like this...

1. Are there at least two women?
2. ...that speak to eachother?
3. ...about something other than a man?

Ninety percent of popular movies don't pass this test.

My interest peaked when he brought up an image of Pixar's
main movie characters...boys.

If you have a few minutes to spare, watch the video and

let me know what you think. I found it very interesting but

I'm even more interested in your thoughts about it.

It has definitely made me think about how I'm raising my
son and my daughters.

Happy Birthday Dr. Seuss!

Everyone is celebrating Theodore Geisel's birthday today!
(Better known as Dr. Seuss.)

Dr. Seuss is near and dear to my heart for a couple reasons.

I absolutely love his books, who doesn't? But I have enjoyed
them my entire life and now enjoy reading them to my kids.

"One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish" was the very first book

I ever read completely on my own.
Kayden's first book was "Go Dog Go".

As I grew older I began to understand the messages behind many
of his stories. The history and background to some of his writings
are always interesting to learn about.
Did you know that Yertle the Turtle was originally drawn with a
mustache and was created to represent Hitler?

One of my favorite books we have is
Your Favorite Seuss: A Baker's Dozen by the One and Only Dr. Seuss
which is a collection of stories and essays about Dr. Seuss.

Theodore Geisel lived in San Diego with his wife until he passed away.
To be more exact, he lived in the little seaside community of La Jolla.
We frequented La Jolla's beaches when I was a kid (we still do)
and I remember looking for Dr. Seuss' house as we drove around.
La Jolla is also where I saw my husband for the first time :)



I love seeing people get all Seussed out around this time of year!

 

Even our local Marines took the time to read to students today.


Official USMC photo by Kelly O'Sullivan

So in honor of Dr. Seuss and National Read Across America Day,
take your kids to the library this weekend or spend it with
a good book of your own. After all...