Dear Moms,

I needed to be reminded of some things. 

Maybe you do too. 

“Some mothers in today's world feel "cumbered" by home duties and are thus attracted by other more "romantic" challenges. Such women could make the same error of perspective that Martha made. The woman, for instance, who deserts the cradle in order to help defend civilization against the barbarians may well later meet, among the barbarians, her own neglected child.”

― Neal A. Maxwell, Wherefore, Ye Must Press Forward




You rock a sobbing child without wondering if today’s world is passing you by, because you know you hold tomorrow tightly in your arms.

When the real history of mankind is fully disclosed, will it feature the echoes of gunfire or the shaping sound of lullabies? The great armistices made by military men or the peacemaking of women in homes and in neighborhoods? Will what happened in cradles and kitchens prove to be more controlling than what happened in congresses? When the surf of the centuries has made the great pyramids so much sand, the everlastingfamily will still be standing, because it is a celestial institution, formed outside telestial time. The women of God know this.

-The Women Of God, April 1978 

Banana-Rama

I am so inspired by Mavis, over at onehundreddollarsamonth.com! 

I've learned about reclaimed food (food that is saved from the dumpster usually by asking at the grocery store to pick their scraps weekly, but also dumpster diving too) find out more here.

My mom asked about the scraps at a produce wholesaler near her work and ta-da 40 lbs. of bananas (for free!!!!!) later 

The wholesaler couldn't sell these cause they were too spotty. 

But they were still perfect on the inside!

We did frozen chunks, for smoothies.

 (Flash freeze them first on a cookie sheet and then throw them in a ziplock baggie, that way, they won't be one big banana popsicle.)

We mashed some and pre measured them out into ziplock bags for banana bread.

We also dehydrated a few for snacking!

My kids love dehydrated fruit!

So, the lesson for today is, it doesn't ever hurt to ask about grocery scraps cause, really, what is better then free food?!

20-something before the end of my 20's

I am so jumping on the 30 before 30 bandwagon... only I could only come up with 20ish.

*Note: I reserve the right to add to my list whenever I want and to not think of a new clever name. 

I don't feel any anxiety (yet) about turning 30 (it's still so young!!) and I still have quite a while, but I figure it's a good reason to set and reach some goals.

So here is my list:

1. ATTEND THE RIO DE JANEIRO OLYMPICS GAMES

2. VISIT EUROPE

3. LEARN TO DO A CART WHEEL

4. FINISH A QUILT

5. EAT FOOD FROM MY OWN GARDEN

6. CAMP OUT IN MY OWN EUROVAN

7. HAVE LASIK SURGERY

8. GO TO DISNEYLAND

9. DO MORE GENEALOGY

10. LEARN TO PLAY THE PIANO

11. LEARN ANOTHER LANGUAGE

12. HIKE MT. RAINER

13. PLAY IN A WARM OCEAN WITH MY KIDS

14. DECORATE MY OWN HOME

15. BECOME A COUPON QUEEN

16. TAKE A BIKRAM YOGA CLASS

17. RUN A MARATHON

18. SPLURGE ON A FULL SPA DAY (THE WORKS)

19. START THAT NOVEL

20. SEE A SHOW ON BROADWAY IN NEW YORK
21. RIDE ON A HELICOPTER
22. RIDE ON A HOTAIR BALLOON
23. YWR

24. ATTEND ZOOBILEE

25. BE ON DAVE RAMSEY BABY STEP #4 BY 30TH B-DAY

26. HAVE A MICRO-FARM WITH ANIMALS

27. OVERCOME MY TEMPER

28. READ 100 BOOKS IN 2013
29. Become a Master Gardner (WSU)

Day 17: Something I am looking forward to....

I can't wait for Labor Day weekend!

Both my sisters will be in town, and we are going up to the Packwood Flea Market so I can sell my painted furniture that I've been working on. 

If you've never heard of Packwood before, it is this tiny town that turns into the largest flea market/swap meet in the state during Memorial and Labor day weekends.

Oh, the treasures you can find! 

I am really nervous that I won't sell anything, but I also have huge dreams of selling out! 

Ha! It could happen... 

It's my first time ever selling somewhere and I am really anxious about people looking at my stuff and judging whether they like it or not, while I am right there. : /

Kinda silly, I know.

But I've decided on all the colors/styles of the pieces based on what I would like in my house, so if I don't sell anything then at least my house will be fully furnished. 

I'm okay with that.

Did I mention both my sisters will be in town!!!! I am pretty dang excited!!

Happiness for $4

If you ever want to make your kids really happy and entertain them for 2 whole days, just buy them some face-paint.

At Fred Meyer, D. saw some face paint crayon things. She wanted them and I told her no.

She wouldn't stop talking about them, so Jordan gave her some chores to do and then we went and picked them up for her.

D. became a butterfly.

P. became a tiger.

Then D. took her turn on me and Jordan.

Jordan, obviously, is a clown.

And me, well, she was in the middle of making me into a cat when she said 

"I don't know how to do a cat, so you'll be an old man with whiskers and a box on his head."

Okay.

$4, can't beat it.

Outdoor Movie Night

So, we had an outdoor movie party.

I couldn't find any movie themed invitations for free online.

That was frustrating. So I tried my hand at making them. I was pretty happy with how they turned out.

So, here you go, a gift from me to you- free printable invitations.  

For when you decide to have an outdoor movie party.

I made two different options.

I ended up using this invitation 

 This one is pretty big to print, you can only get one invitation per page. 

I made this fun sign, found here.

 It was a labor of love, and it took forever. But it was fun to have it and I hope to able to get more use out of it. 

My in-laws have a really hard to find, long driveway so the sign helped guide people in.

The tutorial doesn't give a whole lot of information as far as supplies go. I used the following:

2 1/2 cans Krylon spray paint in Banner Red

4 foam boards (20x30 I think, they are the only size available at both Walmart and Fred Meyer)

6 poster boards (roughly the same size as the foam boards).

For snacks we provided a concession stand 

(yes, it was free. My nephew was shocked!) 

 My dad owns a fun popcorn machine. I found the bags at the Dollar Tree.

And Walmart was the cheapest place to buy theatre candy, which made it more authentic.  

Everyone there had a great time.

We will do it again for sure.