Wednesday, September 15, 2010

Life changing...

Tonight I made a big decision. I registered for the 2011 Weekend to End Women's Cancers. A 2-day, 60km journey to raise funds for cancer research.

I walk for my friend Becky... her husband, and her children. I am determined to do whatever I can to help the cause... help the fight... and WIN the battle. For Becky... and for all of the countless others who are fighting the same fight.

Lets find a cure... care to join me?



Thursday, September 9, 2010

Kids Clothes Week Challenge...




Now that the boys are back at school and it's just me and my little ham at home (when Daddy's working, that is)... I've decided to take the Kids Clothes Week Challenge, September 20 - 26, hosted by Elsie Marley... Check out this fantastic blog... there is so much inspiration spewing from every post... from the great crafty ideas to the beautiful photography, it's everything you want in a great blog...

I'm hoping to use this challenge to get a jump start on my Christmas sewing projects for my three little monkeys... and some crocheted hats for my Etsy shop...

I can't wait to get started... I think I'll need to write up a calendar for the week detailing the projects I'd like to finish... of course, I'll make it realistic... I know sometimes (okay, maybe all of the time) my excitement for projects can get too much, and I think I can accomplish far more than humanly possible, all the while taking care of a family of five... maybe just 3 to 5 sewing projects and aim for 1 crocheted hat a day... sounds doable, right? Fingers (and toes) crossed that I can follow through...

Check back to see if I'm keeping on track... have a fantastic Thursday ;)

Wednesday, September 1, 2010

Feeling fallish...

Less than a week to go til school starts... we enjoyed a busy, busy summer full of family, fun and perfect weather... and now, back to routine. As much as I love having my children with me all of the time, there are definite signs that it's time for the older boys to get back to school, friends and predictability. Does anyone else feel the same? Am I bad for wanting to get them back at it? Maybe I need to explain myself a little better... lately, around here, there's been a whole heap of "I'm telling", "Mooooommmmm! He's (insert your choice of whatever someone is or isn't doing here)", and "Stop following me" going on... I believe my big guys just need a break from one another... Don't get me wrong, this isn't a constant thing... 99% of the time these guys are the very best of friends and play very well together... it's just been in the past two weeks as our summer activities have been less and less organized... When you hear experts say that children thrive on structure... believe it... these last two weeks have been concrete proof of that for me. The fall routine is exactly what my guys need to quell their boredom.

As for me... driving down country roads seeing all of the green turning to yellow, leaves beginning to fall, and the corn stalks reaching their highest heights is making me feel very, well, fallish... I even feel funny wearing summery colours... and find I'm fighting the urge to pull out the knits, wraps and earthy tones... Not that I find this bothersome... of all the seasons, and I love them all, fall is my very favourite. Halloween is the best "holiday" ever invented; and pumpkin pie is, by far, the tastiest food known to man... what's not to love about fall???

And the best thing for me about fall is the anticipation of celebrating (I should say, going out for dinner for) our anniversary... tomorrow is our 10th anniversary... WOW! Ten years of marriage, three kids, two cats and what seems like a lifetime of wonderful memories... I married my best friend... I think I was in love with the thought of someone like Craig before I even met him (or as he would say, stalked him)... And in the words of George McFly, "You are my density, I mean, my destiny"... Cheesy, I know, but hey, love can be like that ;)

Craig, I love you so much... thanks for taking a chance on the new, doc martin wearing girl in grade 13 homeroom...

Have a great day everyone ;)

Sunday, August 29, 2010

Re-vamping my "green" cleaning...

So, recently I hosted and enjoyed a girls' night with my beautiful girly-friends... our conversations range from silly to serious... and this night we touched a little on what cleaning products everyone was using around their homes...

I love my vinegar/water/lavender spray and was sad to find that it's not the optimal choice for cleaning my counter tops... I do still use lysol diluted with water once a week to give my kitchen a good cleaning, however, after this revelation, I jumped on the internet to find a better, green choice for my everyday cleaning... soooo, here it is...

Disinfectant Spray*
2 cups water
3 tbsp liquid soap (I use a pure liquid soap, available in the health food aisles of my grocery store)
20-30 drops of tea tree oil or any other essential oil with disinfecting properties (optional)

So simple and effective and plays right into my plans for ridding my home of unnecessary chemicals... not to mention a complete money saver... and who doesn't love to save money???

So, I'd like to once again thank the ladies for a fun night of chit-chat, food and wine/coffee... Special thanks to Becky for opening my eyes about my vinegar/water spray... I now feel totally comfortable getting rid of my Lysol too...

Have a fantastically green Sunday ;)

*disinfectant spray courtesy of Redbook online, follow the link for more great cleaning recipes...
http://www.redbookmag.com/recipes-home/tips-advice/green-cleaning-recipes

Sunday, August 8, 2010

Bandwagon-jumping...

Yes, yes it's true... I can be somewhat of a bandwagon jumper... especially when the pros far outweigh the cons, and especially when no harm will happen to anyone or anything...

Recently, I joined the "No-Poo" revolution... no-no, not what you're thinking... "no-poo" as in no shampoo. I first read about it here, Sayward at Bonzai Aphrodite has a great passion for living a chemical-free life, hop on over and have a read of everything she has to offer...

I realize how gross no shampoo sounds; but, I have to say that my hair has never felt better, and my scalp has been itch-free for two weeks! This excites me like you wouldn't believe. I posted a while back about how sensitive my skin is and how I seem to rash just walking by certain body care products (an obvious over-exaggeration)... aaaaanyway. Yes, I do wash my hair; but now I'm scrubbing my hair and scalp with a mixture of baking soda and water. It's totally amazing how clean my hair feels when I wash with this stuff... then I massage and rinse the soda out with a mixture of apple cider vinegar, water and a few drops of lavender essential oil. Stinky, you'd think, but surprisingly not at all. Even my husband comments on how nice my hair looks after I wash... which I do every second or third day. I'm not saying everyone should go "no-poo", I think it totally depends on the type of hair you have. It works for my hair because I have lots of hair, lots of body, and a normal-dry texture... on someone with thin, straight and more oily hair, something like this may not work as a routine method of hair cleansing... however, I can totally see this working for everyone as a once a month way to de-guck your hair... it's a fantastic way to rid yourself of build-up. The added bonus are the benefits to your hair and scalp - stronger hair, and healthier scalp... vinegar has the same pH as skin therefore it returns your skin/scalp back to normal after washing... read more about it with Sayward at Bonzai Aphrodite or google it!

When we were on vacation in PEI a couple of weeks ago, we had the opportunity to visit this lovely place, The Great Canadian Soap Company. They have created a superb line of goats milk products that, while they smell fantastic, are beneficial in so many ways!... WOW! I have had my eyes opened up to the kind of crap I have been washing my body with my whole life... and have realized that all of my skin issues have probably been caused by using harsh detergents hidden in pretty little packages and masked by enticing scents. I am totally sold on the goaty goodness! I purchased soap for all the babes which will last at least four times longer than the zillions of bottles of J&J baby head-to-toe stuff I have bought past and present... by the way, J&J is nothing more than a "gentle" detergent - EEK! And their baby lotions all have parabens - YIKES! I feel like a more responsible parent/consumer, knowing that I am purchasing and using products that are better for me, my family and not harmful to our earth.

Do I sound like a hippy yet??? Maybe I will after you read this ;)

I had said a while ago, how I wanted to try making my own laundry detergent... well, I did. And I LOVE it... I made a powdered detergent, which I am totally not accustomed to using, but have found very effective for cleaning our clothes. I still keep a bottle of the chemically-laced-massed-produced-not-good-for-you-or-the-environment-liquid-stuff on hand for those extra dirty things, but use only a teaspoon of it along with my homemade stuff. I love the smell of it... I used the old fashioned Sunlight Pure Soap bar, When grated up and mixed with all of the other ingredients, it gives all of our laundry a wonderful lemon chiffon smell.... yummmmm! If anyone is interested in the recipe, I'd be happy to share!

What things have you been doing to better you and your families lives lately? What do you think of the whole "no-poo" revolution? Share your tips and hints for healthier living...

Enjoy your evening everyone ;)