Wordless Wednesday

Homemade Finger Paints--a Pinterest Project

Via Pinterest--homemade finger paints.   
3 Tbs. sugar, 1/2 tsp. salt, 1/2 cup corn starch, and 2 cups water. Mix, then warm in a saucepan until thickened. Cool and pour into containers, then add food coloring to create desired colors.  Will create a gel fingerpaint.

Goob said he made a picture of "goldfish and seahorses."  Must be abstract. 

Double Blueberry Muffins

I made these muffins this evening, and they were fantastic.  Substituted turbinado sugar in place of the cinnamon sugar.  So yummy.  Recipe from Food Network's website.  

Ingredients

• 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened at room temperature
• 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 1/2 cups fresh or thawed frozen blueberries
• 2 cups flour
• 1/2 cup whole, 2 percent fat, or 1 percent fat milk
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Grease a muffin tin or line the cups with paper liners. In a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment (or using a hand mixer), cream the butter until smooth. Add 1 cup of the sugar and mix. Add the eggs, vanilla, baking powder, and salt and mix. In a shallow bowl, mash 3/4 cup of the blueberries with the back of a fork. Add to the batter and mix.

With the mixer running at low speed, add 1/2 of the flour, then 1/2 of the milk, and mix. Repeat with remaining flour and milk. Fold in the remaining 1 3/4 cups whole blueberries by hand until well mixed. In a separate small bowl, mix the remaining 2 tablespoons sugar with the cinnamon. Use an ice-cream scoop or large spoon to fill the muffin cups 3/4 full. Sprinkle the cinnamon-sugar over the muffins and bake until golden brown and risen, 25 to 30 minutes. Let cool in the pan at least 30 minutes before turning out.

Back to Our Roots

Lately, I have possessed a desire to really know more about what my family is eating, consuming, putting in or on their bodies, where it comes from, and how to incorporate natural medicine into our health care.  My motives are relatively simple.  For example, have you ever taken a really hard, long look at the ingredients, say, in the lotion you use on a daily basis, or that sticky-sweet candy that you're giving your kids?  I know I don't always, and even when I do, I couldn't tell you what the ingredients mean.  Propylene glycol?  What is that?  Is that something I want my children consuming?  Is that something I want inside or on my body?  Food is being recalled every day--why is it being recalled?  What are the quality controls put into place?  How is the food gathered, processed, produced?  Where does it come from?  Or, another example, why is it that I pay hundreds of dollars for the simplest things at a doctor's office--treating a cold, or a sunburn, or an earache, when I never seem to see a doctor for longer than five minutes, and, often, we're back in two weeks because such-and-such antibiotic failed to work--again. 
I am striving to know more.  I want to have more of a say as to what goes into and onto our bodies.  I want to know what these ingredients are.  I'd like to know who makes my food, who has a say in what is "safe for consumption" and what isn't.  I'd like to walk the fields where our produce is grown, or where the cows are fed who provide our meat and our milk.  I'd like to know that I have the knowledge to treat minor health issues with natural or home remedies.  I'd like to buy foods that contain as little additives and chemicals as possible. 
So, I'm pursuing these questions and goals.  I am learning to navigate the natural and organic sections of our supermarkets--buying all natural or organic foods, cleaners, or beauty/bath products when it is feasible (oh, how I am addicted to agave nectar).  We love buying local produce and meats when possible.  I am researching what is in our food, and who says that it is acceptable.  I am discovering that I have the ability to treat certain health issues myself and naturally. 
There's so much to learn, and I'll never be able to live a 100% organic, natural lifestyle.  Some health issues absolutely require medical intervention--many do, in fact.  It's not possible to eat and use 100% natural and organic products all of the time, nor, do I want to (this mother has a mass market frozen pizza planned for dinner tonight because I am feeling lazy).  Sometimes, I need to buy my meat or my fruits and veggies at a traditional store.  There will be more things in my house with ingredients that I don't know than those where I do.  The goal isn't 100%.  The goal is KNOWLEDGE.  The goal is freedom from reliance on mass produced goods and medical treatment when possible.  The goal is having more say as to what we eat, consume, and use.  A goal of getting back to our roots, relying on Mother Nature's wisdom when I am able.

Family Fun for Free

As a family, we have discovered a wonderful park in a neighboring state, where the only cost for a day of fun is the gasoline to drive there.  I'm so grateful that we live in such a beautiful area, and that we have another place to enjoy together as a family.  We have been there multiple times now, and each time, I have felt such a connection to nature and peace in my heart. 

UPDATED: Meet Crybaby....

So, I've been trying to plan activities for the children as we can--we've visited farms, picked berries, have gone for walks, etc.  Last Friday, we planned on having an "Art Day," basically a day of fingerpaints and markers and messes, because it was supposed to be stormy and nasty outside.
Yeaaaaah, instead we went to the animal shelter where I volunteer and brought home a cat to foster, named Crybaby.
Crybaby's former owners had her for five years, but are relocating and cannot take her with them.  They didn't want her to have to stay in the shelter, so the shelter asked for a volunteer to foster her until she finds her forever home.  And my allergies and I volunteered for the job.

I am not going to mince words, nor am I going to hide the bad moments. But, I am also going to share all of the positive experiences. Why? Because that is what animal fostering (or ownership) is all about. I had this image of being "The Cat Whisperer" or something. Even though I knew better, even I still had that thought in my head. It hasn't been easy--my allergies are haywire, kitty does not like the children yet, there's litter all over the place, she peed outside of Goob's door (OK, I found that funny...it wasn't much, and pet messes don't scare me....I thought she had him "marked" for some impending doom for harassing her), and she hides much of the time, and hisses more than I like. But, in those moments where I think "What the heck did I get myself into?", that is when she climbs on my lap, gets up on my shoulder, peeks out of hiding even when the kids are around, purrs like mad, nuzzles us constantly--those are the moments when you think, "Maybe I'm doing this right sometimes." Having an animal in your home, any animal, isn't easy. I'm still not sure with our allergies that we could keep her permanently, but this experience is going to be a blessing for our family, whether she is here a few days, a few months, or whatever. I have to have patience (and a LOT of Claritin...that is my biggest worry...allergies).  Crybaby is a sweetheart, and for now, she is ours and a member of our family.
UPDATE: So, Crybaby's first owners lied about the record of her preventative vet care, and it turns out she had some underlying urinary issues.  After peeing blood all over my house and chasing down the shelter vet on a few occasions, we returned her to the shelter because we couldn't keep up with her medical issues, only to feel guilty and bring her back home.  She is now, per doc's orders, crated when not supervised, and on meds twice a day until we know for sure how she is doing.  I knew by the amount of sobbing I was doing when we took her back that I needed her back home.  I am not convinced she is a good fit for us as a forever home, seeing as she does bite, but she is with us for now, and I love this kitty to pieces.

Maybe I'm Not Supermom, But....

I worked the daycare circuit when I was in college.  By the time I was done, after multiple locations, I felt like I had raised half of the preschool age children in my town.  I could change a diaper in about a minute flat, could dress 15 little ones in 15 minutes--I was good.
I thought I was going to be the Best. Mom. Ever.
And then...I had kids.  And then there was colic, acid reflux, sleepless nights, crying fests while in the car, tantrums, sickness, appointments, play dates, teething...all of the usual suspects when it comes to parenting. 
Suddenly, I felt like the wind had been knocked out of my sails.  I couldn't understand what happened, how I lost my child care groove so quickly. 
I sometimes feel like I am so limited by having children, but I have realized that all of these years, through post-partum depression, anxiety, fear, self-consciousness, it hasn't been the kids who have kept me limited.  It has been myself. 
And honestly, I'm tired of it.  I'm tired of worrying so much, of losing my patience, of feeling like I have to be a super mom who has it all together all of the time.  Do you know I never singlehandedly take my children out of town?  Very rarely do I take them to the park.  Taking them to the library on my own terrifies me.  I struggle to clean unless the kids are at my in-laws a mile away.
No more.  I am losing so much time with my children living in fear, self-doubt, and lack of patience.  We are going to go out and have FUN.  I am going to relish being a mother, love my children, and be what I have always wanted to be for my kids as a mother.
Yesterday, while Goob stayed with my parents an hour away, I took Bean out and about--we visited an organic farm about 45 minutes away, snagged organic salad greens and leeks for $7, took some donations to the animal shelter, went grocery shopping, and you know what?  Everything was fine.  Bean woke up for two hours during the night, and while frustrating, we survived.  Today, the kids and I went to a pick-your-own farm and picked 4.5 lbs. of berries for $6.  Sure, the baby was fussy, sure it was hard work, and sure Goob kept picking green berries to spite me when I told him to stay close, but we did it, and we made some memories along the way. 
It's not easy.  I'm very exhausted from a long night and wrangling the kiddos at the farm.  Goob is testing my patience something fierce today, but we make it.  We do the best we can, and we make it day by day. 

Our spoils from the day.