magical mess

I love the Christmas season. It's cold out and you aren't sick of that yet. It still a novelty to light a candle and curl up with some hot chocolate. The Christmas music brings back great memories and it makes everything from untangling lights for the tree to rolling out cookie dough more fun.
The kids are excited and the holiday lights twinkle in their eyes. The tree and the gingerbread house and the baking make the house smell wonderful.
This year after making cookies with my almost 6 and 3 year old, was sweeping up the mess. As I scooped it all into the dust pan I realized, "I love this mess!". It was little tiny sprinkles shaped like snowflakes and a rainbow of glittery sugar. It looked like a mess little pixie elves would leave behind. I know I'll miss that mess when they are too old to make it.
I tenderly thank the Lord for the magical mess my kids make while experiencing one of the pure joys of childhood.

try restaurant.com

www.restaurant.com

This website is totally worth checking out. You can try all sorts of restaurants in your area for super cheap. It's a great way to make yourself branch out from the same old same old and not feel like you wasted money if it turns out you don't want to add the place to your list of favorites.
We had a great adventure one night trying this Indian place about 20 mins away. The people who ran the place were crazy. The food was pretty good but not worth going back and being forced to deal with their antics :-) Hey, you never know what you'll discover!

Homemade laundry detergent

So I read a little article about how the top laundry detergents are putting chemicals that cause cancer and damage to the nervous system in them. The article also said that they are NOT listing these chemicals on the box with the other ingredients. I took the $30.00 box of TIDE that I had just purchased from Costco straight back to the store and started researching how to make my own detergent at home. As it turns out it is easy and so inexpensive. I was pretty surprised. I am a couple loads into my first batch. It is working very nicely and the clothes feel like they also have been treated with fabric softener. I love the smell of it (you can't smell the vinegar no matter how hard you try)
I plan to experiment with several and stick with the one I like the best.
Here is the recipe for the 1st one. It is one of the only recipes I was able to find for powder.

1 cup Vinegar (white)
1 cup Baking Soda
1 cup Washing Soda
1/4 cup liquid castile soap

• Mix well and store in sealed container.
• I find it easiest to pour the liquid soap into the bowl first, stirred in the washing soda, then baking soda, then added the vinegar in small batches at a time (the recipe foams up at first). The mixture is a thick paste at first that will break down into a heavy powdered detergent, just keep stirring. There may be some hard lumps, try to break them down when stirring (it really helps to make sure the baking soda isn’t clumpy when first adding). Use 1/2 cup per load
  

summer sounds

I was outside this morning watering my hydrangeas and petunias and even though it was early, the air was thick with humidity and the promise of a scorching hot day. I was barefoot in the damp grass and was suddenly aware that the chorus of summer insects was louder than the plane that was passing over my head at that moment. The combination of the air and the sounds and the grass between my toes took me back to an exact moment in my childhood. It didn't just remind me of my childhood. It literally took me back to a single moment. I was 8, walking in the grass on a summer morning, carefree, absorbing the air, the smells and the sounds of summer. For me, these "transporting" moments are rare, I have a terrible memory and I am way too busy to "reflect". It was a powerful, lovely memory.
As I climbed the stairs to go back in the house, I could hear the happy sounds of my children playing. I wondered what exact sounds, sights and smells would be required to take them back to this lovely, fleeting moment one day in their future.

7 year anniversary

Evin and I celebrated our 7 year anniversary earlier this month (January 5) It was a Monday and Evin had to work but that night we went out to dinner. We ate at Sweetwater Tavern, one of our old favorites. We have eaten there 5 out of 7 anniversaries. The first anniversary was because it snowed and Sweetwater is so close (about 1/4 mile) it was easy to get to. The second year was because Arianna was only a couple days old and we wanted to go out but we (I) didn't want to go too far. The third year we went to Dolche Vita, a fantastic little Italian place. The fourth year I think we were both craving Sweetwater and had not been there for a while so we went for our old tradition. The fith year Griffin was only a few weeks old and we (I) wanted to go out but not go too far. The sixth year we went to this French place called Chez Francois. It's way out in the middle of a neighborhood in Great Falls with these huge houses. The food was incredible and the place was warm, inviting and romantic. I would love to go there again sometime.....
There is a new place that Evin found out about from Nick at work. It's a greenhouse that was converted to a restuarant. They serve all organic, local, in season food that looks like artwork on a plate. They are only open like 3 days a week and it's over an hour away so we are extending our anniversary celebration and going there just as soon as Evin's parents can babysit......I'll be sure to let everyone know if it's as good as it sounds.
After dinner we came home and exchanged letters instead of gifts. Evin had the idea and I loved it! We each wrote down the ways we have seen the fruits of the spirit at work in each others lives in the past year. We sat by the fire and read them aloud to each other. It was so encouraging and a simple gift we will each treasure forever. We decided to write a letter to each other every year for our anniversary from now on.

First Post

Happy Holidays!
I have decided it is finally time for me to start a blog. I plan to carve out some time from my hectic life as a Mommy of 3 little ones to post thoughts, random rants, pictures, recipes, crafts,ideas and more......