Bye bye pacifier...

That's right. It's over.... no more pacifer. Over Christmas KB started showing less & less interest in her pacifier, and now she refuses to take it at all. She just woke up one day, and decided she's done... and that was it. Pacifier is now only a memory. -- Wah! My baby is growing up....

Girls, girls, girls...

Today I got the opportunity to bless & be blessed.... all while standing in the middle of a retail warehouse. We were in Sam's Club, checking into the possibility of a job for B, picking up a few things, and enjoying many delicious samples they had to offer this afternoon... when the Lord crossed our path with a precious family, filled with girls! :-) We had just stopped to taste the guacamole, when I heard someone slightly behind & off to the side of me say "excuse me, cart of girls coming through." I smiled, as this sounded all too familiar.... and turned around to find a sweet looking lady, pushing a cart surrounded by four *beautiful* little girls. With a smile I said, "cart of girls, indeed..." and then went on to explain how I was from family of all girls, and how they reminded me of my sisters, and I, when we were little girls. This of course struck up a conversation... and before I know it were are sharing & laughing about children, large families, family size, names, the annoyance of unwanted parenting input..... the irritating, age-old comments of "your poor dad!" ~ "are you going to keep trying for that boy?" ~ & "aren't you done, yet?" ~ and the overall life in a world of girls. She was such a dear lady, and the conversation was so pleasant... that - though I can't pinpoint it to any one thing - I walked away feeling truly blessed to have fellowshipped with her, if only for those brief moments.

I don't know the what church they attend, only that they do. I didn't manage to catch her name... only that all the girls' names start with an "M" (oh! and, the 2nd girl will be 8 on Sunday, and the baby is almost 16 months). Matter of fact... I don't much about her at all (besides the random fact that she's a school chum of our chiropractor's wife. - heehee, small town). But now, I think I now understand what people mean, when they describe someone as being 'like that of a kindred spirit'... <3

Thank you Lord for that much needed blessing & encouragement!!

Prayers!!

I need prayer for my family!!! At the beginning of the week, Kentucky was hit by a severe ice storm... and now most of the state is currently, completely without electricity... and (due to the massive amount of people it's has affected) they may not get it back until mid-Feburary!! My family (NW Kentucky), have so far been without electricity since Tuesday afternoon. Thankfully their cell phones are still working (which they can keep charged in the car).... so I have gotten to briefly talk to Marmee twice, as well as received numerous texts from Christina & Ash!! They are living exclusively in their little den - as it is the only room in the house with any kind of heat source- and are getting by, by heating food over the fireplace to eat... and doing everything by candlelight. They currently have plently of food to eat, as, in preparation for worse-case senerio, they all took showers & prepared a bunch of food which can easily be reheated over the fireplace to eat. They say tall their trees look like weeping willows, the way the branches are weighted down.... and there is a constant [creepy] resonance of crackling & crashing all around them... as more & more tree limbs/power lines snap, under the immense weight of the ice, with a sound like gunshots... (now doesn't that just sound SO comforing?). They say they are EXTREMELY bored.... but otherwise, are doing okay!! :) Please pray for their contiued safety!!!

Oh January mornings... how I do love thee!

Despite some unusually quite cold days.... this month has also held it's share of some of the most beautiful days! Almost spring-like weather, that only Florida can offer during the otherwise bitterly cold month of January...

Vera Bradley...

Vera Bradley.... the relish & even somewhat of a guilty pleasure of all us girls: sisters, cousins, & sister-in-law, alike... just released four new patterns for Spring 2009!!

Cupcake Pink, Cupcake Green (neither of which, do I care for!)
Hope Garden (the new breast cancer color) & [the long awaited]... Purple Punch!!!

Of thrift store & lemonade..

Whew! What a busy day!! My dad came by this morning, and asked if we wanted to go to Goodwill (his favorite!) to do a little shopping. Here are just a few goodies I found...

Two summer dresses for KB

Some adorable Gymboree clothes (for less than $3 a piece!)

(Don't you just love those colors???)
L to R: a skirt, a dress, and a jumper...


I also got an awesome [deep] stainless-steel mixing bowl, two skirts, two cami/tank tops, and a sun dres for me, and few books that looked interesting (Little Men, Devil Wears Prada, and Princess Diaries)... the glass pitcher & rose colored dress you'll see in the later pix of this post... and this *adorable* dress (that I so wish was big enough to fit me!!) for my sister, Becca...


Then, after the shopping & a delicious & filling meal of
soup, salad & bread sticks at Olive Garden (Yum!!!)....

We headed home, to get back to preparing more lemons for the freezer...






And of course, we couldn't resist making just one batch of fresh lemonade!!
(in the Goodwill find I'm probably most excited about.... my glass pitcher!! ~
which is a kitchen item I have been wanting for a long time!! yay!!!
and this pitcher is SO beautiful, too! Unfortunately, the picture doesn't do the detail on it a bit of justice... )

Apple Crumble

Well tonight I had one of my first attempts at making a wheat-free dessert.... an warm, Apple Crumble!! Though it's not the healthiest dessert... it was amazingly delicious! And surprisingly, I actually had everything the recipe called for (or was able to adapt).... and was SO pleased with it's results. I will definitely make this one again!! Oh.my.word! Talk about tasty!

APPLE CRUMBLE:

6 large apple - peeled, cored and cubed (I left mine unpeeled)
1. 1 tablespoon white sugar (I substituted rapadura... and used more like 2 Tbs, so it coated the apples well!)
2. 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon (I wanted a bolder flavor, so I used more like ½ tsp)
   CRUMBLE TOPPING
   
   
   
   
   1. 1/4 cup rice flour (I used oat flour - rolled oats in the coffee grinder. about 1/8 cup whole oats = about ¼ cup flour.)
   2. 3 tablespoons almond meal
   3. 2 tablespoons white sugar (again, I used rapadura)
   4. 2 tablespoons flaked coconut (Omitted this - worked fine!!)
   5. 1 1/2 tablespoons butter, softened or coconut oil
   
   
   
   
   
   DIRECTIONS
   
   
   
   
   1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Arrange apple pieces in baking dish, sprinkle with sugar, and cinnamon; toss well.
   2. In a bowl, combine the rice flour, almond meal, sugar, and coconut. Cut in butter until mixture is fine and crumbly. Sprinkle topping over apples.
   3. Cover, and bake for 40 mins to 1 hour in the preheated oven, until the apples have lost their shape. Uncover, and continue to bake until crumble is crisp and golden in color.

R-E-S-P-E-C-T!!!

I have to say.... I really find the all the hatred & disrespect that is coming out, by so many during this inaguration, a real shame! I thought Obama's message was for people to unite or was that just to get him elected? I will admit, I am not an fan of much of what Obama stands for... but,

now that he is my President.... whether I agree with him, or not...
I *will* respect him (and pray for him daily)...
because he IS the leader of MY country!!!

Besides, isn't the Presidents ultimate job, first and foremost, to keep the county safe...? With as much as President Bush may have done things wrong... I do believe he has accomplished at least that much! Interesting how quickly we forget!

The Inauguration...

As we speak, Barack Hussein Obama has just been sworn in as the 44th president of the United States... and is now giving his inauguration speech. - A speech I am trying so very hard to listen too... yet between the cable cutting out (apropos, no?)... the sight of my precious daughter, sweet/silly husband, and crazy puppies rolling around/playing on the floor... and all the fluff & big talk comprised within afore mentioned speech.... it is seriously becoming less & less of interest or appeal.

Overall, I find this day surrounded by some very mixed emotions. I am anxious, skeptical, & unbelieving... yet at the same time, confident, hopeful, prayerful, and totally at peace. I know these may sound like very stark contradictions... but if you really believe"In God We Trust"... then you also know, no matter who stands in office... it is HE who puts the Kings in power, sustains them, raises them up, and causes their defeat. God is the ruler of ALL things... and has a purpose in everything he allows to happen. So now, I pray that HE will raise up President Obama to lead this nation and that HE will humble us who at times think we know better than HE HIMSELF.

Thank you Mr. President

Sheepy Skirt Collection

Oh my... I think I am in LOVE!! I have seen and/or heard awesome things about Wool soakers... but I have never seen anything quite so adorable as these:

http://www.sheepytimeknits.com/knit/skirt.htm

That's right! They are skirted wool soakers! -
So they not only function as a cloth diaper cover... but also clothing!!

::whines:: I want some!!

(Great! Now I think I'm going to have to learn to knit!! heehee...)

Fluffy mail!

Look what I got in the mail today!!In shopping for her own little [soon-coming] blessing... My sister told my about Monkey Toe Diapers... an online store that is preparing to close... and so is selling everything at a marked down price. Since I have been needing to get KB some new diapers - hers are all getting way to small, and we're having trouble with leaking - I decided to take a peek, and see what they had to offer. Turns out they had some Thirsties covers, for a little off of the average going price! The brief experience I have had with Thirsties (someone kindly gave us one Small cover & one Fab-fitted diaper, when KB was a baby) I remember being quite pleased with both the fit, and the quality! Curious as to what they had to offer.... I first clicked the Large. Only 2-3 left... in blue, green... and purple! Purple definitely works for me! Then I went over to Mediums.... oh no! only one left.... just watch it's going to be blue. I hesitantly click... and what should my eyes see... but it's pink! (yay!)- Definitely a sign that it was meant to be! (lol!) I quickly add them to my cart (before anyone else takes it - haha)... along with a few Snappi® Fasteners I have been wanting to try. Ends up, I spent just about $30 ( so a little more than 10% off my order).... and along with my replacement Motherease covers (which should also be coming any day - long story!)... we should be all set in the diaper department for a while, now! yay!

(though I do still want to try out the knit soakers, Samantha was telling me about!! ;-)

I just love fluffy mail!!

Soft-soled Shoes (pattern!)

picture by Twenty Cent Mixture, for the cloth shoes for babies Flickr pool

We all have heard the recommendations, for babies and children to go barefoot for optimum foot development. However, going barefoot is not always convenient or even possible. SO... enter the soft-soled shoe! But if you've ever shopped for soft soled shoes, you'll know just how stinkin' expensive they can be. They can range anywhere between $10-$15 a pair (at Walmart, Target, etc) t0 $25-35 a pair, for brands such as: Zappos, Pediped, Robeez, and PlatyPaws (just to name a few...). But if you are at all tight... ahem, I mean frugal like I am (heehee).... then you too would have a hard time coughing up that kind of money for a single pair of shoes!! (heh, I don't even pay $30 for a pair of shoes for ME! lol!) So then what is the alternative, you ask? Why making them of course!!

The blog: http://stardustshoes.blogspot.com shares a link for what seems to be a simple pretty simple shoe pattern & tutorial for making these adorable foot accessories!! (In fact, the whole site is seems to be filled with crafty inspiration.... But the shoes.... Mmm... I could just eat them up - they are SO cute! )

So yes.... as soon as I get my sewing machine (which I am hoping will indeed be soon! - at least, it's my next "wish list" gadget!!), I definitely want to attempt to make a pair!! Hmm.... too ambitious?

Quoteable quote...

"Labels are for cans of tuna not for humans."

For the record... I do NOT agree with the the appropriateness of this quote, in it's original context (At all! - eww!!)

However I will admit, upon seeing it on my friend's facebook status...
I couldn't help but smile & even chuckle a little. -
It TOTALLY sounds like something my mom would have said!!
LoL! - I love it! :)

Update...

We have officially made it through the first 48-hours, since beginning Mission:Goodbye wheat, hello happy baby (over 72-hrs since she has actually eaten any wheat)... and, so far so good! As much as I was, deep down, hoping this little experiment would prove her ill-temperament to all be the results of a "stage" she's going through... I will admit, I have already noticed a happy difference in her attitude, over the last two days! (Which is both relieving & horrifying at the same time!) ~ At this point, only time will tell... !

^^Our 17 month old baby girl, as of today!! ^^

As for the rest of us... B has been putting in LONG, faithful hours with Trimmers, taking down all the holiday decor. This week alone, he clocked 92.25 hours! Which yes, has unfortunately meant him starting his days before KB & I are up... and not ending until after KB was already asleep (often times, around midnight!) Thankfully, he does get overtime... and while it has not been easy living the life of a single mom over the last two weeks... I know this is all temporary (they're supposed to finish up this next week) and am just grateful he has had the work! - not to mention the extra money... which we are hoping will be be enough to see us through, until he can find another job! As always, I know I can trust that God does & will provide! I am just anxious to see how he's going to do it, this time!

Our lemony morning...

The sun is shining brightly, the air is crisp & cool...

Our lemons are finally ripe...

Ready to be picked...
Washed with with love...

And patiently squeezed into...
homemade lemonade!

A Sweet Surprise

After working himself ragged... already putting in 74 hours of work this week (with tomorrow, and at least part of Sunday still to go)... look what my husband so sweetly brought home, as a surprise for me tonight!! Wasn't that SO sweet & thoughtful of him? I am blessed!!

Dark Chocolate Almond bark... Can you say YUM?? I have already tasted it... it's OH.SO.GOOD! :)Thank you SO much Handsome!
I love you!!