The Mothership

What person, in their right mind would buy a child, under the age of 6 SILLY PUTTY?!!?!?! My mother, that's who...oh wait she's a grandma, and does just about anything for me and my kids, so I guess she gets a pass (I really do love you mom).  BUT, if you are a mother of young ones..proceed with caution! If you have the time to sit and supervise the playing with silly putty, then by all means, buy it.  But, if you expect them to be able to keep track of it...nuh-uh...just don't. People...I lost all sense of being a human being the other day over silly putty...I went from nice, friendly Mommy: to crazy person that may or may not be an alien: You know why? Because, the havoc it ensues upon my house, I have endured before.  I remember...not fondly...trying everything to get silly putty out of the shorts pocket that my child "saved" it in....which somehow cannot be removed by any means possible BUT I assure you, can metastasize to any other piece of c

I am not a food guru and certainly don't know EVERYTHING about nutrition with kids.  My kids have good days and bad days...just like me.  But my kids are pretty good at eating a variety of foods and trying new things.   Since I wrote about MY clean eating, I thought I would mention our method for our children. Tim and I are not picky eaters and try most things, aside from small aversions.  From what I have heard, we were not super picky when we were little.  I think some people are more sensitive to certain foods and it's important to listen to that.  If something doesn't sound good, don't eat it.  There are PLENTY of other clean foods to eat.  I think that is important for kids too; to know you respect their food aversions can go a long way when they are trying new foods, otherwise you can bet they are never going to try ANYTHING new.  Plus, my tastes have changed from when I was a child... except for the taste of wet bread or limp lettuce...I can barely type th

My kids eat chicken most of the time.  This dish is made probably twice a month. It's super easy and takes about 30 minutes from getting the pans out to plate. The veggies listed below are what I had in the fridge that day, but I put more or different things in. Other good veggies are: kale, mushrooms, peppers, carrots, brussel sprouts, onion, the list could go on. Just pick a few you like and it'll be great. The same goes with the potatoes. We eat potatoes very infrequently, but they beef up the veggies a little bit and give it a nice texture. When I put the veggies and potatoes into the skillet, I just keep chopping and adding until I think I have enough for however many people are here. That's why there aren't exact measurements. The chicken I usually buy is chicken thighs because the kids seem to enjoy it better, but sometimes we do a pack of breasts and a pack of thighs.  If you get the combo of thighs and breasts, make sure you cut the breast pieces in half so

Prayer works my friends.  It really does.  I have seen firsthand how it works time and time again.  I know this is not a revelation to a lot of you, but I am still amazed every time it does!  As a mother, I have been using prayer for things that I never would have thought I would. "Lord, please help me find my keys!" "Lord, give me patience for cleaning up the pee from the floor for the third time today." "Lord, take his boo-boo pain away right now!" "Lord, help me to be on time this morning." "Lord, please calm this terrorist of a toddler!" There are millions more, but another one has most recently been so effective for my children... "Lord, take away their nightmares..."  My children are really good sleepers.  They sleep through most nights, in their own beds, and fall asleep fairly quickly.  They sleep well at strange places, as long as we are there.  But, if someone is sick, all of that goes out the window, and

Thanks to my sister-in-law for the inspiration behind this meal:) I made this for a family member who is a vegetarian.  I used soy grilled strips that had the consistency of chicken, called "fake chicken."  Everyone enjoyed it, and it had the same texture as lasagna.  In my opinion, this was even easier than a conventional lasagna, and has less calories and more nutrients. I think if you used sausage this would have even more flavor and serve those that want the meat.  If you make it with sausage you will need to brown the sausage before adding it to the rest of the mixture.  Also, I don't think cheese is necessary, but gave it that extra umph. If you want "cleaner" lasagna, look no further Recipe: 1 Spaghetti Squash Olive oil Garlic Salt Olive oil 2 or 3 garlic cloves, minced 1 red pepper, chopped 1 onion, chopped 1 zucchini, chopped  2 medium whole tomatoes, chopped fresh spinach (about a handful or two) salt dried oregano basil flakes

A few days ago I summoned my Facebook friends to send me new recipes that they enjoyed making that were considered clean eating.  Then, one of those friends asked if I could compile some of the recipes into one post.  Most of the recipes I post are clean eating, at least in my eyes or as close as I can get them, but I wanted new recipes to add to my weekly rotations. I think clean eating can mean many different things depending on the person, and how far along they are in their progress with a healthy eating lifestyle.  "Clean eating" is defined as eating foods as close to the whole natural state as possible and with little to no preservatives.  The word "healthy" can mean many things depending on your point in the healthy lifestyle process and circumstances surrounding you.  Healthy can be synonymous with: low calorie, low-salt, vegetarian, low-fat, less processed, and so on, and so on.  So for confusions sake, I try to refrain from the word "healthy".

As the new year begins I have some things that I'm trying to change...I guess we'll call them resolutions.  Sure... I think resolutions in years past have given me a sense of things that I haven't accomplished or sustained.  They give me a false sense of identity.  I become fixated on what needs to be taken out of my life instead of what I should be pouring into my life.  When I focus on what Christ wants for me and my family, then I focus more on his image in me.  I was made in his image which means I have Him in me which means I can't be so bad...it means part of me is good. One of the things I am focusing on this year will be slowing down and taking the time to enjoy the kids...those HARD moments with the kids.  I realize how fortunate I am that Tim and I have made allowances for me to stay home.  And I really have loved my young kids...oh I have loved it so.  But as they get older and need more independence, I find myself having too many opinions and less joy. 

This is a picture of my candy shelf...stuffed to the max! I don't know about you, but I definitely need to start the year off with clean eating.  I do this to myself every December.  I make loads of sweets to make memories with my littles and to consume them, of course.  Twice a year, my wonderful husband spoils me with my favorite treats - Christmas and my birthday ( I think my wine consumption exponentially increases in December too, but that's not up for review ).  So, back to clean eating it is.  Here is a sure fire recipe to use up just about any veggie in the fridge, plus it's packed with protein and healthy grains.  This is also great for those cold winter days and for days when you only want to dirty one pot.  This recipe can just grow and grow; the more food you add the more water you will need. You can do this with a crock-pot, just saute the sausage and then throw all the other ingredients in.  Also, as usual, these are all approximations.  These are t