It may be a stretch, but I believe planning meals for your family requires a great exercise of creativity — especially when many kids would like pasta with a side of pasta.  And making sure you get a variety of color and texture requires skill, too, though Mother Nature seems to have no problem providing it.

Fortunately, my kids like their fruits and veggies, and we’re able to fit those into our diet regularly.  But kids, like us, get burned out on the same thing over and over.

So I thought I’d share my past month’s menu (for what it’s worth) to see if it inspires some new ideas for you.  Maybe I’ll do this regularly once a month to see how I’ve improved.  If a meal sounds good to you and you can’t come up with your own recipe, I’d be happy to share.  Just leave a comment asking me for particulars, and I’ll oblige.

It should be noted that I have a family of six, so there usually aren’t loads of leftovers, and when there are, they are usually lunch for the next day.  When we don’t have leftovers, it’s usually a PB&J, unless it’s one of those days, and we head to fast food.  (Honestly, I’m trying to curb this tendency.)

For snacks we keep on hand fruits, crackers/pretzels, cheese and the occasional chocolate or candy — I won’t lie!

You’ll notice this particular month or so seems like a bit of a rut.  We all go through phases.  Right now we’re just buying hot dogs and macaroni and cheese by the case.   It’s quick, easy, and the kids like it — same for tacquitos.

Don’t miss the links at the end that offer some great recipes and managing tools or help me out and use some of the ads to the right!  I haven’t gotten so far as to use Tasty Planner regularly, but it would be nice!  Suggestions/comments on your own successes/tips are welcome.

(* means we either ate out or had help with the meal)

Week 1

*Gathering:  Potluck — Italian pasta salad
Breakfast — waffles, sausage, eggs
Hot dogs, macaroni and cheese, green veggie
Grilled ham and cheese and tomato soup
Meatloaf, potatoes, peas, rolls
Paninis, fruit, chips
Lasagne, salad

Week 2

Meatloaf, potatoes (apparently not used in first week, moved to second)
Black bean burritos, guacamole, chips
*Out — hamburgers, etc. — it happens
Beef Stroganoff, green beans
Chili, cornbread
Chicken salad
Chicken pasta medley, salad

Week 3

Chicken salad
Loaded baked potatoes, salad
Leftovers
Pot roast, veggies, rolls
Hamburgers, fries
Leftovers
*Dinner with in-laws

Week 4

Tacquitos (frozen chicken&cheese variety), corn, fruit
Hot dogs, mac-n-cheese, green veggie
Breakfast — blueberry pancakes, bacon, eggs
*Out
Spaghetti, salad
Ham steaks, potatoes, peas
Goulash, green beans
Pizza

Week 5

Leftovers
Tacquitos, corn, fruit
Rotel chicken, beans, green beans
Chili, cornbread
Leftovers
Hot dogs, mac-n-cheese, green veggie
Meatloaf, potatoes, peas

Some Meal-Planning Links/Sites

• RealSimple has this article that links to meal-planning sites, some of which have a subscriber fee.
• WOW.  Family Fun comes through again with a whole month of meals; dishes link to recipe.  Gotta love that.
• This place lists some of the World’s Healthiest Foods, in case you need new ideas/inspiration.
• Especially you homeschoolin’ moms will appreciate this free organizing download and their Menus4Moms.
• For organizing and sharing recipes and making shopping lists, this newer tool is good, though it has a couple of flaws (like putting every ingredient on your generated shopping list, unless they fixed it recently) — Tasty Planner.
• Just Google for meal planners or weekly meal planners, and you’ll see all the 200k+ possibilties!

Bon apetit!

Co-ops seem to be a big thing these days.  By definition per the International Co-operative Alliance’s Statement on the Co-operative Identity, a cooperative is
 

“an autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet
their common economic, social, and cultural needs and aspirations
through a jointly-owned and democratically-controlled enterprise.
A cooperative may also be defined as a business owned and controlled
equally by the people who use its services or who work at it.”  (cited from wikipedia)

My husband and I belong to our local grocery co-op where we know we can get natural and organic foods.  I just joined a local preschool co-op, which is definitely not a “business”.  We are very much into working together with others to support common goals.  It works amongst smaller (even seemingly large) groups of people.  Our electric company is a co-op.

A cooperative seems to embody the principles of democracy.  It would seem like our society would be full of such enterprises, but it also seems like profit has gotten in the way.  Lest I sound too socialistic, I’m all for making money; the socialist in me, though, would have those with the most money making the biggest difference for the poor.  It’s a hard life we lead, those of us in “industrialized” nations.  Balance income, debt, wants, needs . . . listen to stories of those in other countries (heaven forbid it be just across town) who don’t have food for their children or themselves.

What do we need to do to truly align our values?  If we all believe in compassion, why don’t we practice it?  If we all want our way of life to continue, why don’t we make the adjustments to make it truly sustainable?

Because it’s hard.  That’s why. 

Oversimplified, think of altering your diet and exercise so you can lose weight.  It stinks.  I love my cake and ice cream, thank you very much, and I’m not happy about giving it up, even temporarily.  On the other hand, I don’t like being asked if I’m pregnant when I most definitely am not.  I’ll do this, making the changes necessary so I can have the desired results, and it makes the world of difference to have support along the way.  Soon enough, I’ll have my results and a renewed lifestyle that will hopefully have eliminated that which made my old way of life dissatisfying and unsustainable.  It gets easier as you go, right?

So I think about our health care, our energy crisis ($4/gallon is a crisis for our budget!), carbon footprints, education, etc., etc.  How could it all be different if we worked together a bit more?  What if we got off our rump and actually did some of the hard work that needs to be done?  It’s hard if you’re by yourself or if your group is small.  But eventually you reach a point when your voice has to be heard.

Hopefully your voice is speaking for what is truly good for all, that your cooperative spirit benefits us all in a compassionate way.  Hopefully we can join together and make a difference for the better.

That’s why one of my bumper stickers says “Think good thoughts.”  It’s a start.

(photo from everystockphoto.com by
takomabibelot)

“That’s the cuddliest shark I’ve ever seen,” was the first comment my daughter received upon taking her short-finned mako shark to school . . . the day after Mother’s Day.  Guess what I got to do all Mother’s Day night?  Never again shall we wait till the day before to make sure a project is complete, and I plan to stand behind that.  Feel free to hold me to it.

You, too, can make your own shark, so long as you can sew a seam and have the following.

Materials

• fabric — how much and what color depends on how big you want your shark to be and what kind of shark it is, of course
• pencil/chalk
• scissors
• thread
• fill — I used both Poly-Fil (because it’s cheaper, for the bulk) and the more expensive variety that doesn’t clump for the fins
• buttons — for the eyes
• textile marker
• fabric paint
• glitter glue — because ours has metallic coloration

As with all my crafts, you get the fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants, make-them-up-as-I-go steps.  Read them to get a feel of it for yourself, then go make up your own process. 

• Decide which shark you’re going to model after, determine characteristics, size, color, etc.  We made ours larger because I wanted to use most of the fabric I had.  (Can you believe I had a fish-patterned fabric on hand?!?)  Also, ours is two-toned, so the bottom is the white — for camoflauge, naturally.

• My daughter’s teacher said all sharks start as an oval.  Good advice, but I think whales also start with an oval.  So, maybe start with a skinny oval, an ellipse, maybe.  Ours ended as a rather overweight mako, I think.

• Sketch outlines of parts and cut, which is great for the kiddo to do.

• Since we were transporting pieces back to our house, we pinned labeled fins in place so as not to lose anything or mix up pieces.  This was a great refresher shark physiology lesson for me.

• Once home, I had daughter help sew the fins.  She’s not sewn before, but relatively straight seams are a great place to start.  This is her project, after all, and she stayed up with me as late as she possibly could!

• I continued with the sewing while she started stuffing fins, using the good fill.

• I started sewing the small fins first.  Initially, I sewed around the edges to make a continuous seam along the edges of the fin.  However, this make the fin look like a breast . . . seriously.  So, much to my delight it was actually easier to take the stuffed fin, pin it and sew it straight across, making sure it was in the right direction and right sides to right sides.  Much better than the boob, though my daughter did get a late night delirious giggle out of it.

• Deflated shark with all but the tail fin attached.  Time to stuff.  (Daughter snoring now.)

• Maybe I was getting delirious, too, but this just looked hilarious to me.  I was too lazy to hand stitch, so I put my machine to the test.  Wouldn’t you know that the first go I forgot to put the presser foot down?  I made two more passes just to make sure he wouldn’t lose his tail.  (Before pinning I just folded the body side in to make it straight and fit the tail just inside.)

• I sewed on the button eyes and used the marker for the nostrils (can’t remember the fancy name my daughter kept repeating) and the mouth.  Then I used the slick paint for the teeth.  Nice effect.

• Next morning I had daughter draw his gill slits . . .

• And help me add the glitter for the metallic effect.  We just squirted it on and spread it with our hands.

• She was quite proud of our creation and plans to keep him around as a pillow.

Besides the fact we waited way too late to start the project, it was fun.  Regardless, there should be no school projects due the Monday after Mother’s Day!

Summer break gets closer each day and the feeling that it will be great, calm and relaxed fades as the kids seem to be fighting more intensely these days.  Rather than sink into despair, though, I’m going to do some positive thinking and visualization, mixed with some good ol’ fashioned planning.

I have three weeks to cut clutter in the house.  This will simplify cleaning and help clear the energy — a number one help for me.

My activities these days are already becoming heavily kid-centered.  Morning times are fast becoming preschool/story/playgroup time nearly every day of the week.  With lunch, snacks, errands and a little project, the day is booked.  Add in a field trip a week, swimming a time or two a week at the grandparents’ and the occasional sleepover, and we’re all set!  Summer time doesn’t have to be difficult, but it does need to be intentional.  I didn’t even mention gardening our future veggies and flowers!  Our summer looks to  be pleasantly busy, and that’s even without the t.v. and video games.

Hopefully by focusing on what the kids will be doing, we’ll help minimize the inevitable boredom and sibling aggravation for the kids.  Of course, just because I’m focusing on them for concentrated amounts of time, it doesn’t mean that all day I’m going to be completely absorbed in them.  Some of their activities will be self-directed.  Space is good for me right now, and giving myself a couple of solitary, uninterrupted hours a day for me whether during the afternoon or after bedtime is a very good thing.

If you have any unique summer suggestions, I’d be happy to hear them.  I know there are loads of resources online.

This Friday post before Mother’s Day, I’m inclined to reflect on my
existence as a mother.

The commercial realm has
capitalized on the holiday. Beautiful flowers, cakes, chocolates,
clothes, jewelry, etc., etc., are everywhere, and I must admit, I’ve
thought twice about buying something impractical and not healthy.

But Mother’s Day originally came to be out of mothers’ love for their
children gone to war. It came from a cry for peace so that their
children wouldn’t have to be off fighting battles that were too great
for them alone and which pulled them away from their families. I’m sure
there are many now that cry for peace for such reasons.

I am blessed to have my family close, and my family extends beyond my
husband and children. We are fortunate to have a strong extended family. My aunts,
grandmothers, cousins, sisters-in-law, and friends are part of my
family, too. For them all, I am grateful. In this respect I feel very
young as a mother, feel very much my role as daughter. My grandmothers.
mothers and older friends embody a wisdom and beauty that only come
with age, time and experience.

As a mother myself, though, I can see how far I’ve come in my nine
years of this role. With each passing day, I learn something more –
mainly from my kids. Most days, I’m also given the opportunity to share
something with other mothers, and may this be my mother’s day gift to
you.

You are never alone.

All those before you and all those to come are with you, even during
your bad days, time-outs and moments when you wonder what you were thinking to have children.

All the flowers in the world and the shiniest jewelry will never match
the twinkle in your child’s eyes when they smile at you, their beautiful
mother,
 

Nor will they ever match the tearful, joyful pride in your own
mother’s eyes as she watches you and sees the mother you’ve become.

Rest on this your day.

Reflect on who you are at this point in your life,

And love deeply those you help make you the mother you are and the mother you are yet to be.

May you carry with you the blessings of the Mother, now and always.

Read the rest of this entry »

(My first experience of having lost an entry . . . somehow . . . I’m really not sure . . . but here it is . . . )

This craft was not premeditated.  But a spontaneous craft out of recycled material is a double bonus.

Somehow a box from the garage made its way into the house.  The once-whole box was a result of my husband’s attempt to make a light box.  This particular box proved to be too big, so it was discarded . . . sort of.

But a new purpose found its way to the box, and our kitty (and kids) are the proud benefactors.

Materials:

• recycled box
• duct tape
• boxcutter/scissors
• yarn
• cat toys
• cat bed/pillow/blanket

On all but the bottom and back of the box, cut out a rectangle/square, leaving about two inches to the edge.  Use duct tape to secure weak places or accidental cuts (hopefully not on your hands!).

Tie some yarn onto the toys and tie to the box at desired places.  We tied ours on the two sides, leaving some yarn dangling for obvious reasons.  Place bed/pillow in the bottom and let cat sleep/play, if you can keep your kids away long enough!

I suppose before you attach toys, you could cover the box with paint, fabric or paper to coordinate with your decor.  Our box is perched right on the hearth here in the living room.  The shop-vac box, however, sort of fits with our motley crew.

May your kitty enjoy!  If the kids are making you crazy about it, scrounge up a large appliance box and let your kids revel in their own box house.

Have you walked a labyrinth before?  Perhaps one on canvas, a stone one, a hedged

one, a Chartres style one?  This site even has some different online labyrinths to walk virtually.

Labyrinths, among many things, can be tools used for spiritual growth, personal transformation.  As I’m all for walking meditation on principle, the concept of the labyrinth makes sense, and I can see why its tradition is rich.

Beyond walking around and around in one place, though, which I’m sure so many of us have/make time to do, the thought occurred to me that I’m fond of saying “daily round.”  What does that mean?  Am I just running around and around?  Ultimately, doesn’t my daily life go through mostly predictable twists and turns?  Don’t I begin and end in the same place?  It would seem so.

So my “daily round” is much like a labyrinth. I enter my day and end my day in the same physical place, but as time passes, as I make my moves, take my turns, when I get to the center of where I truly am, I may experience something truly enlightening, and I may very well not be the same person at the end of the day or the beginning of the next.

I recall reading in Deepak Chopra’s Seven Spiritual Laws for Parents that we are truly different every moment, our body shedding cells, regenerating new ones.  We grow and change physically.  This is a good lesson in impermanence.

Yet I wonder how different we are at our core.  At the center of the labyrinth or at the center of it all, how are we different from the moment we are born?  I’d like to think that my essence that is from God is as strong in me now as it was at birth as it will be when I die.  After all, isn’t a part of the Whole always a part of the Whole?  Isn’t energy never created nor destroyed?  I like to catch moments when my thoughts are asking me how different I am now from when I was a child.  Will I still be asking myself this when I’m 90?

Who knows.  It’s just interesting to think about, and I encourage you to take time to walk a labyrinth of any sort, even if it’s just going through your daily round or vitually walking one online (which seems odd to me, so let me know if you do it and how it goes).  Do so contemplatively, mindfully, and let yourself find your true center.

Blessings.

After posting about the treeless paper last week and receiving an inquiry about whether I used recylced/hemp paper for my cards, I decided to do a little searching.

Hopefully these links will help you out, too, in case you go looking for environmentally friendly paper for your craft-making.  Of course, I still contend that the best way to do it is to make our own at home, but no one is going to condemn us for making it a little easy on ourselves . . . not this time, anyway!

• Treecycle Recycled Paper — stationary listings from more than one source, so several options available
• Paper and More! – recycled cardstock at reasonable price; a comment on another message board said the user was pleased with the samples received
• Rawganique.com — Hemp paper products, journals, etc.
• Neenah Paper — Environment line has cardstock (cover weight) in several colors
• The PaperMill Store — good definitions about various certifications/terminology

Hopefully this gives you a good start.  Thanks to some folks at Etsy who also made the suggesions.

I’ve decided spring cleaning came about because of ant infestations.  As I resolve to eventually mop my floors and clean thoroughly, I’m also thinking of my own body.  Am I doing everything to keep it operating optimally?  (Say that five times fast!)

Quite bluntly, I’m not.  I’ve talked to my chiropractor and several friends, and I’ve resolved to do a cleanse.  Not exactly pleasant to think about, but being sensitive to the flow of energy to my body, it makes perfect sense.  Also, my youngest is just about weaned, so I’m at a transition point in my life.  I haven’t decided which cleanse to do.  My chiro recommended one and then a 2-day liver cleanse.  I’m going to do a bit more researching before I decide.

Common advice remains (and can be found at Dr. Mercola’s site):

• Drink pure water and lots of it
• Regularly exercise until you sweat (toxins released in your sweat)
• Eat a healthy, balanced diet, free of additives and all the other non-nutitives

A cleanse is meant to aid your overall wellness, not make it happen, so it should supplement your above strategy for wellness.  Easy advice, right?

As I embark on this journey into further wellness, I challenge you to think about your own body, your own level of wellness.  How doth your energy flow?  What are you using as your energy sources?  Are they all healthy and beneficial, or are you using adrenaline, caffeine and/or others?  It’s helpful to make commitments to ourselves.  It’s even better to evaluate every once in a while to make sure we’re following through.

May all be well with you, and may your day be sunny, too!

It seems like an oxymoron in a mother’s life, doesn’t it?  But I did say “moments,” not days or even hours.  I have experienced the bliss of uninterrupted hours, during naptime or bedtime, of course.  For my purpose now, though, think of the quiet moments you experience when you are awake and alert enough to appreciate them.  Actually, many of my beautiful quiet moments are when the kids are awake, too.

Quiet Moment:

• when the rush of daily life seems to close itself out
• when my world is just me and who/what I’m with (it may just be my daydreams)
• when I can smile with a clear mind and light heart, for all is well
• induces a sense of calm and relaxation, even if just thinking about it

One day not long ago, I sat knitting beside my son while we watched part of a movie.  I was the recipient of several smiles from my youngest, whose humor and personality expands daily.  I sat beside my older son while he practiced piano, helping him a bit and reminding myself that I still love the piano, too.  My oldest child fell asleep during some healing touch.  I let myself sit with the warmth and calm of a purring lap cat.  These are just a sampling of the quiet moments I’ve experienced with my family and for which I am grateful and give thanks.

Quiet moments don’t have to be made; the most genuine are snippets of life’s inner peace.  Make them, though, if you need a sense of restoration or assurance that inner peace is there to be had.  Draw yourself a scented bath, take a nap, laugh with a friend, or buy a listening ear if you need to vent all of life’s troubles.

Our days are filled with moments, and not all of them are experienced on auto-pilot, nor should they be.  Just as with finding the beauty in our daily round, with conscious awareness we, too, can find the peace and quiet we tell others we truly seek.