Homemade chalkboards

If you ever need a chalkboard for something...here is a very inexpensive way to make that happen...

Get tiles from your local hardware store.  

I think these were about 80 cents each.

spray paint them with chalkboard paint

and that's it...

We actually used them at a going away party for some friends.

wrote messages and dressed up with silly props.

it was a fun way to add a personal touch to our "photo booth"

 

but they would be great for a rainy day inside with your kids.  

or you could display them inside your kitchen somehow 

and do a menu board or grocery list.  lots of purposes for very little cost.

Baked Eggs

I've been trying out some new healthier recipes.  I will be sharing some on here, starting with this one...a friend sent this to me...click here for the blog I got it from.  I did a little variation from the original recipe.  These are called baked eggs.

Start with grating sweet potatoes.  I actually peeled mine first but next time I don't think I will.  There are lots of good nutrients in that peeling, so just leave it on and grate away.

With a little olive oil, throw the grated sweet potatoes, spinach, mushrooms, green onions, garlic...you could really do whatever you have...I even think zucchini and squash would be yummy.  Add some spices if you want...I just stuck with a little salt for flavor.

Cook it down until it looks like this.

Get some ramekins.  I actually borrowed some from my neighbor so I could cook these in bulk.  Spray them first with non-stick spray.  Divide your sweet potato mixture between them all and crack an egg on top.

Cook on 350.  The recipe says 15 minutes and then add crumbled bacon and cook for a few more minutes.  Mine actually took more like 25 minutes so that the egg was cooked all the way.  It's more of a personal preference on how cooked you want your egg. And I didn't add bacon.

These were easy.  A little time consuming with grating the sweet potato but I have recently gotten an awesome food processor that will do that whole step for me...so I'm definitely doing these again sometime soon. 

Since I did so many, I actually froze mine in containers.  I just pull them out the night before and heat them up prior to breakfast.  They were great that way too.

Just go with it

I know I have been a slacker lately with the blog.  I don't have any good excuses except for the fact I'm just focusing on being a mommy. 

It always seems like the loads of laundry, dishes, washing bottles, running errands, along with playing outside, blowing bubbles, reading books and lots of hugs and snuggles never end.  I do enjoy blogging, but I enjoy being a mommy more. 

I've decided, instead of pressuring myself to get one or two posts done a week...I'm just going to get to it when I get to it.  My goal is still one a week.  I have lots of fun and helpful things to share.  I even have a backlog of posts started, just not edited with text.  I'll get around to it.  I've also been finding lots of new and healthy recipes that will be fun to share.  It's gonna happen...stay tuned. 

Until then...this is what we have been up to lately with two.

trips to the zoo...yes with both of them by myself.  brave...I know 

to the park.  i promise briggs is having fun.  

he doesn't quite get the concept of "smile" with a camera yet 

eating mexican

briggs holding on to parker so he doesn't cry

everyone asks how briggs is adjusting to the new baby...

he loves it and is such a good big brother

 

i had to add this pic of my rockstar of a two year old

 and his abnormally stellar balancing skills

 

all my friends always crack up at my creativeness (if that's even a word) with two.  

this is how we make it work at home when we play outside...

briggs and I play, while parker gets a pallet made somewhere in the shade to play

and if we are out doing something for awhile, like..buying a car...

we just move in and change diapers, take naps, eat snacks..

i like to think of it as being flexible

or if we just took a road trip, we just make a pallet 

on the table for the baby to stretch out

overall we are having a blast with two.  i love being at home with my boys and try to soak up every second with them, even the not so fun ones because i know one day i will miss them being little.

New Ride

We finally did it...we downgraded upgraded to the mini.  We swallowed the big grown up pill and got the MINI-VAN.  Oh yes we did!  And I was "that girl" when I was in high school and college... said I would NEVER drive one...eating those words.

Here are me and Briggs the morning we said goodbye to the CR-V.  I actually shed a few tears that day!...no joke.

But...I guess it was in the Lord's divine plan because we sold it on Craigslist in ONE day...yes you heard me right...one day.  It did take a couple of days to organize the transaction b/c the lady came from Georgia to get it...but she contacted us within one day and gave us exactly what we were asking for it.  What a blessing, confirmation and answered prayer.

 And here we are picking up the new mini.  That's the name I've given it..."mini"...maybe people will think I'm so cool that I'm talking about a mini-cooper until they see me get in my mommy mobile. Ha!

I will say...the first day I took it out to Walmart...I was already texting Justin saying...this thing is "SUH-WEET"!  I'm talking, literally less than 24 hrs and I was already in love.  It's just so easy to get the kids in and out of, and super functional for a mommy on-the-go.

Then...I take Briggs to Mothers Day Out..and I see this...just too good to not snap a pic of.  I mean..that's a true testament to the mini if nothing else.

On top of being popular among the moms at the daycare...
the boys fit great with lots of room to spare.  The seats move up, back and sideways depending on where you need people positioned.

And the cargo space is amazing..that's my double jogging stroller in the back of that mug!  I mean, can you say WHAT?!?!?!..

We went to the zoo with some friends and I even threw her double jogging stroller back there with room to spare.  I'm loving the space.  Can't wait to take our first trip in it.

We LOVED our CR-V and are very sad to see it go.  Well, I was more of the sad one...but I'm loving our new Mini.  It was definitely a very hard pill to swallow, but I have received much encouragement from many friends and have decided to embrace this new change.  So now I hold my head high and am proud to drive my mini mommy mobile. 

I am a mommy and proud of it!

Sickness

This was our first stomach bug since Parker has been here.  It was NOT FUN! I turned our house into something like a hospital ward minus the latex gloves and scrubs...hey that's a thought for next time :)

If you look closely, you can see many things...

- the can of lysol on the table...I did everything but spray Briggs down on his actual body
- lysol wipes
- furniture coverings...made from sheets, towels, blankets, whatever worked
- one sick baby on one couch
- one sleeping baby on the chair
- my bath robe, where Parker is sleeping...I would put it on when I would hold him and take it off to hold Briggs

I can say we successfully made it through the first bug...we were, by the grace of God, and nothing more, able to quarantine the bug to Briggs only. There was lots of hand washing, praying, hand sanitizing, praying and lysol spraying happening at the Poland house, on top of the Lord's protective hand on Parker.  I did eight loads of laundry that first day of sheets, towels, clothes...it was too much fun!

But now that we are on the other side of it...I can say we survived.   Everyone is healthy.  It's been two weeks and I'm just now getting back to my blogging.

Oh well...life goes on if my weekly post doesn't get completed...right?

Just thankful we made it and now have a story to remember. 

Craft Board

I have been trying to figure out a creative way to hang Briggs' artwork...this is what I came up with.

Start with piece of wood, some burlap and a staple gun.  

Whatever size or length you prefer. 

 This was one we had used to hang a curtain. 

Note:  This board was covered with white fabric.  If you use burlap...you might need to have some kind of fabric underneath, or paint the wood, unless you're ok with seeing the board.

Wrap the board long ways first and staple...

Then I folded the ends like a Christmas present and stapled...

Next get some clothes pins.  I spray painted them brown just for the fun of it...

I put them on the end of a box so I could hit both sides easily..worked like a charm.

Hot glue the pins to the board...

Now you have a place to hang all that art your kiddos create.  

Banana Ice Cream

Want a healthy and yummy snack..how about banana ice cream...

Start with frozen bananas. 

I just cut them up fresh ones and freeze them if it looks like they might go bad before we can eat them all. 

Next throw them in a food processor, blender..whatever you have...

It should look like this... about the consistency of a Wendy's frosty.  I added about 2 T of milk to help give it a little liquid when blending.

You can eat it with just plain bananas OR doctor it up and then stick it back in the freezer for a yummy treat later.

I added a spoonful of peanut butter and some chocolate chunks...YUMMO! 


Note:  I didn't have any chocolate chips, but I did have Almond Bark..so I just used my food processor to make some chocolate shavings....just use what you have and get creative.

So there is a really fast, easy, fun treat.  Enjoy!