Yesterday we had a play date at our house and it was great. First of all it gave me the motivation to clean the house, and secondly it gave the kids an activity to do in the house and I did not even have to leave. It was crazy though because there were six kids in my house and they did not even come close to making the kind of mess just two do in the two hours they were here.
For our afternoon activity I had planned on running to the store and then maybe trying to hit the museum, but then reality set in. I did not want to leave the house. It is bad enough that I was going to have to leave the house and take Audrey to dance after dinner, so I just decided to just stay home. So there we stayed. We had lunch, played with Legos, watched a Christmas movie, and played Barbies, even watched Sven the reindeer turn into one of Santa's reindeer and deliver Elsa to her destination. The kids and I were just being and staying home, and it was great. We have so many activities planned and things to do, but this week Tuesday and Thursday we stayed home. Our days may have not been great, but we did enjoy ourselves and didn't feel we had to do something constantly.
It is a crazy concept for me to think about with all the buzz around the holidays. We are able to control what we do, but for some reason we schedule ourselves to be completely busy and then complain about it. Why do we all do this to ourselves? I know I am totally guilty of this and I complain about it too, but I am the one that created my own reality so I shouldn't be complaining.
Over the next couple of weeks, things are going to be crazy, however I hope that you all get a few days to just be and relax. Take the time to enjoy the little things and not needing to be somewhere or do something. It is hard to do when we know there are so many things to do, but seriously you are going to be a better person by taking some you time during this holiday season. I think we all get caught up in the holidays and remember what it is all about, which is being with our loved ones. It really does defeat the purpose if you are at each other's throats because you are stressed about the multiple dozens of cookies that need to be baked or the decorations that need to be put up.
Just be, my friends, and have a blessed holiday!
Friday, December 5, 2014
Thursday, December 4, 2014
Mice and Hot Water Heaters
In a throw back Thursday fashion, I figured the current issues we are having in our house should inspire me to tell you a story that I experienced awhile back when I lived in Alaska.
Currently our hot water heater has decided to begin leaking. This is after earlier this year the pilot light would go out constantly and was fixed, but now that it is leaking it is time for a new one. In the grand scheme of things this is not a big deal, and because we are renting really not a problem to us except for planning the time for the plumber to come and do the installation. Another issue we are having is we have mice. I despise mice and I figured with a cat, we shouldn't have mice, but the cat cannot get into our back room of the basement and that is where the little evil animals are hiding. Of course I will be dealing with this mouse issue sooner than later, but I am still grossed out by the little vermin.
Enough with the present, lets go back about ten years. My first teaching gig was in a fly-in village in Alaska. It was a great way to start my teaching experience, however there were a couple things that made the experience even more memorable. One would be the day my coworker/housemate were visited by an unexpected visitor in our district housing. It was winter time and we had cooked scallops the night before for dinner. I had come home from the school and I noticed there were green beans and remnants of a scallop on the floor. I just assumed the food didn't make it into the garbage can from the lunch left overs and picked it up and threw it away. I then went on with my evening and began to cook dinner and grade papers. While cooking, I vaguely remember my housemate asking me all these weird questions if I was scratching on the wall while she was in the bathroom, but it was winter in Alaska and we were all going stir crazy so I really didn't think too much into it.
It wasn't until later in the evening that both my housemate and I were in the living room watching tv and I went into the kitchen to get something. Something caught my eye close to the washer and dryer across from the kitchen. It was pretty big for a rodent and had beady little eyes. I jumped up on one of the dining room chairs and process what I saw. After saying many colorful words, I proceeded to scream that we had an ermine in our house and the chaos began. That bugger was fast and he ran behind the washer and dryer.
What I did next is not necessarily the most sane thing, but I put on my shoes because we were going to shoo him out of the house and I guess I did not want him to bite my feet. I remember banging on the washer and dryer to get him out of there, and he ran into our front entry and we slammed the door and slid boxes in front of the door so he couldn't weasel his way back in through the cracks. Now we had an ermine in our entry way and this is when even more crazy occurs. We tried to see if we could open that door to the entry way from the outside. Of course I was armed with a big snow shovel because that and the shoes made me an ermine hunter! When we opened that door from the outside, not only did we get crazy looks from the villagers that were waiting for the gym to be opened up at the school, but there was no ermine. Where did this crazy animal go? The only conclusion we could figure is he got into the hot water heater room that was in the entry way. It was apparent he could get under doors with cracks...great! Of course before going back into the house we decided to put flour on the floor so we could see if he left out the door. We were great trackers. :)
Back in the house we barricaded the door to the entry way as well as we could. I mean seriously this thing was not going to get back in the house. We then started to google information on ermines. The Internet was not my friend back then either ladies and gentleman because I barely slept that night. In fact I slept with shoes on, a turtle neck, and a broom. I remember saying how it was going to go straight for the jugular if it was going to get us in our sleep. Needless to say the ermine did not return, however he gave us a gift of no hot water. My theory is he peed on the pilot light as he escaped in the hole that was in that little hot water heater room. Although it was probably just the wind that blew it out due to the door being left open, but my theory ten years ago sounds much cooler.
Our house was eventually fixed so there were no areas underneath the house for animals to get under and the pilot light was lit and we had hot water again. I don't think we had scallops for the rest of the year and it created a story I will never forget.
In the grand scheme of things, my current situation with a few mice and a leaky hot water heater, is nothing compared to that event of attack of the ermine.
Currently our hot water heater has decided to begin leaking. This is after earlier this year the pilot light would go out constantly and was fixed, but now that it is leaking it is time for a new one. In the grand scheme of things this is not a big deal, and because we are renting really not a problem to us except for planning the time for the plumber to come and do the installation. Another issue we are having is we have mice. I despise mice and I figured with a cat, we shouldn't have mice, but the cat cannot get into our back room of the basement and that is where the little evil animals are hiding. Of course I will be dealing with this mouse issue sooner than later, but I am still grossed out by the little vermin.
Enough with the present, lets go back about ten years. My first teaching gig was in a fly-in village in Alaska. It was a great way to start my teaching experience, however there were a couple things that made the experience even more memorable. One would be the day my coworker/housemate were visited by an unexpected visitor in our district housing. It was winter time and we had cooked scallops the night before for dinner. I had come home from the school and I noticed there were green beans and remnants of a scallop on the floor. I just assumed the food didn't make it into the garbage can from the lunch left overs and picked it up and threw it away. I then went on with my evening and began to cook dinner and grade papers. While cooking, I vaguely remember my housemate asking me all these weird questions if I was scratching on the wall while she was in the bathroom, but it was winter in Alaska and we were all going stir crazy so I really didn't think too much into it.
It wasn't until later in the evening that both my housemate and I were in the living room watching tv and I went into the kitchen to get something. Something caught my eye close to the washer and dryer across from the kitchen. It was pretty big for a rodent and had beady little eyes. I jumped up on one of the dining room chairs and process what I saw. After saying many colorful words, I proceeded to scream that we had an ermine in our house and the chaos began. That bugger was fast and he ran behind the washer and dryer.
What I did next is not necessarily the most sane thing, but I put on my shoes because we were going to shoo him out of the house and I guess I did not want him to bite my feet. I remember banging on the washer and dryer to get him out of there, and he ran into our front entry and we slammed the door and slid boxes in front of the door so he couldn't weasel his way back in through the cracks. Now we had an ermine in our entry way and this is when even more crazy occurs. We tried to see if we could open that door to the entry way from the outside. Of course I was armed with a big snow shovel because that and the shoes made me an ermine hunter! When we opened that door from the outside, not only did we get crazy looks from the villagers that were waiting for the gym to be opened up at the school, but there was no ermine. Where did this crazy animal go? The only conclusion we could figure is he got into the hot water heater room that was in the entry way. It was apparent he could get under doors with cracks...great! Of course before going back into the house we decided to put flour on the floor so we could see if he left out the door. We were great trackers. :)
Back in the house we barricaded the door to the entry way as well as we could. I mean seriously this thing was not going to get back in the house. We then started to google information on ermines. The Internet was not my friend back then either ladies and gentleman because I barely slept that night. In fact I slept with shoes on, a turtle neck, and a broom. I remember saying how it was going to go straight for the jugular if it was going to get us in our sleep. Needless to say the ermine did not return, however he gave us a gift of no hot water. My theory is he peed on the pilot light as he escaped in the hole that was in that little hot water heater room. Although it was probably just the wind that blew it out due to the door being left open, but my theory ten years ago sounds much cooler.
Our house was eventually fixed so there were no areas underneath the house for animals to get under and the pilot light was lit and we had hot water again. I don't think we had scallops for the rest of the year and it created a story I will never forget.
In the grand scheme of things, my current situation with a few mice and a leaky hot water heater, is nothing compared to that event of attack of the ermine.
Wednesday, December 3, 2014
Honey and Cinnamon
Lately I have been feeling that as I get older, I am dealing with random issues. For example last year it was the greasy hair, and I am still having hair issues, but I will share those issues another time. My issue now is acne. I seriously feel like I am a teenager with terrible acne. Now I could have worse issues and I know this, but I always like to share my random cures for things so don't think I am complaining here, well not too much anyway. I had a physical about three months ago and I brought up this acne issue and literally the doctor gave me some sort of face wash that has done nothing to improve the situation. He actually blew off my issue and told me it was due to the humidity.
The other day I finally had enough. I was going to get rid of my acne one way or another. Guess what I began doing...googling and looking on Pinterest on ways to get rid of acne the natural way. Seriously the Internet can be my best friend or worse enemy, most the time it is my enemy. I found two recipes for helping my face and I have literally given them the good college try. However nothing goes as smoothly as I anticipate it to.
The first thing I attempted was a honey and cinnamon mask. It seemed simple enough, but here is a hint...honey takes forever to dry and gets on everything! The requirement of the mask was just honey and a dash of cinnamon, and then mix and spread evenly on your face. Honestly this looked simple, but the drying part was not. I spread this stuff on my face, mainly on the affected areas, which is all over, and I wait. Forty five minutes later and the stuff is still not dry and I am annoyed and I wash it off. I saw a little change the next day, but I was expecting bigger results. I guess the swelling went down a bit, but hello....I wanted these buggers off my face!
I also tried apple cider vinegar as a toner. I diluted 1/4 tsp to a cup of water. Honestly I did not do the measuring, I figured that I could just use the remaining amount of vinegar in the bottle and just add water to the rest of the bottle. Big mistake...I smelled like vinegar and it dried out my skin. I am sure it made issues worse than better. After diluting the vinegar a bunch more, I think I got the recipe correct because when I used it the next morning I did not smell too bad and my skin felt less oily.
Even though both of these remedies promised to get rid of acne over night, I should remember that nothing can be done over night. I will continue my mask, by the way I have been wearing it this evening for two hours and it still isn't dry! Hopefully I don't smell too much like vinegar either. I apologize for those of you who see me in public and I smell. The thing is I tried these things and they are not exactly working. I am open to suggestions or better yet, I guess I could really push for that dermatologist referral next time I go into the doctor.
Regardless, I just don't feel these googled results have helped me at all, so back to the drawing board or in this case the Internet search.
Regardless, I just don't feel these googled results have helped me at all, so back to the drawing board or in this case the Internet search.
Tuesday, December 2, 2014
The Great Curtain Catastrophe
We have seriously gone accident free in the Evans house for awhile now, so I knew something was brewing to happen.
Our little fiasco occurred the other day after many months of me telling my children to stop pulling on our curtains because they would fall down. These are very long drapes that cover our sliding glass door that lead to the deck out back. (Just helping you visualize everything a little better.) For some reason they like to hide in the drapes or even run from the front of the house to the back and slide into the drapes and door. I know...sounds real safe. The whole point here is they would not leave the drapes alone, even after redirection or talking to them.
I had just finished a water color painting with the kids, and I set them free to let the paint dry before Audrey was going to color the blank spaces on the paper. They began their normal shenanigans with them chasing each other around the house. No big deal. I asked them to stop running and go do a puzzle together. I was ignored, but they were in the living room playing some imaginary game so I thought everything was good. That was until they decided to move their game to the drapes. I asked them to get out of the drapes and they did, but somehow Audrey ended up back in the drapes. She sat down on the drapes and then I heard a bang and the word "uh-oh". What I am gathering at this point is she sat on the drape and it just took that last pull to pull the curtain rod holder out of the wall. Yes my friends my little girl had drapes over here head and the curtain rod missed her head not by much. Of course Ayden had to come and inspect and say "uh-oh" just to add to things. Both kids were sent to their rooms and literally neither of them knew why. Really? No one just saw the curtain rod on the floor?
Things just went down hill from that point and the kids spent the rest of the afternoon/evening in their rooms. In the grand scheme of things it was not an intentional thing that they did. It was more like the straw that broke the camel's back. It took all that pulling before that one last pull from Audrey that sent the curtain rod crashing to the floor.
I guess my life is sort of like that curtain rod. I continue to stay up until I get that final pull. However, like both the rod and my crazy life, all you can do is get it back together and not look back and learn from the mistakes.
Our little fiasco occurred the other day after many months of me telling my children to stop pulling on our curtains because they would fall down. These are very long drapes that cover our sliding glass door that lead to the deck out back. (Just helping you visualize everything a little better.) For some reason they like to hide in the drapes or even run from the front of the house to the back and slide into the drapes and door. I know...sounds real safe. The whole point here is they would not leave the drapes alone, even after redirection or talking to them.
I had just finished a water color painting with the kids, and I set them free to let the paint dry before Audrey was going to color the blank spaces on the paper. They began their normal shenanigans with them chasing each other around the house. No big deal. I asked them to stop running and go do a puzzle together. I was ignored, but they were in the living room playing some imaginary game so I thought everything was good. That was until they decided to move their game to the drapes. I asked them to get out of the drapes and they did, but somehow Audrey ended up back in the drapes. She sat down on the drapes and then I heard a bang and the word "uh-oh". What I am gathering at this point is she sat on the drape and it just took that last pull to pull the curtain rod holder out of the wall. Yes my friends my little girl had drapes over here head and the curtain rod missed her head not by much. Of course Ayden had to come and inspect and say "uh-oh" just to add to things. Both kids were sent to their rooms and literally neither of them knew why. Really? No one just saw the curtain rod on the floor?
Things just went down hill from that point and the kids spent the rest of the afternoon/evening in their rooms. In the grand scheme of things it was not an intentional thing that they did. It was more like the straw that broke the camel's back. It took all that pulling before that one last pull from Audrey that sent the curtain rod crashing to the floor.
I guess my life is sort of like that curtain rod. I continue to stay up until I get that final pull. However, like both the rod and my crazy life, all you can do is get it back together and not look back and learn from the mistakes.
Monday, December 1, 2014
Kids and Chores
In the grand scheme of things I really thought my kiddos were too little for chores, but I was selling them short. Even though some days it may have seemed like it took longer to get a small job done, I learned that it was teaching more than a chore. It was also teaching them a sense of responsibility and giving them a place to contribute to the household.
We struggle in our household with the concept of entitlement. With doing chores I used the concept that they are doing certain chores that they hate to do as a bargaining tool. If you do your job, then there is a reward. Some days it is a tv show, a craft, or even going to the museum. Mind you I do not do this with all the chores, just those difficult ones that they are a little less motivated to do, like clean up the huge mess of toys that they decided to create all morning long. It may take them awhile, but they are proud of their success and the reward that comes with it.
I am thinking that we may start a chore chart soon, but I am trying to find the perfect template or one of those Melissa and Doug magnetic charts at the right price. For now we do simple chores and get things done. It takes a lot for me to not follow behind them to clean it better, but I am getting better at doing that.
I have shared below the age-appropriate chore list for kiddos, but I shared my list of what the kids do as well. What I have learned from all this is that you can't sell your kiddos short. If they show interest in wanting to help, find ways to get them involved because you will expend more energy trying to find them other things to do rather than just finding them that small involvement of what you are doing!
Evans Chore Chart:
* Check cat's food and water every morning
* Clear own dishes from table from each meal
* Put socks and underwear away on laundry days
* Make beds (basically picking up stuffed animals and blankets because it is hard to do for a two year old)
* Clean up toys after playing
* Sweeping under the table
* Swiffer the living room for cat hair
* Wipe table down
We struggle in our household with the concept of entitlement. With doing chores I used the concept that they are doing certain chores that they hate to do as a bargaining tool. If you do your job, then there is a reward. Some days it is a tv show, a craft, or even going to the museum. Mind you I do not do this with all the chores, just those difficult ones that they are a little less motivated to do, like clean up the huge mess of toys that they decided to create all morning long. It may take them awhile, but they are proud of their success and the reward that comes with it.
I am thinking that we may start a chore chart soon, but I am trying to find the perfect template or one of those Melissa and Doug magnetic charts at the right price. For now we do simple chores and get things done. It takes a lot for me to not follow behind them to clean it better, but I am getting better at doing that.
I have shared below the age-appropriate chore list for kiddos, but I shared my list of what the kids do as well. What I have learned from all this is that you can't sell your kiddos short. If they show interest in wanting to help, find ways to get them involved because you will expend more energy trying to find them other things to do rather than just finding them that small involvement of what you are doing!
Evans Chore Chart:
* Check cat's food and water every morning
* Clear own dishes from table from each meal
* Put socks and underwear away on laundry days
* Make beds (basically picking up stuffed animals and blankets because it is hard to do for a two year old)
* Clean up toys after playing
* Sweeping under the table
* Swiffer the living room for cat hair
* Wipe table down
Friday, November 21, 2014
The Home Depot Drama
It is about time I share a great story of taking my kids out and about. I tell you this story as I am sure there are some of you out there who have had similar experiences and I am here just to validate that you are not alone.
A week ago Tyler and I decided to go to Home Depot with the kids to finalize some things for our kitchen that we are working on to complete our cottage in Michigan. I knew that this trip may be a little boring for the kiddos, but I figured we could do the things we needed to do as quick as possible. Seriously, what was I thinking? It all began when we looked at flooring because we were there and I thought we could get the kids involved. By involved I thought I would give them a couple free samples and think it would keep them happy. However what happened was they got out of the cart and began to run up and down the aisle, and the workers all laughed as they were talking to us. Really? I could have not used that kind of encouragement for them.
We then moved onto the countertops because I thought I needed to change the color. Somehow the kids decided to check out appliances and they were running from Tyler. I literally had to throw the kids in the back of the cart so they were contained. It was an act of God to keep me from screaming like a crazy lady to ask them what was their issue, but then I got the fabulous FaceTime call from a cousin that literally saved the day. I am not even sure what they talked about, but she kept them happy and engaged, and we were able to finish up what we needed to do. We finished up our fun filled trip by picking out paint samples for the rest of the cottage and literally the kids had at least 20 paint samples that they were just randomly pulling out, but it kept them happy and I just rolled with it even though I despise bringing home extra stuff that will more than likely be thrown around the house.
Tyler and I left the store, drained and exhausted, but our trip was successful. And the kids, well, they had fun and still ask to go to Home Depot every other day when we are out and about or drive by the store. I think the next time we decide to do a trip like that, Tyler and I better not take the kids or we better have FaceTime calls planned because it appears that is our only way to get things done at Home Depot.
Overall we survived, but I forget how differently things are when we have kids. I know our lives have changed for the better, but when we do something simple like go to the store I need to remember it will never be simple. With a two and four year old, nothing is simple and a sure thing. Kids are full of energy and spontaneity and they will unleashed this in a moments notice when we don't want that to happen.
I am going to remember that they are just kids and they are having fun, however I don't always have to agree with their craziness!
Thursday, November 20, 2014
I work out because I like to eat!
Recently I got back into the routine of working out every morning, and it is amazing what a difference it does to my mood and how better I sleep. Now mind you my working out is nothing compared to what a lot of people do. My work out consists of 30 minutes to an hour of walking/running on the treadmill while watching trash tv. It may not be a lot, but it honestly has helped me lose weight and improve my health. Like seriously helped in my health because after ten years, I no longer need to take medication for high blood pressure, which is pretty surprising because my high blood pressure is hereditary. However with working out and making healthy food choices it totally happened.
Okay enough of my bragging moment, lets get to the real reason why I have to work out. I love food. I love to eat, and most the time I don't want to make the good choices. I would totally eat the cheese and chips over the carrots and hummus. In fact I may not have to work out if I had someone follow me around slapping all the crap out of my hands. Heck, I bet you I would have kept the weight I lost earlier this year off, if I had a personal hand slapper. Although that is not the case and the lifestyle changes and good choices just need to become more of a habit than anything. Lets face it, there are days that I just can't be satisfied with healthy stuff, sometimes I need to just grab a handful of milk chocolate chips (okay maybe 3 handfuls) and just get the craving over with. I am sure there are alternatives like the dark chocolate or even not having that stuff available in the house so I don't have those temptations, but it is what it is.
I just recently read a book by Shauna Niequist, Bread and Wine, and it really put a different perspective on food for me. For instance, how many times do we go over to someone's house and not eat because we are afraid of what one might think if we take too much or the fact that we know that it may be our second treat for the day? I know when I normally go over to someone's house I always turn down food. Shame on me because here they spent time to prepare food and I am too afraid of image...really? What it breaks down to is that there is a time to feast and a time to fast. When we are with friends and family we really should take advantage of things in front of us, now that doesn't mean gorge yourself, but at least enjoy what is there. If you know you are going somewhere, just cut back on what your eating earlier that day or later on that day so it balances things out. What a concept right? Sounds a little crazy that I had to read that in a book to understand. The book is actually a worthwhile read as it shares yummy recipes as well, and has a fabulous story line to go along with gathering around the table.
Now that I have totally gotten off topic, I think what my point here is that everything needs to be done in moderation, whether eating or working out. We need to just find that happy medium, which is sometimes hard to do. I have to work out not because I am working on that perfect image, but because I need to do it to give me that mommy alone time, and I need to keep that blood pressure down. Oh, and I also need to fit into those jeans I bought earlier this year:). I still need to work on making healthier choices, but as a family we are working on that. Even Audrey has begun to ask for healthier choices, which means we are obviously making it a priority if it is trickling down to here. When it is all said and done, we all need to make the choices we need for ourselves and our families.
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