Husband Hunting?

I know all moms think their sons are great, but my toddler already possesses many qualities that will make him a great husband in say, 25 years.

1. He likes to follow behind you and close drawers and doors, so your house will always be neat and orderly.

2. He can often be found picking up small crumbs or tiny pieces of trash off the floor and putting them straight into the trash can.

3. He is very adept at putting clothes from the washer into the dryer and emptying the dishwasher.

4. The first thing he wants to do in the morning is sit with his Bible and read to himself, so he will be a great spiritual leader.

5. He likes a routine to his day, but can be flexible if needed.

6. His favorite place to be is outside, so he will enjoy going for hikes and strolls along the beach.

7. While outside, one if his favorite toys is the tractor, so your lawn will always be immaculate.

8. He likes to be near you, so you will never feel abandoned or lonely.

9. He has highly advanced skills in solving puzzles and matching shapes, so he will be a great Mr. Fix-it for around the house.

10. Plus he comes with a great set of in-laws :)

Happy Halloween!!

Each year for Halloween our church holds a "trunk or treat" event where kids go from car to car and get candy and play games. Trey enjoyed picking out a piece of candy to put in his bag. He also loved the games, especially any that involved throwing a ball or bean bag! I had to hold his bag and help him during the games, thus no pictures. Jay is part of the committee that puts this event on, but he was able to break away from his responsibilities to help Trey trick or treat.

Trey is taking in all the craziness going on around him. Everyone loved the chef costume his Nana made for him.


While at first we kept saying, go get a piece of candy and Trey had no clue what "candy" was, he quickly learned whatever it is goes into the bag. He had 1 m & m for his Halloween candy this year.





Towards the end Trey decided it was more fun to play with rocks in the parking lot than to collect more candy :)

After we got home the chef decided to make a yummy meal! Don't all great chefs stir with their mouths' wide open?
Happy Halloween!

Lazy Saturday Mornings

This is my favorite time all week.

Apples Galore!

This past Saturday Trey and I went to the farmer's marker. We stocked up on local eggs, butter, soap and tons of apples! Trying to carry two bags full of apples and have a toddler follow you to the car (when he wants to go to the playground) makes for an interesting trip! I had wanted to go to the apple orchard to pick apples one Saturday, but I didn't know if that would line up with our busy fall schedule, and I was not attempting to take Trey by myself. This was the perfect solution- fresh, local apples, way cheaper than the grocery store, and it took less than 5 minutes to purchase them!



I have many plans for the bags of apples! I bought 1/2 bushel of golden delicious and 1/4 bushel of gala apples. Gala apples are usually my favorite to the eat, but the golden delicious taste even better than the gala ones this time. So far I have made apple cinnamon muffins and am in the process of canning 6 jars of apple pie filling.




I have also used this as a great excuse to buy that food processor I have been wanting forever. Hopefully once that is purchased I can get more apples to make applesauce.


Trey loves to just walk by the bag, pull out an apple and start eating it. They are his favorite snack. One time he decided he needed an apple in each hand to snack on and took one bite out of each one. We are working on that...


After we got home from the farmer's market Trey wanted to eat some apple pieces. At first he walked around holding the piece while he wandered. Apparently this caused him too much difficulty with playing, so he decided to free up his hands and put the whole piece in his mouth, well at least all that fit into his mouth.

Fluffy Bum!

I absolutely love Trey's cloth diapers! We had never known anyone who had used the "modern" cloth diapers so after a lot of internet research we went out on a limb and bought 2 dozen Bum Genius 3.0 one size diapers before Trey was born. We got a lot skeptical responses when we told people we were planning to use cloth. We have used these same diapers since Trey was 3 weeks old! Here is a picture of Trey in his green diaper for Earth Day last year. Isn't he so cute and little!! Despite his lineage Trey has always had very skinny legs- thus making the diaper look a little big, but it was a perfect fit with no leeks!



Originally the idea for cloth diapers was Jay's and not my own. I told him I didn't mind, but that it would be hard with us both working to keep up with the laundry. 17 months later and it has not been a problem at all. Plus Jay is always willing to stay up late to put the diapers in the dryer for the next day. No you read that correctly, he has never complained if I forget to start the diapers until 8 and he has to stay up. I know- I am very lucky!



This picture was taken last October when Trey was six months old. The diapers are on the medium setting. I love all the colors! So much cuter than big bird or elmo in plastic!

I have no walking, toddler pics of the Trey in his diapers because sadly, he can take them off by himself (such a clever little one!) and so we quickly have to pull up his pants or snap his top when we do diaper changes.

This past week we have had a bit of a problem with a rash on T's bottom. This has never happened before this summer. I prided myself on choosing cloth because my child has always had a rash-free bottom! Well- no longer. I thought it was just the heat for a long time and during his 15 month appointment in July the pediatrician said diaper rash was common during teething and Trey has been cutting new teeth whenever the rash appeared (off and on all summer). However, after doing lots of research on what can cause a rash with cloth diapers I realized we had a detergent buildup and that my detergent (which I thought was free of everything!) actually had enzymes in it, causing the rash on my child's bum.

I bought new detergent and have spent all day washing my diapers in REALLY hot water over and over again until all the suds are gone and the diapers are completely free of any build up. Despite the rash and the whole day of diaper stripping (that is the word for this in the cloth diaper world) I still love my cloth and can't wait to go back.

We have been using disposables since Wednesday so I could figure out the best way to strip these diapers and get them ready for wear again. I cannot stand disposables! They stink for one thing. I don't want to smell the diaper before I even put it on my child. They hold an insane amount of liquid, which constantly reminds me of the amount of chemicals on my child's bum that are holding in the liquid. They make Trey's room stinky (even in a diaper pail!) way worse than used cloth diapers before they are washed.

To all those people who told me we were crazy for using cloth or that we would never stick with it- I would never go back to disposables! And you bet we are using cloth for baby number 2!

Bring on the Maternity Pants!

Today was my first day back at work. (Which is a whole other post!) Meaning my first day in a long time (besides going to church) to get up to an alarm clock, put on makeup, and wear clothes other than a tshirt and workout capris/shorts. I put on a pair of capris I had no problem wearing a few weeks ago and a longer top to cover my belly. No one ones to see a baby belly poking out when I raise my arms to staple up my bulletin boards. Why bulletin boards are all taller than me I am not sure, but thus that is my lot in life!

Anyways, around 11 am I noticed my waistband feeling a big snug and going lower than my belly. By the time I got home today I couldn't wait to take my pants off. A whole day of wearing constricting, not giving, belly rubbing pants was no fun!! Maternity pants are usually made of some type of stretchy material that allows you more freedom of movement plus a never ending stretchy waistband. I am 19 weeks pregnant, I need to just face the facts that I cannot wear my normal clothes anymore. To finish up organizing my classroom you can bet I will be wearing maternity pants tomorrow!

By the way, as soon as I came home I changed back into my tshirt and athletic shorts with an elastic waistband. Ahhh.....

Real Food

In case you did not realize this, I live with two EXTREMELY picky eaters. In fact it is easier to just list what they do eat as opposed to want they don't. And of course they do not both eat the same foods. Yes I am talking about my son and my husband. Although my other family member, Cooper the lab, eats anything you put in front of him. Maybe I should start inviting him to meal times so someone appreciates my cooking. Hmmm....

This causes me to pull out my hair at meal time. I have been known to make 3 meals for three people. I refuse to do this any longer. In my husband's defense, he is at least consistent in what he eats. If I put a piece of chicken in front of him he will eat it no matter what. Trey is not so consistent. For example, he loves grapes, both green and purple. For a few weeks there was a sale on purple grapes so that was all I bought. Then I found a good deal on green grapes and he refused to eat them. They are the same thing! It's like I have to remind him, remember, you like this! I know this is a typical toddler thing, but I am over it.

Sorry this post was not supposed to be my rantings about trying to fix nice family dinners everyone eats, it is about real food. Sometime last spring I picked up a book Jay had ordered called In Defense of Food by Michael Pollen. This is the same guy who wrote Omnivore's Dilemma. This book along with a class at my church really changed my whole perspective on food. The whole point of the book is that you should eat food, not too much, and mostly fruits and vegetables. Luckily since Jay had ordered this book himself he was willing to read it and agreed with many of the ideas.

Now we are the proud owners of a grain mill and grind our own flour for food each day. I use this to make pancakes, muffins, tortillas, bread, rolls, cookies, cakes, pretty much any bread product you can imagine. I could go on my soap box and tell you all about the benefits of freshly ground flour, but I will save that for another post. For now I am just working on making the food that does make it into the mouth of my family the best quality that can be.

We also try to buy locally and what is in season. I don't think I have ever eaten as many peaches in my life as I have in the past month. We shop at farmer's markets, natural food stores, and website for our food. This does not mean we do not use Kroger, but we are more inventive and try to rely on what we can make ourselves (homemade yogurt anyone... ) and what we can get from local farmers.

This does take extra time and effort. I have to plan ahead for meals, try to get things ready the night before or during nap time, but it is worth it. After making my own tomato sauce from fresh tomatoes I cannot go back to just a store bought jar. Our journey into only eating real foods has just begun and I am sure it will be tested when we go back to school, but for now it is an exciting adventure. Who knew the joy I would experience when Trey gobbles up a zucchini muffin!