Catch up!! Days 10, 11, and now 12

Boy did I get side tracked!! 

Day 10-- Wednesday

Wednesdays are chaos in my house so I wasn't to surprised I had to take it as my "off" day. 

My foot is still hurting and I can't get to the DR till Tuesday the 25th but I do have the appointment scheduled already. I spent that day doing extra homework with my kids and prepping them for a very busy weekend with my husband being home.

On to Day 11-- Thursday.

I didn't do an actual workout other then some light stretching but that's because my day consisted of carrying junk off of porches and helping my husband tape off windows and doors of my mother in laws cabin so we could paint it. 

 I spent all day being his gopher-- running to and fro getting anything he needed. Then we ran to town to buy more primer and the actual paint. While he did a Home Depot run for that I did a dash thru Walmart with 2 kids to shop for the week-- on the plus side I only forgot 2 things LOL

Then he ran out of primer with only about 20-30 ft left to primer. With our high winds that feel like your being sandblasted in the spring and fall we had to get more primer. We talked it over and decided that since it was getting late we would all go back into town and do our mad dashes again. Neither one of us like driving at night but on the plus side I got the stuff I forgot earlier so YAY!!

Now here is today-- Friday. 

We are back at my mother in laws painting and the house looks great!!! 

(When he is done with the trim I am taking pictures!!)

I am inside working today, having been running around on my feet all day yesterday THEY HURT!!

FEAR NOT!!

I did the Muffin Top Workout and a bunch of Pilates so now my back is mad at me.

It's not even 2:30pm and I did my workout on top of helping hubby again today (but not nearly as much as yesterday). I am hoping that once we get back home  I can do one of my yoga routines to help stretch and relax but I really feel good knowing that I did something. 

By the end of  last night I was really sore and annoyed I didn't actually workout for 2 days, it fueled my fire to make sure and get it in today. I really do feel so much better when I do workout.

On another note having gone to town yesterday I went and glanced at the clearance racks (as a mom of 4 that is really how I do all my shopping), sure enough they had a bunch of shorts there so I grabbed a few pairs to try on. One in the size I last bought which was back in June, and one in the next size down--- being HOPEFUL.

Well my hope paid off since that's the pair I bought. They are not loose but they are not killing me tight. I prefer loose shorts but needed something for a trip to the city where its still in the high 80's and sometimes low 90's --- I have another week to see if I can get them a tad bit looser.

I really hope that you are having fun doing your challenge also!!

Blessings,

Cris

A new day and a new challenge...Day 9

Well I woke up breathing alot easier today but my foot was killing me. Due to my foot I have been trying to take it easy today, I did massage and ice on it but no change.While I am not actually hurt (at least I don't believe I am)  I have a weird pull in the arch of my foot. Any time I step down completely flat footed, it feels as if the muscle locks and I can't do it.I am planning on calling my Doctor tomorrow to see if I can get in and have it checked. I just want to get it looked at to prevent hurting myself.

 I still did workout today but since I knew jumping would be a bad idea on the foot I went for Yoga Booty Ballet which a friend recommended. I found a link on YouTube for one of their cabaret videos and decided to give it a whirl. 

While its not what I was expecting I enjoyed it. It made me sweat and helped me have fun. Those girls are crazy funny. I probably won't do this one alot but it was fun enough that I will do it if I need a slightly easier day.

Tomorrow is Wed, my hardest day to get a workout in since my hubby comes home and we spend alot of our free time tidying the house up before he arrives. 

I am praying that I wake up with my foot feeling great and ready to kick butt. I also pray that I get this memory verse. It's not one that is sticking easy for me. I am praying since I know I have issues with always worrying about the days ahead that God really helps work this verse into my heart. I think that is why its so hard for me this time around---- I need this verse!!!

Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough troubles of its own.

Matthew 6:34

I can do this!!! So can YOU!!!

Blessings,

Cris

Day 8

 I am exactly one week into the challenge and I am loving the feeling I get after a workout now.

Even though today was HARD to get motivated between my sniffling and sneezing every 5 seconds I still put in a full 30 day shred workout.

I love that after just doing this workout a few times I can actually do the moves fully. I am starting to move into the more challenging moves on some of them because I can't feel the modified moves pullingl on my muscles. 

This week my  focus is on healthier snacks, more fresh veggies is my number one goal. 

I also am drinking more plain water, this is hard!!! I so want to add something to it but I am not going to.

Here is tomorrow and maybe even getting in a walk with the kids before dinner. 

Hope all of you ladies are doing well in your challenge and if any of you have tips or things to share I am always open for them.

Blessings,

Cris

Day 7... SLEEP!!!

I woke up Sunday morning with a MASSIVE head cold. 

Our weather suddenly changed this past week so that on Thursday morning when we woke up it was 57 degrees inside----that's cold considering our high's are still in the mid to high 80's. 

Then on Saturday I decided that since we had to go to my mother in laws for some work we would do our workout on the porch. The fresh air felt awesome but I an thinking that low 60's and sweaty Cris didn't make a good combo since BAM.

I didn't get to do a workout here because I slept off and on all day, even after my poor husband who was suffering the same as me left for the valley so he could work this week.

Today is Day 8 and I will be doing something later so come on back later tonight for details. I still have the head cold but after a bunch of hot tea, some fresh oranges and soup I have faith I can do this!!

Blessings,

Cris

Day 6

Did my third go at the 30 Day Shred and I can already tell its doing its job.

When I started on Thursday I couldn't do some of the moves fully.

I modified them for me but today I ROCKED IT!!

Fun part was three of my kids did it with me. My oldest daughter said she wanted to punch Jillian for this and that she is evil but then when she finished she said it was awesome and that she will do it with me again.

I will am going to try and do Clare's Full Body Workout later today but since we have plans with family that is here for the day I wanted to make sure to get something in now and to let you all know that I did it.

I can't wait for tomorrow, 

YES I JUST SAID THAT!!!

It's a total flip from a few weeks ago where I was doing workouts here and there not really planning my next one, now I am waking up trying to see when I can get it in.

If you are reading this for the first time it's not to late for you to join in just go to 

Peak313's page for the 

Living and Active Challenge

 to see where to start.

Here is a little photo I found that I am going to print out and put on the fridge

It totally fits for all of us starting this challenge to become healthy, happier women in Christ.

Its not easy to find the time to read your bible (at least not for this mama of 4) but its really worth it when I do.

Its not easy cooking a healthy balanced meal but worth it when I do.

This challenge isn't easy but when we push thru God will show us how "WORTH IT" it truly will be.

Blessings,

Cris

Day 5, I am still alive

Did the 30 Day Shred again.

I am loving this. I can feel it in my legs and abs. Not a painful to move feel but I can tell its working them.

As for food,

I feel like I am STARVING!!!!

I am not obviously but I figured I needed something.

This morning I tried a new breakfast:

CINNAMON-SCENTED BREAKFAST QUINOA

This was okay but not quite what I wanted. I am going to try it again but soak the quinoa over night with the cinnamon and maybe even add some dehydrated apples.

Then for lunch my hubby grilled some beef tip we bought and we slice them thin and put it on a nice bed of spring salad mix---- VERY YUMMY!!!

Then for dinner we had Southern Beans with smoked ham with a tortilla.

However even with all of that I felt hungry. I felt something was lacking so I started looking for something that would fill me up and give me energy. This is what I found, 

NO BAKE ENERGY BITES

I added in a scoop of protein powder to make it even better.

Two of my kids wanted to taste it and one announced that it tastes like a candy bar.

I also tried to find a way to drink my chai tea but none of them tasted quite right yet. I may try honey tomorrow.

All in all today was a good day,
each day exercising is getting easier and I am feeling very energized.

Hope you are enjoying the challenge too!

Blessings,

Cris

Day 4.... 30 Day Shred

Today was AWESOME!!!!

Since it is the start of my weekend (hubby is home) we did our town trips and and a family day but I knew I needed to workout. I feel that if I take a day off I will have that much harder of a time doing it each day. So I pushed on and just finished todays workout.

I have a friend that did the Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred and she loved it so it got me thinking maybe I should do it. I got a new ankle brace today and was up to the challenge.

I started with Level 1 since I am still early in the working out game. 

I LOVE IT!!!

Its a mix of cardio, strength and abs in a nice half hour session. After I finished I checked my heart rate and I was up to 141, a good burning rate for me.

I have decided that this is one to keep up every day and my kids can even do it with me if they want.

Another good thing about today was I did PUSH UPS!!! When this challenge started I couldn't do more then 3 without becoming all shaky and resting for a second. Today I did them all with the girls in the video, no stops, no shaking. Only 4 days of working out and my body is getting stronger. I can't wait till the end of the 5 weeks. 

I hope everyone else doing the challenge is having a good time too.

Blessings,

Cris

Challenge Day 3..... and the real challenge begins

Today was one of those days where had I been able to convince my children of it we would have all gone back to bed and slept all day.

I could barely get moving for breakfast let alone think about working out.

My plan had been to do my video from yesterday right when I got up but as I got out of bed it felt as if I stepped on a knife, point side up going right thru my left heel.

NOT GOOD!!!

I am babying it a bit to see if its just from over doing it Monday and Tuesday but if it doesn't get better by next week I will be going to my Dr for a check up.

Since Wednesday's are crazy with tidying the house for my husband to come home and finishing up school with the kids I had only planned for the video and a walk around dinner. Our nights are getting lovely and walking is something the kids like to do with me......tonight it rained. 

This really felt like I was failing today and I know that our weekends get busy so I needed to make today count, I decided I was going to do the J Lo video again, it was much easier today. Then I did a few arm exercises with my band since I don't have any weights.

Food wise we did okay, yogurt for breakfast (need to make some more granola since we are out), Cheese Crisps for lunch (I know not good), and then a homemade Zuppa for dinner. 

Not my best day but tomorrow will be better, 

BY THE GRACE OF GOD I CAN DO THIS!!!!!

On a good note most of my kids and I have the verse down for this week:

Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken. Ecclesiastes 4:12

Blessings,

Cris

Challenge Day 2

WORKOUT 2: "Your Choice" Cardio, Muffin Top Makeover, and J Lo #1

A phone call from my hubby woke me up at 6:30 and it was so nice hearing from him first thing, I felt it started my day off right.

I promptly started the J Lo video from Clare, and wow!! I know I need the whole body workout but I never really focus on my butt. It’s much smaller then the abs and that is my main focus and with the Muffin Top going next it was a full blast hit today. I am still feeling the burn.

I decide since I was nice and warm from that I would hit the cardio right away. For that I chose to do the PussyCat Dolls Workout, I had found this at a yard sale for a couple buck, the old dancer in me jumped at it. 

Wow it’s been awhile since I did hip hop/ any real choreography (thirteen years to be exact) and I barely made it half way thru but this is going to be perfect for me. 

My kids and I also walked today before dinner. We left with the plan of a quick walk to my father in laws hills and back (we share 54 acres, I live on one side and his hills are on the other) but before I knew it we got back home and it had been over an hour. I was nice and sweaty in spite of the cloudy cooler weather.

I don’t plan on tracking all my food here but I thought I would share todays breakfast. I woke up starving this morning and I felt I needed protein so I made "Loaded Scrambled eggs"

This fed my 4 children and me.

• dozen eggs
• hand full of mushrooms
• one medium zucchini
• broccoli
• onion
• 2 medium potatoes
• 2 slices of  provelone  cheese cut into chunks with kitchen sissors
• bacon
• topped mine with  homemade  salsa (tomatoes, garlic, bell peppers and onions)

I took the onion, potatoes, and zucchini and ran them thru the fine julienne setting on my slicer.

Then chopped the mushrooms and broccoli, I am really wanting a chopper like this to help. Blended all the veggies together and cooked them before adding the eggs.

As for the bacon few months ago I started cutting our bacon in half and depending on the meal maybe even further from there. Today I used the half I had left over from last week. One it was cooked crisp I chopped it and then added it back into the veggies.

I really should have weighed each thing with my food scale but didn’t think about that till now.

Now mind you my kids HATE veggies, so I load them in there and julienned them very fine so they can't pick them out. I had my medium frying pan FULL of the veggie mix before adding in the eggs.

I thought I would share a few pictures from our walk

My joys in life and reasons for doing this!!!

 

A random shot on my property.

The cloud coverage made for some beautiful weather.

DAY 2...... DONE!!

See you tomorrow for my next workout.

Blessings,

Cris

Challenge Day 1

DAY 1

Wow was today a kick in the pants!!! 

First off I prefer to workout early before the kids are up so I don't have to compete for my space, that so didn't happen this morning. I woke up at 5am to it pouring rain, original plan had been to take my laptop out there and do Clare's video...... that didn't happen so I went back to bed. Go figure when I woke up again an hour later my power was out....one of the many pains about living off grid and having cloudy days. I kicked on the generator and powered the house back up and instead of working out since the kids were up we did chores and school.

Finally got my workout in about 1:30 when the generator got shut off.

Boy was that a workout, by the end of the first go round (did it three times) I was sweating like crazy. Good sweating. Bad thing is I forgot to drink water before and after so a little while later I started getting a bad headache. Meds and a shower helped as well as a scolding from my 10yr old daughter telling me that I know better then to workout without my water bottle close by.

A few things I have notice is that next time I do this video and probably most workouts:

• WEAR MY ANKLE BRACE--- I did the first Hover move but it hurt quite bad so I didn't go to my tippy toes anymore. I may go back into my doctor and see if its normal for me to still experience discomfort 7 months after the sprain and if I should just work thru it or what. I can't afford to further damage it.
• Double up on the sports bras!! I was wearing a regular sports bra and a tank top with built in support-- that wasn't enough when doing the jumping.
• DRINK WATER!!! This is my scatterbrained fault but I am going to start charting my water as well as my workouts. 

I also want to share that I have an accountability partner now she blogs over at Dirt Road Lessons. 

 I have also joined a Facebook group for this as well. 

Now here is the scary part of this post. I am going to do photos each check in, my lovely daughter helped snap these from my cell phone so they aren't the best quality. But here is the true me.....

I will be charting my measurements and pounds and will update once a week on if there is any loss. Praying hard that there is.

I CAN DO THIS!!!

Blessings,

Cris

Why the Living and Active Challenge

Here is some random information about me ......I don't diet as I feel it makes things worse ( being a daughter of a chronic dieter and I can see now that none of it ever worked and has now caused serious health issues. I refuse to do that to my kids). I believe eating healthy/ regularly and staying active  is how I will do it, however my problems are with regular eating I am never really hungry so I have to remind myself to eat and with staying active. We tend to get into a cycle and then something comes along and bumps it off track and before I know it its been a month or more. We do eat tons of fruit and veggies (my kids love snacking on carrots and homemade hummus), I make most of our meals from scratch and I don't drink alot of soda (only when hubby brings me home some as a treat or we go to town). We do have sugar and other treats but not often. I am trying to learn how to switch out sugar with honey in my baking.

Now here is why I am doing this challenge, I am a 31 year old mother of  four kids that hasn't been below 200 pounds in over 6 years. At that point I was at a high of 245 pounds which scares the crap out of me even now. I was a size 26 and barely able to keep up with my kids. We moved out of the city and almost instantly (first 6 months) I dropped to 220 pounds. Seeing that I started trying to lose weight then I found out I was expecting again... baby #4 was on her way, not a big deal I could do it but it did put a damper on my weight loss. Now here I am with her turning 4 years old in 6 months and I am still over 200 pounds. I don't want to be dropping  80 pounds in the next year but if I can do 30 or 40 pounds and actually KEEP IT OFF I will be happy. I want to help teach my children to enjoy working out and I want to be able to do fun things with my kids. One of my biggest goals is to be able to ride my bike with the kids when we go to the lake. There are a few trails that I think would be amazing, but I am not nor have I ever been a hiker. I did however LOVE my bike when I was younger. My biggest problem is right now I can barely do 20 minutes without my legs turning to rubber and having to coast some of the way. I do realize that I am just months away from being hit with snow but I want to ride as often as I can this winter. I don't have a specific weight or size in mind that I want to be, I just want to be healthy. I am taking this challenge to jump start my body before winter hits and I get stuck in doors.

I am planning on following the workouts Clare puts up on the site for the challenge but since we do PE in our home-school and its something that the kids NEED daily I will be doing more then just her 4 workouts. Our PE is very simple, we either do a circuit, a timed exercises, a walk (depending on weather) or a DVD. I have all of it written on index cards and then the kids rotate who draws the card each day. I will be doing the challenge early mornings and PE will be later in the day. I may even add some of her workouts into our schedule if my kids can do them.

Come back tomorrow night as I will post an actual photo of me and tell you just how hard Clare's Favorite Full Body Workout  and Ab Workout really was. I will also include what we did for PE just so its out there.

 

Blessings,

Cris

I am not a normal blogger

Okay no matter how much I have tried to schedule blogs or even plan topics my life doesn't allow for it. Being a stay at home/homeschooling mother of  4 children isn't easy and I am finding that as they get older its getting harder. I miss the days of just laying on the couch reading book after book or coloring all day with the kids. Now with having kids that need real lessons and a structured schedule I am out of time at the end of the night when all I want to do its watch one of my Netflix shows. (Yes Netflix before blogging!!! It helps me relax before bed and my laptop comes to bed with me on nights the hubby is gone.) I really don't understand how some of the blogs I read do it. I don't know where they get the time and how they always look so good/together when posting new pictures every week. I love them for it even more now that I have tried and failed.
BUT.....with all of that being said I am going to start using this blog DAILY for the next couple of weeks. I am going to be doing the Living and Active Challenge over at Peak313 Fitness. I have done a few of her exercises and I was doing a really good job of riding my bike every morning till sickness hit the house but now that we are recovering and needing the activity I am jumping in head first. Since I don't have anyone local to do the challenge with (part of it is accountability) I am going to just post here daily and if anyone sees it and wants to join in.
If you are reading and want to join me, DO IT!!!! and feel free to message or comment, I would love to see that someone is holding me accountable.

Chocolate, Banana, Peanut Butter Smoothie--- with Spinach

Okay yes it sounds weird and pretty gross but I have to tell you it definitely fixed my sweet craving tongiht.

I always buy the Carnation Instant Breakfast mix. If we are ever going somewhere really early its easy to make the kids a quick shake so they have something in thier system until I can provide real food. 

As I put the kids to bed tonight I started craving chocolate so I figured I would make a glass really quick. When I went into the kitchen I wanted to making it something kind of filling and I decided to make it a smoothie

Here is what I did:

6oz milk

1 med banana (frozen)

1/4 cup Carnation Instant Breakfast mix in Chocolate

1 Teaspoon Peanut Butter

2 Tablespoons Plain Yogurt

1 handful Spinach

I had the first 5 ingredients all blended and as I was putting away my yogurt I saw the spinach staring at me, so grabbed a handful and you know what it was really good. I couldn't taste the spinach much (I have a crappy Walmart version of the Bullet so there were some small chuncks but not enough to make me not drink it). 

The thing you should know is that I hate spinach!! I will only eat it a few ways:

• fresh salad but only a small handful with tons of dressing on it
• mixed into lasagna or meatloaf
• Knorr Spinach Dip
• Smoothies (most often just an OJ one with tons of frozen fruit)

So for me to say this was good--- it really was!!

I have been trying to make myself eat it more for my kids to see that mommy is eating stuff she doesn't like much either (not winning that battle with beets). Having some "anti veggie" kids really stinks when you grow a huge garden every year but I am trying my best to teach them better.
 I plan on making this first thing in the morning for the kids so I can then cook them a big breakfast like they asked for and not be crunched for time, I have spinach a plenty so I see green scrambled eggs on the menu for tomorrow also.

Enjoy,

Cris

Where did February go???

Wow I can't believe its already March, last month went by pretty fast. With me down for over 2 weeks from my ankle and a spur of the moment trip to visit family I got lost in a whirlwind of activities. 

Here is where my time went:

When we returned from our trip to the city we started hauling manure, you know the crap that is good for your gardens (sorry couldn't help myself). It took a full day (two if you count the fact that my husband over did it with his back so was down the entire next day sleeping)

Then we had a little party/get together with other farms and friends around us to see what everyone else is up to and if they needed any help getting things going-- it was really fun and I can't wait to do it again.

The following week I spent starting seeds, I started 72 herbs- 3 of each kind with 24 kinds to be found. Then I started my cabbages, mustard greens, head lettuce, spinach, broccoli, cauliflower, and kohlrabi-- a total of 104 between all of them. Then today I started 72 peppers and plan on doing more of them tomorrow as well as some eggplants. Then on Wed I will start another batch of the cabbages, mustard greens, head lettuce and spinach so I can have a good amount for succession planting.

The best thing I have done this week is......

I HAVE HOT WATER INSIDE!!!!  

After 14 months of not having it I am ecstatic to have it again. I am very happy that I was able to make due and learn to live without hot running water but I tell you whoever invented hot water heaters are a blessing in my opinion!!! 

Since we had done without water running at all inside for over 10 months we were very hesitent to hook up our old propane water heater so I sent hubby on a research misson. He had talked about really wanting Hot Water On Demand when we first started planning for moving, saying that it would help with propane consumption and it would just be better over all. Our problem was that when we first moved from the city most HWOD systems were going for close to $1,000 and we don't have that (or  I wouldn't have been without water for 10 months)

After doing some resesarch and talking to a friend up by us that is also a plumber we found a HWOD system for under $400 bucks we had to wait till we had the money to do it right and I have to tell you this is the best money I have spent in a long time and at this moment worth waiting for.

I am loving the ability to turn on a sink and wash dishes right after using them, no more boiling 2 or 3 kettles of water to rinse them off after cooking or eating. No more worrying about what dishes aren't clean yet because I haven't had the chance to wash them (don't go spraining your ankle if you don't have hot water inside because carrying pots and pans outside to prewash while on crutches is not a good or possible idea).

Well as you can see my last few weeks have been crazy but well worth it. I thank God for the patience he has blessed me with these last 14 months and I also thank him for giving me a husband that understood how hard things got and tried his best to help me during such a trying time.

God Bless,

Cris

Celebrating my Husband

This week is my husbands birthday and he has requested special meals for it. 

Every year we get to do a special dinner but this year he asked if I could do a breakfast and lunch also.

Sure why not its he's special day!!

 

Breakfast is Coffee Cake-- I have never made a coffee cake so onto Google I go and sure enough I found one. I wanted to make sure he would like it so I did a test run..... twice.  The reason it was made twice was because everyone ate it so fast the first time he couldn't tell if it was good enough, the second time we made it double so everyone could taste test, that is a score in my book.

Now this isn't just any coffee cake its a sour cream and apple coffee cake from Emeril Lagasse that I found on Food Network. 

Now his coffee cake also called for a brown sugar glaze which after tasting it the first time we decided was unnecessary since the cake was perfect alone.

Here is what we used:

Apple Coffee Cake With Crumb Topping

Cake Mix

• 1 stick plus 2 teaspoons unsalted butter
• 1 1/2 cups packed light brown sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 2 granny smith's peeled, cored and chopped 

Crumb Topping

• 1/4 cup packed light brown sugar 
• 1/4 cup all purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and lightly grease your 13x9 pyrex pan with the 2 teaspoons of butter.

In a large bowl cream together the full stick of butter with the sugar until well combined. Add in the eggs one at a time beating each one in fully. In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Mix together well. Add the dry ingredients into the wet ones alternating, with the vanilla and sour cream. Pour into the prepared dish gently spreading it to reach the edges.

Meanwhile in a small bowl combine the ingredients for the topping until it resembles coarse crumbs. Then sprinkle on top of cake batter. Bake 35-40 min or until golden brown. Let cool thoroughly before cutting.

Now onto lunch which is Egg Sandwiches-- We toast what ever bread we will use (I am thinking Everything bagels) and spread some mayo and avocado both sides, top it with an over medium egg cooked in a very small amount bacon grease (just enough to grease the pan and keep your egg from sticking).

Now dinner is something I am looking forward to. I haven't made it yet but totally trust my source so I will be doing it by the book this time around.

Grilled Smokey Chicken and Bacon Cheeseburger

from Barefeet in the Kitchen

 I haven't figured out what rolls I will be serving it on but I am thinking onion rolls. If you have never stopped by Barefeet I recommend you do she is amazing in the kitchen and I am guilty of using most of her recipes.

Does anyone else have special traditions for your spouses birthday or even anniversary? 

I hope you enjoyed a step into my meal planning this week,

Cris

Garden Planner - A Must Have for Gardener

Okay being laid up with a bad ankle means lots of random browsing online and catching up on blogs. Well Monday night kind of late I was reading New Life on a Homestead and fell in love with the Garden Planner she mentions.

Its called Sprout Robot.

Immediately I started my free account and looked at what I should be doing soon, based on my previous gardens its pretty accurate and very easy to follow.

I have recently been chatting with friends that are starting their first garden and they were so confused as to when to start or plant anything outside. This tells you. It takes all the confusion of freeze dates, last frosts, first frosts or anything else that makes a new gardener hesitant away.

All you do is enter your zip code and check the type of plants you want in your spring or summer garden and it comes back with a list of to do's for each week.

For example mine starts the week of Feb 20th and my to do's are starting bell peppers and tomatoes indoors. 

It even will email you before its time to do it.

Now it does have UPGRADES avalible so take a good look around to see what fits your needs most. If you upgrade it will even send you seeds to plant.

If you even considered planting a garden you should check this out and see if it will work for you. I seriously love it so far. It makes me so anxious to start planting but shows me I have a couple more weeks to wait.

Happy Gardening!!

Cris

Organized Chaos??

Am I the only person that lives in utter chaos? I don't think so but at times I feel like it. I look around at all my friends and family and I see how put together they seem, nothing is out of place, all rooms in their houses are perfect as if awaiting inspection.

If you were to walk into my house you would run away scared....just being honest. I am so not organized but over the last year I have vowed to become better organized and in a lot of things I have.

I still need more organization though.

My goals for this task is:

• Buy bookcases. We have a ton of books that we have in boxes and as we keep unpacking a box here and a box there I have come to the conclusion I just need to buy a ton of bookcases so all my books can be on shelves so we can use them.
• Minimize clothes. Now we have been doing the laundry mat and I honestly don't know why my kids have so much clothes, they never wear half of it.
• Minimize clutter. I am a pack rat, if I see something that looks like I will use it and its cheap I buy it, this is hard but so far I haven't bought anything unless it has a home.
• Make the kids more responsible. I am very picky about how things get done so I tend to take all work on myself and this past year I have learned that my kids need to start carrying some of the work. As much as I want to be Super Mom, I am not.
• More school work. Kids aren't enjoying this but we have been doing a lot more structured work. We have even decided to not work our farmers market this year like we had done in the past so that it isn't taking away from the kids school like it had in the previous years.
• Plan out meals. Now this is something we always have used but recently we have started making so that I can email or text my husband a shopping list for the week as he comes home so that if I need something fresh I have it and we don't have to spend a day going to town for it. We have been doing this all month and I am loving it. We start with a calendar on the computer and input meals, then I take break it down by week onto a sheet I have laminated and have it hanging so I can see the week at a glance.

• Car care. Unfortunately our cars take a beating with us living on unmaintained roads, this past year we purchase a truck finally and we have been doing very good on keeping it in good shape. I need to be better at cleaning it out and think that with as busy as my husband is I need to learn how to do things like changing the oil, checking fluids and over all maintenance. Not something I am very confident in yet but want to be.

Pray for me as I journey thru my chaos and try to find a way out.


Blessings,
Cris

Whooops!!!

Yep thats right I made a whoops!!.

Yesterday we were all dressed and ready to go cut wood since our pile was getting pretty low and I managed to fall off my front steps. Bad part is I don't know how or what step I fell from, it was either the 2nd or 3rd I think and all I remember was telling my daughter to watch herself. My foot was swelling pretty instantly so hubby took me into the hospital and after 2hrs of sitting there and x-rays they said its just a severe sprain. Here I am homeschooling my munchkins from bed today. All of the kids are trying to baby me which is really cute.Thankfully we have some yummy leftovers for our meals today because even getting to the bathroom is tough.

I am really bored, last week we started spring cleaning and got alot done and now here I am with a list a mile long of things leftover and I can't do hardly any of it. I will be sorting piles of junk (my name for anything without a home) to see if its keep or toss. This weekend we will go and donate what we are tossing so that its out of the house for good. Then I need to (with hubby's help now) move some furniture around and get ready for painting my living room.

Thankfully one of the blogs I read posted this and  I am having to read it over and over today as I get upset or annoyed with my foot:

Hope everyone else is having a better week then me.

Cris

Being Prepared

What is being prepared? How do you start?

This is something that over the last 5 years since I moved out of the city I have had to learn. 

The first couple of months were the hardest with all the unpacking and working on getting stuff ready for a real winter (desert born and raised) so many nights we had PB&J for dinner because I wasn't prepared.

In February of 2010 my oldest child broke her arm. All the kids were off playing in her room and I heard a cry that wasn't normal so I ran over there and knew instantly we had to go to the hospital, my problem.... NO CAR!! Our car had recently died on us and my husband works over 3hrs away and wasn't due home til dinner.

New Years Eve 2010 my water pipes froze, a week later they actually burst, and somewhere in between the lines buried underground froze also. I had no running water in my house till September of 2011 and we still don't have it pressurized as of now.

Again I was caught unprepared. 

I have been going thru all my house trying to find ways to better be prepared and I really can't figure it all out. There are way to many scenarios  that run thru my head and I haven't the foggiest idea how to plan for it all.

My conclusion.....

Plan for what you can and trust in God to care for the rest!!

Physically I can plan for:

• Food--

We grow gardens during the summer so we try to can up and dehydrate enough food to get us thru the winter. 

We plan our meals monthly and do most of our shopping once a month purchasing as much as we need plus restocking anything that we use regularly.

• Medical--

We try to keep a well stocked medicine chest and a working first aid kit (I don't know how many times we needed band-aids but can't find them because the little ones decided they made great artwork).

Thanks to friend and family (and my clumsiness) we have 3 sets of crutches in a closet, a kids set, standard adult and a large adult.

I am learning how to use herbs, no I am not going totally herbal but knowing that fresh ginger tea with help with sinus congestion or that rubbing fresh basil leaves on your skin will keep mosquitoes away is a good thing!!! (Yes the basil does work!!!)

• Weather

We make sure my husband chops enough wood for  a couple weeks at a time just in case he can't make it home due to storms which has happened more times then I like remember.

If a storm is coming we run our well and check our power system (off-grid living) and make sure I have fuel for the generators if needed.

In our area we have to be prepared for early freezes or we loose our gardens. Sometimes we get caught off guard others we go out and harvest what we can and spend the next few days canning it all.

• Material items--

Keeping the cars in good condition is one we are working on, both my husband and I have been stranded by broken down cars since moving rural.

 I try to keep a variety of clothes in the closets for the kids, you never know when they will grow an inch or two.

I buy on sale, if my favorite shampoo/toothpaste/toilet paper is on sale I buy as much as my budget will let. It saves money in the next few months and it nice to have it ready when needed.

We keep a shovel in the back of the truck, twice this summer we had lightening strikes start fires and living rural we can't rely on a fire department.

I look back on my life a few years ago and I never thought of things like this. 

I mean if a car broke down we walked or took the city bus. 

Shopping was simple I lived right across from a Fry's and went at least twice a week.

Fire department was only 10 minutes away. 

Keeping extra fuel, ha ha ha we were lucky if we filled the cars on time.

As times are getting harder I am trying to prepare more, what would happen if my husband lost his job, would we be ready? Would we be able to put up enough food? 

Probably not but I am getting there, my biggest set back is when life happens I try to jump in and try to fix it like the human that I am.

I have come to realize that being prepared is more then just all of this, its relying on God more then 100%  of the way. He is the only one that is truly able to prepare us for what is coming ahead.

I know that thru him all things are possible. Thru him I will be prepared!

Philippians 4:13

I can do all things thru Christ who strengthens me. 

 

Sweet Dreams,

Cris 

Link Up

I am very new to the blogging world but one blog I love to death and read daily (I have it emailed to me so I can read it on my phone while cooking breakfast) is Women Living Well and she does a Link Up post so I am going to attempt it and see if it brings you lovely people my way. If you found me from over there please leave me a comment so I can know. Also if you think I can do something better feel free to tell me I am willing to take suggestions.

God Bless and Have a great night!!

Cris

Craving Springtime!!!!

I know tomorrow is February 1st but I can not help myself.

I WANT SPRING!!!

I want warm weather, open windows, and working outside in the gardens a little bit everyday. 

I am so done with cold dreary weather with bleak cloud filled skies. Being stuck in the house drives me stir crazy. This year has not been our coldest but it has by far been the stormy/cloudiest. This is the first time my poor dirt roads have been dry all winter because of all the snow we have been getting. For anyone that does not understand--- muddy roads is not good when you have small kids wanting to ride bikes or play soccer or even make it from the truck to the house without slipping on to their butts in the mud.

I sit here at 3pm and I have a roaring fire going and layers of clothes on but still I am chilly but not because its cold inside, I mean its 70 degrees inside and 57 outside but with a strong breeze that is blowing and no sun to be found it makes it feel colder.

I think another reason I am craving spring is because we just went out last weekend and started cleaning our smallest garden plot which after this year will become the long term orchard of grapes, asparagus, strawberries and other berries. 

We already planted 5 grape vines last spring and they did really well so hopefully this year we can get another 5 (or maybe 10......15 who knows). We have a row of asparagus in there from last year and hope to get one more planted, plus I just ordered 100 strawberry plants. Yes that seems like alot but I got 5 different varieties and some probably will not make it. Not to mention during the summer we can go thru strawberry smoothies like crazy.

The random berries will happen as we find them, if we have the chance we will do it this year but probably not till spring next year.

I will be starting seeds in the house within the next 4 weeks. I have some of the seeds I want to start already but ordered the rest today and its making me antsy.

I succeeded in  tiny broccoli last year so hoping that I can grow it bigger or just a tons more tiny heads this year.

My morning eggs are needing some mustard greens. 

My stir fry for dinner needs fresh bell peppers and squash.

We only have a few more jars of spaghetti sauce left that I stashed for saving since it was so good.

Basically I am ready for my garden and my fresh food. 

This sense of longing for it comes earlier and earlier each year.

This year will be a bit easier since we are not doing our local farmers market. We decided it would be better to take time off and finish random projects around the property then to work ourselves weary and not make any money.

Once the weather gets quite warmer we will be starting on breaking ground for my greenhouse that will be attached to my house. We will be finishing the rabbit/drying shed/ hay barn/ workout room (it has been used for all of the above) since its still missing some doors and a roof cap. We are also planning on painting my house, 5 years of little kids on flat paint is not a good thing. For painting I need to be able to have the doors and windows open and fresh air flowing. I do not need to encourage my kids craziness by filling them with paint fumes.

There are things about my spring I am not ready for but will deal with, ha ha kinda have to. 

Most importantly the wind. We have killer winds, I mean 40-50 miles per hour steady and gusts in the 70's. In April of 2010 our wind killed a greenhouse we tried building. (Note to anyone reading DO NOT try the Harbor Freight kit greenhouse if you have any high winds!!!)

I am also not looking forward to snakes. Thankfully I have never found one when I was alone and my older children know what to look for but I still do not like them. They hide from us in between plants and that scares me to death. 

As I finish this today the sun is starting to peek out of the clouds. Maybe tomorrow will be a better, warmer day that will allow us to work outside a bit before my husband comes home for the weekend.

Hoping everyone out there a great day and hope if you have nice weather your enjoying it extra for me.

God Bless,

Cris

Diving In

As I start this blog I want to start it right. I am going to share tons of random things here, from meal ideas/recipes, to homeschool lessons but most importantly I want to share Gods word. 

I am not a pastor or a pastors wife,  I am a mother of four children and a believer in Christ!

I have read thru the bible about 3 times in my life, mostly in my early teens and while I do remember some I can not quote any of it word for word. I can generally remember a verse but then need the internet to tell me where it is located in the bible and the exact wording.

I long to be a good wife/mother/friend ,one where they can see God in me and my house, one that my girls can look back on and be inspired by and one that shows my boys what they can and should look for in their future wife.

To help me show them I decided to start doing a study that was shared on a blog I found, its free and very basic to get you started in the word even though its titled for Moms I plan on reading aloud with my children --

31 Day Bible Plan for Moms

I am thoroughly in love with Holy Spirit Led Homeschooling as a homeschooling mom that is struggling in the spirit and in teaching her children. I  am inspired by how she trusts God completely, with all aspects of her life. I trust in him but I am not diligent in it, I tend to stumble a lot along the way. I try to take the lead instead of leaning on him.

I am starting  Day One today, I will probably do this plan many times throughout the year in addition to other studies I am doing. Please join me as I dive into his word.

This month's prayer is that God opens my heart, and mind as I start this. That through his word I can become a better wife, mother/teacher and friend.

God Bless,

Cris