One Word Wednesday: Still

“Be still, and know that I am God…” Psalm 46:10

(So I missed posting this yesterday, such is life with a baby I’m learning, but this still resonated with me so I thought I would go ahead and share with you.)

The older I get the more I see tragedy and loss and pain. Sometimes, it can begin to get a little overwhelming. And while I appreciate the movement God has been bringing into my life in so many ways lately, I felt that still small voice speaking to me about stillness last night.

Last night we we’re on our way home after a four day trip to Tucson, AZ to mourn the loss of a wonderful family member. My heart has been so heavy for those closest to him. While in Tucson, we also heard about the shooting that happened there a couple of days before. We actually unintentionally drove right by the place where it happened. There was a stillness there… still. It was such a stark contrast to the busy street we were driving on.

But the drive to Tucson and the drive home were not very still for us. Miles and miles of scenery flashed by, my 3 month old daughter grew weary and sore from her uncomfortable (yet super safe) carseat. To be honest my tushy was sore too. My mind grew weary just thinking about  hurt and loss and I was worn down by the drive. And then when we were almost home, and my daughter needed that one last nursing before our final push to get home, I looked down at her, and  I was reminded of this passage in Psalm 46. “Be still, and know that I am God…” “Okay God, I can do that,” I thought.  I can take this moment and breathe and appreciate it for what it is: Calm, beautiful, and still.

***P.S I just found this website: myoneword.org It’s all about finding your word for 2011 and using that to focus on to make change happen in your life.

One Word Wednesdays

The power of words has really been hitting home to me lately. I believe I have already found a theme bound to reoccur in my life around the word “movement.”  Then as I was reading a new to me blog, AlieEdwards.com, I noticed that she posted her word for 2011,”light”. I got a little excited. Lots of  people think there are words that fit their lives for a period of time? Wow! Actually, I know Joyce Meyer would agree with me too. She stresses the power of words in her sermons. “And God said…” and that’s when things really began to happen at the beginning of time.

And so I’m going to start doing One Word Wednesday posts. Maybe just a quote, a definition or a picture. Something simple to just remind me about how big of an impact one little word can have on our lives and on others and share it with you. I hope you will share any that you come across that have meaning or impact on you. (=

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This week I’ve been thinking about resolutions. There were 12 different definitions listed on dictionary.com, but four of them seemed the most relevant for what’s been on my mind:

Resolution (noun)

1.a formal expression of opinion or intention made

2. a resolve or determination: to make a firm resolution to do something.

3. the act of resolving or determining upon an action or course of action, method, procedure, etc.

4. the mental state or quality of being resolved or resolute; firmness of purpose.+

+Could that last one explain why so many people don’t keep their New Year resolutions? Do we lack firmness of purpose in our mind from the outset????

Here are the resolutions I’m considering for 2011. Notice I said considering not resolving. Not sure I can take these all out at once (hey I’m just being honest with myself, I know I don’t have mental resolve right now),but they are definitely on my “let’s try this out list”:

1. Bake bread every week. (More details on this later).
2. Craft time every day-even if its just for 15 minutes. I love to craft and I’ll take what I can get.
3. Develop a household routine. I’ve been reading flylady.net and I’m trying out some of her baby steps.
4. Exercise  regularly/ eat healthy. (I need to get down to details on this one still. I’m starting out with just drinking more water and trying to eat at least 1 vegetable or fruit at each meal.  Yep that’s how far off I’ve gotten over the holidays. Eating 1 vegetable or fruit is an improvement. Sad I know.

Oh, and if you’re really feelin’ the power or words too, you might want to check out this workshop that Alie Edwards is doing too, called One Little Word. I’m thinkin’ I just might have to sign up for it. I’ve been so wanting to get back into my scrapbooking….

Contentment.

I hope you all had a very Merry Christmas! I did! I spent it with my family. Yes I could have used a very descriptive adjective back there. My family IS wonderful,they ARE loving, they DO give generously and from the heart, they are fun and silly and strong, but trying to pick out just one adjective and label my family with it wouldn’t really do them justice. They are just my family. I don’t know any different, I wouldn’t trade them for anything, and I couldn’t love them more or be more thankful for them if I tried. God has blessed me very much indeed!

And did I mention just how special it was to celebrate my baby girl’s first Christmas? So many special memories, so many times I just looked at her and wanted to cry with contentment. That sweet baby girl sitting over there with her grandma or  an auntie. Her personality is really beginning to show and if possible I love her more everyday. She has woven her way into my heart never to leave.

And yet it is amazing that with all these wonderful blessings there is a drive in myself and I have seen it in others to push on and improve ourselves and our lives. I’ve been working on a list of things I’d like to accomplish for 2011. I didn’t purposely start compiling the list, it’s just sort of gradually been forming itself in my mind. But I think I’ll share that next time though. For now, I am content to just sit around in my new super cute lounge pants (thanks,gina!) and drink some candy cane cocoa and enjoy the snow falling outside. Cheers!

Been thinking about…Movement.

Have you ever noticed themes running throughout your life? I’ve heard that if something keeps popping up again and again in your life it’s God’s way of trying to tell you something.

For most of 2010,I would say my theme has been preparation and growth. Make that 9 months of preparation for the beautiful bundle I’m now holding in my arms. Now how is it possible to be holding something-or someone rather, and still be typing you may be asking yourself. Ah, that would be thanks to the Moby Wrap. A super long piece of fabric that you wrap around yourself and your baby and move around hands free (and might I add guilt-free) all the while being able to keep an eye on your baby. Not to mention my baby LOVES it. She loves the movement.  She falls asleep within 5 minutes almost everytime I put her in it.  It’s fabulous! It was extremely intimidating the first few times I tried to put it on but after that first successful attempt its been smooth sailing. My laundry gets folded, dishes get picked up and moved to the kitchen, mail gets opened and best of all my baby is right next to my heart. I know, that last one just tugs at you right? Sorry couldn’t help myself. But it brings me to my point. I think my new theme must be movement.

Another example:  While most people are getting up at 4 am on Black Friday on the hunt for good shopping deals, I will probably be up nursing my daughter and then trying to catch a few more zzz’s before DH and I head on over to the local U-Haul.  You see, DH and I are moving-again. Just down the road, literally about 20 miles, but we are moving again, nonetheless. It will be the 10th move in our 9 years of marriage. And for me it will be about the 20th time to move in my life. Just call me the travelin’ woman. My brother jokingly says our family is a bunch of gypsies because we all move around all the time or enjoy traveling more than most people. So, known as the travelin woman or gypsy, I’m on the move again. Just down the road, but I’m moving.

Then there’s the week long family ski trip planned for spring break. Movement here I come! This last year there’s was no skiing for me. I was too busy growing my DD. But this Spring, just stand back and watch me go. I wouldn’t recommend getting in my way. Mostly because I’m not that great of a skier and not always able to stop myself, lol! But you get the picture (=  And there’s going to be some serious movement leading up to that point to get myself in shape before then. Recovery from a c-section is not going to be had from sitting around eating Christmas fudge. Unfortunately. Insert sad face here if you know what I mean.

So after 9 months of preparation,  2 months of recovery and adjustment, movement has found its way back into my life. So I’m realizing out that it must be the new theme of my life. I’ve had a little time on my hands think while nursing DD can you tell?  I want to walk, run, dance, and feel the wind in my hair. I want to move.

Movement really is a wonderful thing. I am so thankful for it. And for so many things in my life this Thanksgiving. I hope that wherever you are this Thanksgiving that this post finds you with those you care about the most. May you all have a wonderful and blessed  holiday weekend.

xoxo, Rachel

One “Tiny” and Wonderful Reason to Give Thanks

Well it’s November! Yay for Thanksgiving! (Yay for the coming Christmas holiday season too!)

And what better way for me to jump back in to the blogging world than to start  the Thanksgiving season with what I am most thankful for this year, my daughter.I must apologize for taking so long to post this announcement of her. If you don’t know me offline then you were probably wondering what in the world happened to me. Well…a newborn baby complicated by an emergency c-section happened. It was all so very whirlwind and unexpected. I went for a doctors appointment on the Monday after my due date expecting to be induced in 3 days. But my midwife became a bit concerned after I said I noticed just a little bit of less movement.

So she hooked me up to the stress monitor-just in case.

Not liking what she saw she sent me to triage across the hospital for monitoring-just in case. Triage hooked me up the monitors.

And they gave me an IV start-just in case.

Then c-section procedures were explained-just in case.

And then…just like that, a decision was made and my daughter was coming into the world. In less than 2 hours from the start of my doctor’s appointment here she was and I was being whirled into recovery with my head still mentally back at triage.  I’ve been living in survival mode and of the moment ever since.

My days are a blur of feedings, sleeping, eating when I get a moment and just trying to pay bills. I have a new found respect for moms everywhere that manage to find time to do fun things. Blogging once a week seems like a huge goal to me, but that’s what I’m aiming for. Don’t get me wrong I have a lot of time to watch TV and read while nursing. But the actual DOING of things, well, I’m still trying to figure out how in the world I’m going to come up with a routine. Any tips you might have a much appreciated-seriously!

"She's a maniac, maniac out on the floor. And she's dancin' like she's never danced before..."

And in case you’re wondering what this little baby girl looks like that has changed my life so much-here she is, Teddi Anne Martinez. She weighed 7.9 and was 20 and 1/4″ long. She’s 5 weeks in this picture. And I just have this feeling that she’s going to be musically inclined. Ask me why sometime…but I warn you..I’m a pretty proud mama and could talk about her for hours and hours…lol.

Waiting on Baby

September 20th. My baby’s due date. It has come…and gone. And since I’ve been MIA the last few days I’m sure some of you wondered if my little girl finally made her appearance into the world. Nope. She’s still all snuggly and warm in her personal human incubator (i.e. ME). And so  DH and I are here just waiting and trying to keep ourselves busy. Not too exciting really.

Now don’t get me wrong-there are still dishes and clothes to wash and put away. But  there are those moments-the ones where you think ” I need something to do”-after all I thought I would be knee deep in new baby land and made no plans for this week-and yet I’m not motivated to start any sewing or crafty projects. I just know I’m gonna start one and then go into serious labor and not finish it for 6 months. If ever. I’m one of those people that needs energy from a new idea to get projects completed. So….what does one do while waiting for a baby that so obviously is not in a hurry to join the rest of us in the world?

I love the idea of this magnetic fridge calendar. Would have to modify it a bit for my lifestyle. But love the concept.

Well, I have been blog hopping and surfing the web and in the process I’ve came across a few ideas-just little projects mind you-that I’ve  tried out and thought you might be interested in-you know, in case you ever need something to distract yourself and still try and feel productive.

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Project: Reusing Glass Jars

Not that this is a new idea to some of you. But I’m a procrastinator when it comes to actually getting those food/product labels off so that the jar actually looks pretty. So I’ve been saving them all up in a cabinet waiting for the perfect time to get them all spruced up. Thursday was that day.

Some tips I picked up:

• For gummy type labels try holding your glass jar in your lap with a towel and then using your blowdryer to heat up the label and slowly peel the label off. Usually this will get the label off in less than five minutes and in one piece with no sticky residue left behind. So awesome!
• For the other types of labels-you know the ones that must have been attached with never to be removed, hard as cement glue, try soaking the jar in soapy hot water for 15 minutes  then use a  heavy-duty scrubbing sponge and some serious elbow grease to remove the label. This will take a few minutes I’m not gonna lie but the results are nice.
• If you still have some sticky residue left after either method, try putting a thick coat of peanut butter over the sticky residue and let it sit for 30 minutes. Then come back with a heavy-duty sponge and scrub away the stickiness. (Kind of the same concept as Goo Gone minus the petroleum-yay!)
• If you want to take things a step further and really make your jars pretty try following this tutorial from Design*Sponge. Talk about pretty lids-see the picture above!

Project: Super efficient and Organized plastic bag storage

I know plastic bags are so not earth friendly. But no matter how hard I try I still seem to end up with more than I need. And they keep trying to take over my laundry room. So when I ran across this technique for folding them at A Lil Bird Told Me, well, my OCD tendencies came out and I my heart skipped a small beat. Seriously. If you must have some plastic bags why not store them neatly and make them that much more portable. Right??? I mean I’ve already thought of a couple of good uses for them. In my purse/bag so if I make a run to the store but don’t have my reusable shopping bags I at least won’t be using MORE  plastic bags. And then what about the glove compartment as trash bags for the car or as hair covers when it rains and you forget your umbrella. This is crucial for me as I am blessed with super frizzy hair and constantly fight the “I stuck my hand in an electric socket” look. Hehe!

Project:Organize the freezer or fridge, and then since you’re on a roll why not organize your pantry too!

Lately I’ve been making and freezing meals in preparation for the baby girl to arrive-and then just sticking them  in the freezer wherever they fit. A recipe for frost-bitten lasagna if I ever heard of one, but that was my method. So last Thursday after cleaning jars and folding plastic bags I tackled the freezer and fridge. Gave them a good wipe down and then did some serious sorting. Next, I’m off to do the pantry. I was totally inspired by this pantry redo over at House of Smiths. I thought I was organized before I saw this redo.

Not even close.

There’s also a really nice redo over at My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia. And check out this slide show of cute pantries from Country Living magazine.

So that’s what I’ve been up to. Hopefully next time I’ll have a sweet little baby girl to show off. She’s going to get here eventually (=

The Nest, Part 3-It’s Finished!

Paper sack door wreath. Total Cost: $3. Oh Dollar Tree, how I love thee!

Aaaaahhhhh! (Sweet sigh of contentment.) I have finished the baby bird’s nest-finally! It seemed that every time I thought I was done-I would find one more little thing to do-and then another! But, I think-this time, it’s really done! Just in time too since I’m due in a little under a week. Not that it actually means something mind you. I haven’t seen any sign that this little girl is planning on making an appearance anytime soon. My only comfort is that my midwife has promised the latest I would give birth would be October 3rd. Sounds far away but at least I know by Christmas I will have a new little one to coo over anyways.So without further ado let me show you around her newly completed nest.

The paper sack wreath is really easy-but really time consuming.  If you like keeping your hands busy while you watch TV then this could be the project for you,, While I love the results, it takes a LONG time to do! Want the full how to? Check out this great tutorial over at Maryjanes and Galoshes.

 

Desk turned changing table. Makes for tons of storage and lots of longevity!

Any guesses on her name??? Please play fair, if you  already know it  don’t give it away-we’re excited to announce it ourselves (= Want to see how I made the subway art? Click here. Interested in a closeup of her clothes hamper? Go here.

Future nursing station. Books & burpcloths.

Talk about easy nursery decor. The picture frame art is just made scrapbooking supplies and the nesting doll was a gift from my aunt & uncle when they lived in Ukraine. The poetry book is a copy of the book my mom had when I was little-I used to love reading it in junior high.

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Crib skirt and pillows sewn from Riley Blake fabric. All of the baby girl’s fitted sheets are organic cotton. Yay for no chemicals!

Isn’t this  hand sewn sock monkey awesome?! He was a gift from my cousin Cher-xoxo!

Fabric Rosettes to embellish a pillow.

Quick & Easy Pillow dress-up made from leftover ribbon from another project.

This rocking chair is one of my favorite pieces. I was rocked to sleep in this by my own mother. Now it’s been repainted by DH and I made some coordinating fabric cushions for it.

The nursing stool. You know how much I love words so of course I had to use some good ol’ mod podge to embellish this nursing stool with flower names.

DH sanded, stripped, painted and slaved over this now beautiful chest of drawers. He did such a great job! Love you honey!

 

And of course her room would not be complete without SEVERAL butterflies! Does this collage look familiar? I blogged about making one of these after I saw this tutorial.

 

Well I hope you enjoyed the tour! It seemed like it took forever to do but now I think that might be a good thing because at this point…..all we can do is wait…..

 

xoxo, Rachel

Weekly Menu Board & Whole Wheat Banana Bread

I’m still continuing with my pre-baby baking and have really been trying to figure out ways to make those first couple of months with a new baby a smooth one. So, I decided to make a Weekly Menu board inspired by this one I saw over at A Girl and a Glue Gun recently. Her version is quite a bit fancier than mine-its really  cute. I was going for simple and effective so I decided to do a week at a time and use dry erase markers on a picture frame. It erases like a dream on glass!   We’ve already started using it. So far so good. It really seems to help me remember to take meat out of the freezer to thaw for the next day and if there is an ingredient that we are wanting to use up we can write down the next meal using that ingredient for the next couple of days.

It’s also useful to use as a baking schedule like I’m doing this week. Today is Whole Wheat Banana Bread day . I use this recipe from Allrecipes.com. I found it a few months ago and haven’t gone back to my old recipe since. I love that it uses whole wheat (Yay for stable blood sugar!) and you can make it even healthier by using unsweetened applesauce in place of the oil and egg whites instead of whole eggs. I haven’t tried the eggs but have had good success using the applesauce instead of the oil last time I made it when I ran out of oil (eek!).

And did you know you can freeze whole bananas in their skins to use later?! It was a tip I read on allrecipes.com and tried it this last time when I was going through what I call my “junk phase” of pregnancy. You know Taco Bell, ramen, ice cream, chips. I’ve really tried so hard to keep eating healthy thru my pregnancy but sometimes those cravings have just won out. So anyways, I wasn’t eating my nanners so I just threw them in the freezer skins and all. They thaw enough to use in about 10 -15 minutes. I pull them out whenever I preheat the oven and they are ready to go when I put the recipe together. So easy and a great way to avoid tossing too ripe bananas but you’re not quite ready to use them yet!
Got any unusual baking tips you care to share????

Apple Date Bars

It’s apple season!

Red Delicious, McIntosh, Braeburns, Gala, Granny Smith, and Gold Delicious….mmm! (Kinda makes me wanna make some more subway art!) And I know for some of you it’s also back to school time too. When I wake up in the mornings it’s actually a little cool and I can almost feel Fall in the air. It’s also time for me to start my pre-baby baking. So I figured I would start with these yummy Apple Date Bars. I found the recipe last year at Whole Foods while I was shopping their apple sale. It’s apple-y, cinnamon-y, and oh so tasty! I modified the original recipe by switching to whole wheat flour and baking it in an 8×11 sized pan. So while you can use regular all-purpose flour, I think it tastes WAY better with the whole wheat. It just adds something.

***These babies freeze exceptionally well for up to two months. So I would definitely recommend doubling or even tripling the recipe and getting “your money’s worth” so to speak.

APPLE DATE BARS

The Goods

• 5 Tbs. butter (I prefer unsalted)
• 2/3 C. Brown Sugar
• 3 Tbs. 2% Milk
• 3/4 tsp. Baking Soda
• 1-1/3 C. All Purpose Flour (try whole wheat for a little extra flavor)
• 1/2 Tsp. Ground Cinnamon
• 1/4 Tsp. Ground Cloves
• 1/4 Tsp. Ground Nutmeg
• 1/2 C. Walnut Pieces
• 1/2 C. Dried Dates Pitted and Chopped
• 1/2 c. Apples peeled and chopped
• 1 Large Egg

The Grind

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8×11 inch pan.
2. Cream the butter and brown sugar. Mix in the egg and milk. Stir in the apples.
3. Add the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg, mix thoroughly. Stir in the nuts and dates.
4. Spread dough into greased pan and bake for 20-25 minutes.
5. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes before cutting into 2-inch square bars.

Nutritional Info (based on all-purpose flour, whole wheat would probably help some with this): Total calories 104; Calories from Fat 30; Total Fat 3g; Saturated Fat 0g; Cholesterol 11 mg; Sodium 47 mg; Carbohydrates 18g; Sugar 10 g; Protein 1g.

Subway Art for The Nest

Well, the nest is about 95% complete. I have 2 more small projects and then it will be done! Woohoo! I’ve been so anxious to share some of the things we’ve been working on for it, but it seems that we had so many irons in the fire but none of them we’re 100% ready-until now. So I thought I’d start with one of my favorite projects: subway art. I’ve seen it everywhere in the blog world these days. And I’ve got this crazy obsession with words. It’s a match made in Heaven…or something like that. Someday I’m going to do a whole wall-top to bottom- of words. A quote or Bible verse or something. But for now, here’s my own little version of the fabulous subway art I’ve seen out there.

Did I mention that it’s really pretty easy to do?

• 1. Start with a piece of wood, whatever size you like or have on hand.
• 2.Paint the whole thing a solid color, or whatever suits your fancy.
• 3. Then, find a category or theme that you want to go with. As you can see we went with types of birds to go with the theme in DD’s room. If you want some more ideas, check out this great Subway Art party from a couple of weeks ago over at Tatertots and Jello.
• 4. Finally, you just have to decide if you want to paint the words on, cut them out with a craft cutter, or purchase the letters from a craft or teacher supply store. Ours was made using a Silhouette Craft Cutter. I considered cutting the words from Vinyl but have been having some trouble getting the vinyl to stick to the paint I’ve been using from Lowe’s. Vinyl only seems to stick really well with an extremely smooth surface. So we went with using scrapbook cardstock and Mod Podge. Is there any project that a little Mod Podge can’t help with? I’m considering carrying a little Trial Size  in my purse-you know, just in case. Just kidding, about that last part, but I sure do love the stuff.

Anyways, if you’re curious what the rest of the nest turned out like, stay tuned. Pictures and posts are going to come at a faster pace now that it’s ready to go. Now if we could just get DD ready to come out and meet the world as easily as 1,2,3….