What I've Been Up To

Here are pictures of some of the things I've been up to lately:

For $10, I got 6 cloth-diaper covers on eBay! I have a ga-zillion prefolds (the inserts that will go under these covers). So for $10, I hope to finish diapering my daughter who is 14 months old until she is potty-trained! My son who is 2.5 is showing a lot of readiness for using the potty. He can stay dry and pee successfully throughout the day. Its just the other kind of potty that he hasn't done yet. This will come soon enough, and I must be cheerful and patient with him! Some things don't come naturally to us, and using the potty is one of those things that need to be learned. I have been using cloth wipes for a few weeks now and they are working wonderfully!

This is an air freshener I bought at the farmer's market a few weeks ago. It is made with lavender essential oil, and the bamboo wicks soak it up and fill the house with its beautiful scent. The yellow canister next to it is a garage sale find that I love!

I'm so excited to have kefir grains (they have a rubbery, tapioca-like consistency)! You put the grains in milk and let it sit out on the counter for several hours until it is the taste you want. We've been letting it sit out for about 24 hours, and in the morning have been making strawberry/banana kefir smoothies. Kefir has recently been named one of the 6 super-foods for health. It has a taste like yogurt, and it adds the good bacteria back to your digestive system. Do a search on the Internet for it, and you will find loads of information too. I have to say that I have stopped having my nightly stomach aches. It is good for all sorts of things, like boosting your immune system, etc., etc., etc. The kids aren't totally sold on it, but I'm still playing with ways to use it that they will like. I made pancakes a few mornings this week using only kefir to wet the batter, and the kids didn't even notice. You can use kefir in place of buttermilk, so I thought the pancakes actually tasted better! I have some set to the side to make some sourdough bread next week. I'm new to this, so I don't have a lot of information to share other than the research I've done for myself on the Internet.

When we packed, there were several boxes of things that remained in boxes throughout the last 3 years at our old home. This made me sad, but spurred me to take a different course this time around. So as I've sorted through boxes at our new house, I've found several odds and ends of decorations and things. I had an empty spot on my front porch, so I placed a beautiful old sewing table that my mother gave me there, and have been placing these things on it. Today as we had some old friends stop by for a visit, they commented how lovely and welcoming this was. Its good to get everything unpacked and used!

On a not-so-light note, I've been bothered by how unwelcoming some can be. For a few hours yesterday, I really let this bother me, but then I realized, it is no different than how I can be! Before I moved, I was very involved in a church, and became quite comfortable with my little life, never really looking up to the new family in church, or to the new mom struggling in the grocery store. I had to turn my thoughts inward and ask God to forgive me. Now that I'm the new one in town, I realize how isolated it can be, and I'm so sorry for the people that I have hurt in the past. Thankfully, I have met wonderful women, and most wonderfully we now live close to my parents, but I hope this feeling reminds me to look around to those who may be feeling alone and need a friend.