Blessing Bags!

Growing up, my parents always tried to teach me the valuable lesson of not taking what you have for granted, and that somewhere, someone always has it worse than you. I very distinctly remember every year right before Christmas, my parents making me go through all of my toys and fill a few trash bags full of stuff. I wont lie, I hated it. They were my toys. But every year, I did it, and we would take those bags of toys to the local battered women's shelter and give the toys to the kids staying there. Of course, now I understand why they made me do it, it was a great lesson, and it got rid of my extras. We will be doing the same thing with our daughter once she gets old enough to understand. She may not like it, but I know she'll someday be thankful we did it.

This lesson has obviously stuck with me, and while out and about with my family a few days ago, we came across a homeless man on the side of the road. I felt bad for him, and I knew I had a few dollars in my wallet. I tried to hand them to him, but traffic was about to start moving and he wouldnt have been able to retrieve the money without risking being hit by a car. Now, realize physics was not my favorite class in high school, I tossed the money towards him, fully believing it would reach him. Wrong. It barely made it out my window before floating and fluttering to the ground. I felt terrible. Terrible doesnt even describe it. I honestly felt like I looked like the biggest jerk on the face of the planet.

So I decided that night that my family and I would be putting together what we now call "blessing bags". I had seen a similar idea on pinterest last year and saved it away for something to do in the future. Well, it was finally time to use it!

We went to the Dollar Tree to get our supplies. You cant beat everything for $1! I didnt want this project to put a damper on us financially, and lets face it, that stuff (most of it) is as good as stuff you find at Walmart.

Lauryn was super excited to help mommy put the blessing bags together! Each bag was a reusable canvas tote, we figured that a reusable bag would be better for the environment and the homeless.

We used a large ziploc bag to put the basic hygiene items in. They included:
  - Tooth brush & tooth brush case
  - Tooth paste
  - A small bag of floss picks
  - 2 packs of tissues
  - A pack of baby wipes
  - A stick of deoderant
  - Small first aid kit
  - Razor
  - A comb
  - A box of feminine care products for the women

The "food bag" was filled with the following:
  - A bottle of water
  - A Small apple juice juice box
  - Cup of applesauce
  - 2 packs of peanuts
  - 4 granola bars
  - Breath mints and Gum
  - 2 of each: plastic fork, spoon, and knife

This was just a small bag of miscellaneous items. Including:
  - 2 pens
  - Some change in a coin roll
  - Reusable drinking cup

Once we put everything inside the bags, they ended up being about half full! Not too shabby if I do say so myself!

I knew I was going to need an easy way to tell the gender of the bags apart, and I also knew I wanted to provide them with a few resources. So I figured, what better way to do that than by printing the resources on pink or blue paper. I included the name and phone number of the 2 shelters in our area. On the backs of these resource cards, I also wrote a small note to them. Kind words and encouragement.

The 4 bags we made fit nicely behind the drivers side seat in my car. Perfect to easily grab and hand out the window!

Friday Fives!

Here are 5 super helpful tips to make your life easier!

1: Use an old (but clean) baby wipe container to store a roll of yarn in. It will keep the yarn clean and tangle free.

2. Fighting with your little one over how many more bites they need to take of their dinner? Allow them to roll a pair of dice and determine their own fate. Im so thankful Lauryn is a good eater, but I foresee these days coming soon.

3. Traveling with wine? Put an arm floatie around the bottle, blow it up and pack it in your suit case! The floatie will protect your bottle, and your mommy juice.

4. Do you dread craft time cleanup? Use a lint roller to pick up glitter and tiny pieces of construction paper.

5. Does your dishwasher need a clean? Pour a packet of Lemonade Kool-Aid (and only lemonade!) into the detergent cup and run a full cycle while the dishwasher is empty. The citric acid in the powder will take care of the stains.

Be sure to check back next week for even more useful tips and tricks!

Recipe Time: Homemade Salsa!

Salsa is such a staple in our home. My husband loves it! But I hate buying it every grocery trip because, well lets be honest, even the cheap not so good isnt that cheap! I came across a recipe a few weeks or so ago for homemade salsa and thought why not give it a try! So I planned to buy all the ingredients and we would have freshly made salsa for taco night! Heres what youll need:

1 28oz jar of whole peeled tomatoes with the juices
2 jars of rotel peppers and chilis (you can get both mild, hot or a combination of both like we did)
1 clove of garlic
1/2 an onion
1 jalepeno (seeded and deveined if you dont like so much spice to your salsa)
1/2 a lime
fresh cilantro
salt

1. If youre food processor is big enough, throw everything in it (except the lime) and process until it meets the consistency you like. If you have a small processor (like mine unfortunately) just process everything separate (or as much as yours can handle).
I had to do most of my things seperate, then pour it into a bowl and mix everything thoroughly at the end. Not a big deal, it still tastes great!

2. Squeeze the juice of 1/2 lime into the salsa and either process until mixed, or  mix by hand.

Mmm salsa! It keeps in the fridge for quite a long time! I think I kept ours in for 2-3 weeks, just in a bowl covered with plastic wrap, and it was still just as tasty as the day it was made! Next time I make it though Im going to try canning! Also! It makes a ton of salsa! I believe the ingredients cost close to $6-$7, but it makes almost 6 cups of salsa if I remember correctly! Waaay cheaper than store bought! Tastes better too :)

Bust open a bag of tortilla chips and dig in! I promise youll love it!

Sunday Shoutout! - Rants From Mommyland

Happy Mother's Day! I figured its only fitting to do a Sunday Shoutout on a blog for mommies on Mother's Day so thats just what were going to do!

If you have not made Rants From Mommyland a part of your daily routine yet, you are missing out! Its a hilariously comical blog about mommyhood. From wiping noses, wiping butts, stereotypes, and an inspiring need to help those in need, Kate, Lydia, and Guru Louise have it all covered.

I honestly feel as though some days they are peeking in my windows and using my life as their next blog post. Theres no other possible explanation as to how they know so much!

Heres a little excerpt from their blog, on whether RFML is the right blog for you!:

"If however, you experience the (completely understandable) urge to commit homicide when your husband says he'll be home by 7 and then you call him at 7:15 and he's still at his desk, while you attempt to cook over the din of screaming children, unload the dishwasher for the third time, and wipe off other people's bodily fluids - stay put. We like you already.

MommyLand is just right for folks who love their families but sometimes wonder:

• Is it supposed to be this hard?*
• Is this normal? 
• What on earth is that smell?
• I love you so much but do you have to keep wiping your nose on me?
• If we laugh at everything, does it all make easier and more fun?

The answers are yes, yes, we have no idea, yes and even yesser.  Welcome to MommyLand! We're so glad you're here."

 

So head on over to RFML and check them out! I pinky promise you wont be disappointed!

And again, Happy Mother's Day to you ladies, you cape-less Heros you!

Mother's Day Craft!

So I'm a little late with this post, but! this project is super easy, super cute, and can be done right now! Gather up your littles, some paint and some paper. Youre about to make the best bouquet of Mothers Day flowers, the kind that never die! We chose to do 3 different colored flowers. These cute little cards got sent out to Lauryn's grandmothers for Mothers Day. They all loved them! Heres what you do...


1. Dip your childs hand in the lightest color paint you have (we did yellow first, then red, then purple). You could also use a paintbrush to apply the paint to your kiddos hand, which is what we did, it makes things a lot easier!

2. Have them do an open hand stamp onto the piece of paper. Then proceed with the next 2 (or more) colors.

3. Allow the handprint flowers to dry, then using a small brush, paint on flower stems, and leaves.

4. Once the stems and leaves are done, paint a pretty bow around the flowers, giving the illusion of them being tied together in a little bouquet.

Tada! The whole project took us about 20 minutes from start to finish. Cute, easy, and in my book, a better bouquet of flowers than any amount of money could buy!