Potty Training: To MnM or Not to MnM

V goes to the potty at home, just not consistently. We've tried lots of little tricks and have had success for short burst with almost everything we tried; however, nothing works all of the time, everyday except going without (and we all know that just isn't practical or appropriate all the time). So I started reading and asking around and some of friends used mini M-n-M's as a special treat. Do you remember those? They are TINY.  Most of the time V goes and she forgets to even ask for one, but every now and again she says, "I want a blue one." It reinforces colors right?!?!  Can you tell I feel guilty? Should I continue this with a natural treat sans food coloring etc?

I don't mention it often or pressure her because sometimes she shocks me and will go all day long, and other days she always says, "I'm okay" when I ask her.

Big girl panties have helped, we use some cloth pull up trainers but she can't wear those to school and they are kind of hard for her to pull up and down herself. I can tell she knows when she has gone potty in them because she ASKS for a fresh. This totally reinforces that she is ready for toilet training. So we have explored some disposable training pants to send to school and use when she can't run around au-natural.

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Eat.Shop.Sleep.Repeat.

Okay, so maybe the title is a slight exaggeration considering we are really trying to avoid the excess that often occurs during the holiday time BUT let me tell you about some for real deals we have gotten that hasn't busted our budget and will help us get through the holiday season with ease and bring the new year in with STOCKED pantry! Let's just say I have a stash of O.N.E. Coconut Water that would make a prepper envious.

Honest Company has a sale so I stocked up on Vivi's training pants that she needs for school. She prefers the stars pattern and can pull them up herself! 25% off with code THANKSGIVING good till 12/1/2014.

Honest Company

Of course, I got the Black Friday deal at PlantoEat.com. Half off for a whole year of meal planning...Love this site. I've been waiting for this sale for MONTHS!!



I grabbed a few actual gifts for family/teachers/friends, but for the most part we are giving some love from the kitchen this year!

Ryan's working on a trifecta rub and I grabbed some adorable favor tins to pack the seasonings in and some sparkly ribbon. We tried this on some toasted pumpkin seeds as a snack while cooking Thanksgiving supper; they were so tasty! Who knew that Ry's rub tweaked a smidge would be good on EVERYTHING. Well, he did.

I hope you had a restful holiday and you start the season with a smile. Onward to the Christmas Tree farm!

Incredibly productive, but COLD weekend

V and I are hanging sans hubby today. It's still somehow crazy busy in the house. We've managed to play outside, harvest basil, do laundry, go shopping, and make chicken salad and chicken stock out of roasted chicken leftovers. I could've titled this post the miraculous journey of one batch of chicken stock, but it's not all gone so the future is unknown for the remains.  The pot was like a Mary Poppin's carpet bag. The chicken stock then made went its separate ways some into the freezer, some into a batch of Butternut Soup (relish, but not as good as the hubs version), and some into a pot of collards. I "put away" several ears of corn after being inspired by Vivian on A Chef's Life. Now with a batch of Southern Style Lima Beans in the crock pot and cornbread on the to do list, we are basically turning into a Kountry Kitchen around here!
Feels good to use things up. Really good.
Alls that's left to do now is daydream about a compost pile.

Check out this plan:
http://thewannabehomesteader.com/how-to-build-an-easy-compost-bin-with-no-power-tools/


Southern Limas in Crock Pot:

-Lima Beans (1 bag, I buy in bulk from Whole Foods and like the REALLY large ones) soak them for about 6-8 hours before hand
- water/stock
- 1 tsp cajun seasoning
- 1/2 tsp. onion powder
- 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp. other random seasoning you need to use (this time is was thyme, last time it was italian flakes)
- few dashes of red pepper flakes (optional)
- 1 smoked turkey neck (ham hock works too)

Soak limas. Add them to the crock pot and add water/stock to cover them. Add smoked turkey neck. Add seasoning and stir.  Cook on low overnight, checking to make sure water is in the crock pot every now and again.

YUM!
*Gotta give credit to a fellow teacher for my own adaptation of these. She brought them to a pot luck and I've been hooked ever since!*

Cloth Diapering Reasons...

In my efforts to convince others to join in on my cloth diapering obsession I wanted to post some of my routines and just a bit about why we love cloth diapering in our house.We also use cloth wipes in order to reinforce all our reasons for cloth diapering in the first place.

As a reminder, everyone is different. These are the reasons why we chose to cloth diaper.

1) It's better for our baby. Vivi has very sensitive skin and we want to avoid any harsh chemicals. Ryan has eczema and so we are aware of the dilemmas she could potentially face. We wanted to avoid that at all costs. People argue about this one, but here is some research on the matter:http://toxipedia.org/display/toxipedia/Diapers

2) It's better for the environment. (This one people like to argue because they say that you have to use power and water to wash said cloth diapers, BUT we use eco-friendly detergent, wash with small amounts of water, and line dry.)

3) To save money. We have not purchased any disposable diapers. We were gifted some Seventh Generation which are the disposables that also would match up with our #1 and #2 reasons for cloth diapering. These disposable diapers are a really great option;however, they are SO ridiculously overpriced. Even generic brand disposables and wipes get expensive. Here's some info on cost effectiveness:
http://www.babyworks.com/cost-comparisons

4) I hate taking out the trash. Seriously, it's scary back there. I'd rather wash a load of dipes any day instead of venturing where the spiders and snakes could potentially be lurking.

5) They are so CUTE!!! Who needs pants when your diaper is adorable.

Hanging is the wet bag where we put soiled diapers. The bookshelf has all the clean diapers.

Here is our changing table set up. We have all our cloth diapers at hand and the cloth wipes are in the warmer with a wipe solution I mix up.

Spring Break, emphasis on the SPRING

Spring is here, so what now? Spring feels more like a new year to me than any day in January. It is now, more than ever, that I want to change things, start fresh, begin again. I have intense desires to use my steam mop, drink nettle tea, and play in the dirt. And here I am sitting on the porch on yet another dreary day during my Spring Break filling my time being OCD and making lists of all the things I'll do when the sun comes out. There is one thing I do every spring, it's become a tradition of sorts. Heres to the tradition being started in Beaufort. Top 5 Reasons Why You Should Plant An Herb Garden Too!

1. In the long run it's way cheaper. Herbs are expensive, and it seems that whenever you need one for a recipe the store is always sold out and its not Farmer's Market hours.


2. You want your porch to look nice anway. Herbs are visually appealing. They come in all shapes and sizes, and if you forget to trim them all they will do is flower, how awful is that.


3. They smell good. I planted lavender because I've recently become addicted to the smell, and I can't sit around smelling my laundry detergent all day.


4. Herbs make beautiful garnishes. Even if you aren't drinking mojitos or bloody mary's adding a sprig to your iced tea makes reading a magazine on a Sunday a more enjoyable experience.


5. (And for all my lady friends who wouldn't accept the number 5 reason being that my favorite color is green.) The cute guy working in the garden department at Lowes. Make sure you buy organic choice, he'll have to do a price check.

What's the point, again?

After moving to Beaufort I struggled to live my veganish lifestyle. It didn't work. In fact, I found that it was causing me more problems than it was helping me with. I kept asking myself, why am I doing this? I was going broke. I was gaining weight (from eating unhealthy vegan things instead of healthy non-vegan things) and my social life and relationship started to become ridiculously boring. All the things I used to love I had begun to hate. So here's what I decided---I'm just going to do what I want and be conscious. Check things twice. Three times even, but if the time is right and I want to try some goat cheese I'm going to go for it. Ahhh, I feel better now. I can now post again on Saymmmm without guilt. :) Life is good.

South Carolina

Help me choose some furniture..

This is my couch, but which TV stand? OR a white TV Stand?

Or this one: