What to do when you have too much to do

The next four weeks will be absolutely crazy for us here. Actually it has been already. Holy week is one of the busiest times of the year for my husband as a deacon, and he does work a full time job too. We are in the middle of state testing at school, with proms, field trips, musical performances, track meets and on and on. For many of us we have “seasons” that we are busy. Whether it is the college student who has to juggle work and finals, or the mom who has 3 kids in 4 sports. I normally try to keep our schedule a little open but the girls are getting more involved in school, sports and drama.  Lucky for us school ends in about one month. You read that right we will be done May 17th. However it does not seem like summer will be any slower.
So what is one to do when one gets too busy.

1. Eat Breakfast Every Day – even if it is just a piece of fruit and a handful of nuts, take the time to eat something.
2. Take 15 minutes each day to look over your schedule, make sure you know where you are going when
3. Be sure to drink enough water every day
4. Go to bed – Yes I know that there is a lot to get done, hopefully this season will be over soon, sometimes we can catch up on laundry and housecleaning later
5. Have a go to outfit or two that you can wear just about everywhere. I have my favorite Little Black Dress. I absolutely love it because I can dress it up or down, it can be casual or elegant, it takes me from day to night, teaching to meetings, to kids practices. The best part is that I can wear it more than one way and more than once a week and no one notices.
6. Pick one chore and keep up with it. For me it is the dishes. If the dishes are done and the sink is empty I feel instantly better and I feel like I can make a quick dinner, and dinner is always good.
7. Take 5 minutes for prayer or quiet time. Yes sitting hiding in the car while kids are at practice counts
8. Smile and take a deep breath. Remember you do not need to do everything
9. Ask for help. Ask your family, ask your neighbors and ask your friends. Your kids can do more than you think they can.

What are your tips and tactics for surviving a busy time?

Adventures in Kombucha Making Your Own Scoby

About a year ago I discovered Kombucha., yet I was afraid of it for some reason. It seemed mysterious and foreign. I decided to try some store bought kombucha, actually they opened one in the store for us to sample it. I was hooked. I have been ever since. I buy several a week. There are many benefits to drinking kombucha is you are not familiar with it.  One draw back is that it costs anywhere from $2.50 to $4.00 a bottle. I considered kombucha my “Starbucks”.  As you can imagine my husband who found out how much Cliff Bars cost  was keen for me to try to make my own kombucha. Making your own costs about $1.50 a gallon. A  huge savings.
For those of you not familiar with kombucha in a nut shell it a drink made from tea that is fermented. It is rich in probiotics and thus aids in digestion and is detoxifying.
I thought about ordering a scoby online since I could not find anyone who already had some.  I opted to buy a bottle of raw organic kombucha at my local health food store. The people at the health food store assured me that brewing my own kombucha is easy and can be quite fun..  I can assure it it was fun. My son, Pumpkin (7) and I decided to make an experiment with it.  Let me tell you the hardest part is the waiting.
Since I did not purchase a scoby I had to grow my own.  I bought some organic kombucha, the unflavored variety works best, though you can use a one with ginger. 
I assure you that this is as simple as making some sun tea.
To make your own Scoby You will need

• a clean glass jar
• a bottle of store bought Organic Raw Kombucha
• Sugar
• one tea bag
• filtered water
• a kitchen towel
• time and patience

That is all you need. Like yeast scoby likes things a little warm. The week I decided to grow mine it was a little cool so it took about 10 days to grow a full size mother. The best thing is that my “mother” is already growing babies. Once you grow your scoby you can begin brewing your kombucha. We enjoyed our fist kombucha this week, but you will have to wait to here about that, so be sure to come back to read about flavoring your kombucha.

this post is linked up with Frugal Days Sustainable Ways, Wildcrafting Wednesday

First Communion Take Two

My son will be making his First Communion this Saturday for the second time. Say What? You read that right. My son made his first communion back in the Fall of 2009. He went with his father and older sister to a work day at the Monastery with Father Kirby. While there they attended a mass. Father Kirby happened to accidently give Pumpkin communion. As soon as mass was over Father Kirby realized what had happened and sat down to talk to the boy. It was determined that the sacrament was valid, even though Pumpkin was only 5 1/2 years old. Yup, at 5 1/2 her had a complete understanding of the sacrament. In fact this occasion became a matter of discussion and a teaching moment for Deacon G and his classmates while they were in formation.
Since it was not fair to “take away” a sacrament we allowed Pumpkin to continue to receive communion but decided that we would have him receive instruction with his classmates, and enjoy the traditional First Communion Mass.  We also wanted to be able to have family attend and celebrate with us this time. Especially since MOM (me) did not get to be there for the first First Communion.
The banner is made and we are ready. At 3pm on April 21st we will be celebrating a First Communion Mass with all of his friends. Most importantly of we will have pictures to document it this time not just the one taken on a phone camera after the mass (see above).

What can I say my family has a pattern of celebrating the sacraments in unusual ways. Wait till I tell write about Pi and her baptism/anointing of the sick.


this post is linked up to The Kennedy Adventures

Our Teens Need Us

I am pretty sure that most of the people who read my blog are good parents. That is unless you are spending too much time on Pinterest and Facebook. Every kid needs someone, if mom or dad does not take an interest in their lives they still need someone to be their cheerleader, an ear to listen or a shoulder to cry on.
Kids of all ages need someone. Working at a school I see how easy it is for people to love all the little ones but by the time some kids get to high school the still need someone who believes in them, who will listen to help and someone who will help them and stand up for them. All kids need help

• the smart one whose parents wanted an athlete
• the cheerleader whose parents are getting a divorce
• the quiet kid who doesn’t talk to anyone else
• the girl who just broke up with her boyfriend
• the kid who is failing math or just needs help in English
• the mean girl (yes she is probably hurting on the inside)
• the class clown
• the tough guy/girl

When I my kids were little I was an attentive parent who nursed on cue and carried my babies in a sling. I engaged them in many ways, playing with them/ I listen to them, talk to them and try to build them up. But so many kids do not get that at home. Their parents may be busy with work, some of them working more than 45 minutes away. As teens they are often left to their own devices, to entertain themselves, and live with their own self doubts.
Many of us are quite attentive to the needs of our children when they are small but what about the older child? How do we handle them? We hold our babies close, we carry them and nurture them. Our teens need the same, even if they are not actually of our blood. Many of us encounter teens at church, homeschool groups and neighborhoods. So how we can help these teens even if they are not our own?

• You can still show teens affection, a small hug, a soft touch, a pat on the shoulder, sometimes that is all it takes.
• Listen, just be quiet and listen, some teens need to think out loud, just be sounding board without judging.
• Be available for them, if a teen wants your attention be there for them, be excited for them when they are excited. They need that Teens are still fragile.
• Support them, they are going through a difficult time. You think the toddler years were bad the teen years are even more tumultuous
• Pray for them, teens need your prayers. My mother always said that teens need and get an extra guardian angel, but they still need us.
• Take an interest in what they are doing, even if you don’t know a thing about golf or softball or opera, learn at least one thing about what it is they are doing, better yet ask them to tell you about it. They would love to tell you.
• Just be there for them, some teens are more quiet they just need someone to sit by them and be there for them.

How are you there for the teens in your Life?




this post is linked up to Simple Lives Thursday

Do Miracles Happen?

Let me start this by saying I am a realist, a pragmatists, when someone asks me if the glass is half full or half empty, I am most likely looking for my glass because I have lost it.
It is not that I don’t believe in miracles it is that I am looking for the proof. But I would have to say that I just might have to being believing.When I lose something I always say a quick prayer to St. Anthony.  Some of you regular readers may remember last December when my Mother-in-law was hit by a pick up truck while crossing the road one morning.  When my husband called me to give me the news, he had just pulled into work and immediately pulled out. By he drove East to West across Tulsa, my mother in law had been moved to a Level 1 Trauma Center. My oldest was home from school the day of the accident exempt from semester finals. She and I immediately began packing bags for everyone. We did not expect her to make it through the surgeries.  According to my mother in law at one time they gave her a 5% chance of living, at another time they suspected brain damage and said that she had a 5% chance of being able to recognize a person as a human being. The day after doctors said that she started to wake up.
At one point Father Kirby suggested that we pray to Blessed Seelos,

 miracles had been attributed to him. I said a few quick intercessory prayers to Blessed Seelos, and my husband said a novena to him. Not wanting to put all of our eggs in one basket we also took some holy dirt from Chimayo to her. What has happened to my mother in law is nothing short of a miracle. She who was given a 5% chance of living just celebrated another birthday this past Holy Saturday.  The most amazing part to some of you is that my mother in law knows nothing of this, and she is not Catholic, (Deacon G converted)
Do you believe in miracles? Have you ever experienced one?



This post is linked up to Scriptures and Saints Sunday

Can you Leave Eggs Out?

I enjoy buying my family good eggs, I like to buy them directly from people I know. We tried raising our own chickens but we have found that it was more cost effective to buy our eggs.I really wish we could raise our own chickens like Dwija but it has not worked out for us.   I have always known that fresh eggs did not have to be refrigerated immediately. In fact one of my egg ladies keeps a beautiful egg basket full of them on her kitchen counter..
You may be wondering why I am writing about eggs today. Well it is interesting story. After dropping off kids at school today I was cleaning out the car in preparation for a road trip with my little guy.  Much to my surprise when I went to put something in the trunk I discovered some eggs I had bought at the store on Friday. I was surprised and bemused. I wondered if these eggs could still be good. After all these eggs were store bought, though they claimed to be cage free I am pretty sure they did not come from happy chickens that roam outside.
Did you know that there is a way to check your eggs to make sure they are fresh? Simply get a bowl of water and if they eggs float they are bad and throw them away. Guess what? My eggs all passed the test, but just to be sure I cracked one open. It looked good, not watery and the yolk was intact. It did not smell bad either. Since my husband was still skeptical I took the egg I check and fed it to the dogs, they are all fine.
Yes Virginia, you can leave eggs out. I would like to add that the temperatures were mild while the eggs were in the trunk of the car.
How about you, do you have an interesting story of food left forgotten somewhere?

10 Things I do NOT do

1. I do not make my own bread anymore.  I did master this skill and became quite adept at it. I love using the recipe in Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day. When your health dictates that you eat gluten free you have to make certain sacrifices. Really I don’t miss it too often. but a good loaf of bread sometimes calls my name, but at least it s not piping hot out of the oven with melted butter on it. Some day I hope to go back to eating bread again, but if this past week is any indication it won’t be soon.
2. I don’t’ volunteer too much anymore, I limit what I do. My time is important to me and I chose to spend it with my family. I do not get involved in everything, I am not a PTA mom and a Cub Scout Leader, I don’t teacher Sunday School. I used to do all those things before but I have found that doing all this took me away from my family too much.
3. I do not like to go shopping, I hate it. Really I do, I don’t like spending money, I never seem to find what I want, I don’t like the crowds and don’t get me started on customer service. I would like to add at this point that I worked in retail and retail management for more 8 years. I understand how hard the job is, and what dealing with customers is like. I have been there and done that, and for that reason I expect at least good customer service.
4. I do not program electronics. I have no patience for electronic things, setting up phones, computers and the such. Once they are set up I can handle most things but setting them up nope, not me. So glad we don’t have the flashing time on the VCR any more, since we do not having one in the living room.
5. I don’t do perfumes or scented lotions. Most commercial scents are made with synthetic oil, not essential oils. Essential oils can be expensive.  I recently priced some for my oldest daughter and it was running $25 per .5 ounce. Not 5 oz. but 1/2 oz. Synthetic fragrances often contain endocrine disrupters and they bring on chemical sensitivities in me. About 20 years ago I could not be a room with people wearing perfume without eyes burning and tearing up. This included church, so I would sit in the back near the door to get some fresh air.
6. I don’t clean my kids rooms. I used to do this for and then with them, but now I have stopped. I have not quite gotten to my mother’s stage of closing their doors when we have company though.
7. I mentioned before that I do not do electronics. that goes for not only programming them but for having a houseful of them. My kids did not have any gaming systems in the house until a couple of years ago when we got a Wii, no DS’s no X-box. I prefer my kids get their play the old fashioned way, by going outside.
8. I don’t do my kids’ school or art projects for them and everyone can tell just by looking at them. (reference the picture at the top)
9. I do not abide bad customer service. As I mentioned above, I spent some time working retail/management. I know what good customer service is, when I get bad customer service I tend to let the person who is rendering service know that it is bad, not only that I follow up with managers. There is really no excuse for rudeness. On the flip side when I get good customer service I let the person rendering said service know how much I appreciate them going out of their way for me.
10. I don’t do perfect lawns. I never ever wanted to the perfect suburban lawn. I always wanted a yard, complete with the wild flowers weeds. Did you know that some people consider violets weeds? Seriously, violets are pretty and purple.

What are some things you don't do?