back to school inspiration

Yes, I am totally on the "back to school" bandwagon, well maybe I'm more of a "tag along" this year.   (I will be staying at home with our baby, which I am very grateful for!)  Since I won't be teaching this year, I made a  Pinterest board  about it because it's one of my favorite times of year,  and I am having some trouble letting it go. To bring us all back down to reality, I thought I would label each of my pins as either "do-able" or "NOT."  Feel free to play along with me!

 

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NOT.  Of course, I am in LOVE with this outfit.  Probably isn't very realistic though.  Kids are picky about what they wear, and you want  them to be happy and comfortable on the first day of school!

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NOT.  This is a well intentioned idea.  However, the probability of this "lunch cabinet" system lasting longer than a week is debatable.  Although, I do love how it allows your kids to be independent and make their own lunch, while filtering what they can put in there.  Maybe I would give it a try.

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DO-ABLE.  I am sure parents feel this way, and I KNOW teachers do.  Just remember to give each other GRACE.

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DO-ABLE.  I would consider myself a more organized person, especially when it comes to loose papers.  I always had my students stick to a very specific binder system.  I did feel a little bad sending home a bazillion papers to get signed by parents on top of what the school already was sending home.  Unfortunately, the madness is somewhat inevitable.  Might as well be a little proactive.  You can find some cheap filing bins at Walmart.  Use one bin for each kid and label the files.  You could use labels like "signed papers, need to sign, sports, graded papers, artwork" or "bring to school, forms to sign, math, science, L.A., etc."  Create  a  system that works for you!

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NOT.  First off, who has a doorway entry this big?!  I love this idea, but we need to be realistic.  Maybe, cubbies would be a little more practical.  Or, a chest where all the kids could plop their backpacks.  Bottom line...find a good place for backpacks so they don't end up all over your living room and kitchen ;)

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DO-ABLE!  While you are at it, buy some pop and chocolate for yourself and stick it in the glove compartment of your car for emergencies!

favorite snacks + weekend recap

Since we didn't have any plans, our weekend turned out to be very laid back and restful.  In fact, making this list of my favorite healthy snacks was definitely one of the more productive things I did.  Yes, "low key" would be an understatement to describe our weekend ;)

ANYHOW....If you are looking for some new and interesting snack ideas, these have been my "go to's" for a while now.

1-Quinoa with chopped tomatoes, avocado, feta cheese, ground pepper and lemon juice (cilantro adds a nice touch too).  I have been toasting my pita pockets and eating them with hummus and the quinoa mix.  I will make a batch of this stuff and eat it all week.  It's so fresh and yummy!  Plus, it fills you up.

2-Greek yogurt (I am a big fan of Stonycreek Farms low fat plain) with slivered almonds, berries and bananas (you can also add some honey if you aren't quite ready for straight up plain yogurt ;)  I often eat this as a late morning snack.

3-Basically, I turned my breakfast yogurt snack into a dessert :) Just substitute the greek yogurt for low fat vanilla frozen yogurt (Publix brand is my favorite), or really any frozen yogurt would be delicious with berries.

4-PW's My Mom's Farmhouse Muffins have continued to be a favorite.  I have made these several times since my friend Mary introduced them to me.  They are perfect to freeze and warm up as needed.

 

Okay, enough about eating...let's talk more about how lazy we were this weekend, shall we?



Lazy/bored enough to actually play Bananagrams.  Why do I even try to beat Matt?  I think I have maybe won once when playing against him.  Although, if you can read upside down you might notice that some of his words were a little questionable.

 I cannot believe how big she is getting!  She sat up with all of the other munchkins on the playmat this week at church nursery.

I FINALLY bought Shauna Niequist's new book, Bread and Wine.  I was too lazy to order it online, and Barnes and Noble finally had it in stock.  So far, it has made me really hungry and want red wine...

 

If you have school aged kiddos, I am guessing you were a lot busier than us this weekend.  I made the mistake of going to Target on Sunday.  It was busy busy with back to school shoppers.  Anyway, whatever the weekend was like for you, I hope were able to rest a little too!

 

five fact friday

1-Beacon has been spotted sleeping in the playard numerous times this week.  (He looks  a little creepy in this picture with the red eye)  Quinn likes to play in there sitting up now, so of course Beacon wants to try it out too.
2-Quinn is super chatty these days.  She loves to babble and then randomly let out a huge girly scream.  Maybe this is her personality coming out?  It's pretty cute.  Did I mention she woke up in the middle of the night a few times this week and would just babble to herself?  No crying, just had some stuff to say.
3-To add to my vitamin regimen, and new found allergies, I now also go to physical therapy for my knee pain.  I tell ya, pregnancy made me fall apart!  It was kind of nice to have the babysitter come over and get out in the morning for a change.  I was able to go to my appointment and run a few errands. 
4-We ate out at one of our new favorite restaurants, Greens and Grille.  It's so fresh and yummy.  I love their bread and hummus!
5-I tried some new make up products (recommended by the small things blog).  I have been using both the cover up and lip gloss every day since I bought them!  The cover up is pretty thin but it works well for summer time (has spf in it).  But, the lip gloss is the BEST!  Almay Nudetrients Liquid Lip Balm <3 p="">

Linking up with Lauren from H54F!
 

building up community isn't easy

We have been learning a lot about the idea of community in our couples bible study this summer.  It sounds amazing but it is difficult to put into practice.  I would love to be part of a group of people who is willing to give up anything and everything for the sake of helping those around me.  This comes a little more naturally when you are with people who you know will do the same for you too.  But, it is a whole lot harder with people who you know may or may not give the same back...those types of relationships can become draining.

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For the past week I have been praying about opportunities to build community.  My prayers have sounded like this, "Lord, please help me to be more aware of opportunities today where I can be an influence and build up community."  I went for a walk later in the morning with Quinn and ran into a woman and her daughter that Matt and I randomly met at his half marathon seven months ago.  When we first met them, I was very pregnant and we made the connection that we actually lived in the same neighborhood.  We had intentions of meeting up but things got crazy and life went on.  It was exciting to meet up with another mom in the neighborhood (and, her other friend from the neighborhood too).  That small amount of convenient adult interaction during the day can make a big difference!

So, big "yay!" for building community, right?!  Yes, well, back to the hard part.  Sometimes I get frustrated with the "breaking through" part in my friendships.  I personally don't do well with much fluff.  Now, obviously there is a time and place for everything, and it's important to be polite.  But, sometimes I have a hard to time connecting with others because I feel like they are not being "real" with me.  Let me give you an example... "Yes, being a mom is amazing.  But, oh my gosh, it is SO HARD sometimes."  You see, some people cut that sentence off after, "Yes, being a mom is amazing."  I am not that person.

Whenever I have interactions like that I start to feel bad about myself and sour about the friendship.  But, isn't that what the devil wants?  To break up the potential for community?!  I realized that I have been looking at relationships from a purely selfish point of view.  What can I get out of this?  How does this person make me feel?  My sister pointed out that maybe those other women don't feel comfortable digging in that quickly.  Hmmm...maybe, I should try praying for the friendship or good conversation that might initiate some honest conversation.

I wish I would have come to that revelation sooner!  I am working on looking at relationships as a way to serve others rather than serve myself.

Mark 10:45 "For even the son of man did not come to be served, but to serve..."

"Greatness is not measured by achievement but by service for Christ's kingdom"
Excerpt from Our Daily Bread (July 2013)

The most important thing we can do is serve others!  Now, that's a different way of looking at things, isn't it?!

Let me know if you found this post encouraging or helpful.  I still have a lot more to say on this topic, and would love to share if you are interested!