Dress up Days Are Here

I have been so busy lately, that I somehow thought I already wrote this post.  The to-do list in my head is just so lengthy that I guess I got really excited about crossing stuff off of it and this got inadvertently crossed off.  Granted, I did post some of the photos on Facebook, so that is probably part of the reason I forgot.  But, a few Facebook photos don't tell the whole story.  I want to remember some of this and I want Abbey to be able to read this someday.  So, here we go.

A couple of weeks ago, Abbey was sitting on our large leather recliner in the living room.  She lay back, relaxed and then asked me to go get her drink.  I asked her, "Are you Queen Abbey"?   She replied, "no, I am just Abbey."  Then, I asked, "Oh, are you princess Abbey?"  She again replied that she was "just Abbey".  About 30 minutes later, she gasped loudly exclaimed, "I need my blue crown!"  She said it suddenly, out of the blue, like it was some big epiphany!  I guess she was still thinking about my queen and princess comments and she thought that although she wasn't an actual queen or princess, she could pretend to be one.

I had purchased a few fun dress-up costumes at a garage sale a little over a year ago that I hoped she might enjoy some day.   Most were hung up in the back of her closet.  A couple of little princess crowns were included in that group of costumes.  Luke was eager to help her find the crown.  He was the first up the stairs and we soon found a crown.  But, Abbey said,"No, not that one, the Blue one."  Oh, I didn't even know she knew she had a blue crown.   But, apparently, she knew all about it.  We found it and placed it on her head.  Then, she needed a beautiful gown to go with it.  We all were having a fun time dressing Abbey up. We were having so much fun, that I failed to get a photo of her first beautiful dress up costume.  She first donned a white ball gown to go with her blue crown.  But suddenly, she noticed the little princess ballerina leotard in her closet, and needed that one on immediately.  The outfit wasn't complete though without the little white pretend heels.

So, we did a quick costume switch, and that leotard was what she wore the rest of the afternoon.  I captured some photos of her in that costume.  The girl moves VERY quickly, so I didn't capture too many.

Here is Abbey, as she is saying she is "being a pretty ballerina".

 Now, this post really isn't anything special to most people. But, it is still something I want to remember.  I have been told to cherish these precious moments.  Someday, our little Abbey girl will be donning a wedding dress, instead of a pretend costume.  For now, she is enjoying being a little girl and doing "little girl things."  What's funny is that I figured that little girls who enjoyed dressing up were in some ways guided by their mothers to find the love for that.  But, I guess that just isn't always the case.  Abbey gets giddy about going shopping (it happens very rarely for us, as Luke doesn't enjoy it).  When we do go shopping, she will exclaim things in a super-high squeaky voice such as, "those shoes are so cute",  and "oh my goodness look at that pretty pink dress!" Apparently, she also really enjoys trying on "outfits."  I promise you, folks, this girl was not groomed by me to enjoy these things (although I do enjoy the rare shopping trip for something other than groceries).  I guess she was just born this way!

Luke, on the other hand, doesn't enjoy dressing up yet.  But, he has several acrobatic tricks that he enjoys performing.  SO, I may as well end the post with a photo or two of Luke.  Luke was in Awana Cubbies last year (and he will be attending coming up again in September).  It is such a wonderful program.   Many times, at the end of the class, the kids could volunteer to perform their "talents".  Luke tells me this is the one he performed:  the spin jump.

 

 

I am so thankful to have this special time with the kids, watching them grow and and helping to shape, mold and teach them.  It is also so much fun seeing their personalities grow and development. 

A Recipe for Some Awesome Toothpaste

Those of you who are regular readers of this blog know that we have been taking a journey towards totally clean living for the past year and a half or so.  Experiencing cancer seems to have that effect on a lot of people--you want to do everything you can to keep it away.  One of the things that we changed soon after we began our journey was toothpaste.

Now, you may be thinking, "why is changing toothpaste important?  It is not something you swallow."  First off, your mouth acts as a vehicle to absorb chemicals into the bloodstream very rapidly.  The time for those chemicals to be circulating in your bloodstream is super short.  That is why there are many pills that you simply place under your tongue.  Second, even though you do not intend to swallow the toothpaste, some of it does get inadvertently ingested.  So, we decided to select toothpastes that we wouldn't mind actually ingesting.  When we first began looking at ingredients in toothpaste, we were shocked by what was actually in the stuff that we purchased regularly and placed in our mouths multiple times per day.

Some of those nasty ingredients found in main-stream toothpastes are the following

• sodium lauryl sulfate (According to the Environmental Working Group's Skin Deep: Cosmetic Safety Reviews,6 research studies on SLS have shown links to irritation of the skin and eye, organ toxicity, Developmental/reproductive toxicity, neurotoxicity, endocrine disruption, ecotoxicology, and biochemical or cellular changes, possible mutations and cancer)
• Sodium fluoride (a by-product of aluminium production found in rat poisons and industrial pesticides)
• triclosan (a carcinogenic pesticide)
• propylene glycol (an active component in anti-freeze which can lead to brain, liver and kidney abnormalities)
• DEA (a carcinogenic hormone disrupter) 
• and, a long list of other unpronouncable chemicals. 

When we continued to look for a totally clean toothpaste, we even found that some of the "cleaner" toothpastes we viewed the ingredient list on at Whole Foods and Natural Grocers contained things like carrageenan (which we are staying away from for reasons listed in the link).   So, like many personal care products, we were left with the obvious solution to simply make our own.  And believe me, it is super simple.

The recipe and its benefits:

The recipe we like includes approximately 4 parts xylitol, 4 parts coconut oil, 4 parts baking soda, 1 part Pink Himalayan Sea salt and however many drops of peppermint oil I feel it needs depending on the size of the batch.  There are obviously specific reasons each of the ingredients were selected.  The xylitol prevents decay and assists to remineralize. (Although it has been touted as a "healthy" substitute for sugar in food, I would not use it as a sugar substitute, and I am only using xylitol as an ingredient in the toothpaste for the very specific reasons listed.  Xylitol can, however, be omitted from this recipe if you are not comfortable with using it.)  Coconut oil acts as an antibacterial and antifungal.  Baking Soda is alkalizing and acts as an abrasive (and therefore, teeth whitener).  Himalayan Sea Salt contains 85 minerals, stops bad breath, draws out pathogens and kills bacteria.  And lastly, pure peppermint oil has numerous beneficial properties.  But, it is mainly nice in the toothpaste for the flavor.

We put our toothpaste into little containers that have screw-on lids.   I bought the containers at the local grocery store (HEB) for around $1.  It is super easy for you to put the paste into the container by unscrewing the lid and placing the paste into the large opening.  Then, you screw the lid back on, and the lid with the pop-up cap has a smaller hole where the toothpaste squeezes out.  I have found that, at times, the toothpaste gets hard to squeeze out.  When it does, I simply run the tube under hot water to get the coconut oil to melt a bit.  Honestly, I think when I make the next batch I am just going to store the toothpaste in a small mason jar and use a little metal utensil to place onto the toothbrush.   You can also reuse your current toothpaste containers by cutting off the end of the tube, placing your homemade paste in there and then rolling it back up.  At first, I found the toothpaste to taste a bit salty.  But now, I actually love it.  And, combined with one of my favorite personal care products, the electric toothbrush (Philips Sonicare Easyclean), my teeth feel like they were just cleaned at the dentist each time I brush my teeth.

I decided to write up a quick post because I have been meaning to for a while now, and this information is just too good not to share.  Enjoy!

That one time that I did "Restorative Yoga"

Being a cancer patient/survivor actually comes with some freebies.  That sentence sounds really funny.  Honestly, I have tried to take advantage of most of the freebies that go along with having cancer.  I figure that I may as well make the most of it.  Of course, I wouldn't have chosen this "cancer path" for myself.  Also, cancer is super-expensive, so the freebies, when you think about it, really aren't "free"--they come with the cost of having cancer.  Nonetheless, there are some cool things that great organizations offer to people like me.

The Austin area YMCA partners up with the Livestrong organization to provide cancer survivors with a 3-month family membership to an area YMCA.   During the 3 months, you attend a special class for survivors twice weekly.  However, you and your family can visit the gym as much as you want.  You can take as many other classes as you want, swim, or just work out in the gym.  It really is pretty awesome.  I actually started the program last fall, but then had to have another emergency surgery, followed by lifting restrictions.   Thus, I had to cease attending the program.  I was so thankful that they let me sign up again for the summer program.  

I have worked out every day this week, which feels pretty awesome.  Also, the kids had fun in their childcare program while I worked out.  It truly is a win-win for the whole family.  Yesterday, I thought it would be fun to try a Yoga class there.  By the time I arrived to the YMCA, I noticed the only yoga class that was about to start at that time was "restorative yoga."  I had never heard of that, but I thought I would give it a shot.   I went into the class with a picture in my head of the last yoga class I attended--this happened to be Bikram Yoga (a.k.a. hot yoga).    I pictured I would be sweating and would feel like I got a workout.  I pictured something like in the photos below...

photo courtesy of bikramaustralia.com

That is the yoga I was familiar with and had done in the past.  But, instead, the yoga was more like this:

It began by the four of us class members laying there on the ground, on mats with a rolled up yoga mat along our spines.  I will admit, it did feel pretty good.  I figured we were probably "warming up".  After what felt like 20 minutes, I looked at my watch.  It had been 17 minutes that we were just laying there in that same position.  I am pretty sure looking at our watches was forbidden.  Oops.  The instructor was covered up in a blanket in the front of the class, in the same position.  She was a really good instructor.  But, did I sign up for a nap?  Apparently so.  She would try to guide our relaxation, by saying in a very low, calming voice, "think about your 3 selves:  your body, your breathing and your thoughts.  Stay in your body.  Now think about your breathing...think about how the air going out is warm and humid."   Later, she had us focus on our thoughts.  She told us to "push your thoughts away.  Allow your body to completely relax."  It really was pretty relaxing.  But, if anyone I knew was in that class, I know I would be laughing hysterically.  I am not the type that likes to sit still.  Especially for that length of time.  I guess in that way, it was good discipline for me.  

We finally moved into a new pose and stayed there for 20 minutes.   I am not lying when I say that during the entire hour long class, we did 4 poses.  And we never once got up on our feet.   During one of the last poses, as I was laying there on the yoga mat, I felt something tickling my arm.  The instructor was telling us in her relaxed calming voice to take control of our thoughts.  All I could think about was that little hair-like thing on my mat that was tickling me.  Being only one of 4 class members, I knew if I moved the instructor would notice.  I could already tell she felt like I was too distracted.  I actually wondered if the tickling was just in my head.  But, I couldn't take the tickle any longer.  After I felt something biting my arm, I jumped up and noticed it was a spider.  A spider was biting me as I was laying there.  I am sure that my little dance on the yoga mat was distracting.  I grabbed one of the foam support blocks and killed the spider then I got back into position.   I wanted to explain to everyone what was going on, but that would have ruined their "mojo".  The room was dark, with some light music playing (with singers moaning in a language I didn't understand).  Other than that, it was absolutely quiet and still.  I could hear the clock on the wall ticking--that is how quiet it was in there.   I so wish I could explain that a spider was biting me.   And then, it appeared to be over as the instructor got up into a seated, meditative position and said, "Namaste."  I guess our nap was over.  

And that is the story of the one time that I did "restorative yoga."  I think next time I will try regular yoga, or even the family yoga.  Although, I have a feeling that if I did yoga with Luke (4 yo) and Abbey (2yo), there would be another blog post that would follow.  :-)  

That Belly Button

Abbey loves her belly button.  She has since the day she could control her hand enough to locate the belly button with it.

Here are a few photos of Abbey and her beloved belly button over the past year and a half or so.

even in daddy's arms, she is attempting to locate her belly button.

the relaxed belly button posture

the "racing belly button posture"

the "investigative belly button posture"

the "comforting belly button posture"

the "bath-time belly button posture"

the "bluebonnet belly button posture"

And here is a photo from last weekend:

the "exposed and loving it belly button posture"

I hope she doesn't make it deeper than it already is.  I wonder when the love for that belly button will cease?  I don't want it to, I am just curious.

You want to know something funny?  Drew had a very close, loving relationship with his belly button as a youngster as well.  It is funny to see traits like that pass down from one generation to the next.

Independence Day 2014

For the past few years, we have had the privilege of getting to spend Independence Day celebrating with a lot of family.  Every year, my parents host a huge party in celebration of the holiday.  We get to hang out with tons of friends and family members, eat yummy food, and watch and participate in fun fireworks.

Here are some photos from our celebration this year.  First, the family photos:

And silly pictures always make me smile!

My sister, her family and mother-in-law and father-in-law

Of course, we did a silly photo with my mom and dad, us "kids", and our children.

And here are just some random photos from throughout the beautiful evening:

My sister and my niece, Lilly

our nephew, Brody

Our niece, Linnea, with her grandfather

Our niece, Kaylee

Our youngest niece, Natalie

Playing in the smoke

Waiting for the parachute fireworks.  They played a game to see who was going to get them.  Our family friend, Rob, and my sister,  Holly and her husband, bought a lot of fun parachutes.  There were night parachutes, parachutes with big army men attached, parachutes with little army men, there were humongous parachutes, and there were a couple that produced 50 mini parachutes after the tiny explosion.  The 50 mini parachutes was such a funny surprise.  We even had a couple of adult races to try to get the parachutes.  

Abbey got a parachute with a little army man.

Linnea was prepared for the loud sounds.

Watching for a parachute

Later, Luke found a great spot for the fireworks show--in the lap of my dad, his grandpa:

As it got darker, we had our usual fun with sparklers and our camera.  Here is Holly, spelling, "hello" with a sparkler.

We learned that the glow bracelets worked pretty well in spelling things as well.  They weren't quite as bright, but they still worked.  Drew took a turn and spelled his name with a glow bracelet:

He also spelled, "Love" with one:

I learned that I didn't have the talent to spell backwards and in cursive.  My normal handwriting isn't even legible to a lot of people, so I am not sure why I thought my backwards cursive with a sparkler would be.  I stuck to taking the pictures.  That is where I am most comfortable.

Blueberry Pickin'

I've mentioned in past posts that we have really been enjoying tending to our little garden.  There truly is nothing like picking ripe fruit or veggies right from the plant and then consuming them shortly thereafter.   When you buy a fruit or veggie in the grocery store, you are buying something that was not picked recently.  It was likely picked quite a while ago, well before it was ripe.  Unfortunately, shortly before a fruit or vegetable is ripe, a plethora of nutrients is dumped into it from the plant.  Picking them before they are ripe actually deprive you of many more potential nutrients and flavors.  This is one of the many reasons we prefer to buy from local farms.

But, off of my soapbox for a moment.  While we were visiting my family, on the morning of July 4, we drove over to a nearby farm to pick blueberries.  Now, blueberries don't really ripen further after they are picked.  So, it is important to pick them when they are ripe.  When they are ripe, you barely touch them and they fall into your hand.  They are super-sweet.  I am telling you--nothing beats eating something directly after picking it!

Abbey can attest to that.  The plan was to pick the blueberry and put the berry right into the bucket.   Abbey followed that rule until she saw me eat one (they don't spray their blueberries with pesticides).   Then, the rule went down the drain.   She saw that as the green light to eat as many as she wanted.

A few minutes prior to this photo, there were a lot more blueberries in that pail!

Luke was serious about his blueberry picking.

I even saw a bird nest with baby birds in it in one of the blueberry bushes.  That is a pretty convenient spot for those birds-super close to a food source!

My dad even enjoyed picking the berries

Our niece, Kaylee, was a blueberry picking star as well.

I caught Brody eating some!

Yum!

And lastly, the photo below is a photo that google "auto-awesomed" by taking several of my photos and turning them an animated .gif.  This was after we told Abbey that she could not eat any more blueberries until after we paid (they encourage you to eat some directly off the bush, but not the amount Abbey was consuming.)

She was saying as she was running that she "wanted to go home."   If she couldn't eat any more off the bushes, she was ready to go home.  We are definitely in the two's folks!