My New Obsession

Ok, so first things first, I realize I'm a terrible blogger. I'm going to try and be better, really...I promise.

So, a friend introduced me to a new website and I'm officially hooked. It's called
 http://pinterest.com/ and it's basically a site where you can create your own pinboards to save your favorite links around the web. You can also follow other peoples' boards and get new ideas on virtually anything. I have boards for recipes I want to try, kids crafts, ideas for my future house, and a bunch more. It's a lot of fun, but it's also inspired me to be more domestic. I am going to start making my own laundry detergent (I have all the ingredients except washing soda) when my current stash runs out. I am also going to try my hand at making homemade bread and tortillas.

I got my laundry soap recipe from thefrugalgirls.com


What You’ll Need: {check your local store’s laundry aisle}

• 1/2 Cup: Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda {not Baking Soda}
• 1/2 Cup: Borax {print a coupon here}
• 1/3 Bar of Fels-Naptha Soap {you could also use Ivory soap, but if using Ivory… use the whole bar}
• Bucket {2 gallon size or larger}
• Empty laundry detergent containers or bucket with lid to store detergent.

What You’ll Do:

• Grate 1/3 bar of Fels-Naptha Soap over large pot or saucepan…

• Add 6 cups of Water.
• Heat over medium-high until soap dissolves and melts.
• Add Washing Soda & Borax, and stir until dissolved.
• Remove from heat and set aside.
• Pour 4 cups Hot Water into bucket, then add Soap Mixture.
• Stir, then add 1 Gallon + 6 Cups of additional water. Stir.

• Transfer to a bucket with a lid, or pour into empty laundry detergent containers.
• Set aside, and let it sit overnight, or up to 24 hours, to thicken and gel up.
• Consistency and color will vary depending on your soap & water ~ it may be lumpy and watery… kind of like a watery gel, but it works great!
• Stir or shake before each use, as it will continue to gel.
• Good job… you did it!
• Don’t forget… to save more money, you can cut your dryer sheets in half and make Homemade Fabric Softener!

How Much Will it Cost?

• Borax, 76 oz. box ~ $2.98 at Wal-Mart
• Arm & Hammer Washing Soda, 55 oz. box ~ $2.99 at Kroger/Fry’s.
• Fels-Naptha Bar of Soap ~ $1.79 at Kroger/Fry’s.
• Total Cost to make around 2 gallons: About $1.00!!
• This amount filled up my large empty Tide container from Costco and a smaller Purex container!

This recipe makes a low-sudsing detergent, and I know several people who use it in their HE machines, too!
There are many recipes for homemade detergent, and this is one that works for me. Give it a try, and see what you think!!

As soon as I give it a try I'll let you know what I think.

5 Year Anniversary Trip

Jim and I had our 5 year anniversary on July 1st and he took me on a trip to celebrate. (Ok, so I told him that I wanted him to plan a trip 6 months ago) My mom and aunt came and stayed with the girls and we left for Portland, Oregon on Tuesday morning, June 28th. It was a 14 hour trip with stops, but without two whiny, crying, kids in the car it went surprisingly fast. (Sorry, Mylie and Zoey)

We got there late on Tuesday night, so we just went to bed. On Wednesday morning we visited The Grotto. It was very beautiful and serene. http://www.thegrotto.org/

After visiting The Grotto, we headed to Hawthorne Street where we walked around and had lunch at a brewpub called Bagdad with Jim's friend Tony who lives outside of Portland. We also checked out the HUGE bookstore, Powell's. And what's a trip to Portland without going to Voodoo donuts? http://voodoodoughnut.com/index.php

With our tummies full of delicious donuts, we drove over to Multnomah Falls.

That night we ate dinner on the river. Literally, the restaurant was built on top of the river and you had to walk up the pier to eat there.

I had some awesome halibut and Jim got some king salmon that's only available 3 weeks out of the year.

On Thursday, we headed to Seattle, but took a detour to see Mount St. Helens along the way.

It was super cold up there and kind of foggy, which was a bummer, but it was still neat to see.

When we got to Seattle late that afternoon, we walked around a little before having sushi for dinner and going to a piano bar that night. It was a lot of fun!

Jim had booked an underground tour of Seattle for Friday morning (our anniversary). It was a very interesting historical tour that explained how present day Seattle came to be.

We walked over to Pike's Market after the tour was over and saw where they sell all the fresh fish and where the original Starbucks is.

 We also did the Ride the Ducks Tour that day. It was silly and loud and very fun. We got to see a lot of Seattle. Going in the water was my favorite part.

 For our anniversary dinner, Jim made reservations at the Space Needle. It was pretty amazing. The restaurant makes a complete turn every 47 minutes and we had an incredible view during our meal. The food was ridiculously expensive and although it was good, it wasn't THAT good. But, I think the view and experience made up for it. For dessert, we had an ice cream sundae that they put on dry ice so it smokes.

It was an awesome trip and it made me realize how important it is to just be Brooke and Jim sometimes instead of mommy and daddy.

What We've Been Up To

This week we started Parent Participation classes through San Luis Obispo adult school. You can check it out here:
http://ppp.slcusd.org/Home.html
Basically, it's a low-cost preschool/parent education program.

Initially, I had signed up for the 3-5 year old preschool class (siblings welcome), thinking that it would be good for Mylie to socialize with other children around the preschool age. The class started on Wednesday morning at 9:00. The first hour was free play time and there were various tables and activities set up. There was a playdough table, an art easel with paints, a picture frame making table, a table where you could make slime, a painting activity with bubble wrap, some blocks, and home center/kitchen play area, and lots of other fun things.

Circle/carpet time was next. During this time, we sang songs, read stories, and did some movement activities. This was followed by snack time.

After snack, all the children went outside to play. Half of the parents watched the kids, while the other half came inside. Today was basically an introduction to the program, but over the next few weeks, this time will be filled with parent education topics and guest speakers.

We ended up leaving early because Zoey still takes a morning nap and she just couldn't hang any longer. The class is supposed to go all the way until 12:30.

Mylie and Zoey both had fun, but since it is summer time, there were quite a few older siblngs attending (including a few rambunctious 6-7 year old boys). I felt like Zoey wasn't necessarily getting a chance to play and socialize at her level. So, I decided to check out the Thursday class the next morning. This class was for 1, 2, and 3 year olds and it felt like a better fit for both girls.

I am very excited about this weekly class! I think the girls and I will both get a lot out of it.

Muffin Tin Monday

This is my second week doing Muffin Tin Monday for Mylie. We skipped last week because we were in Gilroy Gardens all day. I got the idea from this blog: http://michellesjournalcorner.blogspot.com/

Week 1: Pizza, pasta, carrots, ranch dip, strawberries, applesauce 

Week 2: Chicken, potato wedges, ketchup, strawberries, nectarines, chocolate milk

I'm not sure, but I think I may like making them more than she likes eating them. She wasn't a real fan of the nectarines, but she ate everything else.

Getting Settled In

It's been a whirlwind last couple of weeks!
Packing, finishing my last week of work, moving, unpacking, all while trying to entertain two little girls. I couldn't have done it without my Ainnie (Aunt Janet) who spent two entire days packing my house in Turlock while I was at work, and my mom who drove to Morro Bay with us on Saturday afternoon and stayed until Wednesday helping me unpack and put the house together.
Here are some pictures of the house so far (taken with my phone, so not the best quality):

Breakfast Nook

Kitchen (not sure why it turned out so dark)

Playroom

Mylie's Room

Zoey's Room

Dining Area

Spring Break at the Coast

Jim has been here in Morro Bay since April 4th and has been coming home on weekends to see us. But, this week I am on spring break, so the girls and I came down to the coast last Thursday night for the week. The ride over was thankfully not an omen as to how the rest of the week would play out. I'll spare you the details, but let me just say that it involved puke and a whole lot of screaming.

 Here are some highlights of our week at the coast so far:
On Friday, we visited Los Osos park where I met a few other moms from a mommy networking site that I joined when I found out we would be moving here. http://www.slocountymommies.com/

On Saturday, we went to an Easter Egg Hunt at the Dinosaur Caves Park in Shell Beach. When we got home, Mylie and I dyed eggs. Later that day, my dad and Charlyn and my sister and her boyfriend Larry came over to visit. We went down to Embarcadero and ate some clam chowder, then went to the tiny aquarium to feed the sea lions. Finally, we hit the beach for some sand play. Both girls LOVE digging and playing in the sand.

On Sunday, the girls hunted for eggs around the house and got their Easter baskets. Later, we barbequed some chicken and had some yummy chicken tacos for lunch. That afternoon we took the girls to Laguna Lake Park in San Luis Obispo.

On Monday, Jim headed back to work and I took Mylie and Zoey to Avila Valley Barn. http://www.avilavalleybarn.com/about_us.html We got to feed the animals; they have goats, sheep, chickens, ponies, a cow, and a peacock. We had some delicious ice cream and bought some sandwiches to go. Our next stop was Avila beach. We started at the park and made our way down to the beach.

On Tuesday, we visited a preschool that we all really loved. Check them out here: http://wellspringchildrenscenter.org/ Mylie will be attending two mornings a week in the fall. Next, we drove to Santa Maria where we joined Jim for lunch and then checked out the Santa Maria Discovery Museum.
http://www.smvdiscoverymuseum.org/ We bought a reciprocal membership which means that we can also use our membership card at the SLO children's museum and the Paso Robles museum as well as many others around the country.

Today, our plan is to go to Cloisters park, here in Morro Bay. We are taking a picnic lunch and then walking the trail down to the beach. It should be fun!

We're moving!

After nearly 30 years of living in the central valley of California, I'm moving to the coast! Jim officially accepted an offer to transfer to the Santa Maria office of Rabobank on Monday, February 14th, 2011. He will start working in his new position on Monday, April 4th and the girls and I will be joining him when my school year is over. My last day is May 27th.

For the time being, we will be living in my grandpa's house in Morro Bay. He is letting us rent from him while the house is on the market. This will hopefully give us a little time to get to know the area and decide where we'd like to live on a more permanent basis.

The best part about the whole thing, aside from getting to live at the beach, is that I will get to be a stay at home mom.