Life

Life has been a little crazy lately.  There's really not too much going on, but with summer and the heat and the garden and just plain old everything that needs to get done around the house, I feel like I have been on the go all the time.  This has really gotten in the way of doing things right.  I have not done anything creative lately at all.  I keep saying I'm going to, but I never get around to it.  I am in the process of trying to make a baby carrier like a Babyhawk.  I just can't seem to get the sewing machine out.  I have so many projects that I want to make especially on the sewing machine.  i need to force myself to be creative and make things with the supplies that I have!  I have also done a horrible job of eating healthy and cooking at home.  We have been eating out way too much lately.  I really need to get back on track and start cooking and eating healthy.

My husband has been getting out in the garden and doing a great job at taking care of things there.  I am getting a little disappointed though with how it is looking.  We have a few tomatoes, 1 great zucchini, a couple of peppers, maybe a spaghetti squash or 2.  I am hoping that in time, things will pick up.  We have had a horrible heat wave here with little to no rain.  The grass looks like it usually does in August, so I am hoping that we get rain more often and hopefully that will help things grow better.  Next year we will plan better and hopefully have better soil since we are also composting this year.  Only time will tell how our garden will be and hopefully we will have veggies to get us through some meals!  Oh, and I forgot we also have a cauliflower and have had a little broccoli.

I am getting totally frustrated with my cloth diapers.  I am using prefolds with covers and had been loving them for the last year except for the rashes that the kids are getting!  I feel like every time I get their rashes cleared up, they come back.  I can't for the life of me figure out what I m doing wrong.  I think I may need to strip them again since we have had an issue with water pressure related to our filter system.  The filters have all been changed and now we have normal water pressure.  Hopefully, if I strip them again and we continue to maintain water pressure, things will get back to normal.  If not, I plan to buy new prefolds and maybe even use disposables until the kids rash clears up!

I joined in a couch to 5K with another twin mom.  I walked only 1 time last week and didn't run at all.  My husband and I need to get back on track and get exercising again.  I have 1 more week til I start back to work part time.  I want to spend this week enjoying my last week without needing to worry about being back home for work.  I think we may go up to Franconia notch, kangamagus highway area and do some walking and sight seeing with the kids.  We will spend Wed night having a birthday cake for my husband's aunt.  The rest of the week I just want to enjoy, but also still make sure that we work on the couch to 5K program.

Hopefully, my life will settle and I can get back to the life that I want to lead.  I really want to start cooking again, but I have to admit (as much as I hate to) I do like to eat out.  I also like to eat junk food.  I need to start eating healthy and getting healthy and start having better habits for my kids to follow!

Amy

Life and food issues!

So, anyone who knows me knows that I am a total carb addict!  I love my bread and butter and have from the time I was a little girl.  Now at almost 37 (oh my God am I really that old?), and 2 pregnancies and 3 babies later, I so need to lose weight and get better in shape.  I have tried everything to lose weight.  In the past, I have done great with weight watchers, but now with 3 kids, the thought of counting points is so overwhelming, I don't even want to think about it.  I have thought long and hard about trying the South Beach Diet in the past, but have failed before the first 2 weeks were up.  Again, this is due to the carb addict that I am!  I am thinking that I need to try it again.  I figure, I know that I have carb issues, I don't want to count calories or points, I want to eat less meat and more veggies, and I want to decrease my dependence on carbs.  Also, I had a couple of days, in the recent past, where I didn't start my day with carbs (I had a veggie and cheese omelet), I actually lost weight.  That was only a couple of days and not fully giving up carbs!  I am starting today, I am following the South Beach diet.  Unfortunately, I need to do some shopping and I already have dinner plans for tomorrow that are not on the diet, but I need to start now.  I will try to write about my successes and my failures.  This may be my way of being accountable to myself.  Hopefully this will go along with my way of eating healthy.  Wish me luck!

On an unrelated note, I have been wanting to make my own diapers and covers.  I have found that some of the diaper patterns online have been really intimidating and also time consuming.  I have also not been willing to buy a pattern, only wanting to use free patterns.  I found a really easy diaper cover that I attempted last night and oh my god it was simple!  I am really looking forward to making more and making some really cute covers.  I am also thinking that I want to try some of my own prefolds using some material that I already have.  Wish me luck!

My first fleece cover!  Hopefully it will fit and work well!

Amy

Gardening

This past week was April vacation here in Massachusetts.  On Monday my mom brought over some plants from her garden to transplant into ours.  My mom, my step-father, my husband, and I spent the day digging and planting and we still had more to do.  We did a little more during the week, but then the weekend came and we pretty much spent all day Saturday and Sunday digging, planting and cleaning up 3 of our gardens.  It was a ton of work, but it felt so good to be outside in some absolutely beautiful weather.  We got a lot done, but still have a little more to go.  The butterfly garden is looking really good.  I need to still get another plant for a planter, a garden angel and that may be it for the butterfly garden.  For the gardens in the front of the house, I want to get a boy figurine since I already have a boy and girl together.  Sounds kind of corny, but I'd love to have a figurine for all 3 kids.  I also need to get a clay saucer to fix a simple bird bath that I made and I may want to make another one for the other side.  I also want to get a couple of figurines for the other side of the house.  We still have a lot of work to do on the yard.  We are planning on tilling an area in the back for a veggie garden, which I hope will provide a bunch of veggies for us this summer and hopefully enough to preserve for later.  And, now looking at pictures of the front of the house, I think I still want to do more there too.  We'll see.  Since we are on a pretty tight budget, I am trying to be good at not spending a ton of money.  I love gardening!

Right front side of the house

Close up of the right front side

Left front side of the house

South side of the house butterfly garden!

On an unrelated not, with the weather getting warmer, I have been thinking about the covers for the cloth diapers that the kids wear.  I am thinking that we may want or even need to change to fleece or wool for breathability.  It can be pretty expensive to get enough covers for all 3 kids, so I am thinking of attempting to make my own.  I found a pattern on line for free that I may try.  From what I can see and what I have read, it is simple to make and I have a ton of fleece so I won't need to buy anything new right now.  If it works out and I want to make more later, I can get more then, but for now I have more than enough.

The twins are taking their nap and I really need to start cleaning while they are asleep.  I really hate housework, but unfortunately it needs to get done.  I may need to put a video on for my older son so that I have some time to do things with out him needing my full on attention.  The letter factory is m favorite for this and the best part is he is starting to learn his alphabet.  Awesome!!!!!

Wish me luck getting all that I have to get accomplished completed!
Amy

Cloth diapering and creating

I am mainly cloth diapering my 3 little ones and have for the last couple of months.  I do sometimes out them in disposables, but pretty much only my twins.  My 18 month old is always in cloth since he has such sensitive skin.  We have a decent amount of PULs and pre-folds, but I am considering making my own wool covers or fleece covers, even my own pre-folds.

I miss creating.  I want to make things for my children.  That has always been my wish, to be able to create things for my children and maybe at the same time make money creating.  Even if I can get myself to a point where I have the energy to create, that is my first goal.  I still still have to make the boys their Christening outfits and my daughter her sweater for her outfit.  I should actually stop writing this blog and start working on the sweater.  I also need to complete my sister's guest book for her wedding.  I am so looking forward to making that.  I love paper crafts.

There are so many things that I need/want to complete.  I am off to work on that sweater!

Amy