Changes and Growth

The last few years have been filled with changes and growth for me.  I have moved from Texas to Oregon to Washington.  My husband has retired from the military gone to school and is now working with the BLM, a government agency. 

I have completed school and I am looking to grow my own business.  I am learning that this is a process.   

Yet some things have stayed the same.  I still have 4 wonderful kids that need me, I still have to budget to make it and for me that means discount shopping, reviewing items, and affordable healthy meals. 

I am still my same old spiritual self and I am going to be sharing more of that with all of you.  I have recently joined the Sisterhood of Avalon.  This has been such a spiritual growth curve for me that somedays I feel like I am not the right person for the group and I can't do the spiritual work.  Then I remember it's my ego talking.

But another change to the blog is that I will be adding an a friend.  She will be posting reviews, things of interests as well.  I hope you guys give her a warm welcome.

I also invite you to join us on facebook.

I really hope you will enjoy this journey with us.  I hope you will find what we share funny, enlightening, helpful and fun.  At the end of the day this blog is about fun for the both of us.  Welcome to our world.

New challenges!!!!

I am going to start school next month as long as paper goes through.  And I should be moving next month as well.  And yet I think this month I need some challenges in life things to push me to continue to improve myself.

So I joined two Challenges that start tomorrow!  One is the

You can click to photo to read about the Readathon.

Put basically you read as many books as you can that fit the theme and since I have gotten so many free on amazon that I want to read I can't wait to do this!!  I will blog about them with a mini review and keep count I am hoping to read at least 1 book a day,  this is next to my school work, homeschooling my one child and just being mommy and a wife.  I really hope that I can get 2 books a day in if not more.  But who am I kidding I have family that needs me.

My other challenge is 

Click photo to read the post about the challenge

I love that this is call Get off your broom challenge!  I also love that it's about all around health and wellness!  And I love that we are to tie in the 5 elements.  Air, Water, Earth, Fire, and Spirit.  I have spent all day coming up with goals for these elements and I am going to share them with you.  I am going to change them up every week or so.  So here are my goals:

* For the Element Water: This one is simple I am going to just aim to drink more water every day.  I suck in this part of health and wellness even though I need to drink more.  So my goal is to add  more to my diet.  Then next week it will be to replace one drink with water!

* For the Element Earth: This one is simple as well it's to spend more time outside and communing with the earth.  I hope to do some school work outside.  Play with my children outside.  Walk barefoot in the yard and feel the energy from the earth.  Walk my little Coco around the block every night stuff like that.  I will change this goal probably next week.

* For the Element Fire:  This one is where the work is. The overall goal is to raise my energy levels!  This one includes aiming to be in bed by 11pm every single night!  No more staying up late to read to 3 am in the morning.  I have a goal of 30 minutes of working out no less than three times a week.  I am also hoping to have at least one of these work outs be a hot work out or hot yoga!

* For the Element Air:  This one was hard believe it or not.  I mean working on breathing seems to be like the smart choice.  But I think I am going to work on breathing with meditation but that doesn't seem to be enough.  I think one thing I need to work on is controlling my emotions better.  The reason I placed this under air is that they seem to change like the wind.  And while you can control air or wind I would like to try and at least control my emotions better.

* For the Element Spirit:  This one is something I have been trying to do.  Get in touch with my spiritual self more.  Focus on enriching my soul.  So that's my goal to do one thing every day that enriches my soul and spiritual self!  I think this should be fun and I hope to learn more about myself at the same time. 

So that's it these are my goals and challenges for the next week for reading and the next few weeks with the fitness one.  I will work on improving my whole self and not just one part of me.  I hope to keep up with it while we move.  I know it will be hard when we are on the road for a week.  But I am up to the challenge.  I hope that you will join me.  And if not I would love to have you encourage me while I do this.  This is a start to a new me.  Which is great as my family is about to have a new start in life after the military!  It is time! (from Lion King)

Thank you for reading this!

Spirit

My Wild Girl Turns 3!

Autumn Lily is my wild child and only daughter.  She turned three last weekend and I am just now getting around to sharing her pictures.  We did a simple party at home.  We made cupcakes and she got a few presents that's it.  It's prefect for us.  We also had one of her favorite meals.  I cheated and used a box mix and frosting. She got pirate cupcake wrappers because she is a pirate kick now but we made the frosting purple because she is also a princess.  I wish I had gotten a picture of her with her head band on when she was saying I princess.  I wish more I had gotten pictures when she put it on daddy and said he was princess and the same with her big brother.  I didn't get pictures of her gifts but Daddy took her shopping which she loves and got her a dolly, stuffed horse, and a ball all for under ten bucks LOL.  I wanted to give something I had picked up for Christmas or Yule but Daddy wanted to take her shopping.

Well here are the pictures, please excuse the mess and her wild hair no matter how much I brush it, it looks this way five minutes later.

 Pirate princess cupcake lite

Blowing out the candle.

I know it's fuzzy it was hard to get.

 Can't we do it again mama?

 Yay! Time to eat!

 Yumm!

 Alen, your turn!

 Mmm

 Ricky, get your own

 Hiding from her puppy.

 Frosting is her favorite part.

LOL I know so many are the same it took for ever to get the one shot I wanted and then when I looked at them all I liked them.  Happy Birthday my Pirate Princess I hope it's just one of many that brings you joy!

Pork chops with homemade musch room gravy with green beans and a spinach salad for 4.92

Tonight's dinner was yummy and tasty and all homemade.  And all at .98 per person not the healthiest  of meals but yummy non the less. 

Cost break down

pork chops (1.33) 

mushroom (1.39)

green beans (.50)

 spinach salad (1.70)

brown rice (free with wic)

staples

 

I wish I could tell you a recipe for the sauce/gravy but I winged it next time I will write it down to share this was very good and much lighter than they kids with the canned cream soup.  I even used water as I didn't have any stock on and and it was still full of flavor. Really it wasn't hard either and it's something I suggest you try.

Now I feel like saying sorry for the lack of posts but I have been posting more over on my other blog Spirit goes from fat to fit.  And well I have been busy just being a mom.  I have cut back on the coupons a bit but still aim to save money every time a shop and I am aim to eat better, which leaves many coupons out for us.  But it's a great thing.

I am also working on home schooling my Ricky which takes up a good part of the day.  But I will be around and posting and share with you.  Just not as much.  I have to out being a mommy first, I am sure you all understand.  I am going to aim for 3-4 posts a week over here.  And I am hoping to share more homeschool links and tips.  

Thank you for reading.

We have buds

We have buds on our tomater plants aren't they pretty

We also have sunflowers growing I am late getting things this year but hope to hit up some great deals and get more plants.

6 Years ago.....

I was pregnant with my second and getting ready for my husband to leave for a month of training when I had a horrible dream.  I will never forget it.  I dreamed that my grandfather had died at home and it having something to do with his chest.  Now to be honest I don't remember if I knew he was sick at the time or if we found out shortly after.  It was very close together.  I also remember in my dream he died at 3:16 that dream stuck with me for a long time I couldn't shake it like other dreams.

Well either just before or after this dream my grandfather was admitted to the hospital and they had a few ideas from TB (huge worry because I had been near him and gave him kisses and was pregnant) ro lung cancer.  Well after a week (felt longer to me) it was lung cancer I was shaken and taken back.  Everyone I had known that had cancer up to that point in my life had died to be fair there were not many but enough.  I was scared I was going to lose someone I loved someone who had been in my life a part of it for as far back as I could remember.

I remember he wasn't given to much time and that it was quite advanced and they started Chemo.  Man that stuff not sure i could do it.  I remember visits where he would sleep all day and I would beg and ask him to just have a sip of a drink for me, or bite of something to eat.  I never pressed as hard as I wanted to maybe I should have maybe it would have helped.  I don't know if it would have.

Then the day came when I woke up to my dad calling me.  I knew it must have been about grandpa as the time difference was great and it was early for him.  We had lost him at home early in the morning I don't remember time but I know it was close to the time of my dream.  I remember the feeling I had when my dad told me.  My heart sank, while my grandfather and I were not close he was a part of my family and someone I loved someone I miss.  I wonder would the family and the memories be the same with out him.

I remember after getting off the phone with my dad I called Jon, I was a wreck already he knew when he answered what was wrong and got time off to come home and hold me. He held me while a bawled like a baby, it was a dirty messy snotty cry, yet here is my solder husband holding me gentle but firm and understanding of my grief.  My selfish grief.  During that cry I never thought of the pain he was feeling reliving the loss of many people in his life or the lose of my grandfather had on him.  It wasn't until months later I learned of the bond he felt with my grandfather the comfort he had in talking shop with him that was now gone.

He lost someone he trusted to talk to someone he could sit in a room say five things and they had a talk.  That is how he explained it to me.  Grief made me selfish.  But he understood and I am thankful for that.

And her it is 6 years later and I have since had my baby, and we named him Frederick after the lose of my grandfather I felt the need to name him after my dad who was named after my grandfather it was important he came from a line of strong men.  My husband agree it was a family name on his side to.

I was talking just the other night with my husband about my grandfather and it's a shock to me it's been so long it feels like it's only been a few years. Like three max to me.  This pain was brought back up when I lost my grandmother(mother side) earlier this year and this Sunday I found out my other grandfather (mom's side) is in the hospital for heart problems and I am sure I will get that call again all to soon and loose someone else.  I grieved for my grandmother it was different than my grandfather maybe because I really didn't know her she was a woman that sent cards and letters and gifts that I met twice that I can remember and my grandfather was in many memories.

He was at my wedding and introduced as my family, he was at every family dinner and when Aunt Lori was there she has to sit next to her dad.  Or how he was one of the few if not only people that would eat oyster stuffing.  He smile I still see it.I miss him.  I know he wasn't always the man I remember and I know he wasn't always the easiest to get to know but I loved him, I miss the good bye kisses on the scruffy check.  I miss his silly games.

One last story, I will never forget the story of my dad finding a plastic dove at the fire hall where we had the reception after the service.  I remember sitting there hearing dad and my grandma talk just knowing it was what they thought.  See sadly my dad who was so very close to my grandpa wasn't able to be at his bed side to say good bye he did over the phone I am told but we all know it's not the same.  Anyways I believe it was my grandpa's way of saying see JR I made I am fine, let you ma know.  And later that night he did he gave her that dove after asking about one of there fav songs to dance to "Wings of a Dove" if I remember right.  I remember the tears and everything.  It was a touching moment that I am glad I was a part of.

I was also a part of a moment in which grandpa moved the dove around the kitchen and watching my grandmother say I will fix his ass and glue it down hahaha I will never forget that.

I don't know why I wrote this crazy mess or even hit publish but I felt a need to I miss him a great deal and sad he won't meet three of my children but I do believe he is watching over them and even sometimes playing cars with them.  I am not even sure I remember everything right but it is how I remember those events. I just felt the need to share them.

So hug those that you love and remember we are never promised tomorrow. Let them know you love them.

One day....

One day my family will have a farm with a great big old farm house.  On this farm we will raise as much of our own food as we can.  And we are going to grow Christmas trees, and have a whole christmas theme to make it fun for the whole family.  I really can't wait for this we have been researching everything and making sure we know what we want.  I have recently started dream folders for our home and gardens.  

I can't wait until my days are filling with gardening and canning and making cheese and all kinds of goodies.  Homemade butter and bread.  Everything.  I want to only need to go to the store once every month or so for things we need.  And I want to enjoy this old time life and some of the new found enjoyable tech that is out there.  Just not have our lives move around it.  

I also want to have a ton of animals on this farm and chickens I want lots and lots of chickens maybe even a few turkeys.  I want a barn that smells of horses, leather and hay!  And I will have it I tell you.  It's going to be our heaven.  

We can't forget our fruit trees and maybe even nuts as well,  I can't wait to grow all of our herbs and spices and vegetables.  I can't wait to live this simple life.  The best of all I can't wait for family dinners and sitting at the table enjoying a good chat with those that I love and making memories to have a life time.

Once day i will have this all and more.  But for now I am going to learn all that I can so that when my dream comes true I am ready for it. And this summer I am learning canning and many other things.

Couponing and the simple life And Clutter

I am finding it hard to mesh couponing and simple living together.  It seems to me couponing has turned into getting as much as you can for free or cheap and to get more even when you don't need it.  Simple living to me is making do with what you have reusing stuff as needed.  Like an old soup can panted and turned into a flower pot with fresh cut flowers in it.  Simple living to me is about using what you have and getting what you need and even getting a few wants but not making your life about wanting.

I did it!!

I am so proud I did it. I have made bread five days straight this week. monday thru friday and it's great my goal is to make all our bread like items by the end of the year and this week I have learned how to make hot dog rolls and tortillas. It's nice to know you can do something you where sure you could do.

A prefect evening

My family and I had a great evening. We had kids playing nicely and doing chores. Jon helped me with my massive amount of coupons. LOL it was fun watching him sort them for me and put them in the right groups.

And then after dinner I watch him and Autumn play ball I nearly peed my pants laughing so hard. She's a riot and hides how much she can truly talk. but she refuses to say ball LOL. she will say get it when it want behind the couch but not ball.

Alen was a good kid today and did his chores with out much pushing this is a win. And while ricky didn't feel well he was well behaved. it was a prefect evening with us all happy and doing fun things and relaxing. Can't wait for out next one.