Butterbees and Bumbleflies

Deep in the Heart of Texas…

I’ve really enjoyed having a couple of friends guest post on the past couple of Wednesdays, and I’m hoping to share more guest posts with you soon! Today, though, I’m just gonna take a couple of minutes to share a piece of MY heart…

My sweet little girl is growing up so so fast. Some days she struggles, and that tends to be what I focus on. But the past week and a half to two weeks has been absolutely wonderful. She is kind, and thoughtful. She is helpful and attentive to the needs of those around her. She is… she is… she is amazing. I love this little girl with everything in my being, and I’m so very proud to be her Mommy.

Yesterday as we strolled through Hobby Lobby looking at various craft supply items, and planning and giggling about her birthday party (in June), I just had this moment where time stood still. She had gotten a little too loud and a little too excited, and I had taken the cupcake sprinkles out of her hand to put them in the basket (she was shaking them and banging them on the cart). I didn’t tell her what I was doing – I just yanked them from her hand, and threw them in the back in my sudden shift from funny, silly, goofy gal to seriously frustrated Mommy. And she didn’t know what she did wrong. I realized as soon as I did it that I didn’t offer any correction or explain, I just did to her exactly what I’ve spent the last almost ten months of her life telling her not to do to her brother. She immediately started crying. I pulled into a side aisle, and hugged her close and whispered in her ear. I told her that she needed to calm down, that Mommy was getting frustrated because she was being so loud banging the sprinkles on the cart. I told her I was sorry that I had acted so quickly, but I was just frustrated and that I needed her to calm down or we were going to have to leave the store. (Fully realizing I had allowed her to ramp up and even encouraged the silliness.) Her bottom lip quivered as we took a deep breath together, and then she told me, “I’m sorry I got you frustrated. I’ll be sweet now and not so loud ok? I don’t want to leave yet. I want to get tie dye. Pleeeeease??”

And in that moment, as time stood still, I realized what a gift God has given me. A child who wants to please. A child who knows how to work for a reward. A child who seriously loves art and recognized my willingness to step out of my normal comfort zone to do an activity with her… and hold my feet to the fire that we’d really get the supplies and do it. A child who is rapidly learning how to use her vocabulary to communicate her needs and wants. A child who understands common manners and how to use them appropriately.

My child. My offspring. Who just a few days ago was an infant, learning to crawl. Who just a few days later was learning to walk, to run, to climb. Who seemingly just yesterday was a brand new big sister holding her tiny infant brother. Her tiny infant brother, who will be ten months old tomorrow. Where does the time go? It flies.

I know that I’m not the perfect parent. No, I’m far from it. But I thank God for little moments like that when He turns my inappropriate response into a moment of realization. When I can stop and see the blessings around me.

When we got home, we went out into the bluebonnets and took these beautiful pictures. His beauty and blessings are all around me, but often I get so very bogged down in the household chores, the work tasks, the sick husband and baby, the preschooler who constantly wants me… So bogged down that I begin to miss the fact that I have a beautiful home to clean, a job that pays well, a handsome husband and adorable baby boy, and a sweet little girl who is going through a clingy phase and now (finally) wants Mommy more than anything or anyone else.

Yes, we live in God’s country. And there’s nowhere else I’d rather be than here, Deep in the Heart of Texas, surrounded by His beautiful handiwork, with my wonderful little family. We are so blessed.

STEAM Celery

Today I wanted to share some ideas for you using something that might already be in your fridge!! (Also be sure to visit my post about Bell Pepper shamrocks for another idea of a way to use bell peppers.)

If you’re like us, I buy celery for a specific recipe, and then the rest of it just sorta sits there until I throw it out. We aren’t big fans of eating raw celery like some folks are. (If you are fans of it, please, don’t consider this blasphemous. HA!) So, I saw somewhere (sorry, I don’t still have the original link) about painting with celery, and I thought that looked fun. But I also have done celery science with students in the past, so I thought that would be cool too. So, we tried both things, and I thought I’d share with you these ideas in conjunction with always trying to share a lot of STEAM ideas for you, and give you some ideas to use up what’s already in your kitchen in new and different ways! 🙂

Celery Science is as simple as just cutting some stalks of celery and sticking them in water you have colored with food coloring! It’s a great way to teach about capillary action, and how plants absorb water. If you split the bottoms of the celery stalks, the water climbs faster than if you don’t – so that also makes a great experiment. It’s most fun to watch the leaves change color, so this is a great use of the leafy part of the celery if you aren’t using it in a salad. (Did you know celery leaves add a great flavor and lots of vitamins to your salad without the stringy yuck of the rest of the celery plant? The leaves are also great to chop up like an herb and add to soups and stews!) Be sure that you allow a couple of days for your science project so that your little scientist can watch over time and really see how much gets absorbed into the plant.

Another fabulous use for the other end of your celery is as a stamp for painting! Use a strong rubber band to hold the stalks together for those smaller hands to be able to hold on and grip the stamp. They make beautiful flowers, or cover the whole page using several different colors for some fabulous texture… this would make an awesome background sheet for your 2016 calendar!

Do you have another idea on how to use celery in a creative way? Please share in the comments!!

Baby Gear

This weekend I attended a baby shower for a friend, and it prompted me to do a post for mamas of the tiniest Baby Bees – the ones that haven’t even been born yet.

I remember before we had Becca, trying to navigate a world of baby gear was intense. What was a NEED, what was a WANT… and which product was just right to fit the needs and wants that I had? When we had Grayson, we had a very specific list of things we knew we would need, and of course, even tho it’s only been two years, we’ve found new products that we love that weren’t even available when she was coming along.

So, here’s a short list of the products that we have used with one or both of our kiddos that we find to be super helpful – and why. Please note that each of these is an affiliate link, so if you choose to purchase from this link, you not only get a great product, but you help our family out as well. 🙂 (So thank you!)

Gerber Unisex-Baby Newborn Sheep 4 Pack Flannel Receiving Blanket, Sheep Green, One Size
You seriously can NOT get enough receiving blankets. They are VITAL for any baby, but especially if you end up with a spitter like Grayson. The sweet little thing still at almost ten months spits after eating. We have at least two receiving blankets in the diaper bag at all times. And, after we had Becca, we sent my mom to the store to buy more of these. Trust me – you need a lot. For Grayson, we have ten receiving blankets and fifteen of the cloth diaper burp cloths… and it has totally happened that they were all in the laundry at once.

Graco Sweet Slumber Sound Machine, White
We learned quickly with Becca that white noise can really make a huge difference in how baby sleeps – and it also works great to drown out the noises that might be made by others in the home while baby is in bed. Because we knew how much she loved her sound machine, we purchased a second one before Grayson was born, and actually took it with us to the hospital. Truly from night one he has slept with the sound machine on. I firmly believe that the consistency and the comfort of the noise is what helps both of our kids be such awesome sleepers!!

Tommee Tippee Closer to Nature Added Comfort Starter Set
We really struggled to find good bottles that worked for Becca to reduce gas. Then, when Grayson was coming along, we discovered that none of the bottles we had tried with Becca were still on the market, so I couldn’t buy replacement nipples. Which was VERY frustrating. So, I went to the store and started looking… and discovered that the bottles I had originally looked at for Becca but didn’t buy were still on the market… so we went with those, and have never looked back. We absolutely love Tommee Tippee products, and these bottles are absolutely fabulous! This is the exact starter set that I bought, and we have loved using them. They are also super easy for Grayson to hold himself now that he’s holding his own bottle.

Munchkin Arm and Hammer Diaper Pail with Refill Bags, 10 Count
You know it’s a product we like when I tell you we have two of them… and this is one of those products! We have one in both the upstairs and downstairs bathrooms. They are easy to change, the refill bags are sold at every store we shop at, and the refill bags are very inexpensive (I can get a box of 10 for $6.) Plus, I like that it has a baking soda container in the lid! If I’m able to smell the diaper pail, I can just add fresh baking soda, and instantly, no more smell! I also love that it’s baking soda, and not something with a flowery fragrance. No smell at all is much preferred in our house.

WubbaNub Infant Pacifier – Giraffe
This is one of those products that wasn’t around when Becca was born (or if it was, we didn’t know about it), which is probably fine since she didn’t take a pacifier very long. Grayson, on the other hand, is a pacifier guy. So much so that we own two of these adorable giraffes (we’ve lovingly named them Geoffrey 1 & 2 – a nod to one of our favorite stores). They are a fabulous way to never lose the “paci,” “binky,” “plug,” or whatever nickname you want to call it. Plus, you just throw it in the washer when you need to launder it! SUPER easy. Love love love love love this product!! (Also – Soothee pacifiers are the ones given to you in the hospital for a reason. I’ve talked to LOTS of moms, and the vast majority of them spent money on other brands of pacifiers, but the free one they got at the hospital was all their baby would take. Soothee is THE brand of pacifier for baby!)

Fisher-Price Booster Seat (Red/White)
We received this as a gift from my parents when traveling to see them when Becca was little, and we used it for her for travel a lot – super convenient. But then with Grayson, it has taken on a whole new level of use. Because we use it for him every day. We just attached it to a chair from our dining room table, and he sits at the table with us instead of in a high chair that takes up a ton of space and is hard to clean. Seriously mamas, don’t spend money on a high chair. This baby is $37 – and ALL YOU NEED. Save your money for diapers. You’re gonna need them. For what seems like forever.

Obviously, we had lots of other products that we love for both kids, but these are my big six money/time savers for you – you NEED these things. Don’t waste your money on others. Moms with older kids – what was/is your favorite baby product? Share it here in the comments!!

Cling Film Art

I recently saw this idea from Rachelle Doorley over at TinkerLab, and decided that we’d give it a try! It was a lot of fun, and adequately messy to make my little hands-on gal really happy. First, she used a spikey ball and a wine cork to make various sizes of dots all over the paper. Then, we covered the paper with cling film, and she set to smearing! It was lots of fun, and the outcome was beautiful, and will look great in our fall designs for her 2016 calendar!

Tape Resist Name Art

Subject: Art

Typically, I share the art portion of STEAM on Fridays in my “Fun with Art” segment, but honestly, we do so much art around here, that sometimes I just have to take time on Thursdays to share art too! SO… today is all about ART! (And tomorrow will be too, so be sure to check back! 🙂

I’ve seen lots of different examples of tape resist art, but I wanted to do something Becca could really take ownership of… without spending a bunch of money on a canvas, or waiting until they were on sale at Hobby Lobby. Instead, I just put some painter’s tape on some regular pink card stock, pulled out some blue, green, yellow, and purple acrylic paints, and we just had a blast. We both painted on each piece, and of course, true to form, she ended up sticking her hand in the paint cup and painting a couple of the pieces with her fingers. She even ended up with some of the paint in her hair (acrylic paint is interesting in hair… does NOT wash out… but after a few days it was all gone).

We both really enjoyed this activity, and now that it’s done, I want to extend it by getting some frames and putting her name in frames in her bedroom.

An important thing to note if you haven’t ever done a tape resist – use painter’s tape, and be sure to peel it off while the paint on the paper/canvas is still wet. It should peel right off.