Friday 19 April 2013

How To Deep Clean Your Kitchen



Okay folks. Today's topic is cleaning. I know, we all hate it. But part of keeping your home in working order is clean. And once in awhile, your rooms, especially your kitchen, need a good deep clean. So here's how to give your kitchen the best cleaning you've ever given it, or will ever give it again. 

First off, a warning, you don't have to do this in one day. Seriously. This is a big task, don't feel bad if you need to space it out over a couple of days. 

Step 1: Prep

Get out your cleaners. Fill a bucket with hot water and your choice of all purpose cleaners, Lysol or Mr. Clean or even vinegar. Get out the Windex, and grab some old cloths for scrubbing things. Get out the oven cleaner and some rubber gloves. Fill up a bucket with floor cleaner, or just plain old hot water, get out your mop... Everything you will need to scrub this room. Once we get going, we don't want to be running around looking for what we need. Please note: Please don't use bleach. You prep food in here people, not to mention mixing it with some other chemicals can make poisonous gasses. Better to not risk it. 

Get two laundry baskets or sorting baskets, and a sheet or table cloth. Trust me. 

Open up your windows, and hopefully your doors. There are lots of chemicals used in cleaning a kitchen, and most of them smell rank and will make you high. Not cool. So open up those windows. 

If you can't get rid of your kids for a bit, put them someplace safe... like in their high chair. 



Step 2: The Oven.

Typically oven cleaners need a couple hours to set before they work, so start with this step. Follow the instructions on your bottle of oven cleaner, or sprinkle your oven with baking soda and then spray vinegar over it, or create a paste using liquid soap, baking soda, and vinegar. Apply this to your oven, and leave sit for 6-8 hours, then wipe clean. Simple as that. 

Please note: Chemical Oven Cleaners need to be Well Ventilated. They're highly toxic. 

Step 3: Clean off the clutter. 

Go to your table. If you're like me, it's probably covered in junk. Take all those things, and sort them. Dishes, stack on the counter. One laundry basket for things that go in other rooms, and one basket for things that need to be donated. Once your table is clear, wipe it well with a damp, hot, cloth. Scrub the caked on ketchup your kid dumped on it last night, and while you're at it, check under the edges for any food or condiments they hid or dripped under the table. 

Now lay down the sheet or tablecloth on top of the table. This is now your working space! Once you're done, any clutter or anything that happens now happens on your sheet. 

Step 4: Do your dishes.

Do all your dishes. For some people this is an easy step, and for some, this is a monumental task of epic proportions. 

Step 8: Wipe down all surfaces

Wipe down the windows sills, the fronts and edges of your drawers and cupboards, your stove, your fridge... every surface you can see when everything is closed. We'll get to everything else soon.

Starting list for things to clean off:

- On top of stove/stove buttons and knobs
- Fan blades
- Cupboard drawers
- Microwave
- On top of fridge
- Fridge Handles
- Cupboard handles
- Windows Sills
- Light fixtures
- Faucet and knobs
- Backs of Chairs

Step 4: Clear off your counters. 

Take everything on your counter, and put it on your table, on your sheet. Clear them completely off. Yes, completely. That means take off that spice rack that's been there since you got married, and that toaster that your kid smeared peanut butter on. 

First off, look at the things you put on the table. Do you really need all of those things on your counter? Do you use all of them daily or every couple days? If not, leave them on your table. It's time for the things you don't use often to find another home. 

Second step is take a damp cloth, and that bucket you filled with cleaner.. and wipe down everything you can. Wipe the counters themselves, the back splash, the fancy molding you loved when you moved in, but mostly it's just a dust collector, clean all the items on the table... everything. Clean every individual spice jar. 

Then put everything that survived the "I use this daily" test, back on the counter. If you need to rearrange how things are placed to make it easier to find/harder for kids to reach, now is the time to do it. You've got it all off anyways. 

Step 7: Clear Out Your Cupboards.

Remember how we took everything off the counter and onto the sheet? Do the same thing with all your cupboards. Let's start with the ones above the sink first. Take everything out, this means even that top shelf where you keep the dishes you got for wedding gifts and haven't used... ever. Wipe inside. You'd be surprised what kind of gross gunk can build up in cupboards. 

Now look back at your table. It's tempting, oh do I ever know it's tempting, to say you want to keep every serving tray and dish. But do you really need that snowman serving tray you inherited from your husbands great aunt? Probably not. Take this time to get rid of anything you haven't used in six months. 

That goes for appliances too. You have a baby bullet you haven't used in 3 years? Donate! You have seven trillion bugs from various places around the world? Maybe keep a couple to display, then get rid of the rest. Use one of your baskets to put all the donation things in. 

Once everything is clean and organized, put everything back into the cupboards. Then do the same thing for under your sink and any other cupboards left. 

Step 8: Clear out your drawers.

Clear out all your drawers. Wipe them out inside, and sort again. Donate what you don't use, and then organize properly what you do. 

Step 9: Clear our your pantry.

Same steps as before. Pull it all out on the table, wipe inside the pantry, clean off the boxes, sort out anything expired or not usable. If you have a spice cupboard or something similar, do that at the same time as this. 

Step 10: Clear out your fridge and freezer.

Same steps as before. Clear out, wipe, sort. Take out anything freezer burned and chuck it. This has the added benefit of you knowing what's now in your pantry and fridge. 

Step 11: Clean your windows. 

Take that windex and scrub away. If it's nice out, do the outsides too. 

Step 12: Clean anything we missed.


Sometimes people have special things in their kitchen. I have a bookshelf and our shoe rack. This would be the time I cleaned those things. This is your time to clean those others things.


Don't forget to wipe down your oven!


Step 13: Clean your floors.

 This means drag everything out into your living room you can. Garbage cans, chairs, potato bins... if you can get it out, get it out. 

Take your rugs out and give them a good beating, and maybe an air out, then store them in a safe place for awhile. 

Your floors might be covered in bits of this and that, so give it a good sweep first. Then mop, don't forget the corners and around the edges. 

Then mop, don't be scared to get down and scrub what you can. 


... 

GUESS WHAT?

You made it! We're done! 

You just gotta drag back in your furniture and bask in the uber cleanliness of your kitchen! 

It's a huge task, cleaning your kitchen this well. But so worth it. :) 

Good luck! Tell me how it went! 

- Adele

Tuesday 16 April 2013

When Grandparents are far away - Coping with Long Distance Relationships


It's always hard when grandparents are far away. My kids grandparents live clear across the country in good old Saskatchewan. It's a 2 day drive(4 with kids) or a nearly 9 hours including lay overs flight away. So you can imagine we don't see them often. 

Before I got married I had to come to terms with the idea that my parents wouldn't be there for my kids lives. Yes, they would be there as often as they could, but in all actuality, for the majority of my children's lives, my parents simply can't be there. 

Lately this has come to bear a lot. Wiggles is nearly 4 months now, and the last time my parents saw her, she was 1 month old. My mom struggles all the time to deal with the fact that they are missing her mile stones. Her little giggles and kicks, her smiles and snuggles. It's incredibly hard on them, and I didn't realize just how much I'd want my parents here until I had Wiggles.

Plus, Flash loves seeing grandma and grandpa. He adores the heck out of them. He tells everyone that his grandparents are from "Saskchewan" and that they came and saw him and they're the best. Every chance he has to bask in their love, he takes it. 

So how do we cope? Well, there are pretty much 4 steps. 

1. Travel. 

I try very hard to see my parents at least once a year. If that's me going there, or them coming here. More than that, is amazing. The more my kids get to see their grandparents and be spoiled by them, the better. This is also true for their aunts. And when their family is here, they spend every minute they can with the kids. I don't think Wiggles was put down the entire time her aunties or grandparents were here. And you know what? I didn't say "Put her down, she needs to learn to be alone." I said "Hold her more, she needs to know you love her." 

Plus, I just plain old miss my family. 

2. Skype. 

Lots of it. We Skype at least once a week. Get Wiggles and Flash used to seeing and hearing their grandparents. Flash gets so excited to see grandma and grandpa on Skype. Skype has the benefit of being real time, and video and audio. It's about as close to being in the same room as you're gonna get while being a million miles away from each other. Flash sits there and chatters with grandma and grandpa, and loves every minute. Wiggles sits there and stares in wonder at the people who know her name talking to her off the computer screen. Meanwhile, my parents and sisters get to watch my kids grow up through more than just pictures. Seriously, skype. Love it. 


3. Phone.

I talk to my mom... everyday. If I don't talk to my mom, it's a weird day. Here's the thing. She knows everything that's going on with my kids. She know every little cute thing Wiggles does, she knows every perfect test score Flash gets. It's important people. Phone your family when something cool happens. If they were here in the city, I'd have my mother here as often as possible to see her grandkids grow up. In lieu of that... I call every time I can. I put the phone to Elsie's ear, and she lights up when grandma and grandpa talk to her. Flash sits and chatters with grandma for as long as he wants, and he loves it, because he gets grandma all to himself. He doesn't have to share like on Skype. It's a special time for him. 

4. Pictures and Video

Especially when you are working with babies, who grow so fast, and meet milestones so fast... take lots of pictures and video. We do. And we coat facebook in them. It's one of those things. We video Wiggles giggling, Flash feeding Wiggles, Wiggles discovering her toes... Those things that kids do without thinking. I see Flash half falling off the couch while watching a show? Picture! Share with grandma! This not only helps the grandparents stay in touch, but it helps you preserve those adorable moments that you honestly? Can't get back. 

That's all folks. It won't be easy. It'll kinda stink in fact. But remember that it's not like even 70 years ago, where moving away meant snail mail. Nope. There are SO many tools you can use to stay in touch, you just gotta make the effort. And for the record? Keeping those grandparents involved? Worth every bit of effort. 

- Adele

Thursday 11 April 2013

Teaching our Boys to be Young Men


Lately I have been really convicted about Flash. He's six, he will be seven in less than a month. And I just realized... he's becoming a little man.



I know, all if you out there reading this are like, 'Duh Adele, that's why they call them boys.' But that's not what I mean. Think of all the things you expect to find in a man, a real man. Protection, strength, wisdom, provision, leadership, to name a few. And Flash needs to know these things. He needs, as a young Christian man, to start developing these traits. 

The world is not going to help him do it. If there is one thing I am convinced about, it's that the Devil has his eye on my children, and the world is the Devils tool. 

The world will do everything it can to convince my son that he doesn't need to provide for his family. The world will do everything it can to tell my son he doesn't need to be the leader in his home. The world will do everything it can to tell my son that God's wisdom is wrong, and that he should be following some self-made theory of morality and guidance. The world will do everything to make my son ineffective. 

Flash is a self proclaimed Christian. We have spent months watching his life after he accepted Jesus into his heart, and it has been amazing to see him grow and mature in his faith. He wants so much to learn, and this is amazing to see. 

At the same time as I see this maturity starting in him, I see another ugly character raising it's head. We have had to deal with questions like "Why do I have to go to work? If I don't, I'll get money anyways." He's talking about welfare. Impressing on my son the need for him to work hard at everything he does is difficult when everything around him says that he doesn't have to. That he'll get a free meal at the end of the day, simply because he was there for the ride. 

The Bible says : 

2 Thess 3: 6-13

Now we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you keep away from every brother who leads an unruly life and not according to the tradition which you received from us. For you yourselves know how you ought to follow our example, because we did not act in an undisciplined manner among you, nor did we eat anyone’s bread without paying for it, but with labor and hardship we kept working night and day so that we would not be a burden to any of you; not because we do not have the right to this, but in order to offer ourselves as a model for you, so that you would follow our example. For even when we were with you, we used to give you this order: if anyone is not willing to work, then he is not to eat, either. For we hear that some among you are leading an undisciplined life, doing no work at all, but acting like busybodies. Now such persons we command and exhort in the Lord Jesus Christ to work in quiet fashion and eat their own bread. But as for you, brethren, do not grow weary of doing good.

Did you catch that? The man who does not work should not eat. This is a fundamental truth in the Bible. I have found myself more and more hunting down verses like this one, to teach Flash what he needs to know, but it seems sometimes like it's fighting an uphill battle. 

But this does not mean I don't do it. 

So I want to encourage you moms out there reading this: 

1. Don't trust the world to teach your children. 

Your children are your greatest mission field. They are young, impressionable, and oh so open to learning. 
Don't let the world get a grip in their little hearts. 
Satan is not going to be merciful because they are children. The world will not be merciful because they are children. Be diligent. Your children are taking everything in, use your influence as their mother to pull them away from the world and it's sin. 

1 Peter 5:8

Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.

2. Teach them the word.

Often, daily, every hour, every minute. 
Talk to them about God. 
Talk to them about his statutes and precepts. 
Talk to them about his mercy and his love. 
Talk to them of his judgement and strength. 
Talk to them about his sovereignty. 
Talk to them about Jesus. 
Memorize scripture with them. 
Read the Bible aloud to them. 
Anything it takes to get the word into those little hearts. Because right now is the time. You might think they're to young, you might think they don't understand. But if they understand even one of the twenty things you tell them in a day, that's still something. 

Det. 11: 18 - 21

“You shall therefore impress these words of mine on your heart and on your soul; and you shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontals on your forehead. “You shall teach them to your sons, talking of them when you sit in your house and when you walk along the road and when you lie down and when you rise up. “You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates, so that your days and the days of your sons may be multiplied on the land which the LORD swore to your fathers to give them, as long as the heavens remain above the earth.

3. Set an example.

These children are watching you. Closer than you know. Be their example. Read your Bible. Pray as you do your chores. Love the Lord. Be merciful and pure in conduct. Your children will see that, and it will speak louder to them than anything that comes out of your mouth. 

The conduct you set now will be the conduct they will pick up. You love to read your Bible? They'll learn to love it. You sin regularly? Sadly, they will pick up on that same sin. 

For women, it's hard to be an example for young men, because we are not young men. :) But know this, if you are example of a Godly woman... your son will want to find another Godly woman to be with when he gets older. The Bible says that a Godly woman will bring her husband around with her conduct. 

1 Peter 3:1

Likewise, wives, be subject to your own husbands, so that even if some do not obey the word, they may be won without a word by the conduct of their wives.

Now, the context here is unbelieving husbands, but I think it fits with this concept as well. A wife who is living in the word, who is filling her role as a wife, in submission and grace, will encourage her husband to fulfill his role as a Godly husband. 

Your son will look for a wife like you. Set the example now. 

4. Love and submit to his Dad. 

I can hear it. I can hear the bristling skin as the women reading this read the word submit. It echoes through these pages even as I'm writing. 

But it's one of the few commandments given directly to women in the Bible. 

Eph 5: 22 - 24

Wives, be subject to your own husbands, as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ also is the head of the church, He Himself being the Savior of the body. But as the church is subject to Christ, so also the wives ought to be to their husbands in everything.

This isn't conditional. It doesn't say submit if your husband loves you, or submit if your husband is a good husband. No. It says submit. 

And it will be  one of the strongest ways you will reach your sons. Loving his dad, submitting to his dads leadership. Why? Because this not only shows him what a Godly woman looks like... but it allows his dad to step up and set the example of a Godly man. And your son will, more than anyone, learn from his father how to be a man. 

Learn what it means to submit. It's not a bad thing. In fact, it's a very good thing. 

5. Never think it's to late, or to early.

So your kids are older, or maybe they're much younger. Only babies. Teach them anyways. Guard their hearts anyways. Start now. 

Your son is a teenager? 

Be a Godly woman, set the example. Guard his heart. Love his dad. Monitor what he watches on TV, take him to church, talk to him about God. He might fight you on it, but as much as he seems all grown up? He is still a child, in need of your guidance. 

It's never to late to make a difference. 

I wasn't saved until I was 18. Because someone took the time to really talk with me about God and what he expects from me. 

Your son is just a baby? 

Be a Godly woman, set the example. Love his dad. Monitor what things go into that little head. Guard his heart with that fierce ferocity only moms can muster. Take him to church. Sing Bible songs to him, talk to him about his amazing creator. Get in the habit now. Make it so he doesn't remember a time when God wasn't the focus of his life. 

Flash was saved as six, because every moment he was awake, Caleb and I talked to him about God. 

It's never to early to make a difference. 

Just my thoughts for the day,

Adele

PS: I'd love to hear how you are teaching your sons to be Godly men. 


Wednesday 10 April 2013

Cloth Diapering! We're doing it, and loving it.

Okay, so I know, some of you are looking at this post and thinking, why would you ever cloth diaper? Touch poop? Ew. 

Wrong. 

I never touch poop. Ever. 

Yet I cloth diaper. 

Caleb and I made the decision to cloth diaper after a woman at our church started. She honestly makes it look super easy.  Caleb was drawn to the cost factor, and I was drawn to how cute it was. 

We got a bunch of cloth diapers for shower gifts, so we jumped in with two feet, and we've been using them since we brought Wiggles home from the hospital. And we  love them. Seriously. Love them. 

So I'm going to talk to you about cloth diapers in topics. Type, Ease of use/Washing, Price, and lastly, Other advantages/Disadvantages.

Type

We opted for pocket diapers. Which are essentially a liner, usually microfiber, and a waterproof cover with a slit on the one side. You slide the liner inside the cover, and then VOILA! It's just like a disposable. 

See? Here's an example of mine, one cover with no liner, one liner no cover, and one completely put together and ready to go. 


You slide the liner into the cover like this: 


Super easy. Definitely no worse than folding Wiggles' little tiny leotards. 

You can see ours are snaps. But they don't have to be. You can also get velcro, but I'm not that fond of them since they tend to wear out easier, and they get stuck to other diapers while washing. >.> Not cool. But we do have a couple that we kinda like, but I don't think I would go out and buy anymore of them. 


But. These are not the only cloth diapers you can get. A quick google search will show you that there are DOZENS of types of cloth diapers. Prefolds, which are essentially the old school diapers. You fold them and put a cover on them. They're cheaper, but more work than pockets. There's all in ones, which are essentially washable disposables. They tend to hold scents and things more, and some people have an issue with the idea that maybe a standard washing machine can't clean them properly, they're also very expensive. And those are just the beginning. The cloth diapering world is a huge one, and trying a little of this and that to find what you like isn't a bad thing. :) 

Oh! Another note. If you choose to do this, go with newborns for the first month. 


Here's a normal and a newborn side by side for size comparison. Normal sized diapers are made to fit most babies until they potty train. While newborns are made for tiny bums. :) We found that the normal ones on the very tightest setting didn't fit Wiggles until she was nearly 1 month, and even now at 4 months she can fit into the newborn ones on the largest settings.

Ease of Use/Washing

These are, in my opinion, the simplest diapers ever. All I do is stuff them when I fold them with my other clothes. They go on just like a disposable, then I put them in a wet bag, or throw them right down into the laundry room. And then to wash, I pull out the liner and throw all of it in the washing machine. One cold rinse, one hot wash with detergent, and an extra rinse at the end(which I can push a button on my machine for). Machine or sun dry. Easy as that.

 I have found that while Wiggles was exclusively breast fed, this was easiest. Breast fed babies poop is water soluble, so no rinsing involved. Now, people say when you start introducing formula/solids you need to rinse. I haven't found this. First off, Wiggles poops never really got 'solid' even after she started solid foods. They were always VERY liquidy and got absorbed right into the diaper with her urine. 

SO. My rule of thumb has become, if it's not absorbed, it gets a good rinse in my slop sink. I pull the liner out, dump the whole thing in my slop sink, and then turn the water on full blast. It takes care of anything solid left over, and then I pull it out with two fingers, careful not to touch ANY poop, and then I throw it in the washing machine. But most of the time it's absorbed. So it's all good. 

There's a lot of debate about detergents. Google it. People are opinionated. Very opinionated. Well, I have a  High Efficiency washing machine. So I can only use HE detergent. Which kinda limits my options. I'm also not paying $30 for a container of detergent. My solution? I use Sunlight Cold Water. :) Some cloth diapering mommas would crawl down my throat for that statement. But. I haven't had any issues with residue, and my diapers are still super absorbent, and Wiggles doesn't have any reaction to any of the scents or anything. So it works for us. My recommendation to all you cloth diapering mommas out there, do your research, yes. But if you have a detergent that you used before you realized you needed a special one, and it's working, stick with it. Everyone's water is different, and that detergent might be exactly what your water needs. For the record though, I've also heard great things about original Tide. 

Price

One of the best things about cloth is you can't beat the price. 

Pocket diapers have a double row of snaps on the front to shorten/lengthen them as your baby grows. This means they can fit from about 10 Lbs to whenever your baby potty trains. And, because they are washable, you can reuse them with multiple children. Very cost effective. But, let me break it down for you, for all of you who care. 

Disposables

Average Box of 200 disposables - $40 - On sale, no coupons.

Now, I don't know about you, but when Wiggles is in disposables, we can go through 200 diapers in about two weeks, maybe less. But let's be generous and say two weeks.

So! 

$40 x 2/month = $80 a month
$80/month x 12 months/year = $920
$920 x 3 years before baby potty trains = 

$2880

Cloth

Average price of a standard cloth diaper - $7 - $15

You need about 24 diapers to start with, maybe more, maybe less. But let's go with 24. 

$168 - $360 - Initial investment. 
+ $10 on our power bill per month x 12 months a year x 3 years before potty training = $360
Wet bag / Garbage bin for wet diapers = $60

Total cost = 

$588 - $780

And you can reuse them for multiple children, so your cost for the next child goes down to 

$360. 

To diaper them until they're potty trained. 

... Seriously. 

Now, we don't exclusively cloth. We buy about 1 box of disposables every 2 months. We use disposables for night time, because Wiggles is a heavy wetter, but we could just double stuff, I'm just lazy, and we use them when we are out and about, because babies can't stay in wet cloth for long, so they have to be changed more often, thus disposables are easier. But STILL. 

Other Advantages/Disadvantages

Well, cloth does have it's disadvantages. But it has some cool advantages too. 

First off, you'll change bums a lot more. Disposable diapers have special chemical crystals in them that whisk away fluid really fast. Cloth don't. So your baby feels when they wet a lot more. But the advantage to this, is babies who are in cloth usually potty train faster, because they feel their business more. Bonus. 

Second of all, washing. Compared to disposables, there's a lot of washing involved. And it can be kind of a pain in the butt when you are tired. The bonus is is you know what chemicals are touching your baby. And for those babies with sensitive skin, cloth is the way to go. 

The third disadvantage is diaper creams. You can't use them. At all. Because they're oil based, they get onto your diapers and cause they to repel. Which is kinda counter productive. The good news is, if you change regularly, your cloth diapered baby will probably never get a rash, because they're so chemical free. And you can also buy diaper rash cream online that's safe of cloth diapers. 

Other Advantage one? They're so stinkin' cute. 


Red, yellow, and Hello Kitty. >.> I also have black, orange, pink, purple, blue... If you can imagine it, the cloth diaper world has created it. Sure beats white and Elmo. They also don't have any weird scents like disposables. 

Overall

We love our cloth, and I totally recommend them to anyone who is brave enough to try. <3 Wiggles loves them, Caleb loves them, and they are cute. How can you go wrong? 

- Adele

Tuesday 9 April 2013

Recipe Tuesday... Kinda! Pantry time!


I understand it's supposed to be recipe Tuesday today, but really, this is about food, so it counts. :) 

Today I want to talk to you about pantries. I love my pantry, but when I first started stocking it up, I found it really hard to know what to get. So here I'm starting to compile a list of things that I personally find helpful to have in my pantry. 

First off, here's my pantry. 


As you can see, it's kind of disorganized right now. But it's not as disorganized as it looks. Mostly it's just small. But that's ok. I will work with what I got. 

The first thing to note is that whenever possible I use fresh ingredients. But sometimes it just doesn't happen, and that's ok. 

Ok, so on the bottom shelf, there's glass cylinder containers filled with various things. I got them from Dollarama. In those containers I keep: 

- Dried Red Kidney Beans
- Dried White Kidney Beans
- Dried Lentils
- Rolled Oats
- White Sugar
- Basmati Rice
- Brown Sugar
- White Flour
- Whole Wheat Flour

As often as I can I buy these things in bulk. For the record, dried beans? Way better than canned beans, and it takes only a little bit of prep. You soak them overnight or boil them for about 15 minutes. And they taste so much better, and are so much more pretty. 

Anyways, on the bottom shelf I also keep our instant oatmeal, which Caleb and Flash love for breakfast. We get these at Costco, $12 for the big box, and it lasts us forever. Corn syrup, which I like on just about everything, is also down there, along with my extra virgin Olive Oil. (*Note: If any of you know where to buy coconut oil in Canada, I'd love to hear it!) When I have a big thing of Carnation hot chocolate (My guilty pleasure), it also goes on my bottom shelf. 

My second shelf has some instant food on it right now, Caleb's aunt dropped it off for us. I'm not sure I'll ever use it, but I keep it around because I'm bound to have a lazy day sometime. :P 

As for what else is on there... 

- At least 5 bags of various Pastas 
(Usually whatever was on sale.)
- Egg noodles
- Peanut Butter 
(We get the great value brand from Walmart, none of us can taste the difference)
- Rice Vermicelli noodles
- A couple bags of Ramen for quick meals 
(I love the no name brand type, but here we have Compliments)
- Knorr Sidekicks
- Chicken Noodle Soup Mix
(Lipton full salt. The reduced sodium was just.. wrong.)
- Barley
(This is the newest addition to my pantry, not  sure how I'm going to use this.)
- Various Vinegars 
(Right now I have Apple Cider Vinegar, and White Vinegar)

Here's my break time... Aaaaand it's Wiggles! She is humouring me. 


Ok! My top shelf. 

- 4 cans tomato sauce
(I get the plain great value brand kind and doctor it up with all my spices. Don't worry, well talk about those too.)
- Nutella
- Honey
- Cans of beans 
(I'm phasing these out in favour of my dried ones.)
- 3 cans diced tomatoes 
(Whenever possible I use my own canned tomato's, but I recently ran out.)
- Cereal
(Caleb loves cereal, we like the Sally's brand from Walmart. $4 for 600g as opposed to sometimes close to $8, and it tastes just as delicious, if not better.)
- A couple cans of Campells soups
- 2 boxes of each Chicken and Beef Broth
- A couple boxes of Kraft Dinner for treat days.

So that's my pantry. I found I didn't need as much as I thought I did, and it's really easy to stock it slowly, one or two items on top of my normal groceries a pay check. And it really helps those weeks when groceries are tight.

As for my spices and things, I live off them. 


I keep a decent stock of spices on hand at all times. These include: 

- Lemon Pepper
- Cocoa
- Ground Black Pepper
- French Fry Spice
- Seasoning Salt 
- Club house gravy packages
(We buy them on sale for about $.25 a piece, well worth it.)
- Baking Soda
- Baking Powder
- Cumin
- Turmeric
- Salt
- Basil
- Coriander
- Ginger
(Fresh and ground)
- Garlic
(Fresh and Powder)
- Cinnamon
-  Condensed Milk
- Shake and Bake packages
- Taco and Fajita seasoning packets
- Club house pasta salad mix 
(Seriously, best ever. Try it.)
- Nutmeg

*I also have a spice rack that has all sorts of spices in it. 

I also keep basic baking supplies on hand. 

- Chocolate chips
- Coconut
- Banana's
- Shortening

And some sauces(Some of these are in my fridge). 

- Hoisin sauce
- Soy sauce
- Ketchup
- Worcestershire Sauce
- Tobasco Sauce
- White Rice Vinegar

So that's my pantry folks! It's my life saver when I have tight weeks, and really it helps a lot with meal planning. <3 

- Adele



Friday 5 April 2013

Family photo's coming up! Meet our photographer!

So! We are looking at getting family pictures done soon, and there's a lovely young woman in our church named Tay who offered to do them! I'm thrilled, and so I must blog and tell you all about her wonderful work! See, she takes stunning pictures. If you live in Windsor, you should totally hit her up for a session. You won't regret it.

Anyways, look at these stunning pictures Tay took! 




Oh! Did I mention she took my wedding photos? Yeah, she did. Look! 






She's amazing right? Yeah, we think so too. :) 


The front one is her. See/ Even when she is taking self shots it's gorgeous. <33 I'm super excited to be getting our family pictures taken by her. We have been brainstorming poses and ideas all morning, and now I'm all pumped up about it. 

Just braggin'
- Adele

Thursday 4 April 2013

Advice to Pregnant Moms Everywhere

So. Pregnancy. I can officially say, been there, done that.

And so, being the blogger I am, I'm going to tell you about it. Share in my own experiences in the hopes that your day is a little better for the laugh.

Pregnancy was the single most horrible and amazing and awesome experience of my life. It was mayhem and order, it was over flowing life and yet still not being able to get my acne to go away.

My first piece of advice:

Ignore the people who tell you how your body "should" feel.

I learned so well that I knew my body. When I felt something was wrong, it was wrong. If someone else thought something was wrong, and I didn't, I was usually right. Only you really know what's going on in your body. Each pregnancy is unique.

At the same time, that means listen to your body. If you feel something is wrong don't feel bad seeing a doctor. EVER. Even if you have seen them 4 times that week already. It's better you be a little embarrassed than something happen with your baby.

Treasure it. 

This time moves so fast. I know by the time you hit 25 weeks, you just want to be done. But remember those first couple days? Those amazing moments when you are so over joyed by the thought of being pregnant you smile all the time? Try to remember those when you feel like a blimp.

14 weeks post pregnancy, and I'm finally able to look back and miss it. I wish I had spent more time treasuring the fact that I was growing a baby.

Tell someone how you feel.

You will most likely feel weepy and like a blimp and like if you eat more more of the potato chips you've been craving you'll burst.

Tell someone. Keeping those feelings in in the name of being strong makes for a miserable pregnant woman.

Second piece of advice under this: Your husband is NOT the best person to get sympathy for over this. Try someone who has recently been pregnant. They'll sympathize enough to be understanding, and yet be at that stage where they can remind you to treasure it.

Take pictures. Lots of them.

We didn't. I think I have maybe one a month. I wish I had more. While you are pregnant, you will be gushing with life. Your smile will be radiant, your figure will be stunning, and your hair will look like a brand new Barbie dolls. Revel in it.

Get busy.

Do things. Get out of your house. Clean, cook, craft... whatever you gotta do to stay busy. If you mull around feeling sorry for your pregnant self, you'll be so frustrated by the end of the day it's insane.

Most of all... Smile. 

This season is only for awhile, and then you get a baby. Take the time to smile along the way as your body changes. Keeping a healthy attitude will help the time fly. <3

Remember, at the end you get one of these:


- Adele
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