Our House in the Middle of Our Street

DIY Cheap & Green All-Bug Spray Who likes getting bit by bugs? Swatting flies? Getting gnats out of eyes and off your white summer clothing? No one, and specifically to this blog post, ME ! I am a living sugar-watered, sweet-skinned, bug buffet in the summertime. Bugs will come from miles around to bite me, and even wearing expensive bug spray FULL of chemicals, I come home with red welts all over! Enter The Queen of Clean . My hero (after you, Martha). If you don't have any of her books, I suggest the 3-in-1 (shown here) "How the Queen Cleans Everything" by Linda Cobb . Although bug spray isn't exactly cleaning anything, Mrs. Cobb's books are all about easy cleaning and household solutions, and since there is a section about gardens, picnics, and general summertime cleaning fiascoes , there's a small section on homemade bug spray ! This is her recipe. This is the only bug-spray that has ever worked wonders, and not only that, it seems to last longer tha

There are a few changes taking place on this blog. In order to continue to have something ( anything !) to talk about, I've changed this blog to a "how-to" and review guide on anything from making cheap, easy, and chemical free bugspray (tomorrow!) to reviews on movies , books, even underwear ! Here and there will be my children exploring these things along with me, or, in a not-so-hidden-way of telling you that they're absolutely adorable without it becoming entirely a family blog. :) Here's one of those times... \ First: make sure puppies have adequate water in their bowl. Spatula required. Second: get down and dirty to inspect food. Interupt meal time if completely necessary. Last: ration.ration.ration! We don't want those puppies eating too much!

Drybees Organic Bamboo One-Size Fitted Diaper With Insert Included Seriously. Who can resist babies in diapers? Especially when they are super soft and cozy cloth diapers like these? I just can't stop taking pictures of them!(Don't want the review? Hop on over to BabyMast to see Lukka's photo-shoot of Mommy and Anikka!) Review: The very first cloth diapers I ever tried on Lukka were Drybees All-In-One (AIO) diapers. The reason I bought this brand first was because at the time there was no other place selling cloth diapers except Milkworks , and this was the only brand they had! (They now have everything from prefolds to fuzzi buns...except Bum Genius! Too bad, those are my all-time favs).  I liked them alright, except I found out that to get them completely dry, you had to put them in the dryer for two cycles. Not only does that not seem very cost-economical to me (the reason to cloth diaper in the first place for us!) but they still would be slightly damp and then start

This movie was two things: incredibly long and absolutely amazing. Depending on which of those things interests you more will determine your own outcome of this movie. People I know who (I thought) would generally like the movie didn't like it for the main reason stated above. It's nearly 3 hours. To be honest, Stefan and I watched it in 1 hour increments over three days, and each day we were more excited to see it! This movie stars Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman, and Brandon Walters as Nullah. I was first told about it from my mom, who actually has very similar film tastes as I do, and she said it was really good...end of discussion. When I found out Baz Lurhmann directed it, I knew I had to see it! (Baz Lurhmann also directed Romeo + Juliet with Claire Danes and Leonardo DiCaprio and Moulin Rouge! with Nicole Kidman) He is one of my favorite directors and a celebrity in the movie world that I will go out of my way to see. The plot of the movie is that Sarah Ashley (Kidm

I had first heard about this new book from Potter Craft while trying to win it from my knitting buddy, Christy Nelson . When I didn't get one of those 5 new copies, I knew I had to immediately borrow it from the library. Complete with about 50 pages of a visual tools glossary and templates, this really is quite the encyclopedia! I felt this was an excellent craft book because it wasn't just a 'project book'. A lot of craft books that are hitting the market right now are just a collection of about 20 projects to make, and a lot of them are the same in every book! This is more of a manual, carefully explaining each type of craft and the fine details that go with a step-by-step guide. It has everything from origami to making pom-pom animals, gilding mirrors and pressing seaweed and flowers! Of course, there are project suggestions, but the way her format is laid out, it lets the reader observe how something is done, and giving inspiration to tweak it instead of setting

The Peanut Lady is already 2 months old! I can hardly believe it! We had her 2 month well baby checkup and here's her numbers. Weight: 11lb 3.8 oz. (4 1/2 lbs gained since birth) Height: 22 3/4 in (almsot 4 inches already!) Head: 15 1/2 Dislikes: being cold, if even for a second while getting her out of the bathtub and into a kushy towel Likes: having her cheeks stroked and soft talking. This always makes her smile. Big Brother Update: He is becoming more accustomed to her. He still takes his big brother-ness seriously, loves to buckle her up in the carseat and even grabbing one side of the carseat and helping me carry her into the car (and then opening up the door for me, too!) What a dude. Cutest moments: When Lukka gets in his jammies and ready for bed, he comes and gives her a kiss. ::MELT:: Lesson learned: Two is always better than one.

Seriously. Check out that sweet curly hair. This is right out of the bathtub--after a sleep it turns straight, but hopefully when she's older it will stay curly! This is one of my favorite pictures of her. It isn't particularly cute, it's just hilarious. And that Little Red Riding Hood knit? From my NY friend Jess , knitter extraordinaire! LOVE IT ! (click on the pic for a close up of the funniest newborn grimace ever) Remember that Debbie Bliss baby sack I started way back when ? Well, other than sewing up the sides, weaving in the ends, and finding a zipper (sheesh, when I say all that it sounds like I still have a lot of work to do)...It's finished!! For you non-knitters, the hood looks goofy because it isn't sewn in yet...and I may or may not have screwed it up. That's always a possibility. :)

Lyrics from a favorite song of mine, sung today on Easter Sunday at my church, Grace Chapel " I will glory in my Redeemer, Who waits for me at gates of gold, and when He calls me, it will be paradise, His face forever to behold, His face forever to behold!" He is Risen He is Risen Indeed! Read an interesting post about the history of the word Easter on my friend Meg's blog HERE . Read a great idea for Christians to celebrate the "easter" traditions as a First Day of Spring Party HERE ( homespun heart blog --thanks for reminding me of this, Meg!) photocredit

This Wednesday the weather was nice enough to get out for a bikeride with the kids. My fabulous birthday present has been coming in handy on days I don't have the car. We rode over in the morning for Lukka's first Easter Egg Hunt, had some lunch, put the kids down for a nap, and then rode home. A good day. Here are some of the pictures Little Lu can't believe all his luck at finding eggs all over the place! The spoils! Grandma with Peanut Lady.

Little Lu has been sick for about 8 days...well...on and off. Vomit ting, diarrhea, no fever. Stomach ache, fever, crabbiness. What was it? We couldn't figure it out. After some Tylenol on day 6 (although, day 1 of fever) and finally finally actually noticing that he was chewing on his fingers while crying this morning, the teether . He sucked on it for an hour, his fever broke, and he was a happy camper. I thought he already had all his teeth but I guess not! This is a rare moment, when I can come check on him and he stays asleep. He is a light sleeper and notices when I just crack the door! I love pictures of sleeping babies...so peaceful. :)

Every first Thursday of the month, I pack up the kids and head to Zion Church for a Mom 2 Mom Breakfast Brunch. About 40 women get together to have breakfast, listen to a speaker, and get into small groups for discussion for two hours and the Grace Chapel group has pretty much become my lifeline as a mother of small kids. On Thursday mornings, we get together at someone's house, Milkworks, or a park around town to just hang out, let the kids entertain themselves, and swap horror stories and milestones. Over the last 9 months I have become pretty close with them, and we've all opened up to share some pretty heavy things with each other. Today was an honest example of how much we need to stay connected to friends. Prepare to laugh...or cry, if your day was like mine. * It was already 9:15 (M2M starts at 9:30 across town) and I hadn't even gotten changed yet! At least the kids were dressed and Anikka was already wailing in her carseat. As I shoveled my hair into a ponytail a