Smells Like Home

This whole not napping thing does have some (and I do mean SOME) advantages! While my littlest man was sleeping this afternoon my litte man and I got to do some baking.

My hubby had to call me twice while making Kraft Dinner (Not. Even. Joking.). Once to ask if he drained the water and another to ask if he added the butter, milk and cheese packet before or after he drained the water. You get my drift...work in progress to say the least. For that reason it is extremely important that these boys of mine know how to cook, bake and the basics...like Kraft Dinner :)

So today we made chocolate zucchini muffins...yum

and yummy!

Chocolate zucchini muffins/cake are one of those happy smells that bring me back to my childhood. It's an instant connection and I'm back! So many happy birthdays were sung over a chocolate zucchini cake my one and only mama made. Others were upside down pineapple cake and ANYTHING that was in a tin that my Grandma brought along with her!

So tell me what is an instant smell trigger for you that brings you back to those stress free, innocent childhood days?

I'm off to try and avoid eating all of these muffins!

-Rachelle

Taking a Step Back

It's not often as a parent you get to take a step back. I think that's why these pictures are my favorites...

and finally my littlest man is in on the action...

Not the greatest shot but I was worried he'd face plant into the water and sand any minute...which happened two seconds after this picture was taken anyways...Mother of the Year...don't think this is my year ;)

So tell me...what's your favorite picture(s) of all time?

-Rachelle

Pre-School here we come!

At 7:30am I got my little man all registered for pre-school...such a bitter sweet moment. I'm so excited for him to have structured time and meet new friends but it's just the beginning of things that are no longer baby/tot and parent. He's officially a BIG BOY now!

BUT I will get some much needed one on one time with Mr. Jacob and I know these emotions will pass...especially after this list of back to school goodies! What would I do without Etsy and online shopping during these emotional times :)

First on the list is this super cute personalized tee for a first grader...

and don't worry they've got some for boys too...you can find them at The Trendy Butterfly.

I came accross these backpacks a couple years ago and got the penguin for James...

there's some new animals that are BEYOND cute...bee, zebra, owl...would it be too early to get one for Jacob!? They can be found at Skip Hop.

I am so in love with this next item. Here's the front...can you guess what it is?

A LUNCHBOX!! Pure GENIUS...here's the inside

I can't get over these! Each lunchbox comes with the drink bottle AND two sheets of stickers so the lucky owner of these gets to personalize it! They come in pink, blue, green and orange and there's also a grownup line as well. More importantly they are BPA free, dishwasher safe (BIG one for me!), 100% recyclable AND think of all the plastic bag you'll save! You can find them at Goodbyn.

As we continue to save the environment another option for environmentally friendly lunches are these reusable sandwich and snack bags

You can pick up these nifty little things here.

And now to fill the girly void as there's not a whole lot of things pink and sparkly going on in this house...

Can't even believe how CUTE this is! You can find this Red Polka Dot Satin Apple Clip at Crafty Mama Designs.

Don't worry I wouldn't leave us Moms out...something to hold that cup of morning coffee or tea

with a little humour! Find it here.

And last but not least something to bring a little organization to our lives...

a modern and stylish planner that holds a notepad, cell phone, pen, calendar and so much more! This lovely can be found at Monkey Cheeks.

Well folks this is just a few finds that I'm loving right now. So tell me what's on your list?

-Rachelle

Budding Artists

A couple of weeks ago we were contacted by Maria from Budding Artists about our Silver Pendants. Budding Artists is a Canadian company that is ALL about kid's artwork.

They have fundraising programs (many diferent options), a party option and some pretty cool products that have Christmas presents written ALL over them!

My favorites are the travel mug, water bottle, garden stake, planters, luggage tags...who am I kidding I LOVE them all!

I will be sitting down with this little artist...

and a box of crayons and will be ordering away! I'll keep you posted with what kind of magic James draws up and the Budding Artists products we order...CAN'T wait!

And as you all know what a blog addict I am, Maria at Budding Artists even has a BLOG!! Yipee! You can find it here. Maria has found some great artwork ideas...one of my favorite being this one.

Budding Artists is currently in the running for the Savvy Mom Entrepreneur of the Year Award. To vote for Budding Artists click  here. By the way EVERY TIME you vote you're entered for $500 Paypal dollars...I wouldn't have a problem doing some serious damage with that! Good luck Maria!

And speaking of lovely artwork meet Pinky...

I was lucky enough to make this beautiful drawing into this...

I LOVE artwork orders!

Tomorrow I sign my little Jamesy up for Pre-School :( It feels like just yesterday we were here...

 

To help with this emotional moment I will be putting together some Back to School finds! Check back tomorrow for this collection...nothing like a little emotional shopping right ;)

Happy hump day!

-Rachelle

Mommy Metamorphosis

I was in my pj's all day today until 5:58pm (yes that says pm!)...the boys included in my self proclaimed pj day. And the pj fun didn't stop there...I only changed into a clean set of pj's after that. I've been fighting a cold all week and today was the day to take it easy. Oh and clean a bathroom or two, sweep and mop the floors and keep an eye on these kiddos...

Gone are the days BK (Before Kids) of calling in sick and curling up with a cup of tea and some movies or a good book. And so I begin to explain the title of this blog...

Last weekend we were lucky enough to enjoy two days on Kalamalka Lake boating with tubes and a wake board. Since having my boys this was my first time boating again...and I noticed a HUGE change. While trying wakeboarding I couldn't relax and enjoy the wipeout after wipeout after wipeout. Double tubing with Mark was BEYOND stressful...but why!?

Then it hit me...I'm a Mom now and have become a complete PRUDE! Wakeboarding...worried the wakeboad would slice all my fingers off (dramatic...yes I know). Tubing...worried I'd fall off and break something and be out of commission...worried, worried, WORRIED!

Until now not even the mini van or the Fabricland membership made me realize it as these were all new things. But when I was doing something I did BK and now WITH kids...WOW...it hit me like a ton of bricks.

So here's my question...WHEN does this happen? Is it as soon as you find out you're pregnant and become a Mom or is it a gradual process?

My theory...after labour. Carrying this little person for nine months and then the process of getting them out...there's NO WAY I am doing anything that wouldn't allow me to remind them of everything I did to get them here! And is it worth it...this new persona that I've suddenly realized almost four years later?

Wouldn't trade it for a skydiving, swim with sharks, live on the edge, risk taking life...I'm sticking around and LOVING my new personality!

Happy weekend everyone!

-Rachelle

Long Weekend Wrap Up

The reality that our three day long weekend is over and I accomplished NOTHING around the house is sinking in. I'm going to pretend that this is my version of a successful long weekend!

It started with a trip to the Farmer's Market where we picked up these tasties...

The amount of fruits and veggies in season right now is mind blowing! Those cookies front and centre are called "Everything But The Kitchen Sink" cookies...so yummy! If you haven't been yet....GO! You won't leave empty handed!

We dropped the goods off at home and headed to this little piece of paradise...

A very unsuccessful attept at wakeboarding and doube tubing with the hubby (which is the closest thing to a date we've been on in a long time!) somewhat became my 'aha moment' as a Mother...more on that later in the week.

By day two the boys were done...

and DONE!

Last but not least as promised here's what I threw together for dinner on Saturday night...

Ok maybe I didn't throw it together all on my own...with help (a lot!) from my sisters and Anna Getty's Easy Green Organic Pasta Fresca recipe. I would HIGHLY recommend this cookbook to anyone. Super easy recipes and amazing food!

Before we know it we're on our way to another week...August is here, the summer is half over and in a few days this little man will be 6 months old :(

And so begins my 'Mid Maternity Leave Crisis'!

-Rachelle