The JOYS gardening season!

 Oh the joys of warmer temperature! And smells and sites of FRESH VEGGIES and Beautiful flowers!
I can't be more excited about this year, our garden has done very well so far. We've harvest 2 bags of romaine, our strawberries are blooming, and best yet the cucumbers and tomatoes look VERY VERY promising!


This year gardening has taken a little more time to do, due to pregnancy but my kids couldn't be more excited to help when they can!

My daughter helped this year with planting the plants, and she thought it was amazing! Now she looks every day at the garden and sees them changing and blooming.


I love their excitement over the fresh produce that has sprouted. I look forward to seeing what the summer holds (besides a newest Blessing to our family!)

Oh Baby!

Thanking God for answered Prayers! As many may know we suffered what is considered a chemical pregnancy in Oct/Nov. Which where your body thinks its pregnant, but you really are not. We made a decision to wait and try again after the holiday so there wouldn't be another heart break. And on November 20th 2013, I didn't think I was pregnant, considering we weren't going to try again til after the new year. But thought "oh what the hey! Lets test"... And i was completely shocked when this appeared on the stick. I think I just starred for a while in complete disbelief. This time we kept it a complete secret from the kids, because last time we told them early and had to shatter their hearts.
Our appointment was set for the day before Christmas Eve, and I couldn't wait to see our sweet bean, and to confirm everything was ok. And it was! Everything was perfect, little heartbeat and everything. It was amazing! We told the kids that evening once we got home. They seemed a little shy about reacting til I showed them the Ultrasound, and pointed out there was a heart beat, a head and body. After that moment, they have been excited and amazed about all things.
The most amazing moment about the pregnancy was when my son asked me about what the baby is doing. And I googled a video that is Christian based, that explains a baby's development (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=APkV40vUhWs ). And he started to tear up once he saw what a miracle life truly is! He can't wait to meet the baby and feel the baby move. I look forward to what our life will be with 3 beautiful blessings!

Happy OFFICIAL 1yr to NATURAL LIVING

So I have been officially working towards my goal of Natural living with food for 1yr, and completely living naturally for 2 years come May 2014. And I was asked about my story, and I thought I would update on my blog and do a little story telling. I have been slowly adapting to the natural living, because I knew I couldn't do a giant leap with me being a mother of 2 (almost 3) and a wife. I would need to slowly make the changes and change to menu as well. So here is my story, I hope you enjoy!

Back in 2012, I was looking into becoming a little more natural. Less chemical, less dyes, less wasting money. I started googling things about how to save on making items, and the first thing I came up with was detergent. I realized adding another member to our family I was washing A LOT more clothes and going through detergent like it was water. And I also noticed HALF the ingredients I could not pronounce! So I started reading up on different things, and I started to realize that it was the easiest thing ever to make. I went to the store and made my first batch of laundry detergent! And I can say  I make it every 6mths, for the amount of laundry I do, that's amazing.

I started to look into other things through our household, I have a whole binder full of DIY cleaning products. I finally made the transition over to our food, with just making my own bread started a whole new life for our family. I started making cookies, pizza crust, and then Chinese food. Everything I started to make from scratch, or some-what from scratch. I got so involved with natural living that I was OVERLY excited about a class our church started, Treasures of Healthy Living.

The class, Treasures of Healthy Living is what really started my journey to Natural, Clean Living!  It opened my eyes to so many things, so my things that was in our home, in our food, and unfortunately in our bodies at this point. At this point of my journey the words "What are we passing down to our kids" just completely rang through out my mind. I am the person that teaches my children, I am the cook for my kids, and what I buy them, for the most part, they eat. And I successfully finished my first PERIMETER SHOPPING this past weekend (Jan, 4th 2014). And I couldn't be happier. My kids have for the most part enjoyed it, the cooking, tasting new things, making cleaning supplies, and picking out new soaps from our favorite natural living company - Lavame Clean  .

I have successfully started a new journey again, trying new clean eating things. I found a wonderful book that went a long with Treasure Healthy Living concept, called Trim Healthy Mama. It is based on eating smarter and clean! And I loved reading it, and getting started we had a major surprise come up. This past November 2013, we found out we where pregnant with baby #3. And I started looking into Baby Natural Living! I look forward to the new journey, and the more learning to go around it. Since the whole transition, I have enjoyed every moment of the change. I lost about 12lbs since starting the natural living and the gym, and holding at only 8lbs gained so far at 11wks pregnant.

I hope you enjoyed reading about my story, my journey and the wonderful journey that God had laid out in front of me so far.  

The few, the proud, the way to teach

Wow! What a morning with schooling! For the past month I have been praying to God "Lord please help me teach my son! He is struggling to learn how to read and I feel like I can't win! HELP ME!". I felt like all he ever did was cry and refuse to read. I felt completely defeated because I felt like I was failing at home school.
Today we started home school after the long Christmas break, and the same thing started. The melt down! So I finally got real with this child, I looked him dead in the face and said the most meaningful words I could come up with.

"If you don't learn to read, you don't graduate. If you don't graduate you can not join the military! (his eyes got really big) You don't graduate you can't be a police officer because you can't read them their rights."

At that moment, he got real about learning to read. He read not only 15 words, he also done it without crying, whining, and in 12mins!! That is amazing, because it took one day an hour to read 3 words.

I thank God for our major break through!

Blessings
Tina

Trim Healthy Mama-Loving it!

So a couple months ago, a friend of mine told me about this book and meal plan (because its NOT a diet, its a life style change).
And I looked into it, kept going back and forth. Is $35 worth it? Does it work? All questions kept going on in my head. 
Finally I decided I am going to do it! I love organic food, making food and doing things from scratch.
I got the first 3 Chapters in and I couldn't agree more with this book! It was speaking to me for sure! I love everything they said, from life as a mom, to even pregnancy advice! This book is made for EVERY stage of life. But the best part is that it is COMMON SENSE eating, its about eating balanced, and about taking out the junk.
I am about a month in and feel a difference, I am a wake a little more, sleep is easier, and I am actually a wake at 6am. I would like to encourage anyone who is looking for something the WHOLE family can join in, and is so easy to follow. THIS IS THE BOOK for you! The $35 is worth it because it comes with the information and cook book in one! I love it, and I hope you will Love it too!!!

Even our Dog deserves Organic

 Our poor Gizzmo, recently suffered allergic reaction to fleas. He was going crazy! I finally gave up when we went 4 nights without sleep because of his constant chewing. I decided a flea shampoo with oatmeal, cone, and coconut oil will work! So I set out to go and get a cone for his head to prevent him from licking the coconut oil off.
So we went to 2 different Pet stores that day to find something to help him. Our first stop took us to PetCo, I got there and looked around. Talked to a couple people. One lady said "You know you gotta treat your house right?" Oh ya! Didn't think about that.. so I started looking, everything I found was CHEMICAL CHEMICAL...MUST VACATE FOR 8-10HRS, CHILDREN MUST NOT COME IN CONTACT FOR 24HRS....
Really how will that work? It wont! So I talked the lady at the counter, I need help! I have children and I can't vacate for 8hrs or kick my kids out for 24hrs. Then she took me to the "Organic section". {A little info about myself, I have become a Giant Organic Nerd! I love organic and all natural stuff, my husband picks on me because I use Coconut Oil for every thing.} And she showed me house sprays, one called "Vets Best". It was highly recommended, and it DOES work by the way! I was so excited because it was organic and safe! I simply stripped the whole bedroom areas, washed every sheet, every pillow and every blanket! While things washed I sprayed the carpets, mattresses and couches. I also bathed him in Flea Oatmeal Shampoo. And I scrubbed him and watched the fleas and dirt just come off. I felt so guilty. But after I was done with him, I sprayed the "Vets Best" on his coat too. I placed the cone on his head and rubbed the coconut oil on all his sores and thighs. Allowed about an hr for the oils to soak in. Then I allowed him to run free inside the house. It helped but he was still very itchy.... but I didn't know what to do til we got to the vet.
On our adventure of pet stores, I stopped in at Pet-Care-A Lot, to weigh Gizzmo for some other flea meds. While there I discovered, while talking with the lady about their vet services, he also needed his shots. Apparently the previous owners NEVER followed up on his puppy shots so he was late getting them. So I set an appointment for him, and when we got there they started examining him. Turns out that the flea meds we used also was basically water and only annoyed the fleas but never killed them. I didn't think he was that bad til they examined him and his whole genital and thighs where red and almost bald!
I felt really guilty then, but the vet explained he will be very sore and uncomfortable for 24hrs but the vaccines, and Benadryl will help with the itching, swelling and allergic reaction from the fleas. They also recommended a Flea/Heart worm pill, so we can continue to bath every other week because he is a dirt loving dog! That flea pill is amazing! He still itches from dry skin, caused by winter air, but no flea insight for a week now. I am treating the itchy skin with Coconut oil in his foods. It has helped a little, but we are getting there.

 Now about this Vets Best, it works! Now my house was not infested because we caught it early! But this stuff amazes me, and here is why. You can use it on your house, pet and yard! Its a very friendly and Organic style treatment. Kids can't use it, or play with it, but they can be around it. They can walk on it, if they need too. I personally told them to wait til everything was dry before allowing them on the couches, mattresses and carpets. But when they needed to go the the bathroom I didn't have to "Freak out" over them coming in contact with this stuff.

I am a FIRM believer in Organic & Friendly items, and I think our pets deserve FRESH, FRIENDLY, & CHEMICAL FREE items too! Their health and well being is just as important as ours. Love your pets like you love yourself!

The "M" word

MISCARRIAGE...The "M" word, is a silent but emotional word that seems to never be talked about openly. Its one of many things that can make or break a woman. Almost all women will go through it at least once in their life. And, sadly we all are not prepared for it, because we don't talk about it. No one ever knows about it, until you say I had one. Then everyone shares stories about their experience, and all you do is sit there like "WHY? Why didn't anyone ever say anything?". We don't express the pain openly, and we don't really talk about it in sex ed. Every woman should be prepared for this kind of thing. Every woman should talk about it, and know about it!

 "Miscarriages SUCK, they are heart breaking and they can take you down faster than anything you can prepare for. But its WHO you believe in, and WHO you have as a support is the ONLY way you can survive!" - My words to a friend who had one

I went through one 7yrs ago, and it destroyed me for months. I lost faith in God for awhile, I lost faith in having children, but I also lost MYSELF. I shut down completely, I pulled away from everyone and I hid the fact that I was completely destroyed by what happened. Because I felt like my dream was crushed in 1 split second. I was crushed at the cruel way my manager handled me losing the one thing I wanted more, I was crushed that I could be pregnant for one day and then BAM! gone, like it never even was there. But what hurt me most was some people that was a part of my life, dismissed it like it was nothing. "Ok, you where only 3wks pregnant, it really wasn't a baby". People don't know HOW to handle these situations because its something people never talk about it. 3 or 40 wks it is still an emotional attachment, it is still a baby to someone. Honestly without my family (mom,sister, grandmother & Aunt) and my husband, who let me grieve and held my hand. I don't think I would have ever gotten past the depression of a miscarriage. And without returning to my faith in God I don't think I would have ever seen the WHY behind it all. A couple months ago I never understood why this happened, why I had go to the darkest most unbelievable pain of losing a baby, til the day I had to comfort SEVERAL friends of mine. Something I would have never seen coming. But God did, he saw why he had to break my heart to help those I was so close to. These women I started a relationship with, through church but ultimately grew attached to through out mommy-play date group. I had to talk them through, I had pray them through it and I had to walk them through understanding God's plan, why it happened. Then to turn around 7yrs later and go through a chemical pregnancy, knowing that it is not labeled a miscarriage but to be told "You are not pregnant". But what helped me this time, was the LOVE and SUPPORT from those friends who I walked through with. To show the guidance, the prayers and the shoulders to cry on.  To have that, changed the whole thing, knowing the moment I said "Something is wrong" they scramble and form a support system to help was amazing. I had ladies offering child care, late night texting when they saw I was still awake and most important I had a prayer group, praying every moment of the day it felt like. I had the MOST amazing friends and family come to my aid.
So if you are reading this and you feel like "I'm the ONLY one" you are not, there are thousand of women who have been through it, and survived, AND have children. I count my 2 blessings (my son and daughter) God has blessed me with already, and look forward to when he will bless us with our third. And hopefully this will get people talking about miscarriages, and be better prepared. I love you all and I am here to talk if you need someone to talk to!
Blessings
Tina