Christmas Magic?

 

 

https://www.pngkit.com/bigpic/u2e6i1t4e6t4q8y3/

 

Maybe I want to be told that I haven't screwed up my child.
 
Christmas has never been about "magic" and all that other stuff. I don't tell him if you are naughty or nice is the only way you get presents or coal. We don't put conditions on love like that.

I have always done most of the Christmas shopping all year round and normally when he is with me. I tell him it is not for now and he always has know okay that means it is for Christmas and I put it up in the laundry room.

This year we have the girls and they know about the magic and Santa. So that means I have to do at least some shopping without them so I don't ruin things for them.

At the dollar store yesterday I didn't even think, I put a ton of stocking stuffers in the cart and I said to the kids nope nothing in our cart. They loved the game but when it comes to Christmas I am worried that they are going to see it was the stuff we bought when we were out.

Also, this is the first year that Blaine went in and checked out the Christmas stuff, he has never bothered with it before and then he was very upset when I told him I was disappointed that he broke my trust. L the oldest girl just thought it was funny.

I have done a little bit of shopping without them and hid those presents well.

Normally I have the stocking from Santa and a few presents. They are wrapped in Santa paper to let the kids know it comes from Santa.

As I watch the girls excited that "chippy" at nanas house moves around. Blaine could careless and just says "it is stuffed that means he isn't real"

He has always been very logical and never played "pretend" even when I tried over the years to play fun imagination games with him,
he says "ya know mom that isn't real" "you know mom there are no transformers in real life it's just a movie". Lol, thanks for ruining it for me kid.

He would rather do things that he is learning or things that don't involve playing pretend.

Did I make him like this because I never made a big deal about Santa coming or that he is magic?

Did I ruin his childhood because I never made a big deal about the figures around the holidays?

He is the same with Easter never cared about the rabbit, gets bored with finding the eggs.

He gets more excited about visiting Grandma, Grandpa, Great Grandma and other family members and playing with them.

Should I try and fix this? Should I suddenly have an elf that moves around?

I am feeling some huge mom guilt over this and it is driving me crazy!

What do you do to have the magic of Christmas in your house?

I know its a pretty simple thing to have a ton of mom guilt about but for me it is important.

The dread word.

Let's talk about vaccines. I know it's a very controversial topic and a lot of people get their knickers in a knot over it but, I am not talking about if you should be vaccinated or not, I am not talking about if your children should be vaccinated or not. 

Let's talk about the science behind it. Let's talk about the doctors behind it. Let's talk about the years of research behind it. Let's talk about the facts. 

The first vaccine was created in 1796 by a doctor who lived in England. Even in 1796 he tested the vaccine, did trials and even wrote papers on it. His clinical trials and research led to the smallpox vaccine saving thousands. His trials and research are the basis for vaccinology. Through his theory he has saved millions of lives over the decades. 

Did you know antivaccinationism has been around since the 1800s? Yes even back then they protested it, comparing to bloodletting. Now that is a bit extreme if you ask me. 

Over the decade's vaccines have changed, methods have changed. We don't remove lymph from pustules on the arms of those recently vaccinated anymore to make the vaccine. We use Petri dishes and samples that are kept in sterile environments. Even in 1796 with the risk of contracting other infections or diseases most people thought the benefits outweighed the risks. 

Yes, as the years pass we learn from those before us, we learn what works, what doesn't, what is dangerous and what is safe. 

MERCURY!! This is a big one, and one anti-vaxers scream from the rooftops. Since 1999 it has been reduced or eliminated from vaccines and other drugs. By 2001 it was removed from childhood vaccines in the united states. 

 

Do you know why it was used though? Do you know what it is actually called?  

Thimerosal is what its actual name is and it is used as a preservative. It prevents bacteria growth in vaccines and a preservative is required for all multi-dose vaccine vials. 

Your body doesn't store Thimerosal and removes it very quickly. It is safe. 

This quote is for Canada and comes from the immunize.ca website "Nevertheless, no vaccine in Canada since March 2001 for routine use in children contains thimerosal, except for some influenza vaccines. DTaP, polio and Hib vaccines have not contained this preservative since 1997-98. The MMR vaccine used in Canada has never contained thimerosal."

Now I am not here to preach to the choir or try to convert anyone, the reason for this post at all is because we are starting to roll out the new covid vaccine and this is new and new scares people. 

A couple of neat things that are not making the news. Why are children less affected? Why are younger generations less affected or have it less severe? Turns out it is because of a vaccine that many of us and many of the children get. The MMR vaccine! This vaccine is helping to protect people! This is really neat. 

Do you know what this horrible virus is overshadowing? The fact the there is something really cool that happened, first in history a vaccine using mRNA! 

The vaccines being rolled out in places like the United States and England have gone through trials and are based on proven scientific methods. There is one though that is likely going to get most of the media attention and not because it works, or is safe but because it has not even completed stage 3 trials. This one is scary and this one is going to create more fear in those who are already scared as is. This one is the Russian Sputnik Vaccine. They rolled it while it is still in the development stage, and are pretty much using their population as a phase 3 trial which is scary. 

BUT guess what??? Guess what isn't scary? We are not getting that one. The ones we are getting are tested, fully. Yes, they were tested quickly but with so many dying worldwide we needed to get on this and fast. 

People are screaming that we (Canada) are not getting it soon enough. That we are not first on the list. Well, let me clear a few things up here. 

First, we didn't develop the vaccine, so of course, the countries that develop it get to vaccinate their people first. 

Second, let them be the first to get it, yes it completed trials and it is safe but there is still that underlying thought in the back of everyone's head that is whispering "are they sure?" watching others in the world get will help squash that fear. 

Third stop being selfish. We are a rich country we could afford to buy the vaccine but what about those who can't?

I am pro-choice on all issues as long as it doesn't affect those around you. For those who can't read between the lines, we can't create herd immunity and protect those around us if we don't vaccinate the majority. 

My final word on this they are not going to microchip you because you are not that important so get over yourself. 

 

Taken from google

 

 

 Information taken from the following sources

https://www.healthaffairs.org/doi/full/10.1377/hlthaff.24.3.611 

https://www.fda.gov/vaccines-blood-biologics/safety-availability-biologics/thimerosal-and-vaccines#toc

https://www.cdc.gov/vaccinesafety/concerns/thimerosal/index.html

https://mbio.asm.org/content/11/6/e02628-20

https://www.statnews.com/2020/11/10/the-story-of-mrna-how-a-once-dismissed-idea-became-a-leading-technology-in-the-covid-vaccine-race/

Ramblings from a mind in chaos

Fluff that is all it has been.
NOTE: THIS IS A BRAIN DUMP!!! READ NO FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO "HEAR" IT

Fluff is all I have written since being told by The Children's Aid Society that it's okay to have an outlet for my life but, it is not okay for it to be public like my blog is.

Fluff just wasn't doing what I needed it to do to soothe my soul that aches to write. This week I just couldn't get rid of the craving for writing. The strong urge to write something other than, for lack of a better word that hasn't been used too many times already in this blog post and I am only just starting it, FLUFF.
 
I have decided that they can fuck their hat (sorry for the language.) I can write what I like when I like and how I like.
Chaos is one word for my mind, a million things are going on in it all the time and half of them are things I want to write about!
 Did you know that someone might figure out who the children I write about are? Did you know they might figure out who their mother and family are? Did you know that 99% of people who actually read my blog already freaking know who they are? Did you know that I am done caring what others think of my writing outlet?
I will do an update post later about the children and all the crap that is going with a system that makes me want to scream and pull my hair out!
Things in my mind right now!

Did you know that I stopped caring, wanting to decorate or so anything with the holidays (any holiday) when I stopped hosting it?

Do you know that people make me so angry, people who can't actually do some research and read LEGIT articles from REAL sources to get their information before sharing it?

Tessa has become my shadow (She is a foster dog with issues who can't be placed in another home unless they have no other animals or plan to have any other animals or come into contact with other animals because she will attack them...All 20lbs of her)

Tessa could be called a "pitbull" in Ontario that means she could be ordered to be put to sleep, all 20ish LBS of her. Do you know why? Because she has the stance, the smile and the square head of a breed that is banned by description. Did you know it is not backed by any science or proof of any kind?

2020 has been a tough year. Yes, I have a roof over my head and food in my fridge but even those of us who have those things are not okay. Are struggling to get through each day, but we are not allowed to say anything or speak up because so many have it worse. Yes, you bet your boots so many have it so much worse and I wish I could fix it for them all, but I am allowed to not be okay too. YOU are allowed to not be okay too!
I LOVE children anyone who knows me knows that they know that they will always come first for me and I will protect them with my life. Some use this to their advantage as a weapon knowing that I will not allow any harm to come to them. Those people have issues!
JUST WEAR THE GOD DAMN MASK, MY KIDS RANGING FROM 4-7 ALL WITH ISSUES OF DIFFERENT SORTS CAN DO IT, SO CAN YOU!!!
Getting mad at wait staff for the rules the government sets in place to protect everyone is not their fault. They are following the rules, you should give it a try sometime.
Surgery sucks, and it hurts, and it takes a very long time to heal, even if the outside looks semi-healed the inside is a mess of all sorts.
Addiction sucks, yes I am not allowed to hate the addict but I am sure as hell allowed to hold them accountable for their actions and behaviours. Yes, there will be a post addiction.

I plan to write every day again and write whatever I want to write with limited fluff. Still need the fluff in there so it's not all ramblings.

I made a promise a while back to myself mainly but also who actually read my blog and that was to write 1000 words a day and I need to keep that promise to myself.

Christmas is right around the corner and I am not even close to ready. The tree isn't up (hoping today), the decorations are not lit and I am defiantly not feeling the Christmas cheer and it's not even because it's 2020 and such a crap year.

Well, apparently that took care of what my brain needed because now my head is fuzzy and I need a nap. Some people need to talk it out, some people need to yell and scream, some people need to be physically active (I miss that after I recover I am hoping to get back at working out), and some people need to write. Even if they know no one is reading it.

I have so many topics I want to write about in the coming year. This year was supposed to be my year to take the kids everywhere and write about our travels and learning, seeing as that didn't happen. This coming year will be all about writing, creating other amazing memories with the children and not just making it through the day to day muddle but actually living! Oh and healing! Can't forget about that one, not only do the little ladies in my care need healing but so do I.

Do you have plans for 2021? I know with the way 2020 went it's so hard to see or even want to try and make plans, but if we don't then we have nothing to look forward to and we all need to have a light at the end of the tunnel no matter how small it might be.

You are loved, You are wanted, You are amazing!!!

Photo Borrowed from: https://devpost.com/software/brain-dump-izd71t

Chocolate covered strawberry brownies

YUM is one word for it. Easy is another.

I found a bunch of pinterest recipes I wanted to try with the strawberries I got on the farm that were different than my normal go to recipes.

This one was the first one I tried and its quick, simple, the kids and men loved it. I didn't like it.

Here is the link to the full recipe!

What you need:

2 12oz bags of chocolate chips (I only used 1 bag)
1 box of brownie mix (this might be why I didn't like them, I like my homemade mix better)
1 egg (or whatever the mix tells you)
1/4 cup of oil or whatever the mix tells you
1/4 cup of water or whatever the mix tells you
1/3 cup milk (I don't measure this I just use a bit in with the chocolate to make it melt)

Directions:

1) Preheat oven to 350°

2) Grease and line your pan

3) Mix your brownie batter as per the instructions on the box

4) Bake as per the instructions on the box

While the brownies bake:

5) Quarter or half your strawberries

6)  Melt your chocolate and milk together in a double broiler or heavy sauce pan on the stove.

Once brownies are baked:

7) Put strawberries on top of brownies

8) Evenly pour melted chocolate on brownies

9) Place in freezer for about 20 mins. Frozen squares are easier to cut.

10) Remove from pan and cut into equal squares

Enjoy!!!

Now I am not sure why I didn't like them but the kids loved them and so did the men. It made enough for dessert last night and some to freeze for later.

Birthdays

 Today I turn 35 years old.

I HATE birthdays always have since the time I was very small I would cry at every birthday and I remember this vividly because my mother used to make fun of me every year for it.(Side note you should never make fun of children those memories last a life time.) 

I don't care that I am aging that doesn't bother me. Always young at heart and all that jazz.

Every year I wonder what have I done to make a difference in this world. What have I done to leave an impact and the world a little better. I try to tell myself that its the little things that cause a ripple effect. But in the back of my mind I am telling myself that isn't enough, I am not enough. 

I tend to treat life like a check list, like one of my to do lists. 

This year instead of a to do list I am creating a list of things I have done to impact others, things that I have done that caused little ripples in this world. 

Maybe one day I will create a bigger ripple, ones that make an impact at the world level. I doubt it but I can always dream right?

 I know, I know, its like saying I need validation through helping others to make me have self worth. But for me thats not it all. Every ounce of me has a need to help others. A need to right the wrongs and try to leave the world a little better when I leave than when I got here. 

 I don't need a pat on the back or a thank you or world recognition I just need to know in my own mind that I made a difference. 

 

 

Meal Planning

The children are adapting to our new schedule perfectly. Now comes the meal planning.

I hang our weekly menu on the wall in the kitchen each week so EVERY one can see it. If I am not here for whatever reason and another adult needs to make lunch or a snack they easily know what to make without any extra thoughts.

With things the way they are right now we make sure we buy everything for 2 weeks so all we have to go out for is fruit each week. It limits our time exposed to others who may be sick. The children don't get to go shopping with us right now which is sad for them but they are little and the touch EVERYTHING.

I normally meal plan dinners for the entire month but now with all four children home I meal plan, breakfast, snack, lunch, snack, dinner, snack. They eat on average every 2 hours so there is no reason to snack in between those. This way I know exactly what to buy and how much to buy to last the full 2 weeks without running out.

The program I use is like excel by open office  

One night a week (normally Tuesdays) we order from a local restaurant who is offering pick or delivery at this time. This is to help support local business stay alive during this very stressful period. I know it may not seem like much but its important for us to help limit the changes in business that we will see when this is all over.

Most of my recipes come from Pinterest or ones that I have used for years and have become go to favourites! 

Do you meal plan? Do you meal prep?

Refocus!

As a homeschooler, I spend 10% of the time following the sch. I created in September when I had all the hopes that a blank canvas offers. I spend
40% of my time prepping for what should be an easy to follow, fun, educational experience and I spend 15% of time teaching Blaine and the rest of time wondering where on earth I put the work sheets for today and wanting to reprint because, trees and climate change.

Since schools are now closed I have had to restructure how I do things and how our days looks.

Our schedule is flexible but somethings don't change and it is 7 days a week!

Between 5:30 and 6:30am: Girls wake up. They are to play quietly in their room until 7:30. Quite never happens but I have faith one day it will.

Between 5:30 and 7:30am: The girls "quite" play wakes Blaine

8:00Am I start breakfast.
              -load/unload dishwasher
              -put laundry in
              -hand wash dishes
              -tidy main floor
              -start dinner
              -get kids dressed and hair done

9:00Am Journals (Each day I give them a topic to draw a picture of IE: What do you want to be when you grow up, What makes you happy, What is your favourite food)
               -Finish tidying
               -sweep
               -10 min break (this allows me to clean up that activity and start the next
               -workbooks
               -snack prep

10:00Am Snack
                 -Prep next activity
                 -Butterflies ( right now we are learning about butterflies it was a topic the middle girl picked to learn about)

11:00Am Outside/Free Play
               -Start Lunch
               -Answer clients
               -Check email
               -Walk

12:00Pm Lunch
               -Tidy
               -Prep next school topic
               -Math
               -Reading
               -Online learning
               - Puzzle (Each child has picked a puzzle to work on together they are 100 PCS puzzles that we will be gluing and framing)

1:00Pm Outside/Free Play
              -Tidy
              -Client orders
              -Snack prep

2:00Pm Snack
              -Free Play
              -I bleach one room (working my way through decluttering and bleach each room in the house)
          
3:00Pm Xbox/Tablet time
              -Client Orders
              -Dinner Prep

4:00Pm Dinner

5:00Pm Walk the Dogs

6:00Pm Start Bedtime routines
              -fold and put away laundry
              -School prep for the next day

8:30Pm My shower
             -client orders
              -meal prep
              -odds and ends left to tidy

10/11Pm BED



FYI the kids are normally done morning school by 10:30 and afternoon school by 1:30.
Schooling shouldn't take all day, nor should seated work be hours at a time. The things that take the longest are the butterfly part which is about 15mins and then in the afternoon, their math and reading are done one on one and it takes about 5-10mins per child. It takes me longer to set up and transition to the next task then it takes them to do it :)

To all the parents who are new to have the children home and having to teach them, YOU GOT THIS!!! Take a breath, don't force it, make it fun, follow their ideas and what they want to learn about. 

EVERYONE: HOMESCHOOL

Kind of like everyone wang chung tonight? no? I'm likely the only one who actually gets that anyway lol

So the schools are closed, some are closed until the fall, some are closed for a few weeks or until they announce that they are actually closed until the fall. Don't want to freak parents out all at once.

With the schools closed there are many companies offering free services and things for the children. A lot of these are things I wouldn't have even tried before because of the cost but I am taking 100% advantage of them being free right now!

Get your printer and your ink all ready!!! 

https://fluencyandfitness.com

This site offers a wide range of learning combined with movement. It is free for 21 days just sign up towards the bottom of the page.

https://www.123homeschool4me.com/home-school-free-printables/

This site has a ton of free printables for grades K-12

https://www.amotherthing.com/100-free-unit-studies-for-all-ages/

List of FREE unit studies
 
https://homeschoolgiveaways.com/2019/09/free-butterfly-unit-study/ 

Butterfly unit study

https://www.homeschoolshare.com/space_lapbook.php

Space Unit Lapbooks

https://www.abcteach.com/directory/prek-early-childhood-2761-2-1

Free Printables

http://www.amazingeducationalresources.com/

This is a massive list of resources not all of them will apply

https://www.abcmouse.com/

As you already know, I am a huge fan of this sight!

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/

This is my main resource that I have always used. They have free and content that you have to pay for

https://www.kidzone.ws/kindergarten/learning-letters/books.htm

This is great for K through grade 5

https://www.teachyourmonstertoread.com

Blaine isn't a fan of this one but the oldest girl likes it.

Don't forget its not a race and you don't need to plan every minute of everyday for child. Home school takes a lot less time than conventional school.

You can do this!!! And the most important thing is to HAVE FUN

Homeschool: Sight word fun

The oldest girl was struggling with reading and sight words. It was a fight to get her to even read the books the came from school through the program book in a bag.

Doing anything homeschool related that had to do with reading was a nightmare. I decided I need to come up with a fun way to learn the basic sight words.

I picked up a cheap box of "tumbling tower" from dollaramma. Each block I wrote a sight word on the block from the master list of sight words.

Blaine also loves this game, he does better with seeing and memorizing the words so this works for him too and it is so much fun!

How the game works:

You take a block out like you normally would. You have to read the word on your block. Playing this game has made it so much fun for her and now she has almost all the basic sight words down pat.

About another week of playing this game after each homeschool session and I will get a new set of blocks and add the second list of sight words on those blocks.

This is an earned game she must complete all of her homeschool activities in order to be able to play this with me.

Using it as a "reward" has made learning less of a fight and more of a fun experience for both of us.

Every child learns different and it is just about finding what works with each child!

Do you have homeschool games that work?

Marching to the beat of my own drummer: Spotify Shuffle

Music touches my soul. Each song for a different reason. I love music from all across the board from classical to rap, from metal to country and each for a different reason.

Spotify is my favourite music app. I pay for mine so I can save music and set my phone to offline mode and it doesn't use my data and I can skip as many songs as I want to. Also both my Alexa and Google can use it.

I put on "Your top songs 2019" which is an assortment of songs.


1) Made you miss by maddie poppe Watch the video here
    -- This has a great beat and I love the lyrics to it. It makes me move and sing!


2) Born this way By Lady Gaga  Find info on it here 
   --This is an up beat song! Dancing and moving, singing and feeling great!


3) A man like you by  Emelie Torstensson  Watch the videohere
   --I just like the lyrics to this song


4) Country Girl by Luke Bryan  Read the lyrics here
   --I love his voice and this song makes me dance and move!


5) Hot Mama by Trace Adkins See the video here
    --This song is great! makes every women feel beautiful just like she should


6) Tipsy by J-Kwon See the video here
   --The only reason I like this song is because of the beat. I used a lot of upbeat music when I ran. I also use it when I work out.


 7) Can't let you go by Fabolous Read about it here
  --I love the lyrics to this song as well as the beat. Yes to most they just hear normal "rap" lyrics but to me I hear a love song.


8) Revenge by Pink and Eminem Read the lyrics here
  --The beat of this song is awesome and I just love Pink


9) If it ain't with you by Farewell Angelina See the video here
   -- Love Song need I say more!
  

10) Crank That by Soulja Boy Listen to it here
     --I like that it is upbeat, but it would seen he is trying to create a dance crazy.

If you haven't noticed my list of music is all over the place and that makes me happy. Depending on my mood I will just let my lists play. But if I can always skip a song when I don't want to hear it.

When I am going homeschool with the kids or writing I tend to listen to a Classical only play list that I found on spotify its called Classical Study Music.

I find it helps me focus and it cleans my soul. Yes I know each artist who created the music has their own reasoning behind it but with classical you can take it in however you are feeling in that moment.

What is you go to music? Why?

30 Day Challenge: March

How did your month of wall sits go?

Mine didn't go great, every time I went to do my wall sit, a child would either try to sit on me or crawl under me. The dogs would join in with kisses and pawing me. It made the wall sits harder thats for sure.

I can not wait until it is above 10 degrees so I can workout outside while the kids and dogs play or take my workout to the park.

This month I am going to do a plank challenge. Along with doing the daily plank, I will be walking at least 30 minutes and doing my yoga!

I am not in a hurry to get a "summer body" I just want my fitness level back where it was when I was running, I am know its going to take time to get back to that but in the end it will be worth the work!

I found the workout on pinterest. The website can be found here

Don't set yourself up for failure, just do a little bit everyday and slowly add to that as your are comfortable! You deserve to feel your best!

#parentinsquotes

Tools In Your Tool Box

I leaned this one once my mom was in recovery, most things she learned bothered me because it felt as if she was saying things to make my feelings about anything matter less and I can still hear her voice "its not all about you" "thought comes first feelings come second" no matter what I had to say.

Its a cycle and this one can be a good cycle, a growing cycle.

I do not know any of my great grand parents so I can't speak to how they were raised. 

My grandmother on my moms side grew up in a few different homes, she was beaten, raped and wasn't allowed to finish school. She had a horror show of a childhood.

My grandmother on my dads side was adopted as a baby and grew up in a loving home.

Both of my grandmothers had issues with drinking. My maternal grandmother was in and out of abusive relationships. I am not sure at what point she met Brad or when things changed for her but my childhood in her home with Brad had zero drinking, it was clean but she was a hoarder, she loved me without conditions. Both homes I felt love, warmth and acceptance.

I don't know my grandfather on my dads side.

I know very little about my grandfather on my moms side other than he worked all the time, spoiled my mother because she was the baby and possibly has children with another women.

Now the trickle down effect happens. Here is where their childhoods control how they raised my parents.

All of my grandparents were given limited tools on how to treat other people, how to raise children, how to get help for the things that they went through growing up. The following image is their toolbox. They have a hammer and that is all they have in there. So that means they use the tool only tool they have.

My father was loved very much but raised with a heavy hand. He got into a life style young of drugs and other things. My paternal grandmother at no fault of her own was blind to all of this and still is.

My mother was abused by my grandmothers partners, she had a horrid childhood and maybe it is the reason she had me so young and married so young.

As the image above shows they have more tools in their toolbox to raise their children.


In my home as a child it was chaos, there was yelling and screaming, hitting, abuse, drinking, drugs, my mom would go between going back to my dad and other partners. When she wasn't working or going to school, she was out doing whatever. I mainly was raised at my grandmothers house. As I grew up and she was with my stepdad the drinking got worse and so did everything else. My mom never hit me. She used how she was raised to raise me better than she was raised. But didn't fix any of broken tools you was given.

My dad wasn't part of my life much. He was in and out and I protected my sister from his lifestyle and lies.

I fought to protect my sister from anything and everything that was happening in our lives. Today I do not regret protecting her from those things but at the same time she has limited knowledge of them and so she can not grow them those situations.

Taking EVERYTHING from how my parents were raised to how I was raised, I learned. I got help for many of my issues, yes I still have coping mechanisms but not nearly as many as I would have had if I was not aware that I would not raise my child/children the way I was raised.

From the moment of the first child in my home to today I am always reading and learning and putting as many tools in their toolboxes as I can so they can continue the cycle of growing and learning and pass these on to their children.

I do not hit, I do not yell, love is freely given in my home. They will never know the fear of being hungry, the fear of not knowing where I am or what I am doing. They will never have the fear of what mood I am going to be in, they will never fear my "friends", they will never fear anything.

Yes my mom put many tools in my tool box and some of them I use but I replaced the handle on the hammer, I love without conditions. I replaced the screwdriver head, I listen without judgement. I replaced the saw blade, I hug and show affection.

I have learned that we can have a full toolbox but if it is filled with rusty broken tools it wont do anyone any good we have to be willing to replace parts of those tools and throw out the ones that don't work at all anymore in order to keep our cycle growing towards good things.

We can't hang on to those broken tools just because our parents gave them to us, we can't hang onto those rusty tools just because we survived them. We want to give our children better useful tools that they can use and pass on to their children.

If we don't change, adapt and over come our pasts we will just pass a toolbox of broken, rusted tools on to our children.

I don't want to hear "well my parents", "it was good enough", "I lived" all those phrases tell me are you don't want better for your children. That you are somehow wanting them to tapper out where you are. Wanting more and wanting better for our children then what we had shows growth.

It's not about giving them all the toys we never had but equipping them with all of life's tools that we were never given, never had!

We know better now so we must go forward and do better!!!

What tools do you have from your childhood? What tools do you want to leave your children?

#parentingquotes

Morning Routine: Homeschool

Snow Days! Today happens to be one of them. With the weather pattern changing we don't get to many snow days anymore.

This routine is the one I use for weekends, holidays, strike days, snows etc. Any day where the two older girls are not in school.

Our morning routine is rather simple and when a child is not at the table doing home school with me the rest are playing. 

If they are up before 7AM they are asked to go watch TV until 7Am

7:00Am: I get up and start breakfast for the children. While I make and serve breakfast, I empty the dishwasher, tidy the kitchen, wash dishes by hand and listen to CBC news on Alexa.

7:30Am: The children all get dressed and get their hair done, I tidy the dinning room prep homeschool for each child into their piles.

8:30Am: I get myself dressed and ready for the day, check emails, answer clients, blog and do other things that need to be done on the computer.

9:00Am: I start with the oldest girl we do her homeschool which includes her workbook, reading books and a fun activity.

9:30Am: The youngest comes and does her homeschool which includes, colouring, stickers and a reading book

9:45Am: I make everyone a snack

10:00Am: Blaine gets to do his home school, this takes a bit longer as we cover a little bit more than what I do with the girls as he is not in school.

10:45Am: The middle girl gets to do her home school which includes, reading books, work books and a fun activity.

11:15Am: We do group which includes reading a book together, learning our address, and other important information, the felt bored and learning about a life skill such as what is friendship.

11:45Am: I start Lunch

Our mornings when the girls don't go to school are all about learning and working together.

We work through each home school activity and the morning just flies by, its crazy how fast it goes when they are learning.

Coupon Sites

Yes I am one of "those" people and so is my sister. We coupon and we work together to get amazing deals on things we use all the time.

I get asked a lot where I get my coupons from.

The first place and one of the best places is to go to your local stores and walk the isles they will be there! There are some stores that have a coupon bored at that front of the store where they all are. The Real Canadian Super Store used to but they removed it. A lot of people take the whole tare pad of coupons for some items, this annoys me! I take 5 for me 5 for my sister because couponing is about saving money, not preventing others from using coupons.

Second place is you can email companies and and some of them will send you out coupons. Not all companies do this so don't pin your hopes on it.

Third are websites and this one is a goldmine. Now some of these websites offer mail ours and some of them offer printable coupons. You can only print 2 per computer per web browser. So you can print with explorer, chrome and Mozilla.  Stores will take black and white coupons but I like to print in colour. Each site will allow you print every so many days. For myself I check every week to print whats new. 

These are the websites I use:
https://www.websaver.ca
www.smartsource.ca
www.tastyrewards.ca
www.pgeveryday.ca
www.save.ca
www.savealoonie.ca
https://www.gocoupons.ca

All of these sites require you to sign up for an account. 

A couple of mistakes that new couponers tend to make:

--Print ALL the coupons even the ones you want or need. 
--Buy things with coupons that they don't use!!!
--Stock things with expiry dates that will not use up before they expire.

I will try to do a weekly post of my savings and some tips that I have found useful along the way. 
For me finding great deals and having coupons on the stuff we use daily is very exciting. 

Facebook groups for your area and Canadian ones are always a great way to find good deals and where you can trade what you for ones that you might want more.

I am a member of those groups:

Chassitis Couponing Group  (It is a local one)
Kayla's Canadian Couponing Group 
Canadian Coast to Coast Couponing Group (This is my favourite group)


POINTS!!! I might be a little bit of points addict. I collect Scene Points and PC points. 

Scene 
PC Points 

Yes, I am a PC insider but it is mainly a great deal for parents buying a lot of diapers and things that are baby related. I am one because of my sister and I buy things for diaper cakes and such. 

NOTE*** PULL UPS ARE NOT CONSIDERED DIAPERS which means no extra points for that. 

Apps I use:
 
Checkout 51 (This my favourite and the one I use the most.)
Caddle (I just started using this one and I am not a huge fan of it yet)

There are other apps out there but anything that requires me to connect my bank account to I will not do as there is too much of a risk.


Online Shopping:
Rakuten Canada (They used to be Ebates)
Honey 
 

Do you coupon? Find it scary and hard? Now sure where to start? 

This is my Haul from last week

Captain crunch .78 cents

-- 1.00 coupon
--1.00 cash back from caddle

Bear paws .88 cents
--1.00 off coupon

Soup .50 cents each
--.50 off cauliflower soup when you buy any campbells soup.

Tuna cans .66 cents each
--buy 3 cans save 1.00

Kind bars 8 of them FREE
--1.00 off coupon

Crackers 2.79
--1.00 off coupon

Cascade dishwasher pucks tub 10.00
--3.00 off coupon
--3.00 cash back from check out 51

Dish soap .30 each (40 bottles)
--save 1.50 wyb 2 bottles coupon
--2400 points

French fries FREE
--1.00 off coupon

Handsoap 1.48 each
--50% in store
--.50 off coupon

Would have been 87.83 (these items were all on sale to begin with)

Paid 32.59

Earned 2400 points

Making it .54 cents per item (60 items bought)

No, all 40 bottles of dish soap were not just for me. My sister, a friend and myself split them up so I got 14 bottles and they each got 13 bottles. We all use a lot of dish soap seeing as between the 3 of us we have 7 Adults, 8 Children and 6 Animals. 

Do you have any money saving tips you would like to share?






 

Pink Shirt Day

Its a Canadian thing!

I would say of course it is, because on the world scale we are a kind people, but those who live in this country can attest that we have our fair share of unkind people.

Compared to our southern neighbours I feel we are more accepting of others, however tolerance starts at home and so does bullying!

In 2007 two students in Canada came up with Pink Shirt Day as an Anti-bullying day after homophobic children threatened and bullied boys for wearing pink.

It is now celebrated around the world!

In our home we teach blindness, blind to race, gender, ethnics, or sexual preference. We teach this not to be blind of their struggles but to love them for who they are. We teach to stand up for those who can not stand up for themselves to ALWAYS say something.

I am a strong believer that those who say nothing are just as bad as those doing the bullying, even if you say nothing to the bullies you can say something to a teacher, a parent or another adult.

I find it is harder to teach this to children who come from homes where hurtful words, hitting and yelling are the go to when you are mad or don't get what you want. Young children don't understand the impact of their words but adults do. This means it is in adult hands to teach that is kindness and what isn't by being a example!

In our house, when a child is being hurtful my response is "Stop, ask yourself, is what I am doing kind?" if the answer is no then stop what you are doing and walk away.

It is never okay to hurt someone else either by words or by hands on. Slowly the girls are learning that it's not okay but its going to take a long time to help them to learn the proper tools.

In society with a president who is a bully on a world scale it is harder to teach children that they don't get what they want by bullying when that is what he did to get himself where he is and what we see in media on a daily basis. I am grateful that despite what some Canadians think our prime minister believes and uses his words and discussions to defuse situations instead of instantly going to bully mode.

Parents who bully their children at home to get them to do what they want them to do. Such as threats, yelling, hitting, etc only teach children that this is the normal and only way to get what they need done.

This isn't the case, you can get more of what you need by using kindness and I hope that even with the girls here and struggling with learning kindness to each other that Blaine keeps his kindness. Keeps his always inviting others to play and if they don't want to play, that's okay! Here I can share my toys and you are welcome to play when your ready.

We don't need to lead with a heavy hand!

Yes I believe that on a world scale with leaders of other countries are hurting their people, and we have done talking and trying. Then we need to use a heavy hand but all other options need to exhausted first!

Children mimic what they see. If they see me inviting others to play, to join, using kind words, giving to those in need then with time they do the same thing.

Our children deserve our kindness!

Those children who are bullies deserve our kindness as a first response.

Did you wear pink on pink shirt day? We all did here. I made the girls shirts when I made my client order shirts so they could wear them to school.

Do you believe in kindness as the first response? What is your opinion?

Morning Routine

This is our school day routine. Our weekend/holiday/strike day routine looks a little bit different and I will make a post about that later.

Being blessed to be able to stay home with the children is amazing. I am able to make sure there is always a parent here. I feel for a lot of parents who have to go to work and really would rather be home with their children. Personally I would say its both parents having to work that has lessened our family time and community.

My day starts before routine starts because I am up with my son around 1:30am when he wakes. Then I am up every time one of girls wakes even if they are just getting up to pee or whatever.

Blaine gets up at about 5:30am every morning. I am a horrible mom I give him my phone and curl up next to him and go back to sleep until one the girls get up. Then I send them to watch TV until 7am.

7:00am I get up start breakfast and making lunches for school. At this point I also start dinner.

7:15am Everyone eats, I finish making lunches, clean up the kitchen, empty the dishwasher, put a load of laundry in the washing machine.

7:30am I help pick out every ones clothes and they all get dressed. I fill back packs while they are getting dressed. Yes all 4 children even the ones who are not going to school get dressed at this point.

7:45am I start hair. I start with the youngest and work my way up to the oldest. Hair takes awhile round here because all 4 need their hair done for the day. Blaine only gets a pony with 3 elastics down it. Every one gets hair spray to limit their exposure to head lice.

8:15am I get myself dressed and my hair brushed. Clean up from doing every ones hair.

8:20am Every one gets their boots and gear on for heading to school.

8:30am We head out the door and off to school.

Here is where my morning varies depending on if my business partner is coming to work or not. If she is not then I take Blaine and the youngest girl to play group. If she is coming in then I come home set up my work station and work until noon with her.

Mornings are loud! because everyone is playing and getting ready but the process seems to work for us. It is streamlined. But if I sleep in by even 5 minutes then we are always behind and rushing.

Routine and knowing what is going to happen next is very import especially with children who are autistic. If the routine changes even on a weekend or we have to rush then its melt downs and sets them up for a horrible day.

Since having a routine the middle girls melt downs have lessened greatly and the school has noticed a HUGE change in her, which is wonderful!!!!

What do your mornings look like? Do you have a set routine? Are you rushed? Are you a working mom who has to balance work and home life? Are you a hard working stay at home mom with a to do list 6 pages long?

Breakfast: Oven Eggs!

A hardy breakfast before school allow children to focus on school and not the hunger they are feeling. This is why breakfast programs are so very important. Every time a store asks me to donate to a food program for the schools I do! These programs help children who would other wise not get food in morning have their bellies filled so they can focus on what is important, Learning!

In the past I have made freezer breakfast burritos and they were a huge hit with the adults because they could just grab and go. This time I made breakfast sandwiches like you would get at Mcdonalds and egg cups like you similar to what you would find at Tim Hortons.

Save money, Time and calories by making breakfast for the whole week in one go!

My plan was also to do the hard boiled eggs this way too, however this didn't go as planned and I will have to play round with time in the oven in order to do them like that regularly.

I used my 24 cupcake pan so I could do them all at once and they would be done!

Egg Cups:

8 Eggs
1/4 Onion
1/4 Green Pepper
Handful of cheese
Pam or other non-stick spray
1/4 Milk- adjust as needed I just eye ball this
2 Mushrooms

You can add your own favourite flavours

How To:

1) Preheat oven to 350°
2) Spray your muffin tin with non-stick spray
3) Fill each spot over 1/2 full (I didn't fill mine full enough, I am going to fill my to almost full next time)
4) Bake in oven for 20 Minutes

***Check for gooyness and cook longer if needed***

Egg Sandwiches:

8 Eggs
Non-stick spray
8 English Muffins
8 Slices of Cheese

How To:

1) Preheat oven to 350°
2) Spray your muffin tin with non-spray
3) Fill 8 muffin spots with an 1 egg
4) Bake for 20 minutes

***Check for gooyness and cook longer if needed***
5) Cut English muffins
6) Toast English muffins
7) Put a slice of cheese on each English muffin
8) Put an egg on each English muffin.

Once everything has cooled its time to get them packaged for the freezer.

What you need: 

Freezer bags
Plastic wrap

How To:

1) Wrap each egg sandwich in plastic wrap
2) Place all egg sandwiches in the freezer bag
3) Label the freezer bag
4) I wrapped 2 egg cups together in the plastic wrap
5) Place egg cups in a freezer bag
6) Label the freezer bag


How to eat and enjoy!


1) Remove plastic wrap.
2) Heat in either microwave or toaster
3) Enjoy

***Egg sandwiches take longer to heat. I take them out while I am getting everyone ready and then defrost for 1min then toast.


Time saving break down:

 1.5 Hours on a Sunday and then its only 5 minutes in the morning on a weekday

Money saving break down:

 Egg sandwiches cost .54 cents each to make at home
 Egg sandwiches cost $3.99+tax (or more) to buy
Savings of: $3.97

The kids love the egg sandwiches as much as the adults! So good and so easy! Freezer meals to the rescue again.

What is your favourite breakfast meal? Can you make it on the weekend, freeze it and have it the rest of the week?


 I did try to do hard boiled eggs this way as well to use for egg salad sandwiches and for just hard boiled eggs, but I ended up with rubbery eggs so until I perfect this method I wont be using it for those.

I do make 8 hard boiled eggs on Sundays. I use 4 to make egg salad and 4 to just have for the kids lunch or for me to grab and go during the day!


 

Night time Routine

https://dlpng.com/png/5097479

Our nights look a little crazy and go by really fast. It starts with the older girls getting home at about 3:20.

Sometimes I get "lucky" and one of the kids refuse to bath and things get done sooner. What has been even better lately is that the oldest girl doesn't fight with me to do her book in the bag so I don't spend many many hours at the table.




3:20pm Snacks and homework. Homework can last anywhere from 10mins to hours depending how well the oldest cooperates with me. Snack is normally many snacks because everyone is starving when they come home from school but barely touch their lunch lol.


3:50pm Free play while I finish making and plate dinner. Free play is a whole lot of yelling, running and being wild, I can not wait until the weather is nicer and they can play in the backyard.

4:30pm Dinner I am so glad I start this early in the day because even after many snack everyone is still starving and can't wait to eat!

5:00pm Walk the dogs. For us this gets the last bit of the sillies out before bed.


6:05pm Bath time starting with the youngest. Each child gets about 15 mins in tub.

6:20pm The youngest gets dried and dressed. and I empty and refill the tub.

6:25pm The second youngest gets in the tub.

6:40pm The second youngest gets dried and dressed and I empty and refill the tub.

6:45pm The second oldest child gets in the tub




7:00pm The second oldest child gets dried and dressed and I empty and refill the tub.

7:05pm The oldest gets in the tub

7:20pm The oldest gets dried and dressed while I clean up the bathroom and make snack.

7:30pm They have snack while I read 1 chapter out of a chapter book we are currently reading Aliens Don't Plan Parties, 1 story out of one the multi books like Bernstein Bears 5 Minute stories and 1 of the books they picked out from the library.

7:45pm I start brushing and flossing 4 sets of teeth

8:00pm I lay with B and sing our 3 songs and I lay with him until he falls. Connely sits in with the girls until they fall asleep.

8:30pm I get into the shower

8:40pm I tidy up and start working on client orders.

11:00pm I head to bed. Some nights when I have had more than enough I go to bed at 10pm. I am up at least once during the night with Blaine, and once or more with the other girls when I hear them getting up to go pee etc.

What does your night time routine look like? Is it busy? laid back? structured?

I think my favourite time with bedtime is reading to them and snuggles in bed with Blaine. Since the girls have arrived his one on one time with me is reduced so any one on one time with him I cherish.

Do you have a favourite thing about your night time routine?

1000 words a day

Could you imagine writing one thousand words a day, I don't mean text or facebook post, meaningful, productive words.

I came across a post the other day while scrolling through pinterest that said something along the lines of "I write one thousand words a day even if I am hungover, its called discipline and how you become a professional". Who ever wrote that quote is right. And the quote can be used in so many different way not just for writing. I love writing but I don't always take the time each day to write and I really should.

5 Ways the quote could be used in your life:

1)  I work out every day even if I am hungover, its called disciplined and how you reach your goals.

2)  I read every day even if I am hungover, its called disciplined and how I improve my skills.

3)  I eat breakfast every day even if I am hungover, its called disciplined and how I will improve.

4)  I drink my 8 glasses of water day even if I am hungover, its called disciplined and how I become healthy.

5) I take me time every day even if I am hungover, its called disciplined and how I feel better about myself.

Do you know what 1000 words look like? Well at this point its not even close to 1000 words unless you are including characters as well.

I asked the kids what they thought one thousand words looked.

L: I don't know, a lot

B: Do you mean one hundred?

C: A lot of words

H: Sighs and walks away. Then yells"five"

Apparently they have no idea what that many words would look like for them either. 

I wonder with all the new things going on in my home I can make sure I write at least one thousand words a day? It's hard as it is to find much time to do anything let alone sit and write one thousand words. Currently as I sit and try to write this blog post. Blaine has his music videos playing. L is yelling at H that she ruined their fort. C is singing frozen at the top of her lungs and Bossco is barking to be let outside because he was just fed and that means its time to go out. Connely asking me if I am done photo copying paperwork. I have learned to blog with all the noise and chaos but I don't think I would be able to sit and write one thousand words without getting up at least a dozen times and lose my train of thought just about as many times.

What does one thousand words look like to you? Because according to word count we are still not there yet. We are still over five hundred words short.


I am going to start working towards writing one thousand words a day.

What are you going to work on doing everyday?

https://quotefancy.com/j-g-ballard-quotes