Sit still?? never

Just when I think I will sit still. I get busier. I managed over this weekend to get a menu made out, which took days to make, Nothing sounded good. I am so worn out on certain meals that I just could not get that menu made. But finally, managed. And got the grocery shopping done. Of course going OVER budget. sigh. After that got the garage sorta cleaned up. Clovis the attack cat has been acting sick and it was freaking me out. Shes 15 years old. I dont expect her to live forever, but sheesh.. She was vomiting. A lot. (ok so clovis is a vomiter anyways but this was excessive) And shes was acting very very odd. Shes feral(Ok the older she gets the more we can call her somewhat domesticated.....Somewhat....) and she wanted attention constantly. Which is def not normal. Plus shedding like no tomorrow(way more than she ever has in previous years) So while at the store we realized.... We need to buy old cat food. Not just the regular outdoor stuff. She needs old lady stuff lol. Got her more hair ball treatment stuff. (which may be why she felt like crap) After giving her the hairball stuff for 4 days, and the senior food. Shes acting a lot better.  We can hope it stays that way.
My ankle is still in the brace(ok so it isnt at this exact moment...Im just sitting geez!!)I wont say its getting better. Or worse. Still got 2 weeks and a few days left in this thing. And not time to just sit and rest it.
The boys are doing ok. Driving me nuts. Mr B is in that preteen crap that is really starting to get on my nerves. Attitude... uggg..And of course the bear doesnt like it so... he gets a attitude lol. Im gonna work their tails off!!
Im trying to clean the fire out of this house. Did really good. But now its about time to declutter and maybe do a garage sale again. Need to come up with a LOT more to do that though(And its freaking 100 plus degrees out here right now UG!!)
Busy week ahead. Gymnastics CAP and work. Among other stuff.Got my fingers crossed once again for papa bear. Soon I hope to scream out the news (and no I am not prego.. wash your mouth out!!) If that happened it would be a damn miracle. Or I gots me a boyfriend lolol. (and on that note......)lolololl

Changes in the home

After having a long conversation with a friend I wish I lived closer to, about the kids and chores and responsibilities..About my lack of patience lately with it all. About how I wish for my boys to grow up and be productive parts of society..And know how to live on their own....I got some REALLY good advice. And have a lot of things to think about.
You know I just did a post about chores. About the things I want my boys to know how to do. The one thing I didnt touch upon is cooking. Yup.. My boys are about to make a foray into the kitchen. We used to have the boys in the kitchen whenever one of us cooked. And kinda let it go a few years back. And I realize what a disservice it is to them. And to me. Some people might think its wrong(Yeah I dont care) Others will be like.. WAY TO GO(yeah I care heehee who doesnt like pats on the back) But how many of you women would like a man who can cook??? (I have my hand raised HIGH in the air waving it back and forth) Ok so I dont because it would be impossible to type. And the fact that Papa Bear does know how to cook..Now..And most things.......My hubs cant fry a egg. And I think has made pancakes once, heck NEVER has he made french toast. And there are lots of things that frustrate me when it comes to the kitchen. But not nearly as much as they used to. You see I remember 13 years ago when papa could not cook hardly anything. But over the years he has learned. And my goodness that man can make a lasagna to die for. (and not from frozen) OMG Im gonna put that on the menu right now for him to make. Now he helps me a lot. I love it. More times than not papa bear can make the dinner and I can sit here typing away. But the point of this loooonggg drawn out post is, MY KIDS CANT COOK!! During my conversation with my awesome friend, I was jealous of her lol. Her kids are all younger than my oldest. And they can cook almost anything. I agree with the logic. When the kids grow up you want them to be able to handle life. TO cook for themselves to be able to pay their bills, because we all know we do want these kiddos to move out eventually..So starting today(yes today not waiting another minute) Im bringing my kids back in the kitchen. Starting easy. Because soon I will have a young adult on my hands. And then a couple years later I will have another one. And as young adults they should have more responsibilities. They should learn to function. I cant count how many times I have stood over a stove cooking with a horrid headache. Or feeling like a truck ran me over.. When they were old enough to make something simple. So tonight I will have both boys start in the kitchen cooking with me.
Thats step 1. In that step it is bringing them into the kitchen with me.
Step 2 will be giving them easy meals to cook ON THEIR OWN.
Step 3 will be giving them one night a week they cook dinner.
I also want to work on teaching them to make desserts. Hey I want some brownies sometimes and dont wanna make them myself.
We are also in the process of redoing the chore lists. Because well.. they get bored. And it seems I will be up cleaning etc and they will be playing video games. So many changes because part of me hasnt been really letting these kids grow. Maybe trying to keep them a lil longer as kids. Not wanting them to feel like slaves. But its realizing .... if your working WITH them.. they wont feel that way :D ANd they will learn. Off to the kitchen. Time to teach some boys so that when they grow up they wont be coming to my house every night for dinner!!!

Kids helping..

Now I am a firm believer that kids should help do things around the house. From helping with laundry, dishes, lawn work. Because its being part of the family. It should not be all the parents job(once kids reach certain ages) to do all the laundry, or dishes, or lawn work...etc. My 2 growling bears have had chores for many years. It started with the basic picking up of toys. TO getting dirty clothes in a basket, to putting your dishes in a sink....And now they are at the ripe old ages of 9 and almost 13, And we can even get them doing this.....
Painting of the neighbors shed.

 Ooooo Mowing(yeah see dirt spot next pic)

 And helping level the ground again for the pool!!

Its actually nice to have some helpers. Now, Mr B can even run a load of clothes in the washer. They CAN wash dishes....ummm but the finished product isnt always clean...(note to self.. maybe a dishwasher might come in handy.. since I happen to own the last house in the world without one) They can even clean the toilet!! (Yes I do get excited about this.. because umm I am the ONLY female in this house.. and I DO NOT make those messes) Its nice to be able to get a kid to help vacuum.. or even sweep.. And when asked what chores they dont think they can do.. They will say they can do them all. And to me that is part of being in the family. Sharing responsibilities in the house that you live in, is a absolute MUST. I dont eat off all the dishes. And I am positive all these dirty clothes are not just mine. So why should it be MY responsibility?? Even Papa bear does laundry and dishes :D . I wont say making your kids do chores is easy. Sometimes its more fighting than you would feel its worth. Yes I do get sick of telling each grumbling growling its not my day bear...that it is indeed their day to wash a kitchen table. Heck we argue who went first in the shower the night before..And no they dont argue to BE first... But ya know.. when these grumblers grow up into big bears. and become hubby bears and papa bears themselves... I dont want them to be grizzly lazy hibernating bears. I want their girly bears to come and say.. ya know mama bear thank you for teaching your baby bears how to be responsibly hubby bears. :D WHen they grow up and get married or whatever..They can help do that laundry and will have very thankful girly bears :D

Doing some updating

I am now getting some recipes listed under the recipes tab. Trying to get the stuff done on here that I have had half done or under construction for a bit :) On top of getting some stuff done around the house. It is spring cleaning time right??

Organizing....

O my... I did not realize how long its been since I really cleaned. I mean.. the house is picked up, Im ok if people who know me come over.(hint people who KNOW me) But holy cow if people who didnt, I would probably look like a deer in headlights...Or someone who stuck her finger in a light socket.. Scary thought. I have some clutter. Yes you can sit on the couch sheesh. Not that much clutter. I promise Im not in the running for hoarders... geez that just gave me the creeps thinking about it. But I havent REALLY cleaned. Cabinets are in disarray. Heck I wasnt even sure what I HAVE in them. So I started pulling everything out today trying to get it back in shape. I need to go to the store and stock up on some things, mainly meat and non perishables. Stuff I can freeze.. Household items. Tax time brings me to the store for all these things. That A LOT do last through the year. I buy toothpaste once a year(unless the kids decide to do art in the bathroom with it grrr... ) I try to stock up on soaps and shampoos. Laundry items. Stuff that during the rest of the year I hate having to buy because it cuts into my food budget. (and umm I want my food) This year will be a little bit different because we have so much to do with not a lot of money. You see... I bought myself a van.. Yup pics will come soon I promise.  I got it last night. Its a new to me used blue dodge (: It gets warm a lil quicker. Which is good cuz its been cold. Plus Papa bear is heading out to get new tires put on the other car(they needed replaced a year ago.) And on that car...its a pretty penny. It doesnt look like Im going to have much left to get rid of some bills. sigh...

Anyway back to the horrid organizing. Someone want to come do it for me??

Respect

Respect...Something we all want to have. But seems to also be a thing of the past. You go into a store...You will find that it seems only the door greater and the cashier are decent(not everytime) You see the customers who only care about themselves. Running you over, not caring kids are there. Or you see kids that are HORRIBLE to everyone around them.

Can I say my kids are a exception?..Or am I one?? No.. When I go to a store I do get frustrated with others.I try to be mindful and yet others are rude. Which it turn..I get rude. My kids...Now for the most part with others they are very respectful We get told this all the time. With us.. Wow.. almost never. This is a issue we are trying to nip in the bud. And quickly. Mr B hasnt been very nice at all. And has stated he doesnt have to be respectful to me. So now its lesson time.. 

(Everyone disciplines differently and I love to hear your ideas lol)

My lovely Mr.B...ahhhh the kid who can warm your heart and then break it right after. Since returning from boot camp..Lets just say he seems to think I dont matter. What I say what I do...And the fact Im just the stupid mom I dont deserve....RESPECT.....Im not a officer so using the yes mam term does not apply to me...ahhh did this boy have it very very wrong. You see. Life bit him in the butt. And bit him hard. I was mad which is a understatement. And found though..hmmm I have the upperhand. I am the driver to where he needs to go. And he had a meeting last night. Guess who wasnt driving? that is right..Me. Using the old saying Dont bite the hand that feeds you rang good and true. He had no ride. And since I pay the phone bill he couldnt use it to find a ride. He missed his meeting, And I called his commander to let him know that and why. And he then had to go to work with me(explain this is a sec)

Papa Bear was not happy at all with Mr Bs decision. (Thats putting it lightly) So he added to the punishment. Missing one meeting isnt going to make a point with its multiple infractions is it? Since Mr B also seems to think I do nothing in this house(yes dishes laundry etc are done by faeries) He is now gaining a appreciation for all I do on a daily basis. He knows it is not womens work because even papa does laundry and dishes. Part of this is my fault because I do not make them do much around here. I really wanted them to just be kids. But I do expect help in the chores. It takes a matter of minutes when we all get to it. Normally while they are at school I get the laundry washed and dishes done etc. But right now I am getting a break. Mr B is finding out laundry doesnt come clean on its own and dishes dont wash themselves either. As for the going to work with me....

I work to pay for the kids activities. I work a very small PT job 5 nights a week. And Mr B is now going to be helping me at least twice a week to work for his activities. Lil Bear has been helping me for the past 2 years. Mr B is learning(a lil late on my part) to work for what he wants. He also has to ask me to drive him where he needs to go. It is no longer assumed that I am available as his driver. He must ask in advance(even though I KNOW he has a meeting the same time and day every week) 

Does this sound horrible???  Nahhhhh Life isnt always pleasant. And for my lil cadet...hes learning this. And when he grows up, gets married. His wife will thank us that he knows how to operate a washing machine and washes dishes. He will also appreciate her much more. Because he will KNOW she worked hard. And to me.. that will be worth the stress of these days. 

More natural homemade cleaning products

We try to use everything we can, to the fullest. And if you can make some greener cleaning supplies, that are WAY cheaper than all those chemical laden ones.. Why not!

I make my own Laundry Soap.
And now.. Dish soap. Now see, I don't own a dishwasher unless you count mine and the Papa Bears hands.
Heres a great recipe for using your leftover bits of soap! That way nothing goes to waste!


* 2 cups of soap shavings
* 2-3 cups of hot water, plus more to dilute

Follow these steps when making the dish soap.

1. In a small bucket, place your soap shavings.
2. Cover with hot water and let it sit for several hours or overnight to soften.
3. In the morning, stir and mash the soap shavings until smooth. Add more hot water to dilute to preferred consistency.
4. You can add lemon juice or vinegar if you'd like, to help with cutting grease on dishes.
5. Pour into squeeze bottles or other containers. Shake well before use

(this recipe came from How to do Things


More thrifty fun things to come! Im on a hunt for some great uses for things I have around my house!

Tuesday has come again...laugh all you want

After yesterdays gray day, the sun is out and I am feeling a little more productive. And after a particular..incident in the kitchen, I thought ahhh my readers need a laugh.
I was washing dishes, and for some reason, I do ask my lovely bears to help. As the bear gets trash off the table, I asked Mr B to get some old food out of the fridge and dump it in the trash. Don't ask me why I do these things. But yes..Mr B gets the bowl of baked ziti thats been in the fridge for a week, and dumps it ON the trashbag, which in turn dumps half into the floor....and my feet. Now there are no words to explain just how disgusting cold wet food feels on your bare feet. Its a feeling I DO NOT want again. I am normally NOT a sensitive person to certain things. But man that was cold wet and...GAG! JUST as I thought that mess was over, I decided..well this trash bag stinks so fill it up with all the expired and/or old food out of the fridge. WHY DO I DO THESE THINGS?? On top of some very old not even enough for 1 serving bowl with green beans in it. I see the bottom of a bowl. THAT is never good.I go to grab the bowl to find this bowl, that originally had more juice than corn in it.. well now was some dried up corn. with no lid.. Here we go.. pull out everything because we all know it couldnt be on a bottom shelf and proceed to clean dried corn and congealed corn juice off of every single shelf and the back wall of the fridge AND under the bottom drawer.....At this point I SO DO NOT want to look anywhere else. I am scared of what I may find..At least the fridge is now clean HAHA....And no.. no pics needed. just picture it in your mind. I refuse to show off the inside of my fridge...even if it is clean....now lol

ITCH TO PITCH

Well my itch to pitch took a different turn, when my business went nuts. So.. On my itch to pitch I actually decided to go through inventory and get it gone through. In the end. over 900 books went out of my store and will be picked up this week. No pictures because at this point I would HATE for anyone to see the state of the garage with boxes upon boxes of books. But I will say the room we store our inventory in looks SO much better and more organized. Plus on top of that we had over 100 degree weather so we had to move stuff out of the way, to put in a air conditioner.....for the cat.. Yes. Clovis the attack cat had A/C. Keep in mind Clovis is a 15 year old feral cat. Shes old and this heat does not go ok with her anymore. And while I WOULD bring her in the house. Umm not gonna happen. She would kill the dog and maul the kids. LOL. I have brought her in during the cold of winter.. Did not work so well. Anyways.
This week I need to do more cleaning than pitching. Because we have Mr B's 10th bday Saturday. I can't believe its been 10 years. So double digit party here at my house Saturday... I just want it clean Lololol.

A long week

Ahhh its been one of those long lazy weeks. Been playing more than cleaning. Playing more than baking. And playing more than...well more than anything. Except yesterday....Yesterday, my 2 adorable, crazy, LOVING(normally) boys decided it was another day to fight. And not talking words. Yes, I know..Its past the end of June and wee are still dealing with some issues. I still have to say, it is way better than it was a month ago. But yesterday I had to take away playing in the pool. After the oldest deemed necessary to kick the youngest in the stomach. And all they wanted to do was fight over legos. Wait... it was fight over anything that touched the other ones hands. I am sure we all have these kind of days...I HOPE! haha.
Other than that I did get my house cleaned up yesterday since there was no playing in the pool. I was able to also get another batch of laundrysoap made. Dog hair central has been vacuumed! This dog I swear is shedding like crazy! I didn't know this dog had so much FUR!
On another note, My nephew is turning 1 tomorrow(yup a firecracker baby) And my brother decided to have his birthday party today...So I get to feel a little bad because we will be a hour late. BECAUSE my brother didnt quite think it out. SOME people still have to work today....And well.. they are not getting off till the time of the party or after! So a party that is from 3-5...People are not gonna be there till 4-4:30... We will see how it goes..

ITCH TO PITCH week 3

Ok so This time It was my lovely Bears room. Surprisingly he got rid of half a lawn bag worth of stuff. YEs only half LOL. BUT its a great improvement! And well, hes also states he wants the toybox gone. BUT I am holding off on it till he protests a little harder. Ok heres befores






Blankets sheets and shoes not very neat


Under the bed a fav hiding spot

And now.. The afters

His bookshelf neat


Toys in their right bins( and from above it still dont look neat now Im looking haha)




Hes happy for room to play.

Stay tuned for next week.. Mr B's is project for week 4!
And I am adding a Mr Linkie to mine so that we may all link up!
Make sure to link yourself!

I don't even know what to do here

I am a person who likes things clean. I have my spots in my house that can drive me crazy. And somedays I seem to clean a lot. Today.. I walked into my bathroom.. Now ANYONE who has boys understands this. I am completely outnumbered here. Come on I got a girl dog just to add some estrogen of some sort. But OMG! SOMEONE PLEASE tell me when they learn to aim. And I am not talking about aiming on the floor, or the back of the toilet. And you know.. NOT me lives here. Not Me is who peed on my floor, Not me is the one who does everything here. Now that I have had my early morning rant. I guess I am off to clean a bathroom, that Not me did, and Not me is invisible so I can never seem to find him to get onto him and have him clean it up.

Itch to Pitch

This weeks Itch To Pitch for me was my laundry area. I dove into junk drawers and trashed lil trinkets long forgotten, papers that I have no idea why were there, and found a few things I thought were long gone. Here is the befores..



Look closely even a highchair ended up in there.. hehe I had a delay and retook pics after babysitting. And after clearing stuff out... This is what they look like now...











I filled up a trash can full of trash. TONS of tools are now back in the garage. Paperclips and tacks in their right spots now. Pictures.. Man.. tons of those in the drawers. The dress up bin(the blue container) is now out in the garage..getting ready for my hope soon to be challenge in there.. yeah that will wait till its not so hot! Anyways...there is my week 2!

What moms REALLY Do........

when its BOYS NIGHT OUT! Nope..its not a bubble bath... Nope.. its not consume ice cream in bed. And no... its not sleeping on the couch lol. It is... hold out for it.. wait for it... Its... yes it is.........











Yup.. Dishes.. Not as excited as you would have hoped.. But yeppers.. Dishes.. Oh.. and still working in my Itch to Pitch area BUT you will have to wait till Monday to see it!!

ITCH TO PITCH!!!

Ok SO I am following the Happy Housewife
in this endeavor.. Wish me luck.
My first area was my office area.. Which is multi-functional. I also use it for sewing. But I REALLY need a place to do my planning etc. So.. here is the before



And here is the after



I trashed a ton of paper, Avon books, stuff since I just decided I was done with that. And moved the sewing stuff under the end table so that it is still accessible.


I need to take another picture since adding a shelf next to my desk to hold books and papers I need.
Ok Lovely Happy Housewife.. Here is the beginning of the fun :)

Those days...

Well I am a day late in laundry day. Trying to actually catch up my week. And then I still have the kitchen to do for today. I am thinking of making our own all purpose cleaner. We already make our own laundry soap. Not only does it cut costs in the laundry department, it actually leaves your clothes clean. There is no smell at all. No flower scent or ocean breezes. With our lil Bears skin we need to watch what we use on him. And so far he has not had a rash since we began using this a couple months ago. The all purpose cleaner seems to go along the same lines as the laundry soap, Using almost the same ingredients. I rave about the laundry soap so we will see about the cleaner! I would LOVE to cut cost and still have a clean home.
Here is the recipe I used to make our own Laundry soap. All these items I actually found in ONE STORE! Our local Crest Foods! If you can not find Fels Naptha you can also use Ivory or ZOTE(I have never seen this one)

HOMEMADE LAUNDRY SOAP!
1/3 bar Fels Naptha bar laundry soap

½ cup washing soda

½ cup borax powder

~You will also need a small bucket, about 2 gallon size~



Grate the soap and put it in a sauce pan. Add 6 cups water and heat it until the soap melts. Add the washing soda and the borax and stir until it is dissolved. Remove from heat. Pour 4 cups hot water into the bucket. Now add your soap mixture and stir. Now add 1 gallon plus 6 cups of water and stir. Let the soap sit for about 24 hours and it will gel. You use ½ cup per load

Ok going to keep my laundry going. I hope to finish this today!