Relax is a four letter word.

Today I had an argument with my husband I've probably had at least 10, 20, 50 [??] times since the past 10 years we've been together. 

 And that is in my inability to relax I make everyone else feel like they can't either. 

And darn it, I hate to be wrong.  I really, really do.  But I do know this is a problem, I would love to relax!  I see other Moms that can watch a TV show in the middle of the day without getting up halfway through because they feel guilty that there are dirty dishes in the sink and the kids are just laying around.  But maybe it's a sign that I'm just not letting go enough, keeping God in control and just enjoying the blessings he has been so gracious as to give me.  My children, my husband, our time together.  We have worked hard to have a schedule in which we get that ever precious commodity that just seems so hard to come by, time.  And do I really want to throw it away stressing about every thing that still won't get done?  

No, I know the answer but it's figuring out how to make my brain understand it as well. 

We learned recently at one of our marriage classes that men have a "Nothing Box."  Seriously.  Where they can just tune out and think of just that, nothing.  I have no grasp of that concept. 

I feel like 5 minutes in my brain is just a constant stream of what I am doing, need to be doing, just did, should be doing, or didn't have enough time to do yesterday.  And it shouldn't be that.  5 minutes in my mind should be praise, worship, adoration, thankfulness for all God has given me.  I will never have a perfect home, perfect children, or be perfect.  I don't aspire to be.  But I do aspire to be able to let go of the mess, to sit with my kids in the midst of piles of laundry and read books.  To be able to laugh with them at the mess we made in the kitchen instead of thinking about how tiring it will be to clean it all up.

So I'll keep trying.  Keep praying for God to grant me his grace once again.  

To continue to let go for the sake of those who love me, and for myself.

  To love myself enough to make it happen.  

That being said....I refilled all my Febreeze bottles today.  I have a slight obsession with Febreeze but that stuff can get pricey!  And I'm not willing to give up the freshness of Febreeze.  Especially not with a semi-potty training toddler running around.  Found a few different recipes on-line and kind of tweaked them to make the one I like best!  For now anyways. 

Home Made Febreeze

[About 25 cents a bottle compared to $5.00!]

This mixture fills up a 32 oz. bottle.

So if you have smaller ones, like I do, just halve it.

1/8 cup white vinegar

1/8 cup of your favorite fabric softener, I used what was on sale.

1 tbs. baking soda

1-2 drops Lavender Essential Oil, only if you want a Lavender smell.

Hot Tap Water

[1] Pour all your ingredients into the bottle.

[2] Fill with hot tap water.

[3] Shake & spray! 

Kid Quip of the Day:

On Sunday at church during communion.

Lily: Did they just say drink his blood?!?!

Me: Yeah, but it's Jesus' blood.

Lily: Oh ok, I'll do it for him. 

5 in 5. Edition: 2

Again, I will tell you just how much I love an easy project! 

I don't mind elaborate ones as well but it usually helps me if I have most things on hand and I can do them in under 30 minutes, cause that's about as much time as a child under 2 will probably ever give you.

So here's another set!  

1.  Slow Cooker Dulce De Leche

[1] Slow Cooker [2] Mason Jar [3] Water [4] Sweetened Condensed Milk

So easy & tasty!  I used this to top mango cupcakes and stirred it into my iced coffee but it would also be good in brownies or pretty much anything!  Just open up the can of milk, place into a clean mason jar and close tightly, you can also do this directly in the can but it creeped me out a little and you're probably going to want to put it in something else so you might as well do it to begin with.  Put the mason jar in your slow cooker and make sure it is completely covered with water!  Put it on high for 6 hours or low for 8.  The advantage of doing it in the jar as well is that you can see through it and see how dark your Leche is getting.  Yummy! 

2.  Tooth Fairy Money

[1] Dollar Bill [2] Hair Spray [3] Glitter

Our oldest, Lily, just lost her 1st tooth last week!  This made me want to cry and also have slight flash forwards of a teenage daughter and how much I hope God does not show me what I deserve from my teenage years.  We were so excited to do tooth fairy things & make it magical, etc.  Then she told us that her Aunt had already told her that I'M the tooth fairy.  Buzz kill man.  But we went ahead and made it fun, for us, and hoping she might still believe a little bit.  When she woke up the next morning to glittery money and her tooth missing she was pretty amazed. :)  5 year olds are so easy to fool.  Really. 

The money is a lot glittery than it looks in this picture and super simple!  Just spray the bill with the hairspray and shake on the glitter!  It dries really quickly too!

3. Cousin Jaz's Mexican Squash Casserole

[1] 1 Zucchini [2] I can of corn [3] 1 small can of tomato sauce [4] Shredded Cheddar Cheese 

First off, I will say I consider oil, salt & pepper to be freebies.  You will need all of those here!

I can't remember exactly when I learned how to make this but one of my favorite in-laws taught me how to make it!  I know it was a long time ago, maybe when we lived in Guadalupe and Jaz worked at the awesome Hot Dog on a Stick in Santa Maria.  Either way, good memories come with this recipe & I wish I got to see this beautiful woman more often than I do. 

Slice a zucchini in half & then into half moon pieces.  Not super thin, this will cook in a pan and then bake so you don't want it mushy.  Heat oil in a pan and sauté zucchini with a little salt & pepper.  About 5 minutes, add 1 can drained corn or fresh if you have it, even better!  I like a little char on my corn then I add the can of tomato sauce.  Mix well and pour into a baking dish, it's a pretty wet mixture.  Top with as much cheese as you like, I LOVE cheese as you can see.  Bake at 400 degree F just until cheese is melted and it's done!  Andy loves this with rice and pork chops.  It's the Mexi/Filipino in him.

4.  Spring Clean your mattress!

[1] Baking Soda [2] Lavender Oil [3] Mason Jar [4] Sieve [5] Vacuum

I have an obsession with cleaning and I have a really sensitive nose.  Two random facts about me that happen to match up.  I can't stand bad smelling things or just random funk.  We got a mattress from a friend when we moved back here, for which I am very thankful!  I figured a good cleaning never did any mattress bad and the lavender helps promote good sleep.  After we did this our mattress smelled so fresh, ahhh.  Fill a mason jar, with baking soda and about 4-5 drops of Lavender oil.  Shake well.  This recipe made enough to clean my mattress twice, you could do carpets with it as well, etc. And since nothing in here is toxic and even edible I don't mind the kids playing in it while it "soaks."  Use the sieve to sprinkle the mixture over your mattress and let it sit for at least 30 minutes.  I let mine sit for a few hours cause really it can't hurt.  Then vacuum!  If you have a hose attachment that would be awesome, we don't so I just lift the whole vacuum up. 

5.  Make a Happy Birthday balloon number!

[1] Balloons [2] Tape

This one is pretty obvious but still I had never thought of it until I discovered Pinterest, uh-oh.  For Jonas' 4th birthday this year we didn't have a big party like we have had every year before so I wanted to make sure we had different ways to show him how special he is to us & how excited we were for his birthday!  We did this on our living room wall after he went to sleep so when he woke up he was pretty excited.  

Blow up your balloons, how many you need depends on your number, how big you want it, etc.  One multi colored bag from Target was more than enough for us.  Don't blow them up too big otherwise they'll be a pain to stick to the wall.  I taped the base of each balloon and once I had them all in place I used rolls of tape to stick all the balloons to one another, it really helped.

Sow your seed in the morning, and at evening let your hands not be idle, for you do not know which will succeed, whether this or that, or whether both will do equally well.
Ecclesiastes 11:5-7