Owner: Our Family Village URL:http://ourfamilyvillage.com Join Date: Fri, 28 Sep 2007 22:31:16 -0500 Rating:0 Site Description: A group of mothers sharing their experiences form first pregnacny to first grandchild. Site statistics:Click here
Gingerbread Cookies Anyone? 2007-11-07 00:32:01 Rocks In My Dryer is doing a backwards Works For Me Wednesday today. Instead of sharing a tip or suggestion we are supposed to be asking a question that we need an answer to.
I’ve got a question that I hope someone can answer. How do I make gingerbread?
I know, seems simple enough. I keep planning to make some, and planning to make some, and planning to make some. But never do. What I need is a good recipe. ONe that is simple, yummy, and won’t make me go broke buying the ingredients. I am sure I could find one online, but when I saw that this was a backwards day I knew I had to ask instead.
So hit me with your best gingerbread recipes!
Read more:Gingerbread
, Cookies
, Anyone
Yikes! 2007-11-06 21:24:02 Apparently the government is starting to think it will be a better parent than we will be. Reading that made me want to go and hug my children a little tighter.
so worth the wait…. 2007-11-06 13:51:22 This will just be a quick entry, must get back to the newest member of our family
Last I was here, I was a few days past my guess-a-date and hosting my first contest. I haven’t forgotten about the prizes. I’ll choose a winner by Thursday & have it in the mail this weekend. If you haven’t yet, you still have time to enter.
Now on to the big news…. Saturday, November 3rd at 11:11p.m. I birthed my beautiful daughter; November Katarina It was an amazing home birth. I was assisted & supported by several of my good friends (if you haven’t seen my profile, I’m a student midwife myself). A very good friend & senior midwife came in from out of state to stay with me for the last week of my pregnancy. Two of my classmates & dear friends attended in the roles of doulas/assistant midwives; and were such a comfort to me. My partner worked through his own feelings of being overwhelmed to do an amazing job keeping me grounded & focused. My
Visual Reminders 2007-11-13 22:32:43 I mentioned in my grateful post the other day that I keep a note stuck to my bathroom mirror asking myself what i am grateful for. Every time I go in and see it I am reminded to stop and be grateful for the things in my life. But that’s not the only visual reminder I have.
On my fridge I have a collage of pictures cut from magazines. A woman jogging,another working in the garden, another of a woman and man dancing. It is my healthy living reminder. Each time I head to the fridge to snack I get a visual reminder of how I want my body to look and what it takes for me to get there.
In my storage cabinet I have another collage. Images of the things I want out of life. Blueprints for the home of my dreams, a graduation cap to keep me on my goals, a picture of a bill with the words ‘Paid In Full” stamped across in red. This is another visual reminder that I use to keep going on the right path.
They say that a picture is worth a thousand words. I use pictures to keep focused Read more:Visual
Win A Free Book! 2007-11-13 13:52:38 This week is National Children’s Book Week and to celebrate I am sharing some of my favorite books each day over at my homeschool blog, Mom Is Teaching. I am also sharing the fun by asking people to share their favorite books with me. One lucky commenter will win a free book of their choice! Come over and read what books are favorites in my house, and share your own favorites!
Want to see what else you could win just in time for the holidays? 5 Minutes For Mom has a great Christmas giveaway going on with different prizes going up daily. You can also follow me over to A Mom In Red High Heels for a little Naughty Mommy treatment giveaway. Also head over to Home Mom and Laura Williams’ Musings. They always have the scoop on the best give aways going on each week.
Read more:Free Book
and the winner is… 2007-11-12 21:10:04 I’ve finally gotten around to choosing a winner
for my first give away…the winner is… Princess Leia- I hope this helps her to relax with a teething toddler.
More entries soon…but for now, it’s back to staring & smiling at the new baby for me
Toys, Presents, and Love 2007-11-12 05:20:59 At my homeschool blog I asked about what to do with unwanted toys. Normally I’m the type that just smiles and nods and waits until I’m alone to grumble over the toy. I’d love to have more of a backbone, but that just isn’t going to happen.
Some people left comments that I shouldn’t be so picky. That I should think about the toy givers, about how much joy they get from buying the toys, and to just let me kids play with whatever they want. Let me just say that made me hair bristle. I’m not the worlds meanest mom. My kids have far too many toys as it is, probably enough to give to a third world country and still have plenty left over. But I do try to limit what kinds of toys they get. Does this bother some of the toy givers? Yes. Am I concerned? No.
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Read more:Presents
Nice Matters! 2007-11-20 19:45:46 Fussy has given me the Nice Matters Award. I’m touched. The amazing FussyPants certainly knows a thing or two about being nice.
So now I’ve got to pass this award on to others. It’s tough to narrow it down, but I think I’ve got it.
Jenny from Mommin’ It Up!
Candace from not that i don’t love my kids
Laura from The Joyful Mom
Taylor from Risk Reality
Erin from bluebirdbaby
Come get your award! And be sure to pass on the love to other bloggers yourself.
Win My Earrings! 2007-11-19 05:33:57 I recently won a jewelry making kit and am loving it. It is quite surprising that the girl who hates wearing jewelry actually enjoys making it. Who knew? I have whipped out several earrings and a necklace for Christmas presents, as well as being half finished with a earring and necklace set I plan to sell.
In my enthusiasm for jewelry creation I wanted to share my very first pair of earrings that I made. I put these together within in minutes of opening up my kit. I ripped into the supplies, loved all of the beads, read through the instructions, and then put these together while grinning from ear to ear. They are gorgeous to me. Sure they aren’t perfect, but it is thir imperfections that give them more character. And look at how they catch the light. (more…)
Read more:Earrings
5 Reasons to NOT Circumcise. 2007-11-18 12:00:24
It’s a boy!
When my husband and I were engaged we had the almighty “Circumcision Debate”. My husband-to-be told me bluntly “They will be baptized and circumcised” and I told him bluntly “Then we can’t be together any more.” I packed my things and left. I was nineteen but already knew no child of mine would ever have a part of it’s body removed unnecessarily. Thankfully my fiancee realized that I wasn’t joking around, and that this must be a big issue, and did a little research. He is now well on his way to being an intactivist, especially now that we know our baby is the proud owner of a penis. Circumcision is an often little-researched procedure that is losing popularity in the United States. No major medical organization can validate routine infant circumcision, and yet doctors and parents seem to simply accept it as “what’s done”. I find this extremely unfortunate and disheartening.
1. There is no adequat Read more:Reasons
Carnival of SAHMs 2007-11-18 00:21:57
Welcome back to the Carnival
of SAHMs! It’s another awesome carnival with some great posts for you to enjoy! But before we get to the fun of the carnival I have a short announcement. Let me step up to the mic here. The Carnival of SAHMs now has a home page! That’s right, if you want to learn more about the carnival or see who is lined up to host future posts you can check it out right here. Speaking of which, the carnival still neds hosts. So if you are interested in taking on a future edition let me know. Now on with the show!
iamawahm presents Tender Loving Care For The WAHM posted at Mom Works at Home.
Christine Moers presents All I Want For Christmas Is a Good Night’s Sleep posted at welcome to my brain
Carole Fogarty presents Nine sure signs the energy in your home is stressed: posted at THE HEALTHY LIVING LOUNGE.
Bonnie Krueger presents Do Both Spouses Have to Declare Bankruptcy or Just One? posted at Student Loan Consolidation.
Tiffany Washko presents Is Your
Vaccinate Or Go To Jail? 2007-11-16 05:02:07 Get Kids Vaccinated Or Else, Parents Told That’s what the headlines from the Washington Post told me. The “Or Else” is heavy fines and possibly jail time. But can the government do that?
Legally? No. This action is a violation of parent’s rights to chose medical care for their children. Even parents who choose to vaccinate should be concerned about this as it could be creating a legal precedent on how you are allowed to care for your children.
Parents in Maryland, and across the country, need to be aware of your rights. Maryland offers a medical and religious exemption on vaccinations for children. Every state offers some kind of exemption, and it is up to the parents to make use of that exemption on their own. No doctor or school official is going to hand it to you, you have to get it yourself. Scroll down here to find exemption laws for your state.
Here is another article on the incident along with contact information at the bottom. And an article I wrote on p
Happy Birthday Harry! 2007-11-15 23:49:13 Harry turns two years old next week. Yeah, his birthday is on Thanksgiving this year, poor guy. It is amazing to look at him and think about how much he has learned in such a short time.
He was taking wobbly steps last year and now he is a walking pro. He will even run in his funny toddler way.
Last year he was just beginning to feed himself bits of real food. Now he is an eating pro, stuffing his face with two hands at a time. He is also getting better at using a fork and can drink from a real cup.
Last year my mother in law thought he was already talking. This year he has an amazing vocabulary and will even use the occasional two word phrase.
Last year he was in 6-12 month sizes. This year he is in 18-24 month sizes.
Last year he would not leave me alone to even go to the bathroom. This year he will run upstairs to play with his brother with out giving me a second look
Some things have not changed a bit. He is still a super cute little guy. He still tries to sta Read more:Happy
, Birthday
, Harry
, Happy Birthday
Moms Love Jewelry 2007-11-24 07:26:59 Remember my cute earrings that I was giving away? Well a winner has been chosen! The random commenter is…. Angela! Congrats! She’ll be getting an email from me soon so I can send off her prize ASAP.
Now, if anyone else is in the mood for jewelry I wanted to share this. The ever sophisticated Fussypants is making and selling beautiful custom photo jewelry. Seriously, these necklaces are too beautiful for words! I’m already dreaming up buying one for myself soon with my sons. I insist that you at least go check these pieces out. Then add them to your wish list. And tell her you read about it at Our Family Village!
And if you are looking for more jewelry here are a couple more suggestions. First, if you’re dreaming of giving something sparkly to someone who needs a big pick me up run over to Random Acts of Bling, where gorgeous jewels are handed away each week. All for the love of making someone smile.
You can’t sell the jewelry. It must be worn & preferably Read more:Jewelry
A Healthy Diet Doesn’t Have To Be Expensive 2007-11-23 18:48:00 I came across this article about why poor Americans can’t afford to eat healthy. Although there are a few points I agree with, overall I have to disagree. Yes providing nourishment for a family can be costly; in our household of 6 (plus my teenager’s guests) the grocery bill is second only to our housing expenses. But investing in healthy foods does not have to break the bank if one knows how to be creative in the store and in the kitchen. The article specifically talks about the expense of fresh fruits & veggies, and implies that junk food is less expensive. In my experience (nearly 20 years of weekly grocery shopping) this just isn’t true.
Now prices may vary in your state, but in general I have found over-packaged, over-processed foods are always more costly than fresh produce. Let’s compare just a couple of snack items. In my local market “fruit snacks” range from $1.99-$3.49 for a package of 8; or .25-.45 per serving. Instead of artificial
Make Money Instead of Spending It During the Holiday Season 2007-11-23 09:45:11 It’s the official kick off of the holiday season. Many people are out spending their money on gifts and goodies for everyone on their list. But what if there were a way you could make money instead of spending it this holiday season? Crafts are huge right now and many moms are getting in on the rush. If you can sew, knit, or glue there’s a market that you can gt involved in. All you need is a little time, a little money to get started, and an account with Etsy to get started selling your crafts for a little extra cash this holiday season. And you can feel good about it too knowing that you’re helping people who are a part of the Buy Handmade pledge.
If you aren’t very crafty you can still find ways to earn extra money. You can download these ebooks on starting your own Santa Letter Business or a Greeting Card Business. Both of these are huge money makers this time of year if you can act fast to get in on them. Another idea you could try is offering babysittin Read more:Money
, Instead
, Spending
, Holiday
, Season
, Holiday Season
Angel Food 2007-11-21 04:53:13 There is a food service that we have around here called Angel Food. It provides a box of food for a low cost each month, all you have to do is pay then show up to collect your food. For anyone on a limited budget Angel Food is perfect. Each month we get a huge box full of food, for $25. It would cost 2 or 3 times that much to buy it in the store.
Angel Food Ministries is a non-profit, non-denominational organization dedicated to providing grocery relief and financial support to communities throughout the United States. The program began in 1994 with 34 families in Monroe, Georgia (between Atlanta and Athens), and has grown to serve hundreds of thousands of families every month across 32 states. Angel Food Ministries crosses denominational lines and has spread the good news of the gospel of Christ through salvation tracts that are placed in each food order.
You don’t have to be a member of any specific church, or any church at all. We have been able to get a box of food each month
Early Reading Online 2007-11-27 22:12:02 I’ve got an early reader in the house. He’s learning that putting letters together magically becomes the words and anmes he knows. It’s exciting watching him read letter after letter trying to piece them together into the words they create. Not just books fill our reading time. Signs, junk mail, and any other words we come across ach day are fodder for his reading skills practise.
We’ve also been enjoying getting online. Starfall.com is a favorite site right now for him. Songs, games, and mini books to read it’s overflowing with things for early readers. More than just reading, there are calenders for kids to learn aobut the days of the week and cute this games kids can play for each holiday. Like this fun gingerbread man. If you’ve got an early reader who likes playing games on the computer this is the perfect site.
However, if it’s math that you need a little extra fun help with I recommend Rainforest Math. There are tons of fun games to Read more:Early
, Reading
Preservation and Persevering 2007-12-06 14:47:57 I love living a short drive from my husband’s parents. It is nice to have a place to go for holidays and they are very free with gifts from their garden and orchard. We came home from our Thanksgiving trip with four large boxes of apples.
One of the things that stifles us the most about living in apartments and other small properties is that we can’t have large harvests from our own fruit trees. We can’t keep bees like my husband’s father can. We have to content ourselves with out meager attempts at container gardening. We still keep planting things that we are not sure will grow because we want the boys to know that food is not something that you buy at a store. We want them to feel the joy of eating something fresh out of the garden. Nothing tastes better than food that is warm from the sun and slightly dirty.
Tags: gardening, food, harvest
Use A Travel Pillow 2007-12-02 07:03:01 My oldest son takes after me. Neither of us can be in the car for more than an hour without falling asleep. I just can’t help it, the vibrations are soothing and lull me to sleep every time. The only part I hate is trying to get comfortable in a car while having a nice nap.
Well now my son doesn’t have that problem. He’s the happy owner of a Toddler Coddler. Did he like it? Just look at that picture. That was after only 20 minutes on the highway. It’s so soft and comfortable, I was almost tempted to steal it from him a couple times. Mommies need comfy naps too! The best part was when he woke up he wasn’t a ball of grump as usual. I’m betting that not having a crook in his neck from being slumped over made the whole nap a much better experience.
I’m telling you if you have to take your kids on long car rides this holiday season get them this car pillow! And if you’re like me and fall asleep in the car get one for yourself too. I got this Read more:Travel
A little venting 2007-12-18 01:59:12 I never thought I would be saying this before I had kids, but I love cloth diapering. I love that I have an excuse to knit up tons of cute wool diaper covers for my boys. I love that they are wearing something that is reusable and can be passed down to our other, theoretical, children. I find it very satisfying to fold and organize my cloth diaper stash. Yeah, I have an occasional lazy day and fall back on disposables. Yes we do do disposables at night, mostly because I am too lazy to figure out a night time diapering system for them (although, Evan could probably keep a diaper dry all night if he wanted to. In fact he could be potty trained if he wanted to be, but that is another post altogether).
What gets my dander up is all the snide comments I get from my family about my cloth diapering. My mother tired cloth diapering in the 80s when all you had was pinned prefolds and rubber pants. She used to soak the poopy diapers in the toilet and one ended up flushed down the t Read more:little
Happy Holidays without Breaking the Bank 2007-12-15 01:41:32 No matter what holiday you celebrate this time of year, let me assure you that enslaving yourself for the next 6 months to your credit card companies is not the reason for the season. Nor does The Creator, (by whatever name you call Him/Her/Them) wish for you to blindly consume at the expense of the planet to celebrate Their birth, death, rebirth or whatever your family reveres this time of year. It’s entirely possible to have a great holiday, packed with plenty of wow-factor for your children, without breaking the bank on toys or electronics that won’t make it to Easter. It’s not too late to put your foot down & your plastic away, and give these ideas try.
There’s nothing wrong with buying used. Thrift stores, and consignment shops are like going on a treasure hunt. You can’t approach shopping at these stores with a list. You must poke around, and find that hidden gem. My best thrift store find this year was a Leapfrog Brightlings Exploration Station Read more:Breaking
, Happy
, Holidays
, Happy Holidays
Hi! 2007-12-10 05:04:37 This poor blog, so neglected.
 I’ve been trying to make myself write more often at my personal blog. There’s something more difficult for me to write there. Perhaps because I allow myself to open up more so I feel a bit more vulnerable. And that makes me hold back a bit more.
But right now I have the Carnival of SAHMs up there, definitely worth checking out. I’ve also got a hilarious post about Barbie dolls. Trust me, it’s not what you think.
I just had to stop in and say that I’m not hiding away. I’m here, or there. Or babbling about homeschooling. Trust me, if you’re looking you can find me.
Tags: blogging
Tips for an Eco-Friendly Baby Shower 2007-12-09 11:27:46 Everywhere you look nowadays, people are looking for ways to “go green”. The line has become thin between fad and genuine interest. Celebrities host massive “Eco-Friendly
” Baby Shower
s, and expensive “green” baby gifts have appeared on shelves. How do you separate yourself from the Eco-Hype and really get down in the dirt for a celebration like this?
1. Decrease packaging materials. A lot of baby gifts can be purchased with very little packaging. Use thingsiwant.com instead of a physical registry at just one stop so that you can be choosy about where your gifts come from. Ask for gift certificates from companies who believe that decreased packaging materials is good for the earth. Ask on your invitations for people to not wrap gifts, wrap them in newspaper/recyclables, or bring them in baskets or bags that they can take back with them and reuse. Beware of “eco-friendly” gifts packaged in plastic wrap.
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A Little Give Away 2008-02-11 17:38:34 It’s so very quiet here. I’ll assume that like myself, all of our Mommy bloggers are busy trying to keep our little ones (& ourselves) from going stir crazy this dreary February.
In the hopes of creating a little activity here, I figured I’d throw out another give away. Just a simple item as [...]
Insecurities 2007-12-31 02:51:03 One of the things that I was not prepared for when becoming a mom is how insecure I could be at times about my parenting decisions. In general I am not one to second guess my decisions. If I make a mistake I admit it, learn from it and move on. It is much harder [...]
Carnival of SAHMs, Last of 2007 2007-12-30 09:44:36 Welcome to the December 30, 2007 edition of Carnival
of SAHMs. This is the last carnival of 2007, so I want to thank everyone who shared posts during this year. Hopefully 2008 will bring happiness and love to everyone!
Lori Prokop Keyboard Culture Co-Founder presents Does Your Child Have a Clothes Fetish? posted at Paula Fellingham [...]
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