Kid's Chore Chart

I recently completed a new chore chart system for my son.  He has regular chores he has to do every day that he does not get paid for.  However, he has been asking for opportunities to make some money because he wants to save up and purchase a WiiU.  So, when my Aunt Linda posted a link to this awesome idea on Facebook I knew it would work for us. 

 I had actually purchased the cork board strip months ago with something similar in mind, but these printables made it easy to execute.  I used some scrapbook paper to mount the printed pieces and it looks great hanging in our office next to the calendar.  Now I can only hope my son will take the initiative and do some chores around the house.

Orange less Orange Smoothie

This morning I made a new smoothie and it is tasty. It's a nice sunshiney orange color and full of healthy foods. 

Ingredients

1 banana

1 handful strawberries

1 kiwi

3 oz organic carrot juice

Almond milk

Ice 

Directions

Blend it up. I use whatever amount of almond milk and ice gives me the thickness I want, it's your preference on those. 

Enjoy!

February Reads

I finished the Kindle Single, The Girl In Room Fourteen, I started at the end of January.  My reading has been thrown off since my son has barely been in school due to an excessive amount of snow days this year.  Anyway, I am not usually a fan of short stories, but I wanted something light and quick to read in between Divergent and the second book in that series, Insurgent.  This Kindle Single was just the thing.  It was well written and not too deep.  I enjoyed it and was surprised by the ending.

Then I read Insurgent by Veronica Roth.  This is the second book in the Divergent Trilogy.  I really enjoyed this book, just as much as the first one.  People keep comparing them to the Hunger Games books, but they are quite different in my opinion.  I have read a lot of dystopian novels though, so I can classify them by their subtle differences.

Of course that was followed by Allegiant, the third book in the Divergent Trilogy.  I liked this one as well, although things started to get very complicated in their world(s).  I did not like the ending, but I am glad there was finality to it.

Next I read another Kindle freebie called Medicine Men: Extreme Appalachian Doctoring by Carolyn Jourdan.  This book was a funny collection of stories from rural doctors.  I think it would make a great documentary or tv show to follow similar doctors in their daily practices.  I enjoyed this book, but would have liked to see better editing skills.  There were a lot of missing words and errors which annoys me when I am reading. 

I finished this last book with only three days left in the month, so I'm going to leave off there.  I will start something new, but I'll share about that one next month.  I'll be poring over my Kindle library and wish list to decide what will be my next read...

Pumpkin, Valentines & a B-Day Card

On Sunday I tried this recipe for Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies.  I printed it out a while back, like in the Fall when I want to eat all things pumpkin flavored, but never got around to it.  So, yesterday when I had a sweet tooth I decided I would give it a try.  I am so glad I did because these cookies are tasty.  They have that pumpkin bread/muffin texture to them and the chocolate flavor mixes in nicely.  They will be added to my recipe book and made over and over again.

A couple weeks ago on one of Aiden's many snow days from school we made his Valentine's.  He will pass them out this Friday to all the students in his class.  We went with a simple printable with a Hershey kiss attached with a glue dot.  He enjoyed using my big paper cutter to cut them out.

We also made a special Valentine for his teacher.  I saw this idea on Pinterest, but they used Rolos inside the dynamite.  His teacher has diet restrictions so we went with dry erase markers instead.  Aiden is a very thoughtful guy and he remembered that she could use some more markers for her white board.  He also said she likes dark chocolate, but one Valentine seemed like plenty to me.

My sister's birthday was this past Sunday.  I think she turned 30.  Yikes!  That means I am old!  Anyway, here's the card I made and mailed to her.  I really liked the color combination and the rounded corners at the bottom of the card.  I just bought that teal and black twine at my last crop at Archivers.  I am so sad they will be closing their stores in a few days.

Anyway, it's been a good mix of crafts and kitchen experiments/recipes here lately.  It is good to do things I enjoy and a good way to keep my mind busy and focused on positive things like creating little things for others and feeding my family.

You Win Some, You Lose Some...

That's how it seems to go in life and in my kitchen.  I try a lot of recipes I fond online. Some are great and become regulars in our dinner menu and others are losers.  Here we have a few recently tried recipes that were losers...

Chicken Cordon Blue Casserole

 I thought this was ok, not fabulous, but good, and Andrew did not like it.

Paleo Blackberry Banana Muffins

I did not enjoy the texture of these muffins.  It was too spongey in my opinion.  I am not used to baking with coconut flour, so maybe that is something that I just have to get used to.  I did feel like they would have been better if I had diced up the blackberries and distributed them throughout the batter.  I put them in the fridge and Andrew ate most of them in a few days as snacks, so at least they didn't go to waste.

Easy Oven Roasted Potatoes

These were too dry and boring. We ate them, but I would not make them again.

And now for the WINNER of the week...

Coconut Chicken

This recipe called for roasted coconut chips, which required a trip to Trader Joes.  You would think that would take points off because Trader Joes is not near my house at all.  I had to make a special trip over there and that is a PITA.  However, I loved those coconut chips, they are very tasty and they make this recipe flavorful.  The chicken was juicy and the coconut flavor was just the right intensity.  I really enjoyed it and will plan my side dishes better next time to go with the coconut flavor.

January Reads...

I read a lot.  I mean A LOT! I got a Kindle a couple years ago and the convenience of being able to instantly buy a book really amped up my reading.  I also love that there are a ton of free and super cheap books for Kindle, so I tend to stock up on those and read them in between things on my must read list.

For the month of January here is a list and my comments on the books I have read...

Domestic Apparition by Meg Tuite
This was a freebie for Kindle when I downloaded it, but it looks like now it is $2.99.  I am glad it was free when I snagged it, because I would not have been pleased to have paid for it.  It is a short read, but the character is interesting and the prose is great.  However, I did not enjoy the way the book flowed from one scenario to the next, similar to short stories which I don't usually enjoy.

Divergent by Veronica Roth
I heard nothing but great things about this book and the next two in the series.  Also, I like dystopian novels.  So, of course I had to give it a try.  It was compared to the Hunger Games Trilogy, but I'm not really finding it to be in that league.  I enjoy the writing, the premise and the characters, but the main character in this series doesn't have that same attraction as in The Hunger Games.  I am going to read the next book in the series and maybe then I'll be more hooked.  So far, I am enjoying it though.  It does give me a bit of flash backs to either The Giver or one of the books in that series.

Essential Oil Healing Secrets
This is another Kindle freebie I downloaded.  Someone on the essential oil board I frequent on Facebook shared it, so I thought it would be worth a look.  It is short, not very informative and not well written or edited.  I'm not sure why it doesn't even list an author, just ADISH Books.  Very strange, but there was some interesting information in there and it was free.

The Girl In Room Fourteen by Carol Drinkwater
This is a Kindle Single, a Kindle exclusive short story.  I just started it and have been distracted by all the snow days my child has had from school, so I have not yet finished it, but it does seem good for a short story.

If you would like to read more this year, please check out my friend Toni's blog and enter her Kindle Paperwhite giveaway here.

A New Level Of Health At Home

Yesterday I received the Young Living Oils kit I ordered.  I purchased the Basic Plus Starter Kit as it seemed to have a good selection of oils, the diffuser and also some sample packs.  I was so excited when I heard Fed-Ex ring the doorbell, you would have thought he was delivering scrapbook supplies!

I am really looking forward to learning more about essential oils and their uses and experiencing their benefits.  Yesterday was a stressful day, so we started by diffusing Peace & Calming in the afternoon and in Aiden's bedroom right before he went to bed.  I enjoyed it and felt more relaxed and Aiden slept well all night (although he was exhausted from not sleeping well for two nights and getting up really early).  

Today I tried the Lemon Oil as a cleaner/degreaser.  I cleaned the top of my stove with a wet wash cloth and gave it a good scrub (it has been neglected the last couple weeks).  Then I used several drops of lemon oil and a paper towel to rub away any greasy residue.  It worked great and smelled so fresh.

Today I also put Purification in the diffuser and let that run for a half hour in the kitchen and a half hour in the family room.  I was exhausted in the evening after hosting a bake sale fundraiser at Aiden's school, so the dinner dishes sat in the sink all night.  Disgusting, right?!  Once I got rid of all the dirty dishes and ran the diffuser, the house felt so much cleaner and smelled great!

I can't wait to see what else I can do to improve our home environment and our health with Young Living Oils.  I'll be sure to share each use I find.