A week in the life...day 5

Picky eaters reside in our house and every third morning I can be found making pancakes while balancing packing lunches and getting coffee started. My pancakes are perfect for hiding a whole lot of veggie goodness.

A week in the life...day 4

The day starts with coffee and a cute skirt and ends in wine and comfy jeans....from beginning to end.

A week in the life...day 3

Some days the predictability of my life makes me want to scream. And yet I do the same repetitive movement to cultivate inner peace.
I'm a contradiction.

A week in the life...day 2

When both of the boys are at school Dharma is always right beside me. Always within a foot, I'm constantly tripping over her, accidentally stepping on her tail/foot. Though there are times when I've tripped over her (for the 7th time) and near missed a face-plant I feel like "grrr this is my time"..then she looks up at me with those sad eyes and I melt. She's a nice companion to have right at your feet. She knows exactly when to lay her head in your lap so you'll take a moment to breathe and just be.

A week in the life...

One of my favorite scrapbookers, Ali Edwards, introduced this concept to me about recording a week in pictures and words of your life. I'm going to give it a try, for 7 days I'm going to capture life in just one or two pictures and share it with you. Hope you enjoy a glimpse into my world.
Here is Logan and I doing the "superman" on the swings...we always end up laughing hysterically while we near miss bonking heads or falling off, and then him begging to do it again and again.

Stepping off the Line

I carry my camera with me everywhere I go with the hope that I will become more comfortable with it, that it will just become an extension of my hand. Practice makes perfect right? That being said last year I came across a blog,that now I can't find to link to, regardless it has stayed with me mentally. This chick decided to take a portrait a week of someone in her community, with the idea that she would get better at photography while getting to know her neighbors. I'm totally comfortable taking pictures of kids, asking the parents if it's ok, while my kids play on the playground too. But I get nervous asking an adult if I can take their picture. I don't know why..I'm a very outgoing person but I get hung up on approaching a stranger and taking their picture. Typically these people aren't the prettiest or best dressed but more interesting looking to me. Beautiful in a different way. Pleasing to my eye. Yesterday I "stepped off the line" and asked this guy at my local skate park if I could take his picture. Within minutes he was telling me his story, this often happens to me with strangers...they just tell me things, personal things, things I don't think they tell other strangers. It was remarkable.
It was easy, once I stepped off the line.

Century Bike Ride = 100 miles of Happiness

This past weekend I did a century bike ride, that's 100 miles on a bike folks. The ride was organized by Massapequa Park Bicycle Club and called Tour of the Hamptons. It was very well organized, the route was clearly marked, the rest stops fully supported and the volunteers were very friendly.
The night before the ride I was anxious, doubting I'd be able to finish in time. I awoke many times in the middle of night lunging upright searching for the alarm clock to reassure me that I didn't sleep through it.
By 7:30am I was on my bike. It was chilly in the Hamptons and thankfully I packed a hoodie. (mental note: need fall bike clothes) The ride was nice and flat, not the prettiest ride I've done but when you are doing 100 miles..flat is really good! I won't bore you with every detail of the ride...there were some really funny moments and someday when we meet up for a coffee or cocktails I'll tell you about them. But all in all it was an amazing day with my girlfriend Lauren beside me we finished the ride in 9 hours. A day full of lots of laughter, lots of great conversations and the remarkable feeling of screaming our heads off when our odometers read 100 miles! And jumping off our bikes and doing cartwheels across the finish line. Thank you NY for a fantastic weekend!
Here are some pictures...

Pimped out Laptop Bag

My husband, Jon, wanted a laptop bag to use on days when he bikes to work. I had every intention of making him one entirely from scratch but then I spotted this one @ Ikea and it was cheaper than buying the supplies and making one so I decided to pimp out the inside of the bag. The main fabric is left over from the baby crib bedding I made when Zane was a baby and the smaller fabric is leftover from the curtains I made for his office. I created a pocket with clear vinyl leftover from a tablecloth packaging. I added additional batting also leftover from a quilting project. Maybe I should call this the pimped out-leftover-laptop bag.
Happy Birthday Honey!

Travel Books for Kids

It has always been hard to take Logan to places where it's going to be crowded and noisy. Typically he would end up laid out on the floor or under a piece of furniture, emotionally at his limit and at a moments notice would break out in tears. Completely overstimulated. The thing is though we, the rest of the family, need to go out and experience life with crowds. We had to find a balance.
So I started creating these little travel books. I make them for museums that we go to or county fairs and even, in this case, a book festival that my husband is taking the boys to this weekend. Logan loves maps so I always include one, whether it's a map of the art exhibits or the subway map. I also pull pictures from the internet of things he might see along his way or actual paintings at the museum. Sort of like a search and find. He becomes so focused on finding the items on his page that he isn't affected by the crowds and noise. It has made our family outings heavenly.
For these books I put the pages in 5 1/2 x 8 inch page protectors that you can get at any office supply store and bound them with a pipe cleaner. I love pipe cleaners! At the end of the day when everyone is cranky and ready to go home a single pipe cleaner on the subway home can save you...it can become anything you want it to be...a person, a bug, a sword...endless entertainment opportunities!
These books are great for any child, on the Autism spectrum or not. They are great on car rides too! And if you put the pages you make in page protectors you can reuse them the next time you go to that museum or drive to the in-laws.

"I am..." Mini Book

For a friend's birthday I made her an "I am..." mini book highlighting the qualities that I love about her, the parts of her personality that inspires me and makes me thankful to have her in my life. I used mini file folders as the dividers for each section and added inspirational quotes and photos that coordinate with each section... Friend, Courageous, Adventurous and Dreamer.

The front and back of the mini book are actually the backing from one of those scrapbook paper Stacks. I bound it using binder rings (such a fan!) and I recycled parts of my Soul Beautiful calendar, Gia picked such awesome quotes for that calendar that I adhered them to card stock and made inspirational tags out of them. The paper and embellishments were just pulled from my collection. The book was easy to put together and a fun way to honor someone you care about...add it to your Christmas craft list.

First Day of Fall

Today is the official first day of fall, I'm not quite ready to say goodbye to summer..hence my picture. I hope fall is a fresh, new beginning for all of you. Full of laughter, inspiration and warm baked goodness. Happy Fall!!

Creamy Pasta Sauce

Everyone has their "quick" recipes when they just need to get dinner on the table in less than 15 minutes. Well this is typically what you will find on our table, whole wheat pasta with a creamy sauce. It's low in fat and high in protein. It's the perfect sauce to hide things in if you have picky eaters like I do. I often add rice protein powder and/or cauliflower to this sauce without anyone ever knowing. This sauce is a lifesaver when I have surprise dinner guests at the last minute and need to feed more people fast. To make the sauce all you need is a food processor, while the pasta is cooking in a large pot pulse 1 cup of walnuts in the food processor so that it's finely chopped then add
1 cup Parmesan cheese
1 cup milk
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon garlic
1 teaspoon dried onion
1/2 teaspoon dried parsley
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (omit if you are feeding kids)
2 Tablespoons rice protein powder

Heat in a saucepan and serve over pasta.

Free Range Parenting

My friend Dawn loaned me her copy of Free Range Kids (and one of these days Dawn I will return it). I'll be honest I did a lot of skimming but the overall message has really stuck with me. I'm a helicopter mom. I admit it. I hover. And not to make excuses but mainly it's because for so many years I've had to help Logan navigate the playground. Some habits are hard to break, but neither Logan or Zane really need me to hover any longer.
A few weekends ago two of my friends were competing in a volleyball tournament and I really wanted to go and support them but I knew Logan would never be able to handle the environment. So Jon and I decided to divide and conquer.
And I was able to try a little free range parenting. It was so relaxing to lay on a blanket, under a tree, chatting with my girlfriend while the sound of the volleyball tournament lapped over me like waves at the beach. There was a playground but it was about 100 feet away from the blanket under the tree, Zane was begging to go down the slide. It was in a location that kids could only come and go out of one area...only had 2 or 3 other kids playing on it..I could see it clearly from the blanket...so I did what I've never done before...I told Zane to go ahead and play while I watched from afar. I've never done that. HUGE moment for me folks!! And guess what?!?! Zane and I both had a fantastic time! Slowly I'm trying to release a bit more and hover less on a daily basis. It's going to take some time, we are all still learning and growing but I'm really excited about the independent children they will become when they are ready. No rush though.

Raspberry Chocolate Chip Muffins

I hosted my knitting group this week which always motivates me to turn on the oven and whip up something yummy. These muffins were a huge hit and took no time to make. I like to use mini muffin tins to make it easier for the ladies to pop one in their mouth mid row.

Preheat over 400 degrees.
1 1/2 cup unbleached all purpose flour
1 cup bread flour
1 cup milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 egg
1/2 cup honey
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup raspberries, cut in small pieces
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips
Bake for 15 minutes and allow to cool before taking out of muffin tins.

My love of Self Help Books

I have a love affair with self help books. And I know I am not the only one cause that section in the bookstore is huge. Crazy...scary huge. Every once in a while I feel like I need to recharge, get connected again spiritually with myself.
Pull back and tune in.
Sometimes I start a book and then don't finish it, abandoning it until the need to connect arises again. All summer I've been reading I Will Not Die an Unlived Life and trust me it's not a huge book that it takes all summer, I've just chosen to take my time with it. To honestly think about each chapter and digest it. I like that the author, Dawna Markova, is also asking herself the same questions she asks of the reader. She is on the journey with you, sharing her experience of reconnecting with herself while on a writer's retreat.
If you are feeling the calling to set life aside for a bit and reconnect with your spirit, to reclaim purpose and passion...pick up this book, it will fuel you.