Busy days~

Did ya’ wonder where I went to? I am here. Making lists. Making menus. Changing diapers. Beginning potty training. Picking up groceries. Swatting flies…cause flies are everywhere this time of year!

Living life.

(the kids making welcome signs for our new Associate Pastor and his wife – Keith & Jamie & their three little ones – Welcome!)

As spring has hit and the garden is growing I am excited to see my corn popping up.

Sunflowers from last year spread all over (we love them!)  Gladys found some strawberry plants growing (we gave up on them last year)  and planted a new garden filled with herbs and veggies.

The weather is perfect for visiting with friends.

Rosie and her sweet friend Naomi. These two are three months apart. When they see each other they hug, hold hands and jabber in a language that only they understand. They get along wonderfully :-)

 

My handsome green eyes and me just before he left with the boys on their Dirt Bike Advetnure! 

I love you Handsome!

 

Beautiful pictures taken by my friend, Danielle, of Abel and Addi.

Danielle is so creative. Whenever I need a shot of creativity I go visit her :-)

Abel and Addi will be adding a new brother or sister to their family this Jan/Feb :-) Did you catch that? *I* now have THREE grand-dumplings…one is still cooking ;-)

My life seems to be overflowing with goodness. Like this sweet girlie of mine. She blesses us daily. She’s funny. She gets right to the point. She says “thing-a-ma-jig" and I understand her. She loves her beautiful hair. She’s like a little energizer bunny and extremely creative. I enjoy all our moments together.

The other day I received a text from my son, Gunnar. He sends me a bible verse every morning. This particular morning Gracie was sitting next to me and part of it read “hold onto Grace” (Hebrews 12:28) I immediately grabbed her arm (startling her) and read the verse out loud. She just shook her head and laughed at her silly Mama. Now whenever she is close by I “hold onto Grace” :-) Love you girlie!

So this Mama is busy being blessed and working on my empty page that is suppose to have my menu on it. All the while being attentive to the 2yr old who now likes to go potty on the toilet. Busy times. Blessed by the presence of a loving God and a loving husband. We all mingle here together and some how our life just keeps getting better and better.

~Cinnamon

Creations around the house~

With the warmer weather here to stay we have switched from making morning coffee to making iced tea daily. Our latest loves have been Green Tea with Peach Passion (yum!) thanks to my friend, Danielle. Then we mixed some Strawberry Essence Tea (thanks Laura) and Peach Passion. It was an instant hit.        Dee-lish-ous!

 

I told you I had been making some homemade goodies. Only these creations weren’t for eating but shampooing :-)  Back in February I made this recipe and we ran out way too quickly. This time I made more! Each container is a triple batch. I put nettle and lavender in each batch as they are good for your hair growth and preventing dryness. Then I added mint to one batch and strawberry to another.

They don’t smell like Herbal Essences but they get the job done nicely.

I also made up a batch of Apple Cider Vinegar rinse. Last time I made it we ran out quickly as well. So this time I made up a gallon jug of it and keep in it the bathroom for quick refills to our smaller bottle.

 

Next up was making our own toothpaste. I ordered this kit from the Bulk Herb Store. I added half as much salt and was able to get 1 1/2 pint jars of toothpaste.

So far everyone uses it. There’s no bad aftertaste and there is no gritty residue left in your mouth. I think next time I will try a minty toothpaste but for now the cloves in it are a delightful scent.

 

Gathering together:

Every spring, as soon as the weather warms up, we enjoy popsicles daily :-)

 

A welcome treat on hot days.

 

We have begun eating outdoors as well.

 

Tonight Garrett and Hayley stopped by to enjoy a Gluten Free PIzza with us.

 

Gunnar and Grace have begun their YMCA visits for the summer. Today they ran and then went swimming. I love that they can do this together.

 

See those books in her hand? The summer reading program has begun. Grace will be done within a week. No I’m not joking. She reads *that* much. She has asked the librarians if she can join the adult reading program but was told no. Why? Cause she’s not an adult? We find that funny.

 

Gladys’ garden is blooming and so full of color.

 

She enjoys tending to each flower and knows which ones will return next year. Unlike her Mama who just plants and hopes they grow :-)

 

Happy Spring Everyone!

~Cinnamon

The Dirt Bike Trip~

The are back. They went. They rode. They conquered. It’s all recorded on Gunnar’s GoPro. Love that!!

Gage (notice he is standing in a hole :-), John & Gavin.

 

They loaded up and drove all the way down to Mena, Arkansas.

Gunnar, John and Gavin.

This was the cleanest they looked the entire trip :-)

 

Every day they were up and ready to ride. All. Day. Long.

 

Gavin said it was the best trip EVER!

 

Gunnar in his bright yellow moto-cross outfit had his GoPro mounted on his helmet the entire week. Great footage.

 

The camp site. Gage set up his own tent.

 

The rest of the guys slept in here.

 

The two National Guardsmen had cots :-)  Gavin getting set up.

 

John’s spot.

 

John made breakfast every day and the boys took turns cleaning the dishes.

 

Can you even  guess what they had for breakfast? Every. Single. Day! Bacon :-)

 

That made for some happy campers :-)

 

A sample of their menu.

Man size Omelettes.

 

Monster Pancakes.

 

Washed down with a daily dose of steaming hot coffee.

 

After riding through this every day.

 

They did this every day :-)

 

I am so thankful this was already dead when they spotted it. Gage did get near one when he was fishing. It was in the bush next to him :-0 Thankfully not close enough.

 

John said this is their new yearly outing. I agree. It was so much fun for them and the girls and I were able to enjoy “girl” food all week long :-)

Amazingly no one was hurt in the making of the Kesrchner Wild Week GoPro movie. There were a few spills but they hopped right back up and kept riding. Handsome said his only regret was that he didn’t make this trip sooner. I love this man!

As for the girls and I. We had a quiet non bacon eating week of thrift shopping, swimming at the YMCA, watching fun movies and eating things like strawberries and cream for dinner :-)

A great week but we’re glad they are all back safe and sound.

“For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.
Psalm 91:11

 

~Cinnamon

Our days~

I was visiting one morning with my walking partner, Danielle, and I mentioned that pizza had been sounding so good lately. So guess what I went right home and made? Yup, Gluten Free Pizza with freshly grated Apple Smoked Mozzarella cheese.

 

The cheese added a hint of Canadian bacon taste. Very good!  I will be adding it to our next Canadian Bacon and Pineapple Pizza :-)

 

The girls meeting table.

We gather here to converse, sip tea and share a homemade treat.

 

We pulled out the dirt bike today. This thing has brought hours of fun to our family. Garrett’s first ride on it.

 

The kids were all lined up eating their Otter Pops and watching Garrett ride around. Abel was the only one who was unhappy.

 

Can you see why? He didn’t get an Otter Pop :-0 Poor fella. He just wanted a little lick. But Aunties and Uncle Granton and big sister, Addi, just ignored him while they quickly slurped on their own goodie ;-) haha!

 

His Mama got him 1/2 of one and half way into it he was freezing :-)

 

Hayley took a turn on the dirt bike. She loved it too! She drove very cautiously unlike the boys that treat it like they are riding a rocket :-0

 

Hanging out with Mama ♥

 

This picture made me smile because it reminded me of when Garrett was my little boy and now he’s changing his own children’s diapers. It’s amazing how many memories can come flooding back over one diaper change :-)

 

Can you hear Rosie saying “cheese” in her girlie voice?

 

♥ little girl curls ♥

 

Abel loves the cat and the dog. I’m not sure they love him back in quite the same way  ;-)

 

Addi is enjoying her rides on the dirt bike more and more.

 

Gladys baked this week. Gladys loves to bake. Anything that has chocolate in it will do :-) She gets as much enjoyment baking as she does watching us eat her creations.

It’s been a full and fun week. I’ve also been making some homemade goodies. I’ll be post about those soon!

*Happy Spring*

~Cinnamon