The Friday 5

1.Really loving this girls style, check her out here 2.Totally in love with this bracelet, and pretty much anything else that she makes! 3. oooh Yes please!! 4. SWOOON 5. One day this will go on sale and BE MINE!

 

 

Got anything exciting going on for the weekend?

I get to clean the oven, WHOOHOO!!! I know "slow down there Heather"

 

xoxoxox

Heather

Grab My Button!

 

 

Hi everyone! I finally got my blog button up!

 

If you would like to swap with me, I would love to meet you!

 

Just send me an email at hhoman33@gmail.com an introduce yourself! Either send me the link to your blog, or the code for your button! I will display your button on the right side of my blog :)

It will be fun and free way to advertise eachothers blogs!

Post election, fresh air and "unplugging"

Woohoo! IT'S OVER!

 

Well, here it is November 7th, and I am SO GLAD the election is over,

I hate election season, people just get downright nasty, nasty commercials pop up everywhere

and the longer the weeks run up to the election day, the more malicious the ads become.

 

They even put the stupid ads on You Tube and you HAVE to watch them or you wont be able to watch whatever video it was that you clicked on.

If my kid wants to watch a kids show on you tube, he should not have to sit through a two minute attack ad about one candidate or the other, for goodness sakes he is three!!

 

We even lost a few friends this election, which sucks because politics are stupid,

and losing Friends over politics is asinine.

 

At any rate, it felt real good to turn off the radio this morning and just put some music on,

I blasted The Black Keys all the way to work and it felt darn good!

 

Feeling Toxic

 

I don't know if it is because I was sick for like a month with some sort of cold and other crud, or what but I feel just toxic lately, I need to do a good cleanse and pick up my morning yoga routine again.

I have an appointment with my Chiropractor today, and honestly I'm real excited about that, time to get myself back in order!

 

Unplugging

 

I read a really great article here about how valuable time is and how much we waste it doing meaningless things,i mean think about how much time we spend looking at computers and sitting and working and checking facebook ect.

 

Last night, my son was watching a video and I was half paying attention,

 just flipping through facebook and checking emails.

When suddenly my son reached over and closes my lap top and said "close it mommy"

That made me sad lol

But it also woke  me up, I mean I use a computer all day at work, why the heck was I on it while I was at home? Why didn't I take that precious time to spend it with my little guy?

 

I agreed with him and we played for the remainder of the evening.

 

Today I decided that I needed to go outside for a walk on my break, it is cold, but the sun is out.

We have not seen the sun here in Cleveland for WEEKS.

 

I put on my boots, headed outside and went for a walk in the field near my work place, taking in deep breaths of fresh cool air, leaving my iphone in my pocket, spending 15 minutes just......being.

 

 

There is something very "freeing" about unplugging from the world.

Disconnecting, even for alittle bit from all the chaos.

 

Here is to moving on and detoxifying!

 

xoxoxo

Heather



6 ways to clean healthier!

 

 

 

 

Whether you are looking to save money, or if you are just looking for non toxic ways to clean, 

the following recipes work exceptionally well,

and most of this stuff you probably already have in your own kitchen! 

 

Bathroom Cleaner: ( this has to be my favorite because it works SO WELL)

 

1/4 cup of Dawn Dish washing liquid

1/4 cup of White Vinegar

 

Throw it in a spray bottle and shake vigorously

Spray on the bathtub, toilet, sink, stainless steel, shower doors, anywhere that you need to clean and disinfect, it is also EXCELLENT for removing soap scum! I like to let it sit for about 5 minutes or so.

You can also make larger quantities if you would like, just mix equal parts.

Acidic Vinegar acts as disinfectant and the Dish Liquid helps cuts grime..

 

Wood Cleaner:

1/4 cup of white vinegar or Fresh Lemon Juice

2 to three tablespoons of Olive Oil per 1/4 cup of Vinegar or Lemon Juice

Spray on , wipe off, the Acid in the vinegar ( or Lemon Juice) helps lift the dirt

The olive oil conditions the wood

You can also add a few drops of essential oils for fragrance.

 

Glass Cleaner:

1 cup rubbing alcohol

1 cup water1 tablespoon vinegar

Spray on and wipe off

The rubbing alcohol and vinegar are fast evaporating leaving a steak free shine!


Gentle Abrasives:
Got a real tough mess? Try creating a paste out of water and baking soda ( add essential oil if desired)
rub onto the mess and let it sit for a few minutes. You can also use coarse sea salt.
Then Scrub again and rinse.

Deodorize drains and Garbage disposals:
Sprinkle 1 cup of baking soda down the drain, add 1 cup of hot vinegar and plug the drain.
it will foam up and deodorize the drain while lifting away dirt.
If you are doing this to a garbage disposal, Run the disposal afterward with hot water and lemon rinds for a deeper clean.


Deodorize Rooms
Place a small bowl of vinegar ( a small bowl of cheap vodka works as well) up on a mantle or on the shelf of a room that you want deodorize. You can also place a bowl full of baking soda in the room to absorb any foul odors.


So by now I am sure your asking "wont my house smell like vinegar from using it in all these recipes?"
ANSWER: Yes and no, vinegar is a natural deodorizer,initially yes it will smell like vinegar but the scent will not last. That is also why I recommend using fresh lemon juice if you REALLY can't handle the smell of vinegar.

My husband HATES the smell of vinegar and can totally tell even is I use a little bit of it. But if the smell lasted too long he would let me know. I think the pro's of healthier cleaning outweigh the cons of the smell of the vinegar.

Give these a try and let me know what you think!
These are just recipes that have worked for me over the years. Please share any other natural clenaing recipes that you love to use! I would love to hear about them.
Happy Cleaning!
xoxo Heather



Finally...Halloween!

Well,thanks to Hurricane Sandy,

We finally got to do our trick or treating last night.

Most of the people on our street are old farts and not really into giving out candy,

but the street in back of ours? Well that's the party street!! lol

A couple of the neighbors dressed up which I think is really sweet 

 (even considering those who dress up to pass out candy do not even have children!)

One women goes so far as to play creepy music and and have a bonfire in her front yard

and dress up as a witch, she also hand makes little treat bags for everyone.

 

I really love the sense of community that we have in Berea, even in tough times,

Everyone pulls together to make it fun for the little ones.

 

We even saw a family we were not familiar with, they have been living in a hotel since the hurricane knocked out their power, They had a three year old son and didn't want him to miss out on all the goodies so they brought him to our neighborhood to Trick or Treat. It really broke my heart to hear that they had to live in a hotel. But that they still tried to make a nice Halloween for their little guy.

Like I said before we are SO much better off than people that got hit in New Jersey and New York, but in little old Ohio, we just aren't use to mother nature creating quite so much destruction.

We are dealing with it the best way that we can.

And we are so blessed to live int he community that we do:)

The little mans little Girlfriend

 

My little guy dressed as a "Blues Clue" and His Pumpkintastic Girl Friend!

Some pretty stellar pumpkins

The little mans, Land of Loot!

(about an hour later this kid was passed out on the couch form exhaustion LOL)

 

xoxoxo

Heather



Parental Guilt

Lately, I have felt more and more guilty about not spending as much time with my son as I would like to.
It's a problem many working mothers face, whether you work in the home or outside the home, it is often tough to find a work family life balance.

I have worked almost four years on accomplishing this balance, just when I think I have it all figured out, something triggers the guilt inside of me, and I feel as if I am concentrating too much on housework that needs to be done, or being to selfish in wanting some time to myself, or my god sometimes just too pee for 2 minutes without an audience.

The other day as I was doing my usual routine of cleaning up the kitchen after dinner, my son ( who had asked me umpteen times to play cars with him while I was making dinner), hopped up on a kitchen chair, rolled up his sleeves and and said "mom I have alot of work to do, I am going to do the dishes"
While this was endearingly sweet, it bothered me, I thought, if children emulate us, then is this all that he is seeing? Me constantly cleaning? In ten years when he is much older, will I kick myself for not playing with him enough?

The answer is yes, but at the same time, how do you draw a line between what NEEDS to be done and what can be done later?

My wonderful husband helps out alot, more so than most husbands that I know, and for that I am grateful. But at the end of the day, running a  household and rearing a child takes alot of work and organization. I envy the people who have multiple children, I am afraid that I may never figure out how to balance things that well.

I'm sure we all think that we are bad mothers at one time or another, we yell we lose our cool, we do something "selfish" we "screw up" and undoubtedly "ruin our children for life" ,parenting is a journey of growth.

I'm going to try and just B R E A T H E

Know that I am doing the best that I can possibly do, and that as women, mothers, caretakers, nurturers, maids, booger wipers, tear wipers, wives, employees, ect. that we fricking ROCK and that we handle ALOT on a daily basis. And I think that we should be proud of that :)

So if you're a mom, and you are feeling that inevitable guilt that sometimes rears it's ugly head, know IT'S OK, YOU'RE SO NOT ALONE. Relax, step back, take stock, maybe you are doing too much, and if you are, take 15 minutes to get down on the floor and pay cars, or have an impromptu dance party, or tea party. The dishes CAN wait for 15 minutes I promise ( unfortunately the don't do themselves)

They are only young once, enjoy it.......at least that is what i am going to concentrate on :)
Tell me what you think.
XOXO Heather

Ermagerhd!!! Black Friday!!!

So yeah, I am one of those nutty people that go out on black Friday.

Before you judge, hear me out,

I am not one of those crazies that get up at 4am to get a sale.
I wake up when I wake up (usually around 7 because I have a three year old)
Go to Starbucks, grab a cup of Joe......and I'm off.
I do it more for a "mommies day out alone" than anything really.
By the time I get to the mall, it is not quite as packed and there are still some sales left.

The reason I am going out this year is partially selfish, I need a new pair of black riding boots.:)
So aside from Christmas, Black Friday is one of my favorite unofficial holidays!

Just for a laugh, check out these awesome visions of Black Fridays past!

OMG Really????

This would be me :)

SO what about you? Are you going out today??
See any great sales?
xoxoxoxo
Heather