Fresh Mommy

Hump Day Dump

noreply@blogger.com (Fresh Mommy) — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 02:56:00 +0000

We've made up for time away from home this week, and my phone photos? Well, I've been focusing on being fully present... and don't have too many to show for it. So I'll remedy that this week while I enjoy the memory of beach frolics and playing in our yard, afternoon sunlight and French food, morning giggles and learning curves. Happy hump day!

Welcome to our tradition here on Fresh Mommy Blog... on Wednesdays, when I try to be wordless, I'm just going to dump the previous week's photos from my phone. A little piece of where we've been and what we've been up to. And the resulting collage? Well, I think it speaks so much more than I could. Welcome to Hump Day Dump. Link up with us... whether wordless or word-full, one photo or many, taken with your phone or not, you're all welcome here!

All of my photos were taken on an iPhone with the instagr.am app and were put together using Big Huge Labs mosaic maker... super simple and free. I'm on instagram as TabithaBlue. For more fabulous Wordless Wednesday memes, check out Project Alicia, Better in Bulk and Wordless Wednesday

Open Faced Croque Monsieur

noreply@blogger.com (Fresh Mommy) — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 21:57:00 +0000

Dear Lord, was this good. The nuttiness of the Gruyère cheese paired with the crunch of toasted bread and the creaminess of the sauce, was all almost too much for me to handle. I smiled, and then I cried, and then I smiled again.

While this might not be the spicy, crowd pleasing favorite for football crazed fans at your Superbowl party this weekend, it is perfect for sending those guys out to watch the game somewhere else and curling up on the couch with the girls and a handful of rom coms, like It's Complicated where Meryl Streep makes a dish just like this for Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin. Oh and magazines and chocolate.

Side note: Guys will totally love this too, they just might have a hard time getting past the thought of "French food" on game day. Also, it goes perfectly paired with a simple salad of mixed baby greens and your favorite vinaigrette.

To start, slice a loaf of French bread into thick pieces and grate up some Gruyère cheese. Then melt the butter in a sauce pan and whisk in the flour. Next, whisk in hot milk until the sauce becomes smooth, bring to a simmer and cook for about 5 minutes until it thickens. At this point, I grabbed a couple of handfuls of the Gruyère cheese that I had already grated and whisked that in to the sauce. Another small handful of the cheese may or may not have made it's way into my mouth as well.

Then, after lining a baking sheet with parchment paper, I laid out the sliced bread, covered with thin sliced ham and topped evenly with the remaining cheese. Oh, mama.

By the way, this is not a low-calorie food. It's a creamy slice of heaven is what it is. After spreading the cheese, I added generous spoonfuls of the béchamel sauce. If I were to do this again, I'd add the sauce first and then the cheese... because once it's cooked, the sauce tends to slide right off of the bread if tipped. But no matter the order, it was delicious!

Cheese is my boyfriend right now. Hot and steamy.

I would be devastated if we were ever forced to separate.

Once cooked, slather on a bit of dijon mustard and enjoy. You'll really, really like this. And that's an understatement.

Open Faced Croque Monsieur

Ingredients:
For the béchamel sauce:
3 Tbs. butter
6 Tbs. flour
2 cups hot milk
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
Freshly grated nutmeg, to taste
A handful of the grated Gruyère cheese you've prepped for the sandwiches

For the sandwiches:
French loaf of bread, sliced
1/2 lb. sliced ham
1/2 lb. grated Gruyère cheese

Directions:
Preheat oven to 450°F.

To make the béchamel, in a small saucepan over low heat, melt the butter. Whisk in the flour until smooth and cook about 1 minute. Slowly add the hot milk into the butter-flour mixture, whisking constantly until the mixture is smooth. Increase the heat to medium, bring to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until the sauce is thickened, about 5 minutes. Add in a handful or two of the grated Gruyère cheese and stir. Off the heat add salt, pepper and nutmeg.

To assemble the sandwiches, cover a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place the bread slices on the sheet and layer the ham evenly on the bread. Slather the tops with the béchamel. Sprinkle with the remaining Gruyère and bake the sandwiches on a low rack for 5 minutes. Turn on the broiler and broil for 3 to 5 minutes, or until the topping is bubbly and lightly browned.

Bon appetit!

Sunday Citar ~ Home Again

noreply@blogger.com (Fresh Mommy) — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 03:46:00 +0000

Welcome to Sunday Citar!! Here's where we all share a quote... a favorite, a new find, a laugh inducing or tear inducing quote you love this week. (Citar = to quote in Spanish)

"The ache for home lives in all of us, the safe place where we can go as we are."
~Maya Angelou

This past week has had the word home whispering a different meaning into each ear. In one direction it had us going back home and in the other, had us coming home. Two very distinctly separate definitions, and yet both warm and welcoming versions of the same.

What surprised me the most about the former, about going home, is that after four short months of living multiple states away from Michigan, I wasn't aware of just how settled I'd become in our new home state of Florida... until this visit to the cold and snowy north. It was nostalgic and exciting, winter white and sparkly, and just a little bit home.

While I wish I could say that my time there was filled with warm fireside chats, sleepovers with friends and stay-up-all-nights breathing in the laughter that comes from retelling childhood stories with siblings, I was there for work... and it devoured my time. But this girl knows how to rally, and when I have a free morning and a yard of freshly fallen white beckoning through the frosted window, we run through the house to find matching mittens and another layer of pants so we can trollop our way through it.

And then quickly throw off the layers and dive into a tub of warm bubbles to thaw out.

I take back the sleepover thing... there were sleepovers, for my girl and her friends. She stayed with one of her besties that she's been missing, and skyping with often, and then it was her cousin's turn to stay the night with us. Followed by early morning pancakes made by papa and a rousing game of floor tic-tac-toe... you know, the usual sleepover kind of thing.

Kept busy with work, long drives and fun adventures on the icy Michigan winter roads, I found myself with plenty of time to think and reflect during those lengthy trips in the car, to enjoy waiting for the tow truck to show up and change my flat tire because it was the first time that I actually sat still and was forced to be still. And while I whipped out some extra lip gloss and rallied for girls night out, I missed curling up into my parents' guest bed with my littlest curled into my side. The entire trip felt like it was a push-and-pull. It was was a mix of the beautiful calm of a deep snow and the fast pace of trying to do too much in too little time. It was settled in "my kids are loving this time visiting with friends and family" and yet contradicted by the unsettling "I'm missing this time with them, this adventure with them"... and would subsequently try and make up for it in every other waking moment that I could.

I think I've recovered.

It also felt really good to know that despite having a schedule so tight that any additions meant another subtraction from the sleep category, I could also be a good mom. I was there as often as I could physically be, and when I was there, I was present. I think it's something mothers are born into with the arrival of their first, this rallying thing. And sometimes, when we're running on fumes and living on caffeine, we realize just how much we're capable of... Just how much we know how to love.

Now that we're all home, again, we've been spending time together with quick trips to the park for swings and slides under a warm veil of sunshine.

We met a new "neighbor" as well.

Our first evening home called for a celebratory picnic at the beach for dinner. My heart swelled with the crests of the water and then sank back into the rhythm of my babies, of the this-is-home-right-here echo that my boy uttered as we arrived at the beach... "Brayden home."

I drank in the blushing sky and the warm salty air. Golden rays caught my breath as they danced off of my girls' curls. And our dinner? Well, we decided to share it with a few birds.

Which just so happened to be the best idea ever, because our laughter literally drowned every other sound on the beach that night in it's sweet chorus.

As we pulled two tired little ones off of the sandy shore, two little ones who would rather create drawings in the sand with their toes than head home for bed, Aliyah let out a breathless, "This is the bestest day ever."

To which she's followed up with a repeat every day since. Home, sweet home, baby.

I would love to have you join the Sunday Citar inspiration and have all of us come to your blog to read what quotes inspire you! Simply link within your post to my blog, and sign up with the linky below, leaving the link directly to your Sunday Citar post. Just click here if any of that sounds confusing, and please take a moment a visit at least three of the participants around you... you'll be glad you did!

Hump Day Dump

noreply@blogger.com (Fresh Mommy) — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 02:45:00 +0000

From the snow drifts that covered the trees in a glistening white to the sandy shoreline of the gulf, we're home. Both very different, both in some form home. But when we ventured to the beach tonight for an impromptu dinner at sunset, Brayden ran through the sand with enthusiasm I could barely measure, "Runnin' on sand, mommy! Water! Brayden home." He was so excited to be at the beach, and my little saltwater babe sealed it for me tonight. We're home.

Welcome to our tradition here on Fresh Mommy Blog... on Wednesdays, when I try to be wordless, I'm just going to dump the previous week's photos from my phone. A little piece of where we've been and what we've been up to. And the resulting collage? Well, I think it speaks so much more than I could. Welcome to Hump Day Dump. Link up with us... whether wordless or word-full, one photo or many, taken with your phone or not, you're all welcome here!

All of my photos were taken on an iPhone with the instagr.am app and were put together using Big Huge Labs mosaic maker... super simple and free. I'm on instagram as TabithaBlue. For more fabulous Wordless Wednesday memes, check out Supermom Alysha, 5 Minutes for Mom, Better in Bulk and Wordless Wednesday

KitchenWise:: Exfoliating Cinnamon Honey Facial Mask

noreply@blogger.com (Fresh Mommy) — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 15:35:00 +0000

Thanks for joining me for another episode of KitchenWise! Aliyah and I had fun making this one together, and the result? Well, it works wonderfully... a great skin softener and exfoliator. Another plus, I love using the smallest amount of ingredients, and this one takes just three!

Sunday Citar ~ Right Now

noreply@blogger.com (Fresh Mommy) — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 05:43:00 +0000

Welcome to Sunday Citar!! Here's where we all share a quote... a favorite, a new find, a laugh inducing or tear inducing quote you love this week. (Citar = to quote in Spanish)

“What you need to know about the past is that no matter what has happened, it has all worked together to bring you to this very moment. And this is the moment you can choose to make everything new. Right now.”
~Anonymous

It was the moment she was waiting for. The one she had carefully planned out in her head and woke to swirls of disappointment over on the morning after her arrival, when she realized that there was barely a trace of the fluffy white she had been anticipating for weeks. Though reassurance that with time she would see a blanket with flakes of feathery down covering the thin grass and brown tree limbs did little to quell her restlessness, she settled into the wait. And a heavy, gray Michigan sky didn't let her down a second time, with a snowstorm leaving inches to explore.

It always calms me to step out into a sea of quiet white. With sounds insulated deep under a fresh snowfall, leaving just my thoughts, the crunch of our boots and the excited voices of my kids to echo atop it. Trees covered in crystalline white and branches of glass reaching into the sky invite us out from the cozy warmth. The moment I step into it, it's as though the rush I feel is quickly put at ease. I want to linger in the sounds of the moment, the quiet hush of right now.

Guest Post:: Fresh Daddy ~ Two Weeks Without

noreply@blogger.com (Fresh Mommy) — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 04:23:00 +0000

This week I have been counting down the days and nights left until I am reunited with my best friend and my little prince and princess. The strange still quiet of the house is chilling at times, echoing the fact that I'm missing the smiles and laughter and truest pitter patter of little feet running through our halls. I fully appreciate my small breaks like this because it brings me to realize how much fulfillment my family has introduced me to. This week has given me quiet moments to thank God for the blessings in my life. I would be completely heartbroken to be separated for too much longer. Take the moments in each day. Find the time to tell your children how you feel about them. Steal away moments with your spouse so that you can truly appreciate all the other time you NEED to spend with your family. This life on earth is a blink in time. Don't blink and regret the people you share your life with by not saying what you mean and meaning what you say. Choose your moments with great wisdom and be sure not to let them pass by too quickly.
Each day brings new challenges and new encouragements. I love the words of Hitch in the same titled movie.

"Never lie, steal, cheat, or drink. But if you must lie, lie in the arms of the one you love. If you must steal, steal away from bad company. If you must cheat, cheat death. And if you must drink, drink in the moments that take your breath away." - Hitch (original quote, anonymous)

AMEN BROTHER!

A little cliche, but apply the principles to your everyday life with your family and watch your joy rise within you. They grow up so quickly.

Love you, family, and miss you very much.
~Fresh Daddy

Hump Day Dump ~ Kids

noreply@blogger.com (Fresh Mommy) — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 04:27:00 +0000

Things my kids may or may not have said this past week... (some quotes may be from dreams as my days have gone and crashed into my sleep and it's all become one big game of "Are you awake?")

Ignore what I just said.

Things my kids have said this week:

"Mommy, when I get there from the airport (at 1am) will you wake up and give me a hug and kiss? Good. And I need you to wash your face so you don't look sleepy."

"Let's go moobie!" (movie)

"I have two luggages to take to the airport, and snacks for the plane"

"Stop it, WIYAH!"

"I thought you said there was going to be snow? Oh here's some! Woo hoo!!!"
(She found a 3 inch patch in the middle of the grass.)

Aliyah: "Say 'Thank you.'"
Brayden: "Thank you."
Aliyah: "You're welcome. (Holds up hand) Don't say that."
Brayden looks at Aliyah until she turns away, he smirks and says, "Welcome."

KitchenWise:: Coconut Sugar Lip Polish

noreply@blogger.com (Fresh Mommy) — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 17:50:00 +0000

It's time for another installment of KitchenWise! This week's episode definitely doesn't disappoint... it's a coconut sugar lip scrub that leaves your pucker soft and smooth! And the best part? It's made with just two simple ingredients! Of course you could mix it up and use salt instead of sugar if that's what you've got, although it wouldn't taste as good. You could even mix in a little honey to give some extra nutrients. But sometimes, simple is just plain good.

Sunday Citar

noreply@blogger.com (Fresh Mommy) — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 14:09:00 +0000

Welcome to Sunday Citar!! Here's where we all share a quote... a favorite, a new find, a laugh inducing or tear inducing quote you love this week. (Citar = to quote in Spanish)

"Who ran to help me when I fell, or kissed the place to make it well? ....My mother."
- Ann Taylor

I drove through a sleet soaked rain falling against a backdrop of black, not a twinkle visible, save the oncoming traffic and lights in the rear view, to my littlest running to the door in a roused greeting. His voice high-pitched and excited, carving an indelible impression on my heart as it rang out, "Mommy! Mommy! Mommy!" followed only a moment later by, "Diaper stinky. Brayden need bath."

My mom asked if she could change his diaper to which his quick reply was, "No, mommy do it."

And I did it.

At that point the weariness creeping up my legs from standing in heels for 11 hours before my hour drive home didn't matter, it faded into the background. My life at that moment was him.

We sat cheek to cheek, his whispy lashes blinking across my skin, our breaths mingling to form one exhale before I laid him down to sleep... before I fell asleep.

Guest Post: Friday's Affordable Fun

noreply@blogger.com (Fresh Mommy) — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 06:16:00 +0000

"Great is the man (or woman) who has not lost their childlike heart." Mencius

My life has changed a great deal in the last 4months, one of the biggest changes aside from moving states has been moving in with kids. Life is different with kids; it is louder, stickier, more dramatic and more fun. There is just something incredible about the innocence of a child, the way they can wonder and be completely entertained by the simplest things.
These last few months I've had some one-on-one time with Tabitha's littles, and I've found one simple thing like turning off all the lights, turning the radio up and grabbing a flashlight can lead to hours of fun. It doesn't take much - just a little creative effort.
I'm not saying it is always easy, just the other day Aliyah and I were on our way home from the park and she started asking me "what are we going to do next" I honestly didn't have a plan beyond the park and getting dinner. So, I decided to improvise when I saw a Dollar Tree next to the restaurant. We went in and spent $5 and that $5 has led to days of silliness and laughs.
I honestly have to say that coming up with simple stuff to do has made my days more fun too. Just this week we've worked on art projects, gone to the park to feed the ducks and play on the slide, we've had our very own car rock concerts where we sing at the top of our lungs and dance like maniacs at the red lights, we've climbed trees with friends, looked for manatees and found fun wall murals to take pictures in front of. We raided a Dollar Tree and loaded up with lots of glow accessories and stick-on mustaches and had a blast surprising people in drive thru's and at the dog park the next day. My time with the Little Blues has helped me rediscover my childlike heart.
I just wanted to take this chance to encourage all of you to do something silly and childlike this weekend, do something that makes you laugh. My challenge is to do it without spending more than $5. I'd love for you all to come back Monday and let us know all of the fun things you came up with that are both fun and on a budget.

Happy Friday all!
Briony

Hump Day Dump, life in iPhone Photos

noreply@blogger.com (Fresh Mommy) — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 04:10:00 +0000

You guys, I'm seriously about to slump over in my parent's guest bed as I type... my mind and body are both exhausted. I just wrapped up two straight days of super early mornings and 12+ hours in heels. Three and a half inch heels.

But I'm home. As much my new home really is home now, this place I'm in is where I learned what home is, and I brought one of THE best little travelers with me while big sis stayed back with her daddy for just a bit longer. There were a few snags along the way, but Brayden took them in stride and made me laugh all along. And right now? I have a bed ALL TO MYSELF, and I'm going to take full advantage of it while I can.

Fresh Daddy - Guest Posting

noreply@blogger.com (Fresh Mommy) — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 03:46:00 +0000

This week Fresh Mommy went back home to DETROIT with our littlest in tow. After some long delays and early work morning she is snuggled asleep in her nice and comfortable HOTEL bed. :) So I wanted to share my view of the world for a change.
Recently we went to the mall to shop with our Christmas gift cards. We enjoyed a 20 minute, wonderful adventure of giving chase to my 22 month old and 5 yr old daughter all around Sephora, where my son was overwhelmed with joy at all the little bottles and jars right at his level. My daughter had to try each of the perfumes in the women's section. Then both proceeded to climb into the facial chairs and under all the tables. After finally wrangling the children and purchasing our said items we try to escape without any incident. We mistakenly chose a path through a store which had another Sephora counter. The products, like the sound of some Pied Piper flute invoking a trance like state of mind, intrigued Fresh Mommy and she was whisked away to the counter. This induced the curiosity in my children as they began to look for something fun to do while they waited. They spotted the escalator. My son excitedly pointing to the moving stairway toward heaven caused me to surrender my own desires. We began the seemingly endless cycle of up and down requests from then on. At least the skyward view was softened by paper butterflies.

After a mere 35 minutes in the mall we retreated homeward bound and I felt as though it were an entire day's worth of events. My props to all the mommies that do this day in and day out without complaining and smiles on their faces. I solute you.

-Fresh Daddy

Sunday Citar

noreply@blogger.com (Fresh Mommy) — Sun, 08 Jan 2012 04:31:00 +0000

Welcome to Sunday Citar!! Here's where we all share a quote... a favorite, a new find, a laugh inducing or tear inducing quote you love this week. (Citar = to quote in Spanish)

"Every day we are engaged in a miracle which we don't even recognize: a blue sky, white clouds, green leaves, the black, curious eyes of a child -- our own two eyes. All is a miracle."
~Thich Nhat Hanh

Sometimes it just takes an evening under the stars with a friend, watching our breath catch in the rays of the flashlght and running through spinning light balloons that we hung from the tree. I think we laughed more than we captured photos that weren't entirely blurry, but it was fun.

A conversation that began as What should we do with these? quickly turned into an evening with a friend, with a heaping spoonful of enjoying life on top. That is the miracle of everyday, we just have to learn to find it, to enjoy it. To love the beauty of the in between.

And the winner of the $100 giveaway from Tea Collection is Adrienne who said:
Gentle, beautiful, hopeful thoughts. Thanks! And the photos are wonderful...am especially in love with the tree climbing shots!

Congratulations, Adrienne! Email freshmommy@me.com to claim your prize.

Happy Sunday friends, devour each beautiful moment today!

Quinoa Pasta Stir Fry

noreply@blogger.com (Fresh Mommy) — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 17:46:00 +0000

We started off the year with a bang! And also with the removal of any meat and Dr. Pepper from our kitchen. It hurt, the Dr. Pepper thing hurt, but I'm getting over it. I'm also finding some great recipes out there that I love. Like this one that I posted a photo of a couple of nights a go, and then received plenty of requests for the recipe from instagram, facebook and email.

This one was simple and easy, two of my favorite components of a meal. Oh and healthy and delicious too.

To stick to our intake of veggies, fruits and grains, I found this pasta that was made entirely from quinoa flour and whole wheat flour, and then just used the veggies I had in my fridge and a can of water chestnuts that was lurking in the pantry.

Quinoa Pasta Stir Fry:

Cook 1 box quinoa pasta in a gallon of water. (This is from the directions on the box, but I think we could've used less.)

Stir fry minced garlic, 1 thin sliced green pepper, chopped carrots (I had a bag of baby carrots that needed to be used, but any carrots would do), sliced water chestnuts and sliced celery in olive oil.

Remove from pan and set aside. Then use pan to stir fry drained pasta in olive oil for about 60 seconds, and return vegetables to pan and mix together. Salt, pepper and season to taste. Hoisin and soy sauces would be a great addition as well.

Enjoy!

Hump Day Dump + a Great Giveaway!

noreply@blogger.com (Fresh Mommy) — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 05:56:00 +0000

I've just strolled in after a late night date with the man of my dreams, my husband if by any chance you are wondering, and I haven't much time. Thank goodness for Hump Day Dump!

It's been a great beginning to the year, and I have to say, after eating mostly fruits, vegetables and grains for the past three days, this is the first evening that I'm actually awake this late and with energy to boot. The first couple of days were a bit rough, but today, I've been feeling better than ever... thus the late night date that we were both awake for.

Good things, I tell you, good things.

Growing Forward

noreply@blogger.com (Fresh Mommy) — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 14:56:00 +0000

His feet bounced in true "Happy Feet" fashion as he waited for the final screws to hold his new haven in place, then quickly clamored his unsteady body up and over the front. It was his space, his big boy space. And it was a superb delivery into 2012, encasing all that this turn of the calendar meant; growing, changing, the air charged with a whirl of excitement.

His first night was a success, my boy is growing up.

Sunday Citar ~ A HAPPY LITTLE NEW YEAR TO YOU... and a Giveaway

noreply@blogger.com (Fresh Mommy) — Sun, 01 Jan 2012 03:41:00 +0000

Welcome to Sunday Citar!! Here's where we all share a quote... a favorite, a new find, a laugh inducing or tear inducing quote you love this week. (Citar = to quote in Spanish)
The linky will be open all week for you to link up your special New Year's post... and to get in on the GIVEAWAY AT THE END OF THIS POST!

"Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?"
From The Summer Day by Mary Oliver

I've been delving into books more and more lately, losing sleep, burying my head in the space of black and white while the words take me to another place. Stories and poems, learning and growing... and then a few words caught my eye and held me there, hovering in emotion. Wild and precious.

I could go on by saying that the littles and I cleaned out their room, again, to start fresh for the new year. That I'm proud of my girl who tried on every pair of shoes she owns and was quite pleased with herself as she meticulously and thoroughly lined up the remaining pairs in their place in the closet. Or that we came this close to converting Bray's crib, progressing him up to toddler bed, but found out some screws are missing and have to wait on Daddy to make a trip to Home Depot.

Yet I keep being drawn to these words that resonate with me. Wild and precious.

And I wonder if cleaning the kid's rooms, washing their sheets and converting a crib is what I should be doing... before I realize that I've been trying to live by this credo daily. Finding beauty in the small moments with my littles.

Sometimes it lies in praising my big girl for mastering the vacuum and wielding the hose to clean the corners of her room. Or letting little man show me the shoes that don't fit his growing feet anymore, either.

Sometimes it lies in heading out in the sunshine with a new box of chalk for midday sidewalk art.

Watching my girl spell out the words she knows while little brother draws giraffes and doggies along behind her.

And then pretending to understand exactly what he's saying and realizing after hearing "mammal" for the fifth time that he meant "animals" and not "Nemo" (which it clearly sounded like to me).

Sometimes it's as simple as taking a new Christmas present for a spin around the neighborhood.

Or spending the afternoon in "her climbing tree."

And not worrying so much that it's getting late for naps or that their clothes are getting dirty, and instead enjoying the heck out of the moment. Because that's what washing machines are for, and early bed times.

And sometimes it lies in the spontaneity of hearing fireworks outside and grabbing blankets and flashlights and heading out to our "hill" in the dark to lie down and watch the blasts light up the sky under to moon. Laughing while Brayden flails his arms and whispers "fireworks" and letting their excitement literally charge the very air we breathe while daddy runs up the street to buy some sparks of our own.

Tell me, what is it you plan to do in the new year with your one wild and precious life?

I plan to grab hold to everything that is around me, the colorful and the bland. To love those around me even more fiercely and find countless ways to show my appreciation, to be the friend that I always want to have. I plan to live a little more freely and open myself up more... letting go of the fears that hold me back.

Oh, and I plan to kiss someone special come midnight (I'm writing this Saturday night, so by Sunday, know that it happened. Lovin' fierce, baby).

Happy New Year friends, it's gonna be a good one. A wild and precious one.

A little look down blog header memory lane (which I think I need to update more often as well)...

And a few favorite posts from 2011...

The Big One

... And It Was Just Right.

Being Born Into Motherhood.

Get Naked, the best advice.

Spinning Balls and a Deep Breath.

Saying Goodbye to a Burnt Kitchen.

The beginning of KitchenWise.

Kids, Uncensored... things like this are said every week, I need to record it more often.

And now a little New Year's love for you all from one of my favorite places for cute kid's stuff, Tea Collection. When I was pregnant with Brayden, Chris and I wandered through a kitschy children's store and snatched up a blanket that, to this day, is still the first one I grab from his bin. The tag? Tea.

I drooled over the adorable clothes and now I love it when my kids are wearing anything with Tea on the tag... and we are so excited to have Tea Collection as a sponsor this month.

Some of my favorites are Brayden's cinnamon colored happy hoodie and Aliyah's go-with-everything tennies, skinny cord cargos and the Puebla graphic jacket (which is now on sale).

A $100 shopping spree to Tea Collection will be given to one lucky commenter on this post, and the giveaway is open all week.

The kids barely made it past ten and Chris and I are ringing in the New Year together. Have a fabulous New Year, friends!

A very wild and precious one too.

I Like It Here

noreply@blogger.com (Fresh Mommy) — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 03:38:00 +0000

I am habitually a procrastinator. I like to jump on things, I do... at least in theory. I have ideas. I make lists. I plan ahead. And then I realize half of the things that should already be done, aren't.

And also? When I find a place, a rhythm that I sink into and each step feels less like a step and more of a sway... I like it. I want to stay.

When I was pregnant with each of my beautiful children, with the one that made me a mama, and our joyful baby boy, I wanted to delay the birth. Well, with our first, she came early and there wasn't anything I could do about it. But even then, at three weeks before the day we'd planned, it was much too soon for me and I could've gone longer, generously longer. I didn't want to break out of the sweet melody we'd created with each other, me loving her from the outside, her from the inside. With our second born, we went two weeks past our original due date. TWO WEEKS. Yet still? A part of me could've stayed in that rhythm forever.

The point, I always get excited for the fresh new slate a new year brings. The knowing that we have a full year to write whatever story we want, to get up and do something, learn something, be something. There is a brand new melody in us just waiting to be written. And yet? Here's the yet... there's a part of me that likes this one, that doesn't feel ready. But isn't it always like that? On the curve of change comes the effort in getting there, the mistakes in reaching and the struggles in attaining something good. And sometimes that just scares me.

So I'm going to indulge in one more day, maybe two, of here. Yes, the Pa-Rum-Pum-Pum music has been filed away 'till next year, though a pretty tree still makes itself known with sparkly lights here and there, and yes, I've already been making lists, reflecting on some old ones and setting my sights high... but I've been doing most of it with lots of snuggles and hugs, and a couple of naps, on the couch with my littles whose early and late entrances into our lives has set the tone for their own.

Change is good, but here? Here is pretty good too.

I'll be back Sunday, or more likely sometime on Saturday, for a special New Year's post, and a LINKY for yours... I'd love it if you joined.

Hump Day Dump ~ In Between

noreply@blogger.com (Fresh Mommy) — Wed, 28 Dec 2011 03:32:00 +0000

Looking ahead to some great things coming up... some great things for all of you too! But right now? I'm enjoying the beauty that lingers from our merry weekend and reflecting on where we've been and what's coming in the next promising year.

Happy Hump Day!

KitchenWise:: Strawberry Face Mask (for Acne)

noreply@blogger.com (Fresh Mommy) — Tue, 27 Dec 2011 22:50:00 +0000

So I figured now was as good of a time as any, you know, when we're all a little overloaded on sugar and need a good cleansing, to offer a great, simple and easy way to get your skin glowing! And... just in time for your New Year's party as well.

This mask is great for helping to cleanse and clear the skin... but I also offer variations for other skin types as well.

I won't ramble on and on here, I'll just let the video do the talking.

Welcome to this week's episode of KitchenWise!

And as always, don't forget to wait for the bloopers :)

Please let me know what you think of this week's episode, and if you have any ideas, questions or suggestions for future episodes (something you'd like to try, but want someone else to be the "guinea pig") please tell!

And don't miss out on one of our other popular homemade body care products, the Mocha Sugar Body Polish... Yum.

The Stars Are Still Shining

noreply@blogger.com (Fresh Mommy) — Tue, 27 Dec 2011 06:10:00 +0000

I woke this morning and willed myself to get up and plug in the twinkling lights of our tree that's staying up a bit longer and the stars that line the fireplace mantle, as I slid my thoughts past the idea that Christmas is over, I'm not ready for the let-down. There's always such an excited build up of the season, so many things that make my heart swell, and of course, at some point the air has to be let out so my heart can go back to beating at a regular pace again. But now? I'm just not ready.

So today, and tomorrow perhaps, we left the unwrapped presents spread out on the living room floor while the kids played under the stars... literally. My fireplace stars.

It was good. It felt like Christmas, and I think we'll linger in this place a little longer.

Though our Christmas started a week ago, the gates flew open Friday night with our first real party of the season. With a house full of people we love, a countertop filled with sweet and savory things. And sugar, did I mention there was sugar?

Christmas Vacation filled the background while littles stayed up 'till midnight actually playing nice with each other the entire time (a Christmas miracle, I know), talk and laughter charged the air in the kitchen and games were played under the lights of the tree.

Christmas Eve day we caved and let busy little hands find something to build after opening one of the gifts that arrived on our doorstep earlier that week.

Thanks Auntie Gigi, the legos were a hit!

Not wanting to be outdone, Christmas Eve night showed off with our annual Unwrapping of the Christmas PJs.

Exciting, I know. But really, it is.

Posers.

But that didn't last long.

Blurry, yes, but I'm in love.

If you give a mouse a cookie... or if you give a kid a choice, Why yes, I'll have another. We gave the option of big or little, they chose little.

The Dueling Presents.

I think they were happy with their choice. Aliyah asked to stay up "Just a little later to hear the music with these!!"

Santa stayed up late building Brayden's big surprise, but by morning it was all entirely worth it. I even snuck Brayden into the big bed this morning while big sister slept in so that he wouldn't wander out and discover it before everyone was up and could see his reaction... and I don't think he minded the extra cuddle attention one bit. But by the time Aliyah woke, everyone was ready.

He was ready.

After opening up a few special requests of her own, like sparkly pink tights and sliding into her newly acquired goggles, Aliyah took the new trike for a spin.

Ahem, and so did I. But only because Brayden fervently requested, "Mommy ride! Mommy ride!"

Sometimes at Christmas I make elaborate breakfasts with multiple courses, or at least multiple dishes, but this time, I simply asked my family what they wanted. Chris conceded to whatever I decided and Aliyah brilliantly offered up "green Christmas tree pancakes" as a suggestion, to which Brayden echoed "pan-CAKES!"

So green Christmas tree pancakes it was. Green Christmas tree eggnog pancakes.

Followed by a trip to the beach.

A trip to the beach with gingerbread cookies, of course.

And Sandy the Sand-man (you know, since we couldn't build Frosty the Snowman this year).

Christmas dinner was had huddled with a group of close friends originally from Michigan as well, who are quickly becoming family, over a Floridian fare of coconut rice, a wide selection of fresh grilled fish (and a little fried Grouper), bacon wrapped scallops and stuffed jalepeños and desserts of key lime and apple pies and rum cake... It was a mix of North meets South, and the entire evening was perfectly delicious.

Dressed and ready to go. Notice the mess of toys on the floor? Yep, still there.

So now it's late, I've already been up twice tonight (before I've even gone to bed) to console a crying babe, and there's so much more I could say. But for now I'll leave it be. My heart is still big and swollen... and happy. We've not only survived our first Christmas in Florida, but our crimson handled, mistletoe lined mugs are overflowing and we're drinking it all in.

I think our nights under the stars are going to last a little bit longer, we're still celebrating Christmas.

Happy, happy. Joy, joy.

Oh, and we've got a fun episode of KitchenWise coming later today, and if your skin needs a little boost, you don't want to miss it. See you then!

Sunday Citar ~ Merry Christmas Edition

noreply@blogger.com (Fresh Mommy) — Sun, 25 Dec 2011 04:00:00 +0000

Welcome to Sunday Citar!! Here's where we all share a quote or two... a favorite, a new find, a laugh inducing or tear inducing quote you love this week. (Citar = to quote in Spanish)
The linky will be open all week for you to link up your special Christmas post!

"Christmas… that magic blanket that wraps itself about us, that something so intangible that it is like a fragrance. It may weave a spell of nostalgia. Christmas may be a day of feasting, or of prayer, but always it will be a day of remembrance -- a day in which we think of everything we have ever loved."
~Augusta E. Rundel

We have indeed been wrapped... by Christmas' beautiful song, whose melody has not only warmed our homes, but has played our heartstrings.

When Chris and I married, we reserved Christmas Eve night and Christmas morning for us. For our family to be. For these littles whose pitter-patter literally fills our halls with warmth at their melody.

And to this day? It's remained.

So as we burrow further into our family cave, reflecting and enjoying, prioritizing and relaxing, memory-making and laughing... we also wish you all a very Merry Christmas.

If you didn't get a copy yet, here's a peek at this year's Christmas card:

The front

The back

Have a wonderfully blessed and merry weekend with your families and loved ones.

******************************************

I would love to have you join the Sunday Citar inspiration and have all of us come to your blog to read what quotes inspire you! Simply write your own post on your blog, link within your post to my blog, and sign up with the linky below, leaving your name and the link directly to your Sunday Citar post. Just click here if any of that sounds confusing. There you'll be able to get the complete rundown, as well as learn how to link back to my blog if you don't already know how. Take a moment a visit at least three of the participants around you... you'll be glad you did!

Enjoying the Christmas-y Things

noreply@blogger.com (Fresh Mommy) — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 23:28:00 +0000

This week has pretty much been an all out celebration... you know, between the deep-cleaning for a party that's happening in um, thirty minutes. And kind of like the time we took an entire week to commemorate the day we said "I do" for the rest of our lives, Chris and I decided to forgo any gifts under the tree this year and opt for a weeklong party. PA-RUM-PUM-PUM-PUM, ya'll.

So I've still been wrapping all week, but not for him, no that would be against the rules. And all the wrapping and sorting and Christmas card writing and boxes delivered to the house everyday, it's a freakin' party. And I'm dancing on the counters.

Here goes... a little of what we've been enjoying this week, all the Christmasness that surrounds us right here, right now.

The Untraditional Christmas:
We took advantage of a special Florida resident rate at a nearby resort to enjoy this Christmas week and spent two beautiful days and a glorious night at the beach.

It was heaven. And like I mentioned before, I think I saw some skin shimmering. (Twilight peeps, you know exactly what I mean.)

The sky couldn't help but show off.

Outdoor Entertainment:
While I painted some crafts outside, a nearby tree offered itself as a playground for my littlest.

A New Hobby:
And maybe, just maybe a Christmas present wrapped up in the form of lessons come the new year.
Daddy has taken her twice now, and then once again where they dragged me onto the smooth, slick surface of the ice and we hustled along to "Baby It's Cold Outside" while girls just older than my own spun around and axel jumped to their routine. And my little one? She loves it. She wants more of it.

Their kisses slay me.

Little man loves watching from the sideline.

Quiet Play:
I love watching him learn and discover.

Look to the right, a box! We've been getting a slew everyday from loved ones, and we're loving it!

Christmas Parade:
Something we've never experienced before. Mostly because we'd be standing in a foot or more of snow, turning blue and hardening into human icicles if we stayed outdoors in one place that long. But now that we've moved to Florida? It's just something new and different to enjoy, a new way to experience the Holiday season while we get over missing the crunch of white under our boots.

Ahem, short skirts on little girls.

I think Brayden shared my feelings... the look says it all.

Oh, why, hello there Santa.

Old Traditions with New Friends:
I missed having my sister-in-law, Crystal, around for our annual Christmas card night, it was our thing. But I kept the tradition alive and invited our nearby friends to enjoy some of our pumpkin spice salted caramel hot chocolate, a crackling fire, watch The Holiday and address (and color and stamp) our envelopes.

Early Family Christmas:
Our Christmas week kicked off with my parents from Michigan staying with us and an early family party with the kids.

"I hidin'," he says. I die. Then get up again for the rest of the presents.

Papa is the best present-opener. Ever.

Mail:
This is the absolute best time of year to check the mail! A flush of anticipation floods through me when it arrives and this year I had to find a new way to display my favorite things... Christmas cards. Enter more twine and mini clothes pins...

Our White Christmas:
This paradigm shift is still new to me, thus the "white sugared sand beach instead of the silent cloak of snowfall for Christmas" playlist set on repeat.

Is that ten things? I'm not sure, but doorbell is ringing. Gotta go.

Ya'll have a nice Christmas now, ya hear. See ya this Sunday at Sunday Citar for your special Christmas post link up!

Guests are arriving and I've got a counter to dance on.

Hump Day Dump

noreply@blogger.com (Fresh Mommy) — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 04:02:00 +0000

So, the house has been humming to the Christmas tunes blasting through Pandora lately, and even when the music stops reverberating the speakers, my head's still bopping to "Baby, It's Cold Outside" (one of Chris and I's favorites) and "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer" (Brayden's current fave.) To say there is an excitement in the air would be an understatement. We're breathing in mistletoe and eggnog, twinkling lights and holiday movies, peppermint rimmed glasses of hot chocolate and red and green striped pajamas. We're making presents and counting down the days (just 4 left!) until the BIG day, while Aliyah parades around the house plunking change from her piggy bank, a bright pink paperweight and a Santa-hat-wearing-red-teddy-bear into a bucket, covering it all in tissue paper and handing it out to us as presents. Something to suffice until they can dig into the ones under the tree. And even though it doesn't feel like the normal Michigan Christmas season we're used to, it's been pretty stinkin' awesome. In that Christmastime in magical and sparkly kind of way.

This week has been filled with exciting road trips and inspiration, trying new things, and as a Christmas present to each other... two days on a beach for Chris and I. Just us, sunset and sunrise. It was perfection, and seriously, I think his skin might have even shimmered in the sunlight. Just sayin'.

Oh, and it's Wednesday, fist pump for Hump Day Dump!