Just Pure Lovely

From My Young Ballerina

2013-05-22T15:24:26-05:00

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Here's What I Learned about Lactose Intolerance (& a Giveaway for Lactaid)

2013-05-09T12:16:00-05:00

A few days ago, I attended a virtual webinar on lactose intolerance. Interesting type of webinar to attend, no? I was interested in learning more about lactose intolerance since my mother has problems with it, and to raise my own awareness since lactose intolerance is progressive; many people develop a lactose intolerance later in life.

Here is a bit of what I learned in the webinar:

What is Lactose?

• Lactose is the major carbohydrate in milk and other dairy foods
• Lactose (milk sugar) consists of two simple sugars – glucose and galactose
• Lactose must be broken down into glucose and galactose by the intestinal
enzyme lactase before it can be absorbed by the body

What does it mean to be Lactose Intolerant?

Most people produce that natural enzyme, lactase, which breaks down lactose
(sugar in milk). The amount of lactase your body produces will determine how
much lactose your body can break down.

There are a few options for those with lactose intolerance:

Eat dairy foods that don't typically bother a person with lactose intolerance: yogurt (especially Greek yogurt), cottage cheese, aged cheeses, and butter.
In the grocery store, you may have noticed LACTAID, a dairy product for those with lactose intolerance. I didn't realize, until the webinar, that LACTAID is a 100% dairy product, but with a natural enzyme added to it to help you digest dairy products without discomfort.

To learn more about LACTAID, and to view a few cooking videos, visit the LACTAID Youtube channel. Next month, I will create a recipe using LACTAID, and share the results with you. Since I'm not great in the kitchen, it will be a quick and easy recipe!

Would you like to try LACTAID? I'm giving away a coupon for a free LACTAID product to one of you! Just leave a comment below letting me know you want in the drawing.

Is anyone in your household lactose intolerant? If so, does this cause you to cook differently?

We're Heading to Disney!

2013-05-07T11:26:59-05:00

In less than 24 hours, three of the kids (the three who don't have jobs!) and I are heading to DisneyWorld in Orlando. I have been invited, along with about 174 other bloggers, to bring my family to play in the Central Florida sun while learning what Disney has to offer families.

Below is a collage of our 2012 trip down there. I'm so happy to go back but sad our now-17yo can't go with us. He has a full-time job, and the trip across America was what he chose over the Disney trip, since he had never been in the Western states. It was a good choice, but we will miss him very much.

This year, I decided to focus on a theme: how homeschooling families can benefit from going to DisneyWorld. I'll be looking for all sorts of learning opportunities and collecting tips for you! I'll share them on FreelyEducate.com, my other blog, or here.

While I'm away, look for my photos of magical moments on Instagram. View the tweets here. And read my Facebook updates here.

Have you been to DisneyWorld?

Giveaway & Craft Book Review: Sew Pretty T-Shirt Dresses

2013-05-05T11:49:24-05:00

I was recently given a beautiful craft book to review: Sew Pretty T-Shirt Dresses (and I have one to give away! Hang on a minute; let me tell you about it first...).

The book has over 25 patterns for t-shirt dresses for little girls. Wait, even if you don't sew much! Here is what I really really like: the dresses all begin with a t-shirt. All you do is add the skirt material and embellishments. And they are cute.

Even though the book's patterns are especially for girls aged 2 to 8, I find the patterns easily adjustable for my 10-year-old. Even just using the concept is helpful!

The book is a glossy, quality paperback with full-color illustrations and photographs throughout, including a 12-page T-Shirt Dresses 101 tutorial.

To Learn More about Sew Pretty T-Shirt Dresses: Visit

To Purchase the Book, or to View Pages: Visit the Sew Pretty T-Shirt Dresses page on Amazon (if it's still out of stock, visit the publisher at Sixth & String Books.

To Enter the Giveaway of one book shipped to one winner for free: Enter the information into the entry form below.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

This giveaway/review is part of a blog tour. Visit other blog posts about Sew Pretty T-Shirt Dresses at :

May 5

The New York Mom

Nouveau Stitch

The Crafty Princess Diaries

May 6

Craft Knife

Stitched by Crystal

BlogHer DIY

May 7

Prudent Baby

House of 34

May 8

Smashed Peas and Carrots

Simply Modern Mom

May 9

Marsha’s Spot

Sew Spoiled

Maya Made

May 10

Dollar Store Crafts

Only From Scratch

May 11

A Few Shortcuts

Wild Olive

Positively Splendid

May 12

On the Laundry Line

Elegance and Elephants

May 13

Luvinthemommyhood

My Little Gems

Images from Sew Pretty T-Shirt Dresses by Sweet Seams Studio, published by Sixth&Spring Books. Photography by Dan Howell and dress design and instructions copyright © 2013 by Sixth&Spring Books/Soho Publishing, LLC. All rights reserved. Used by permission.

Us

2013-04-29T01:35:34-05:00

The kids and me....

Welcoming a Fur Ball

2013-04-23T14:47:42-05:00

On March 18th, we fell in love with a little rescue puppy, who had been abandoned in town with her two little sisters. Her sisters were adopted over a 3-day arts & crafts festival weekend, but nobody wanted the black puppy....until we came along and fell in love! Who couldn't?

She has been expensive...

...she has become part of the family....

...and she has been a little bit spoiled...just...just a little bit.. And she has triped in size! This photo was taken just three weeks after the first photo - when she was 11 weeks old....

Welcome to this crazy family, Rivière.

How to Help Make a Child's Wish Come True

2013-04-17T14:07:46-05:00

Making memories is one of the most important parenting goals for me, and it's part of the beauty of being mom and dad: you get to make dreams come true. In fact, our eldest two children are right now on a road trip across America with their grandparents from California to the Florida border. Since I believe in making memories, Make-A-Wish® is my favorite charity, and I'm so happy to share how to help them this month...

What is Make-A-Wish?

30 years ago, a boy's dream came true when he became a police officer for a day. His wish inspired the founding of Make-A-Wish®, and since 1980, Make-A-Wish has granted wishes to thousands of kids with life-threatening medical conditions. This year alone, Make-A-Wish will grant over 10,000 wishes!

When you help Make-A-Wish, you not only help a child create a memory, but you may also be helping the child become healthier!

A granted wish often gives the child renewed hope and strength. Parents say the wish strengthens the family bond. And medical professionals say the wish is often a turning point in the child's battle for health! That's enough incentive for me!

How can we help Make-A-Wish make more wishes come true?

Since 75% of the wishes requested involve airfare, Make-A-Wish is collecting air miles and dollars to use to help make more wishes come true! When you donate in April, WWE® Superstar John Cena® will personally match every frequent flier mile, up to 4.5 million.

Every mile and dollar donated reduces wish costs and allows Make-A-Wish to reach more kids with life-threatening medical conditions.

Help in April through April 29th, World Wish Day by:

This year, 10,000 wish kids and their families will travel for a Make-A-Wish® experience. That's 50,000 roundtrip tickets or 2.5 billion frequent flier miles. In honor of World Wish Day®, the day of the wish that inspired the founding of Make-A-Wish, visit wish.org/tickets and donate miles and dollars – and help wish kids take flight.

It is such an honor to help a child's wish come true. I hope you will join our family in helping Make-A-Wish!

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Make-A-Wish®. The opinions and text are all mine.