Eye Opener

Ever wonder about the things in your everyday use items? Check out this website and look up your favorite items. It tells you what the ingredients/chemicals really are!


http://www.cosmeticsdatabase.com/

Banana "Nini" Muffins

I had some zucchini and bananas that needed to be used. I took my zucchini bread recipe (it had a lot of oil and sugar) and doctored it up for some healthy muffins.

Last time I made zucchini muffins with Ryenne, she commented that she wished the zucchini wasn't shredded. So I tried a different method this time.

You will need:

2 C unbleached flour (or sub with 1 C all purpose & 1 C whole wheat)
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 C butter
1/4 C Agave Syrup
2 eggs
1-2 bananas
1 med to large zucchini
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla
chocolate chips (optional)

Preheat oven to 350. Line muffin pan with paper cups.

In a large bowl, combine flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and set aside

In your food processor, cut up the banana(s) and zucchini and add to processor bowl with agave syrup and softened butter. Whirl until bananas and zucchini are pulverized. Add eggs and vanilla and mix well.

Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and mix. If you would like to add chocolate chips, this is the time to add them. I had about half a cup left and so each muffin got about 3-4 chips - just right for the kids to think this was a dessert.

Add mix to paper muffin cups and pop in the oven for about 30 minutes. Makes 12 muffins

I liked my muffins not overly sweet so I did 1/4 C Agave. If you like a sweeter muffin, you may want more. Agave Syrup is available in the honey section at the store. It's processed easier by the body than sugar and is a great substitute.

Concentration

I don't know why but this image didn't come through in the last post. Couldn't leave it out!

The Land of Magic

When my brothers were here, I sat back and enjoyed watching my family - everyone interacting with each other and celebrating being together with each other and with Kupono. I didn't take nearly as many pictures as I should have. Nico and Mom snapped away and I'm still waiting for my disc of pictures (hint, hint) so that I can blog them. 

But one evening, it was before school had started, it was like the celebration of the ending of Summer. It was truly the land of magic... magic light even. Believe it or not, these images are straight out of the camera - just sharpened for the web. 

The kids were playing in the forest...

The grill was fired up...

Magical games involving Kupono, the pool, and lots of sticks...

And little Cruzito was turning 6 months old the following day. He has mastered the walker and can power across the living room really fast. He is so expressive and so beautiful. 

This has to be one of my favorites because he was trying so hard to scoot himself across the pavers. The tongue came out... look at that concentration! 

Today was his 6 month check up. He is 19lbs, 8oz. When the nurse Leticha saw us she commented on how much Cruz looks like me. And when Dr. Collins came in the room she said, "Oh my goodness, he looks just like his daddy!" and me and Leticha started cracking up. We all had a good laugh when we explained why we were laughing so hard. Dr. Collins made Ryenne the helper and she helped examine Cruz and she thought that was the coolest thing ever.

Mission Accomplished!

Friday = weigh in day. Stepped on the scale and I was 198.6

This is the first time since high school I have been under 200 pounds. I am feeling so liberated and really... well... over the moon is how I can explain it!

My first BIG goal was to hit 199 pounds. Now it's done and I can set my next goal - 185. Baby steps!

We have a tooth!

Cruz has cut his first tooth - a little bottom front toofer. He has had a rough few nights which means I have had a rough few nights. Since it has just cut the surface, I am enjoying my last moments of a purely "gummy smile" from my last baby. Pictures soon!

First day of school

The first day of preschool was on Thursday morning. Of course even though I had planned this, it was a chaotic morning. And it wouldn't have been complete without getting the kids out to the car only to discover that one had pooped. 

Even though we were a couple minutes late, it seems we weren't the only ones with morning chaos. The preschool was alive with excited children, nervous children, parents, teachers... In fact, the kids were so excited that they held hands and took off for the entrance! 

They were so excited that it was tough to get the "first day of school picture on the stairs" - I might have to try it again on Tuesday.

I took Ry to her class first and she kinda shoo'd me out the door so she could get to the fun of school already. I then took Kai to his class and it was full of screaming children. He is the oldest in his class and the little ones didn't want their parents to leave. He looked at me, looked at them, looked back at me, and I saw a pouty lip emerge followed by crying. I couldn't take pictures - had. to. escape.

I think next week I will drop Kai off first - it will just be easier that way. They had a wonderful first day. It feels so good to have them back in this environment. I love their school! And hopefully cooler days are ahead as well.

Ry ballet Video

Kai Boy Toes

Down the street a neighbor is working on an old truck. For the past week Kai has been fascinated by this red truck. 

While Cruz was sleeping and Ry was at Gams, I took him out for a quick few snaps. This is my favorite. I've been waiting to get back to the 'puter to pull it off the card. My big boy...

Sweet Potato Harvest & Ballet Performance

Finally plugged in the little camera to nab the images from our sweet potato harvest and Ry's last day of ballet. 

Natural Dishwasher Soap

We had a giant bottle of dishwasher soap - Cascade I think - and I had started to think it was very harsh. I figured I'd try to find something more natural. And there are natural ones out there - Mrs Meyers and Seventh Generation to name a few.

But I ran out of the Cascade and haven't been to the store, so I went in search online. I found a recipe for a natural dishwasher soap online! I just made a batch and have tried it out on two loads.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup liquid castile soap (I used Dr. Bronners)
1/2 cup water
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
3 drops tea tree oil
1/2 cup white vinegar
Method:
stir all ingredients together until blended. Store in a squirt top bottle. Use 2 tablespoons per load of dishes, shake well before use. 

You will want to add the castile soap first to the container and then add the other ingredients. There is a chemical reaction with the vinegar and it kind of gels up making it hard to transfer to another container.

My dishes came out smelling good and clean. If spots bother you than this might not be your favorite dishwasher soap. But the few spots didn't bother me - I just wanted it all clean.

"Mama"

I know, I know... I still haven't posted pictures. I've been so crazy busy.

I did want to type out that  Cruz has started saying "Mama" and it's the cutest thing ever. He has also started grabbing both his feet when he's laying down. Just little tiny things I don't ever want to forget or think, "When did he do that?" - now at least I will be able to look back into time and know just when it happened.

Kupono

I felt compelled to work on these right away and post them tonight. There are more, but these are my favorites. I'm so glad that my dad came home just in time to get a few with Kupono. 

Love you Kupono Dog!! 

Latest Happenings

The past few days have been... well.. interesting.

We had a crazy streak of days hitting 107 on the thermometer IN THE SHADE. The intense heat was killing our garden so I decided it was time to harvest our sweet potatoes. I got some really great pictures of our spuds. The kids were hot and miserable so it ended up not being the fun project I had imagined. I am still very proud of our hard work though... I have never successfully grown anything! So pictures to come soon.

We also had Ry's last day of ballet and they were supposed to put on a Sleeping Beauty performance. We arrive and there's a substitute ballet instructor that has no idea it's the last day or that there's supposed to be a show. She turned on music and the girls did "free dance" and chased each other. I have video coming...

And lastly we have bad news about beloved Kupono Dog. The most amazing, beautiful, golden Pitty on the planet. He has Cancer. When my dad called me to tell me it was like a rock hit my gut. This beautiful creature... how could this be? We found out yesterday and I explained to Ryenne that Pono is sick. I think that she understands. We went over to visit with him today and take some pictures. I think the hardest thing for me is seeing my parents in so much pain and feeling helpless. I wish I could be of more help/support to get them through this.

I got some beautiful Images of Pono today. He gave me his "expressive eyebrows" and played with the kids and was his lovely self.

W.O.W.

Today was the day that my mom and I chose to go out shopping. Mom and Dad's big bday gift was to go out and buy new clothes.

In all honesty, I haven't bought clothes in quite some time. The last clothes I bought were maternity clothes, which many of the tops I still wear (comfy!). Most of my shorts and pants are practically falling off and I guess I look a bit frumpy.

So when Peter woke up I took Cruz to pick up my mom and we headed to the mall. I think it's been a good 9-12 months since I've been to the mall. And it is tax-free weekend so the place was PACKED. But Cruz was in a good mood and it was great walking around with my mom.

I was a 20, then an 18, and I figured that I'd fit into a 16. To my surprise I fit into a 14!!! WOW. I haven't been that size since the beginning of my Senior year in highschool. I felt like a kid in a candy store picking out clothes to try on. It was SO MUCH FUN. Even better that I had my mommy with me and could do a "fashion show".

I'll have to have Peter take a picture of me in my favorite outfit.

Thank you Mom and Dad. I had such an awesome birthday weekend. XOXOXOXOXO

Birthday

My birthday started out a bit questionable - I just wasn't sure if it was going to turn into a good day. Cruz didn't sleep very well through the night and I got up tired. Well actually Cruz and Ry both got up at 6am and I was up with them until Peter got home at 7:30 with donuts. He took the kids and I went back to sleep, though it wasn't a solid sleep.

By the time 10am rolled around, Ryenne was in a horrible mood. I sent her to bed (with HUGE protest) and soon as she was down Cruz blew out his poopy diaper all over my shirt.

I was a little down and feeling overwhelmed and tired. When Cruz and Ry were asleep, my day completely changed.

I've been having a hard time grasping that my sweet, amazing Kai Boy has hit the Terrible Two's. He has been so rascally. But then one of my favorite songs came on Pandora - White Sandy Beach of Hawaii - and Kai came over and said, "Dance" and reached up to me. So I danced with my Kai Boy. Yep. I was a full on emotional crazy person. But really it made my morning. Lately he has been turning away from the camera... but here's my sweet boy.





Love his smile!!!


So after that my day got better. Peter woke up and I got to take a shower, brush my hair, and put on non ratty clothes.

Peter got this of me and my babies. Love it!


Then Gams and Pops came over and we had an amazing dinner of fried scallops, princess broccoli, french bread with butter... and my favorite chocolate mousse pie for dessert. I think this pie should be called, "The Religious Experience" because really it's like angels are singing when you eat it.



Don't touch... this is my piece!!


My mom made me this adorable Apron. I LOOOOOVE it!!!!


Oh boy I was soooo stuffed after dinner. After I came off the sugar high I had a great night's sleep. It was a great 30th birthday!

The Last Day

Today is the last day of my twenties. Wow... what a 10 years it has been! I think I can look back on my twenties with a lot of fondness. I think I started my twenties with ideas of what I wanted and who I was. Along the way I have changed so much - grew into the person that I am. Thankfully Peter has stood by me through my personal changes.

Just last night Peter and I actually got some quiet time when (amazingly) all three kids were asleep at the same moment. It was a short time, but it was refreshing to lay down next to each other and chat about the last ten years, our adventures, our three gorgeous children, and what lies ahead for us.

I shared with him a dream for my thirties; my dream is to live simply and go on adventures with the kids. He told me it's a good dream. We're on our way to making it happen.

I told my mom last night that I'm a thinker and a dreamer. She responded that I'm a Visionary. It made my night. I've been taught that the Present is such an important time. I like to savor every moment as much as I can and very much be "in the moment". But I also love to dream about what the future holds. It's exciting to me that I can help meld the future and make a dream come true.

I am pretty sure that after the next couple of years pass and Peter is graduated, we will start a new adventure. Most likely in the Pacific Northwest. The kids will be a little older - giant trees, lakes, and ocean will be our new playground.

Usually I don't think of my birthdays as a big deal. "Just another day" I have thought of my past birthdays. But this birthday feels special to me. I really feel like I know myself a lot better. I have new dreams to look forward to and children to go on adventures with.

Tomorrow I turn 30 and I couldn't be happier to start a new decade, with all my new grey hairs and all!

More natural product reviews

This first thing I have been using for several months now. My mom introduced me to Alba Botanica Very Emollient Lotion and I LOOOOOVE this stuff. It's cheap - $14 at Target for a gigantic bottle. It's excellent for dry skin, but I have been using this as my daytime face moisturizer for months and also a little dab on my hair when it gets dry. I HIGHLY recommend this lotion. The best EVER.

I also tried a few natural cosmetics from a seller on Etsy called Erzulie and I got an under eye concealer, a mascara, and a lip and cheek stain called Zoe. Don't even bother with the mascara unless you don't have watery eyes. Mine ended up all over and I looked like a raccoon. The concealer is actually excellent. I have quite some under eye circles and this helps a lot. One of the best concealers I have ever tried. And the Zoe lip and cheek stain is excellent as well. Easy to put on and a lovely color.

The last review today is for Carley's Clean & Smooth. This is a large bottle of stuff to wash your face. My cleanser was about gone (remember the post about Oil of Olay?) and I found this stuff in all places... eBay. Anyway, they had over 27,000 positive reviews that this stuff is good so I figured I'd try it out - they have a guarantee. I've been using it for over 3 weeks. It came with full size samples of their homemade soap as well as some small lotion samplers. All the lotions are excellent, but again I adore my Alba Botanica.

Essentially you wash your face with their natural soap, wash with the Clean & Smooth for 30 seconds, and wash again with the natural soap. I feel like my skin is clean and not irritated and I haven't had a pimple since. I have sensitive/dry skin. Anyway, I have tried out so many face washes and cleansers and I really, really like this one!!! Love the natural soap too.

Alright... so those are my new reviews!

Pictures as promised!!!

So many pictures to post from the last week on the point and shoot camera. But first one from May. My living room "before" it's makeover.



And the "After" picture. I can't even begin to explain how much I love the transformation in this room. I love how the buttons on the DVD player are out of reach and the floor space is maximized for dancing, playing soccer (cause it's so hot outside), and the floor is so easy to clean.



So the other day was babysitter Melissa's last day with the kids before she goes back to Duke for college. Melissa has been an amazing help to me over the summer. She has come every Thursday to play with the kids while I work upstairs. I loved being at the computer and hearing all the creativity she came up with and the fact that she wouldn't let Ry and Kai get away with things. Thank you Melissa!!



And here's Ryenne when I was testing out the lights. She is jumping and look how high she got off the ground!



My three Monkeys...








These next ones are funny because Gams made Ry a cute dress and I asked her to model it for me. Well Kai wanted to model as well. The light was really bad at this time of day so I used the little flash... the lighting is awful but the kids are still cute. :)





And Kai modeling by himself.



Kai is soooo tiny. He is wearing one of Cruz's onesies. He's my vegetarian Filipino boy. I can't get him to eat meat. Except bacon. He looooooves bacon.

And this last one was from last night. Peter told me to go look out the window cause everything was yellow. Sure enough, it was! There was lightning and crazy looking clouds. No white balance adjustment, this is really how yellow everything was!

Behind...

I have pictures to post but haven't gotten the chance to get them on the computer yet. Kai Boy has entered the Terrible Two's full force. The past few days have been very rough on me. He is testing everything and I'm finding that I really have to step up and be firm with him. He knows how to work me. And after he's put in the naughty spot, he pulls out the watery puppy dog eyes. It takes every ounce of my strength not to look at him and give him sympathy. He has started to hit his sister and steal toys. Something I need to nip in the bud before it gets worse.

I'm aching for them to go back to school so I can get some major cleaning done. I need to clean out the toy room big time. I recently cleaned Ryenne and Cruz's room (they're bunking together in the upstairs yellow room). Ryenne now has a spot for all her books and her bed is tucked into a sweet little corner just for her. She has been AMAZING sleeping in her big girl room.

I'm behind on laundry big time. Trying to catch up today. It's not so much the putting in the washer part that is challenging, it's the folding with two munckins thinking it's hilarious to destroy my folded piles!

I had a maternity shoot in the living room the other day. It was nice to do a shoot at home and not have to pack up all my stuff. Right now bookings are really light. I'm on the fence as to how I feel about this. One part of me longs to be a successful business person, but the other part of me thinks, "How in the heck can I HANDLE being a successful business person with all the other crap I need to manage?". Right now I am feeling like I am just not a savvy business person. If it were up to me to support this family financially I would fail. I hope that this Fall brings in more sessions.

Anywho.... I'm rambling. I do have more pictures and will get those up soon!