The 10-Day Family Recharge ~ Come Home to Community

I'm so honored that Erin Goodman asked me to be a contributor to her second annual 10-Day Family Recharge, an online program designed to help you celebrate, reconnect and love up your family!

I do hope you'll join in! Besides all the inspiration and re-energizing I received as a participant in last year's program, I recall truly appreciating the ease of this e-course. There's no set time to show up anywhere, and the level of participation it requires is directed entirely by you. For a busy mama, that is such a blessing.

 

So, my contribution to this year's Recharge is themed Come Home to Community. I'll be:

• offering a creative glimpse into "my tribe."
• sharing 5 Ways to Unite Families through Community.
• discussing how to build & fortify a caring, supportive community of families.

 

Does your family have a community to come home to? A tribe to receive support from, to learn from, and to care for? Please join me in a discussion on the power of kinfolk!

 

To learn more about this online program & its contributors, or to register, click the link below.

The "Welcome Fall" Party

Have you entered to win your copy of The Artful Year ~ Autumn yet? On Friday we had a little after-school "welcome fall" party, using a couple ideas from this creative e-book...

I made the pumpkin chocolate chip muffins - so yummy, and really easy to throw together. I had everything I needed already in my kitchen! *Bonus... the whole house smelled like fall.*

Also a treat for the senses, I made a batch of pumpkin pie playdough using the recipe in The Artful Year ~ Autumn. (One batch made a lot!) I divided it up among my girls and my nephew and gave them each a bowl of dried black beans to use for making jack-o-lantern pumpkins from the warm, sweet-smelling dough. Another great idea!

And because I simply can't seem to do a craft project without a bit of nature, I provided a few small sticks from the yard to use as stems. This project kept all three kids (4, 8 & 10) busy for about an hour!

A few of their creations...
This skull, made by my nephew, is filled with "bean brains"... everyone had to take turns sticking their fingers in it to feel them!

**Remember... you have until Friday to enter to win a copy for yourself!! Just leave a comment telling me what you LOVE about autumn on the post below.**

Welcome Autumn with The Artful Year + a Giveaway

Fall is my very favorite season. And this new e-book by Jean Van't Hul of The Artful Parent honors everything I love about Autumn - acorns and leaves, pumpkins and apples, Halloween and Thanksgiving - they're all in there! It's 76 pages of seasonal crafts, recipes, celebrations and inspiration, united by gorgeous images that reflect the beauty of the season.

 

A few things struck me about this book... first, it's super easy to read. I was able to glance through it fairly quickly and garner several ideas that intrigued me. One was a jack-o-lantern playdough activity using "pumpkin pie playdough" and dried black beans. (On the flip side, one could linger over these ideas and projects for quite some time if they so chose!)

Another thing that stood out to me was the sheer quantity of crafts, recipes and ideas packed into this book. There are enough to be spread out over many fall seasons, which is ideal for young families. It's a book that will stick with us for years to come.

Finally, the ideas are simple, yet unique. They don't require lots of materials or preparation. They are just fun, practical recipes and projects that I can actually imagine doing with my girls (or some, alone).

In fact, we're going to try a couple out today with our 2nd annual "welcome fall" party. Last year, on the Autumn Equinox, I surprised the kids after school with apple cider, pumpkin bread, fall decorations and a craft. They remembered in great detail (I was surprised!) and are looking forward to a repeat performance. So, we'll be enjoying Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins and making pumpkin play dough jack-o-lanterns, courtesy of The Artful Year, Autumn this afternoon.

I'm sure I'll be back here later in the season, sharing our take on many of the fun ideas in this e-book... thankful stones, coffee filter spider webs, leaf mandalas, a fall color scavenger hunt, a cardboard haunted house, apple cheddar hand pies and pumpkin rolls are all calling to me. And of course, I'm already looking forward to the "Winter" e-book release!

****GIVEAWAY****

CONTEST ENTRIES CLOSED.... THE WINNER: Danita, who said "I love the cooler weather that Fall brings :) I also love all things pumpkin!"  So do I, Danita... and I know you will love this Autumn e-book too! Congratulations!

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

I bet you want a copy of The Artful Year, Autumn, for yourself, right? One lucky reader has a chance to win! Here's how:

• Leave a comment on this post for one chance to win - tell me what you LOVE about Autumn.
• Stop by and "like" A Natural Nester on Facebook for another chance (be sure to leave another comment here and let me know).
• While you're at it, "like" The Artful Parent too (again, leave a separate comment here to let me know) for yet another chance at winning.

 * Each comment counts as an entry! A winner will be announced next Friday, September 28th.

 

 Can't wait? Order your copy now for $9.99. (It's worth it, folks!)

 

My First Freezer Meal Swap

I'm really quite fond of communal gatherings that center around food... have you noticed? From potlucks to picnics to food swaps, I just love the way food brings people and families together. So of course I was over the moon to be invited to a "freezer meal swap" last weekend.

I joined five lovely young mamas, most with babies in tow, as they prepped and packed wholesome freezer meals to swap. The goal: to ease the challenge of cooking and serving a healthy, homemade meal every night. Basically, every participant shopped for and prepared one meal, five times (six if they included themselves). Then, we all gathered at one person's home and exchanged our meals (which were to be six-serving portions) to take home and freeze.

Swappers were instructed to bring our own dishes for the meals to be assembled and stored in, to make the swap as sustainable as possible. So rows of casserole dishes and storage jars lined the host's kitchen counters and farmhouse table, as we dished out our offerings in assembly line fashion.

Sides... rice, quinoa, and whole grain noodles... were packaged separately to be cooked along with their respective meals (butternut squash chicken curry, hearty chicken stew, roasted eggplant & basil parmesean). Pre-cooked cornbread accompanied a turkey & white bean tomatillo chili. And one-pot meals included a farmhouse turkey potpie and a roasted butternut squash, caramelized onion & spinach lasagna (my meal!).

The entire swap was organized via a Facebook, where each invitee posted two potential meals - with recipes and container needs - to an event wall. The meals were then voted on a week before the swap, so everyone had plenty of time to shop and prep.   

 The six-portion meals were a bit big for my crew, since my little chicks are a wee bit particular (ahem). Knowing it would be mostly me and my hubby enjoying these meals, I was able to portion them out into two-meal servings each... so I have 10 meals ready to go. Of course, we've already gotten into a few... what a lifesaver for busy nights!

~ Do you have any favorite, go-to freezer meals? I'd love some suggestions for the next swap! ~

(Family) Life is Messy... Cleaning Up & Lettting Go

I'm a bit of a neat freak. I don't like clutter and big messes. I believe everything has a place, and it should be returned to it. Simple, right? No. Enter an 8-year-old girl who is constantly creating something. This whirlwind of creation often leads to BIG messes and LOTS of clutter. Enter a 4 year old... enough said. Enter life as a busy family... it's just plain messy in all ways. So my obsessive self makes lists, formulas, plans... whatever it takes to give me some semblance of an ounce of control.

My organizational attempts are constantly evolving to meet my current situation. At the beginning of this school year, I made a new "weekly household to-do list." It breaks the week into days and lists my basic household responsibilities, as well as exercise (because if it's not written down, I tend to not do it). I thought you might like to see it:

MONDAY
□ Exercise: weight training
□ Laundry: towels & linens
□ Vacuum & mop floors
□ Clean out fridge
□ Empty trash cans

TUESDAY

□ Exercise: tennis or bike ride
□ Laundry: my clothes
□ Clean bathrooms
□ Bills & budget
□ Tend garden

WEDNESDAY

□ Exercise: Yoga
□ Laundry: sheets & towels
□ Clean kitchen

THURSDAY

□ Exercise: Tennis or bike ride
□ Laundry: misc.
□ Household paperwork & filing
□ Meal plan for weekend & next week
□ Tend garden

FRIDAY

□ Exercise: Weight Training
□ Household errands
□ Grocery shop

My girls have responsibilities too, and I made them a checklist for their weekly chores, as well as a "cleaning caddy." They have the whole week to dust (they love those feather dusters!) and clean the sliding glass doors. They have both learned to do their own laundry, with some help for my youngest, and are responsible for doing so. (My husband does his own laundry too.) And the girls have the daily tasks of setting and clearing the table, and keeping their rooms neat. They know I vacuum on Mondays and their floors must be clear at least that one day a week.

So far, my plan is working for me. I'm learning, too, to let a lot go (for me at least). If something doesn't get done on the list, I move on... there's always next week and it will be on there again.  I've learned to accept little messes all around me. And I get it now, after 8 years with little mess makers following me around, that it will never be perfect. That much I can release...

How do you stay on top of your household responsibilties? And how do you practice "letting go" in this area?

Autumn Inspiration :: Quill Pens & Rhythm of the Home

The Autumn Issue of Rhythm of the Home published today, and it's full of beauty and inspiration for the new season before us. Stop by and get in the mood for fall (my favorite season!!)...

My contribution is an article on how to Make a Quill Pen & Natural Ink - a fun way to use found feathers!

What do you love about Autumn?

Radishes for Breakfast

I made a quick stop at the produce market this morning and was filled with joy (yes, over produce) to find these beautiful, red radishes (99 cents!) and spring onions. They went into my basket with more fresh-grown delights, a gallon of local milk, a dozen local eggs, a loaf of fresh-baked multi-seed bread, some bacon and some goat cheese. On these busy weeks, I'm really glad to have a source for this fresh, "ready-made" goodness!

I couldn't wait to get get into the radishes and onions, so I made a post-workout breakfast no. 2. It was so yummy and simple... I sliced one onion and four radishes, then sauteed them in a bit of organic butter, homegrown thyme and sea salt, over medium heat. Once soft, I pushed the radish & onion mix to the side of the skillet to stay warm and cracked two of the local eggs into the pan, cooking them over-medium. Easy and so very tasty!

I can't wait to start pulling radishes from my own backyard garden... but in the meantime, I'm happy. How do you eat yours?