DIY Glass Beaded Bracelets

From the ages of 7-12 I would spend a week each summer at Camp Conrad-Chinnock, a camp for type 1 diabetics. Some of my favorite childhood and pre-teen memories were made there...like my first kiss :)

Every day each cabin had a specific time where they would get to go to the craft shack. I always looked so forward to this. It was like a kid's craft heaven. There was everything you could imagine there. My favorite things to make were lanyards and glass beaded necklaces and bracelets. I always came home with a suitcase full of these two things. While glass beads aka seed beads have somewhat of a nostalgic feel to them I also think they can be fun for adults to wear as well.

In all honesty I had no idea how in the world you made bracelets with fancy things like lobster clasps and jump rings before this project. Thanks to the ladies working at Hobby Lobby I now know, although I am pretty sure they wanted to (run) be paid extra on the days where I came in with questions.

What you will need:

• Colorful glass beads+ spacer beads (I used gold)
  
• Gold beading wire
• Lobster clasps
• Crimp beads
• Jump rings
• Chain nose pliers
  

Use scissors to cut your wire according to your wrist size. Attach the crimp bead and lobster clasp to one of the ends.

Bend the end of the wire to make a loop and string it through the crimp bead. Use the pliers to clamp the crimp bead so it closes.

Begin stringing your beads on...

When you reach the end, place a crimp bead there and make another loop with the end of the wire just like you did in the beginning. Make sure you leave yourself enough slack. It is always better to start with a longer piece of wire rather than a shorter one just in case you need more room.

Using your pliers, open the jump ring and attach it to the end of the loop. You actually can skip this step if you want but I think it makes it look more finished.

Make as many as you want and stack em on your wrist!

Getttin Your Groove Back *Dating My Husband Again*

Let me paint you a picture of what dinner time is like at our house...

I am making dinner and my husband is walking around with Ronin in the Bjorn bouncing up and down trying to calm him down. You see, when I am in the room but I am not holding Ronin he does not approve and throws an absolute fit. Max then has to continually let us know that, "Brother is cryyyyyying!" Thanks buddy we had no idea.

In between being an announcer, Max is running around throwing his basketball into his hoop. The fun usually ends when the ball gets thrown a little too close to either me or his brother.

Once dinner is actually ready I am nursing Ronin while inhaling my dinner at record speed trying not to drop salad onto his head. This takes talent.

Our dinner conversation is usually all about the kids. We talk about what cute things Max did that day, how many times Max went on the big potty, how many times Ronin peed on me (yes this happens more often then I would like to admit) and how many naps he took. Maybe we will get a few sentences in there about Ian's day. Ya it's not very romantic or adult-ish in the slightest bit.

It is so easy to get used to this new normal and stop having actual adult conversations all together.

Ian and I realized we were both missing that one on one time we used to have so much. We both have things we wanted to talk to each other about and it started to seem like we were just acting like parent robots and forgetting about making quality time for each other.

To help break this cycle and make things feel a little more romantic and normal between the two of us we decided to start making it a priority to go on dates. Once a week (that is our goal) we actually get ready and go out on a date. We talk about whatever the heck we want. One to two hours of actual adult conversation is pretty much the best thing ever. Not only do I feel more confident with myself since I am all dressed up but I feel so much closer to my husband since starting this...plus his chances of getting lucky are even higher I noticed ;) Yep I just said that.

One of the best pieces of advice I got when I was pregnant with Max was to always remember you were a twosome before you were a threesome (or a now foursome).

If you have kids I would love to know if you have an established date rule with your other half. How long do you go until you realize you need some one on one time with each other?

On a side note: For those of you reading who may be raising kids on your own, you are simply amazing. If you have the option to get out and do things with your friends, do it. You deserve it.

If you missed part one of the series, you can read it here.

Things That Make Me Say Yeay

A Max and Mommy date. This was his first time ever eating a doughnut. Even though I do not eat sugar I do allow Max to have a treat every now and then. He was quite the fan and has requested one every single morning since. Not gonna happen ;)

Maybe the best garage sale find ever. A Schwinn bike for Max.

A new (to me) book all about home remedies and herbal medicine. I love this kind of stuff and can not wait to try out some of the recipes.

Homemade cacao cashew butter. I used the same method that I used here but just added a little organic cacao powder and a tbs of honey. So good! If you like homemade nut butters this is a must make.

My sweet little Ronin who is almost 2 months old...so crazy!

Have a wonderful weekend!

Paleo Chocolate Chip Cookies (no flour, dairy or refined sugar)

If I had a dollar for every low carb, flourless, cookie recipe that I have attempted over the past four or so months I would probably have about $13. That's a lot of cookie recipes that have SUCKED. I promise I will never post recipes on here that suck.

If I have my mind set on something I will not stop until I feel like I have accomplished it. This motto also applies to cookie making. I was about to just give up and move on until I came across this recipe. I decided to give it one last shot. SO glad I did.

What you will need:

• 1 cup of coconut flour (you can find this at almost any health food store)
• 1/2 cup of coconut oil
• 3 tbs of raw honey
• 4 eggs
• 1/2 tsp of vanilla extract
• 1/8 tsp of sea salt
• 1/2 cup of shredded unsweetened coconut
• 3/4 cups of gluten free chocolate chips (if you can not find gluten free you can use regular)

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
2. Melt the honey and coconut oil together in the microwave for about 15 seconds.
3. In a large bowl mix together the coconut oil, raw honey, eggs, vanilla extract and sea salt.
4. Stir in the coconut flour, shredded coconut and chocolate chips.
5. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and roll out little tbs size balls of cookie dough. Place on the baking sheet and gently press down so they look pretty once baked :)
6. Bake for 12-15 or until golden brown.

These did not suck. They were amazing. They were soft, chewy and moist. You would never know that they are flourless, have no butter, dairy or refined sugar. If you are following the Paleo diet these are %100 Paleo friendly.

Gettin Your Groove Back *staying active to stay sane*

A big part of gettin my groove back is getting back to the way I looked pre-pregnancy...or pretty close to it. Easier said than done I know. As of right now my stomach is a little squishy, my butt is a tad bit mushy, my thighs have a few too many dimples and my arms have a little jiggle but I am determined to feel good about myself once again. I hate talking about #'s because that is not what this is about but lets just say that I gained more than the recommended 25 pounds during my last pregnancy. Really though, who only gains 25 pounds? If you are one of those "ones" good for you. I'm pretty sure I gained 25 pounds in my butt alone.

Every woman has their routine that makes them feel good. This may be anything from sitting at a coffee shop listening to music to getting a pedicure. Mine is exercising and going to the gym. With a infant and a two year old this is not as easy as it used to be. Gone are the days when I can work out whenever I want. Since I am super motivated to make exercise a priority I have learned to get creative.

I have been doing workout videos while Ronin naps. Max likes to participate and it is hilarious. I also started switching off with my husband when he comes home from work to go on a run. Most of the time I am dead tired and this sounds like a horrible plan but I always follow the 10 minute rule. What is the 10 minute rule? You exercise for a minimum of 10 minutes and after 10 minutes if you still think it's a horrible plan you stop. 90% of the time you will want to keep going. Try it next time you feel unmotivated!

With all the pressures woman have to look a certain way, it is so easy to get caught up in that and maybe even obsess about it a little. I have been there before and it's not fun. As I slowly get back to the old me I am making a conscious effort to not worry so much about a number but rather to be strong fit and healthy, whatever that number may be.

I have to constantly remind myself that taking time for myself to be active does not mean I am being a selfish mom. In fact it is the opposite. When I am active and exercising I feel good about myself and in return I am a better wife and a happier Mom.

Latest Life Snippets

Morning snuggles with Ronin.

A flour less, butter less and refined sugar less cookie recipe that did not suck! I will be sharing the how to next week.

Taking both kids grocery shopping...by myself. I felt like I deserved a serious award for this! Never mind the fact that I might have had a mini panic attack brewing the entire time.

My first day back to the gym post pregnancy! I finally got cleared to resume normal activity this week and I am so ready to start workin on my fitness again.

Max doing tummy time with his brother. He is seriously the best big brother. Watching the two of them interact melts my heart and I can not wait to see their friendship grow.

All photos taken with my iPhone via Instagram.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Pin- tester *DIY Air Freshener*

I am pretty much the easiest person to market to when it comes to candles and air fresheners. "Hawaiian Sunset" and "Banana Cream Pie" get me every time. Now that I think of it does a sunset even have a scent? Who knows but I like it when I plug it in.

It has been a little while since I did a pin-tester and when I saw a pin that stated you could make your own air fresheners with just about any scent you want I was sold.

This pin came from a blog called The Burlap Bag.

What you will need:

• Baking soda
• Essential Oil. I used lavender (my favorite).
• Mason jar or container with a lid

Directions:

1. Pour about 1/4 cup of baking soda into your jar.
2. Add about 8-10 drops of essential oil.
3. Poke holes in the top of the lid. The original source used foil but I wanted mine to look a little more esthetically pleasing so I used a nail and hammered little holes in the mason jar lid.
   
4. Shake it up a little and you are done!
   

My final verdict: Well my whole house did not smell like a lavender filled satchel like I imagined but I think this works great if you put it in a smaller space like a bathroom, which is where I ended up putting this. I also loved that this whole project is super cost effective and cost me a whole nothing since I had all the supplies needed.

New Series *Gettin Your Groove Back*

I am starting a new series on my blog called "Gettin Your Groove Back"

The plan is once a week I will share my journey of how I plan to get my pre-pregnancy self back. This is not just about weight, although I will be talking about that because let's be honest you gain weight when pregnant. I gained a lot.

I know I am not the best at keeping up with series (like this one), but this is something I am really excited about and I am going to hold myself accountable to. It is so easy to get stuck in a rut and feel like you might have lost yourself a little bit. Yes I am a Mom but that does not mean I need to forget all about myself and stop doing the things I love. My hope is to inspire other women who may have similar feelings...Mom or not.

Every woman had "their time" before husbands, children and responsibilities and I think it's always important to feel sexy and confident no matter what stage of life you're in.

I will be starting the first post of the series next week.

Things That Make Me Say Yeay

Warm gooey cinnamon rolls that Max and Ian enjoyed last weekend for their birthday shenanigans.

Our first date...without kids! It was pretty awesome. I enjoyed seared ahi tuna and a glass of wine. Two of the things that I was missing during pregnancy.

The coolest little sock bun maker. After ruining a few pairs of socks I decided to get this thingy. You can buy it at H&M for around $3.

Sock bun success! Okay so you can't really see it so just trust me that it's there :) And hello to my sweet little sleepy fella.

Have a wonderful weekend!

How to make your own lip plumping lip gloss

Most women (at least the ones I know) like the idea of having nice full natural looking lips. Since store bought lip plumpers are usually pretty pricey, this homemade version not only works just like a lip plumper should but it is super inexpensive to make yourself!

The secret ingredient that most of the expensive lip plumpers have in them is cinnamon oil. Cinnamon oil works by stimulating blood flow, which makes it the perfect (natural) lip-plumping agent. The more you add the more your lips will tingle and plump.

What you will need:

• Clear unscented lip gloss
• %100 pure cinnamon essential oil

Pour 7-8 drops of cinnamon oil into the bottle of clear lip gloss. Trust me, this stuff is powerful so you do not want to over do it. I am a total dummy and put the cinnamon oil on my lips without diluting it with the lip gloss because I was so impressed with how it plumped...ya do not do that.

Put the cap back on and make sure you evenly mix up the oil. Apply to your lips...and watch the plumping magic happen!

Max Turns Two!

Today my sweet little boy Max turns two! Since his actual birthday is today (a Tuesday) we decided celebrating over the weekend would be best so our whole giant family could all be there. Since Max is now aware of events and concepts, we have been building up his birthday for what seems like forever now. Every day leading up to the party Max would go over the the list of people who were invited and tell me who was allowed to come and who wasn't ha! Who was "allowed" to come changed on a daily basis. He completely cracks me up. To say he has been excited is an understatement. When Sunday finally rolled around Max did an actual happy dance when I told him we were finally going to his birthday party. I have never seen him happier in his whole two years of life.

Last year I went all out for his birthday and like any one year old, he remembered nothing. This year I wanted zero clean up and the idea of having a bunch of hooligans (aka toddlers) running around our tiny backyard pulling up our tomato plants sounded like a big...NO. This year we had Max's party at a wonderful little hole in the wall pizza place. It was perfect.

Getting super shy as everyone sang him Happy Birthday :)

We practiced blowing out candles the day before...and he was so happy to show off his new candle blowing out skills.

Even though I ended up opening all of his presents (he cared more about his .25 little jelly skeleton that he won from an arcade game more than all of his awesome presents at that moment), he was so excited when we got home and explained that all these new toys were his!

Ronin slept through the whole thing. He loves chaos and screaming kids apparently.

Happy Birthday Max!

Hello Friday!

I can not believe how fast this week went by! Is it really Friday already? Geese louise. I hope everyone had an awesome 4th of July. We went to my Dad's house where we swam and had a giant BBQ. It was a pretty perfect day...minus the fact that I fell asleep before the fireworks went off. Hey that's what happens when you are livin off of 4 hours of sleep. Oh well, there is always next year! Ronin turned one month old this Wednesday and I wish I could freeze time. I want him to stay my little butterball for just a little bit longer. Seriously he has chins for days and I love all three of them :)

Hope you have a wonderful weekend! We are celebrating Ian's 27th birthday on Saturday and Max's 2nd birthday on Sunday. It is going to be a fun cake filled weekend and I can not wait.

Flourless Blueberry Scones

Yep you read that right...flourless scones! How? Almond flour (whole almonds that have been ground into a fine powder). Do they taste good? I am just answering your questions ahead of time ;)... YES.

As a type 1 diabetic, scones are on the top of my DO NOT eat list. If I even attempt to taste a real carby loaded scone it will send my blood sugar into the dangerous high zone for hours...leaving me feeling like crap all day long. After making delicious Paleo flourless brownies, I knew this recipe for Paleo scones was something I needed to try asap. I made a few little modifications and I was so happy with how these turned out!

What you will need:

• 2 cups of almond flour
• 1/4 tsp of sea salt
• 1 tsp of baking soda
  
• 1 cup of dried blueberries
• 1/4 cup of unsweetened shredded coconut
• 1 egg
• 2 tbs of agave nectar
  

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees
2. In a large bowl, mix together the almond flour, sea salt, baking soda, blueberries and coconut.
3. In a small bowl, mix the egg and agave nectar together.
   
4. Combine the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix until blended together.
   
5. Use your hands to knead the dough to thoroughly distribute all the ingredients.
6. Form dough into two large circles about 1/2 inch thick.
   
7. Cut each circle like a pizza. You can determine how large or small you would like to make your scones.
   
8. Place scones on a parchment lined baking sheet.
9. Bake for 10 minutes or until the tops are golden brown.

I was shocked how "real" these tasted. I topped mine with a little coconut butter and enjoyed every last morsel. I highly recommend that you don't just take my word for it and make these yourself so you can be in flourless heaven like me.