Gluten Free Muffins

   Last night I made gluten free Blueberry muffins

   Gluten free Banana muffins.

   I also made some chocolate chip,pecan cookies last night,they aren't really healthy and they aren't gluten free  so I cannot eat them but I'm sure the family will enjoy them very much :) 

     The Blueberry muffins turned purple and are a little tough,I think its the recipe,I used new recipes for both and wasn't too impressed with the blueberry ones.Next time I think I will try the same recipe I used for the banana except use blueberries instead of bananas :)
   I love to bake and cook,and have really been trying hard to only serve healthy options to my family for every meal.

This is How Lilly shops at the thrift store :)

A Shooting Down the Street

   My heart is very heavy,last night at 11pm shots rang out and neighbors heard screaming.The cops were called and two people are left dead and one in critical condition.
   This kind of thing never happens in our small city of 52000 people.Our state is among the top six with the lowest crime rate in America.We are one of the highest ranked states to raise a family,one of the states with the lowest unemployment rate.Our city sees maybe one murder  a year,and then it is usually a transient death.So far we have had multiple homicides this year and now 3 in the past 6 weeks.
   It makes me sad because all over America we are hearing about homicides,school shootings,shootings,gang murders,drug deals gone wrong,prostitutes being murdered,children being slain by their own parents and people whom they trust.Innocent people are losing their lives daily.
   What has happened to America,the land of freedom?
   The daily  news makes me cringe at raising my children in this sinful world,some days I wonder if they are even safe in their own beds at night.I wonder if they are safe around friends,or to go to the park or grocery store.
   But then I remember everything is in Gods hands and He is in control.So as hard as it might be at times I  am struggling every day just to lay it all down at the feet of the Savior who is watching over this dark sinful world with great sadness.I struggle to just trust Him with my children,to put them in HIS hands and trust Him to protect them and keep them safe.Tonight I realized that worrying about these things does me no good at all because it is not in my hands.All I can do is focus on the moment and live each as though i were my last so I can live without regrets.

yummy!

   We make smoothies almost every day,today I changed them up a little and we also made star shaped,smoothie popsicles!Yummy!

Getting Ready for Our first Day of Homeschool

   Tomorrow is out first day of homeschool!I'm really excited to get into a routine and start working on different projects with the girls.We wont have too much of a set schedule this year because Daisy is only 4 and Lilly is 2 1/2.But I do plan to work on all the letters and numbers and see where Daisy goes from there :)  

   Yesterday I was in Target and happened to see their little section of dollar items was full of school supplies,mostly supplies for teachers.I was really excited as they had a Teachers day planner (only $1!) and I had been hoping to find one for cheap so I could document our school year for myself and for future reference.

   I also got some different flashcards,animals,dinosaurs,letters and shapes,and insects.The girls were really thrilled about them.

   I also got paints,finger paints,markers,watercolor paints,crayons,etc all the fun stuff :)

   Its going to be such a fun experience and I cannot wait!

Coffee Time

   Girls are laying down,the house is freezing so its coffee time!

Lillian Update

   Lilly had a doctors appointment this morning to address some of the ongoing behaviour issues we have had for quite some time now.I was very disappointed when our doctor said he has no answers for us and no clue in which direction to point us :( I almost felt like crying and right there at that moment I decided once again I need to just suck it up and be a big girl and figure out what we are going to do.Because honestly,what other option do i have? lol
   Lilly is half potty trained,we use a giant sticker chart and tons of stickers and praise and treats if she poos on the potty etc.well,even tho she is almost potty trained she STILL goes all over the floor at almost any chance she gets.I know for a fact she knows what she is about to do because if she has panties on she takes them off before she pees so she doesn't get her Minnie mouse panties wet lol I made adapted pjs a few months ago and they help some in the evenings and bedtime but for now I'm going to get some kind of waterproof mat that will cover her whole floor and the worry about her carpet will be eliminated lol its a strange thing really because she thinks its funny and howls with laughter when someone reacts to her peeing on the floor.I have ceased to react at all so maybe it will lose its fun factor soon lol
   Another issue we have struggled with alot is Lillys sleeping disorders,last night  we decided to take the tvs out of both girls bedrooms and see what happened.We had given them each their own tvs because they didnt sleep at night and we thought it must suck to lay in bed for hours and not be able to sleep.LO AND BEHOLD! Both girls were alseep in 15 minutes of going to bed!I felt like I had hit the jackpot!yay! We will see how it works tonight :)

Something I whipped up

   Had a very,very short notice birthday party today.I think maybe I had 4 hours or so and no gift.So I made this little darling baby hedgehog from out of my mind,the picture does her no justice but I was in such a rush by the time I got done I forgot to take pics except this one I forwarded to a friend on my phone :)

Sidewalk Fun

   We don't have a big fun yard or much outdoor space for the girls to enjoy,however we do have this big beautiful sidewalk that runs the entire length of our row of town houses.In the evenings Nick and I sit outside with the girls and we bring out a giant bag of sidewalk chalk and all the neighborhood children come draw with us.The girls love getting to enjoy the neighbor kids and we enjoy spending time getting to know the kids.My best friend lives one row down from us so her two kids often come play outside with us and the girls love having playmates so close.This is what the sidewalk leading up to our house looks like right about now,well all the chalk is back in the bag in the cupboard and the bikes are put away and its neat and orderly now too :)

Smoothie

   I love making Smoothies for us to enjoy on these warm summer afternoons.I kind of just dump things into the blender and whiz it all up :)
Yesterdays smoothies consisted of plain yogurt,frozen bananas,frozen strawberries and blueberries,whipped up with a little juice concentrate to thin the frozen stuff just a little.They were delicious served in wine goblets with a straw and the girls loved them :)

Healthy Breakfast

   I have always been somewhat health conscious and always tried to feed my kids healthy foods for every meal,but the last little while I had become somewhat lax and even bought the "dreadful" pop tarts for an occasional quick breakfast meal.The other day I looked ion the freezer and realized I had kind of fallen into the rut of wanting to do a quick breakfast without much preparation and little mess,there were toaster strudels,precooked sausages,precooked pancakes and waffles etc.Honestly my friends even I was mortified lol it was right then and there I decided out with the old,frozen,precooked,and in with the fresh healthy foods.
   I made up a big container of homemade(from scratch) gluten free pancake batter and put it in the fridge for a quick,hearty,filling breakfast. Both of my girls have always been kind of picky eaters so there are a limited amount of foods they will eat.I have been trying little tricks to get them to eat more quality foods.Yesterday I cooked up pancakes,topped them with plain yogurt and pink and blue sprinkles(not the healthiest option I know) but hey,it worked!In the grand scheme of things I will take sprinkles any day over chocolate pop tarts :) and I served spaceship shaped fruit smoothie Popsicles and the girls were thrilled!

A Day at the Children's Village