Jude Updates

November 11, 2014 by Aliesha

This little man is growing so much, and even though I don’t post monthly updates any more, I thought I’d share a few of his latest accomplishments!

Jude has been changing in so many new ways! He is starting to talk more, and he’s very insistent on telling us what he wants. He’ll point to things and say “dat!” He loves to play tickling games, and he’s learned how to point out where a few body parts are (nose, hair, belly button).

He claps sometimes, and he waves his hands and dances when we sing or play music. Call me crazy, but we even think he tried to sing a line from “Jesus Loves Me” the other day!

Jude knows a few signs, such as milk, more, and thank-you. He loves using “more” at the dinner table to get more food! He signs (and often tries to say) thank-you as well. It’s so sweet!

He likes when I read books to him and swing him on the porch. He is a super fast crawler, and he’s getting so close to standing on his own and walking! We’re pretty sure he’ll be walking within a month (at least we hope so!).

We’re so thankful for our happy little guy!

P.S. I know it looks like he has a sucker in that photo, but it’s really a toy spoon.

Motherhood // Encouragement {Guest Post}

November 10, 2014 by Aliesha

Today I’m so excited to welcome my friend Liz from The Quick Journey to guest post on my blog! Liz is a sweet friend and she is a great source of encouragement in mothering, homeschooling, and blogging. I asked her to share something encouraging regarding motherhood, so she has written this lovely post for you today!

Thank you, Aliesha, for letting me invade your part of the blog-world for a bit.

I am always encouraged by your words and wisdom.

*****

There are some mommas who know in their bones they were made for motherhood.

They spent a great deal of their childhood playing “house”

and dressing up their pets so they could treat them as their baby.

I was one of those mommas.

From very early on, I dreamt about what motherhood would be like.

To be honest, I thought about being a momma more than I did about my wedding.

Now, as a momma to my four little crew-members,

I can taste and feel motherhood in my bones.

I am on the battle lines of motherhood and it is so much more

fulfilling and overwhelming than I could have imagined it to be

as my young self so many years ago.

With all the wonderful blessings that come with motherhood,

there comes a fear- almost from instinct.

Being on the front lines can be suffocating and often times can make you feel

like you weren’t cut out to be with all the other mommas in the trenches.

Other moms are doing life better than you.

Other moms have it together while you struggle to simply tread water.

Other moms were made for this journey,

while you somehow snuck your way in through the back door of motherhood.

I want to encourage you.

I want to tell you that you are exactly where you need to be,

relying on God’s grace and provision in spite of your weaknesses.

I want you to know that your babies were knit inside your womb

because God knew that you were the momma your kiddos needed.

Those mommas who are part of the blessing of adoption,

God created your child for you.

He knew, from the very beginning,

that you were the perfect one to love, train, and kiss that baby,

even though you didn’t carry him in your belly.

So, when you are out there treading water with one last breath to take,

remember that you are right where you need to be-

being stretched and molded by your Father in heaven.

Liz is a stay-at-home momma and wife to her four “crew-members” and her high school sweetheart hubby. She enjoys decorating their home on a budget, drinking a piping hot cup of coffee, and being in the kitchen. Liz is the author of the lifestyle blog The Quick Journey, where you will find her chatting about her journey through motherhood.

Adventures in Soap-making {Review of Homegrown Collective’s October Box}

November 7, 2014 by Aliesha

Last Friday, I made some bars of soap! I can’t take much credit for this project, since I had a lot of help from a wonderful subscription box. This was a fun way to relax on a Friday afternoon, and I enjoyed knowing I could fully complete a project from start to finish!

Homegrown Collective is kind of like “Pinterest in a box.” Each month they send a special curated box filled with everything you need to make eco-friendly projects. Key words: everything you need. No more rounding up supplies only to find you’re missing an “ingredient” when you go to start the project!

This month’s box contained a melt & pour soap kit.

I was really excited about everything in the box! Melt and pour soap is very easy to make, since you just have to… yep… melt the bar (grated first) and pour it into the mold along with any add-ins.

Here’s what was included:
-directions and recipes for three kinds of soap
-goats milk melt and pour soap base
-clear melt and pour soap base
-white melt and pour soap base
-metal grater
-loofa
-mason jar
-stirring sticks
-pipette (for transferring oils)
-essential oils: lavender/chamomile, cedarwood, and tuberose
-rolled oats
-chamomile flowers
-dead sea salts
-activated charcoal
-three plastic soap molds

The first kind of soap was charcoal and cedarwood. This is a nice, manly soap that Tad will definitely enjoy using! The charcoal is detoxifying to the skin, and the cedarwood has a woosdy scent.

The next soap was dead sea salt and chamomile soap. This bar also included a loofa to cut up and put in the mold if you wanted. I got a little crazy with this one and left out the dead sea salts and loofah and swapped out lavender petals (from another box). So what I really made was lavender chamomile soap! The clear base allowed the flower petals to be visible and suspended in the soap, which was neat!

The last kind of soap was oatmeal, luffa, and tuberose soap. The tuberose essential oil smells amazing, and this was definitely my favorite soap. The oats add moisture to the skin, and the loofa exfoliates. I liked the goats milk base as well!

Here are all three soaps I made!

There were plenty of leftover add-on items to make many more bars of soap, so I ordered more soap base from an etsy seller so I can make more soap for gifts!

Homegrown Collective sends out a completely different box every month, so I can’t wait to see what next month’s box contains! As a busy mom, having everything all together in one kit really helps me out, plus I get to try new things that I maybe wouldn’t without this little “push”!

Learn more about the Homegrown Collective here!

Have you ever made soap?