it's amazing what you find in your kitchen in seven minutes...

it's no secret that i hate housework. and i mean,

i.

hate.

housework.

well, it's not so much doing it that bothers me. it's the unendingness of it all. i can clean off the counters right now, but by tonight, they'll be covered with stuff again. and laundry. seriously, when is someone going to invent perma-clean clothes????????

ugh.

a few years ago, i gave FlyLady a whirl (the link is on the sidebar). and found it to be just as overwhelming as the mess in my house. so that was a no-go.

but, a friend suggested it again a few weeks ago, so i decided to sign up again. and yes, it took me a while to figure out how to wade through all those emails (and WOW! there are a lot!), which ones to read and which ones to delete unread. but now that i've figured that out, i'm actually not so overwhelmed by it all.

(and please ignore the irony that i can tackle the clutter in my inbox but want to cry when i look at my coffee table.)

anyhoo...

the other day, she issued a challenge: clean up. do it all, toss stuff, put stuff away, wipe stuff down. everything.

for seven minutes.

that's right.

seven minutes.

"bah!" i thought, trapped in some semi-dickensian (time-)warped frame of mind, "seven minutes! i can't clean the house in seven minutes!! humbug!!"

but then i thought... you know... it's only seven minutes... maybe i'll try it...

and prove FlyLady wrong...

because we all know you can't get anything accomplished in seven minutes.

and so, i set off to the black hole pile of clutter kitchen to do some tidying and cleaning. again, thinking, "seriously, seven minutes?? bah! humbug!!" and i set the timer on the stove.

and do you want to know what i did in that seven minutes??

i put away the remaining pantry stuff from christmas that had not previously fit in the pantry. but it fits now... other than the case of KD, so, admittedly, that's still on the floor.

i put all kinds of stuff into recycling.

i almost threw up a bit when i looked in my mini compostainer.

i found several forks.

i found a couple spoons.

i found parts of the floor i'd forgotten were there.

i found out what colour my counter is.

i found my breadmaker.

ok, the breadmaker wasn't lost. i knew where it was. but i couldn't get to it. but now i can!!!

turns out, you can accomplish quite a bit in seven minutes! who knew!!!

ok, probably a lot of you. i'm sure this is some centuries-old strategy and i'm just ridiculously slow in learning it.

and now i have a new housework mantra:

it doesn't need to be perfect; it just needs to be done.

so my plan for today is:

• seven minutes cleaning the kitchen.
• seven minutes tidying the living room.
• seven minutes looking for the dining room table.
• seven minutes in the bathroom.

and i may, perhaps, if i have time (i have to work at 3:30), do the challenge from one day last week: the 27-item fling. basically, you get a garbage bag (or item from your declutter kit, haha), and get rid of 27 things. could be 27 flyers. could be 27 pieces of clothing that are too small. could be 27 toys the kids don't play with anymore. could be 27 mini chocolate bar wrappers. could be 27 miscellaneous items of various shapes and sizes and degrees of decomposition. just get rid of 27 things from the house. if they're donate-able, then toss them in your vehicle and take them straight to the nearest Goodwill or BFM or whatever. if they're garbage, take them outside. if they're recyclable, recycle them. but just get rid of them.

who knows?? by the end of this week, i just might find my floor... at least, i hope so. 

well, i don't know about yours, but our christmas was... wow.

back in early november, i received an email from a dear, dear friend:

Dear Heather

The Christmas season is fast approaching and while the season is one of love, joy, peace and hope, it can also be a season of stress when you have children and want to give them that magical Christmas morning experience.

It was going to be more of a surprise (initially) but after a few conversations with your mom, we decided that perhaps we should share our plans with you in order to alleviate some of the holiday stresses you are feeling.   So here it is:   This year Christmas is on us.   My family, including my parents,  would like to give you guys Christmas.   The plan right now is new pajamas for each child, a new outfit for each child, warm hats and mittens for each, and some new toys for each child.   Plus a bin of dry goods for your cupboards, a gift card for the grocery store (and a few things for you but those can be kept secret!).   Your mom has given me some great ideas for each kiddo (she was my spy on the weekend lol), but if you know something special they are "asking Santa for" or a specific request please let me know.   We were planning to drop the gifts off at your moms (either wrapped or unwrapped depending on if you wanted to see them first or not) and then you can give them to the kids from you.   My children know they are helping shop for some fabulous kids to help them have a great Christmas, but they don't know it's your kids (because they do play once in a while and I didn't want my kids to mention something, albeit innocently and make yours uncomfortable).

Let me know if I'm on the right track.   I'm sorry to blow the secret, and I was planning to just be "santa's elf" but after talking to your mom I didn't want you to be stressed out leading up to Christmas.   I hope that this helps!   I can't think of a family who deserves a little love more than you guys.   You are an amazing mom and you've raised three wonderful, loving, happy children.   And I couldn't be more proud to be your friend.

Merry Christmas! xo

can you believe that?!?! when i read that email, i bawled. an amazing gift from a wonderful friend for my incredible children.

i didn't have to worry about a single gift for the kids. (mind you, i went along thinking for over a month that i didn't have to buy anything, la dee dah, i have no shopping to do so yes, i'm ready for christmas, are you?, and then it occurred to me a couple weeks ago that i needed to buy stuff for my parents, brother, his girlfriend, my grandmother... yeah. insert mad dash to the mall in london and voila! most of that shopping done under budget and in a couple hours. yes, i'm just. that. good. HAHA!!)

christmas morning was, well, unbelievable. the kids got everything on their wishlists. blithe got all things justin bieber, bram got all things lego, and asher got all things elmo. blithe also got an easy bake oven and a lalaloopsy doll, and the boys got some transformers, too.

and the thing is... they were so grateful!! that afternoon, bram was playing with his lego while i wrote a note to my aunt, and he looked up at me and said,

"mommy, i'm really thankful for everything i have."

have you ever heard something so wonderful???

well, i have. that night, as blithe was saying her prayers, she thanked God for all the gifts we got, "because I know they came from you. how did you know i wanted a singing justin bieber doll and an easy bake oven?? well, i suppose you know everything, so of course you would know that, right?"

yesterday, we were driving home from church, and blithe said to me,

"mommy, i'm really thankful for everything you and nana and bampa bought us."

i said, "sweetie, i only gave you a couple things. nana and bampa only gave you a few things. most of those gifts you received yesterday weren't from me or nana and bampa."

and her jaw dropped.

she's been a bit unsure about santa this year, not sure if she still believes or not. but yeah. i'm pretty sure she believes now.

(in case you haven't realized, the kids don't know about this gift to us. i had told blithe that santa is the spirit of giving at christmas, and that's what i'm sticking with. all this stuff... yeah. it's from santa.)

surprise, surprise, i've taken up a new hobby

so, yesterday, asher and i went a-shopping. we were in search of a scarf for him, because, well, it's cold out now, and well, he doesn't have a scarf.

seems logical enough.

did you know that wal-mart doesn't have scarves for wee lads???

or at least none that i could find.

but what i did find...

was yarn!!

and knitting needles!!!

now, i used to knit a little bit, way back when blithe was a baby. and i've been wanting to get back to it lately, because, you know... i don't have enough on my plate lately. haha

anyway, asher loved the idea of a handmade scarf, so he helped me to pick out some yarn for himself and for bram (blithe already has a scarf), and i grabbed some needles, and off we went.

when i came home, i looked up knitting instructions on youtube. so now i've learned to tie a slip know (haha, yes, i needed to start there, apparently), cast on, and do the basic knit stitch. awesome!!!

so far, i am 5 or 6 rows into the scarf, and i'm loving every second of it!! it's very soothing and calming, since it's so repetitive and quiet. i'd forgotten how much i love knitting!!

when i'm done the scarf, i'll post a picture of it so you can marvel at my knitty genius. :)

snow day = kitchen day!!

the menu for today:

breakfast: oatmeal chocolate chip muffins. yes, from a mix, but they were yummy!

lunch: split pea soup. (see recipe below)

snack: peanut butter nuggets. (see recipe below)

supper: probably potato pancakes. le yum!

i made the muffins myself, and added a bit of cinnamon, as i mentioned in my previous post. they were good!! i also made the soup on my own, but it would have been very easy for blithe to help with it. probably not the boys, but definitely blithe. the PB nuggets will be made by the kids and me, though mostly them. the potato pancakes, i will likely make those myself. here are the recipes:

Split Pea Soup with veggies
split peas. i don't know how much. just throw them into the pot.
chicken broth. i just poured until it covered the peas.
water. added just a little bit, not much. enough to make it about an inch higher than the peas
some chopped carrots.
half a small onion, chopped.
garlic, salt

seriously, toss it all into a pot, turn on the stove, and walk away. easy peasy. once it's done cooking, use a hand blender to... um... blend it. and then enjoy. it will be nice and thick (but not too thick). it's good with crackers, though i suspect croutons would be even better.

Peanut Butter Nuggets (from allrecipes.com)
2/3 cup crushed cornflakes (or rice krispies... because that's what i have on hand)
1/2 cup shredded coconut
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
2 tablespoons honey

1. mix 1/2 cup corn flakes, coconut, peanut butter and honey together.
2. shape into small balls and roll them in remaining cornflakes.

*these cookies can be put in the fridge to firm up.
**these cookies freeze well.
***yield: 2 dozen

UPDATE: the kids loved making these, and we all loved eating them!! we rolled them in icing sugar instead of rice krispies, and they were wonderful!!


Old-Fashioned Potato Pancakes (from allrecipes.com)
3 cups shredded peeled potatoes
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1/4 cups grated onion
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3 tbsp minced fresh parsley. (obviously, you would need more if you're using dried... which is what i have)
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper

Rinse potatoes in cold water; drain thoroughly. in a bowl, mix potatoes, eggs, onion, flour, parsley, salt and pepper. pour batter by 1/3 cupfuls onto a greased hot griddle. fry 5-6 minutes on each side or until potatoes are tender and pancakes are golden brown.
*yield 2 servings
**i usually shred 3 to 4 potatoes and then just eyeball the quantities from there. always turns out deliciously! :)
***mmm... potato pancakes with syrup... le drool!!!

SNOW DAY!!!!!!

that's right, folks, winter has officially arrived in our area. we have gotten so much snow that school is cancelled today!!! so here's the plan for the day:

the kids and i are going to do some papercrafting, and we'll read a bit. i'm about to make some muffins. the kids will probably go outside to play for a little while, and when they come in, we'll have hot chocolate. and i might make some soup today. i'm thinking... carrot? or maybe skip the soup and make stew? dunno yet. i'll let you know what i decide.

i'm going to keep updating this post as the day goes on, to keep you abreast of the minutiae of the day here. because, if you're honest with yourself, you know you're dying to know. haha

UPDATE #1: the muffins were yummy. oatmeal chocolate chip. sure, i used a mix and didn't make them from scratch, but they're still yummy. and i added cinnamon, which adds a little something extra. delightful! :) as for the soup... blithe has specifically requested split pea soup, which she is going to help make. can't wait!

UPDATE #2: the soup is cooking, and it smells wonderful. {blissed out smile} but you know i'm all about handy household hints, so here's one for you: if you decide to make split pea soup, and you decide to turn the container with the peas upside down, make sure the container is shut tight first... or just don't turn it over. that would work, too... i guess. but anyhoozle... the kids have played outside. bram is the proud creator of not one, not two, but three snow angels. they all came in, bright-eyed and rosy cheeked. oh! and runny-nosed. can't forget that one! haha

at some point this afternoon, i plan to brave the out-of-doors and shovel the driveway. but i have discovered the advantage to living across from a field: blowing snow. which, contrary to what you might be thinking, is actually rather handy on days like today. you see, even though the snow is whipping around and getting dumped on us today... it just blows right past my driveway!!! so i will only need to shovel a few inches, instead of a couple ashers-worth of snow (snow piled as high as two ashers). so that's pretty handy, if you ask me. {wink}

on a side note, i must remember to either find or purchase a snow brush for the truck. because i can't find it. the truck, i mean. asher looked out the window this morning and said, "we have a white car now!" and bram changed her name to "whiter." yup. lots of snow today.

ok, maybe winter isn't so bad. (wait! who wrote that???)

before i continue on to this post, i want you to check out our weather forecast for the next couple days. (click on "our weather forecast." it takes you to the weather channel's page for our town.) notice all the snow. it started last night, just lightly. but today... yup. lots of snow. the roads aren't pretty (and coincidentally, my truck's front end isn't pretty anymore, either. stupid guardrails). they're very slippery and messy and all-around nasty. if you live in this area and don't absolutely need to go out, don't.

which leads to the point of this post:

those things about winter that are wonderful and remind me of the little blessings in my life:

• warm coffee in my favourite christmas mug. it's a giant mug covered with candy canes, etc. it is also ideal for hot chocolate.
• hot chocolate with the kidley-winks. a rare treat, but a fun one. 
• de-icing windshield washer fluid. which reminds me: i need to put de-icing windshield washer fluid in the truck.
• staying inside, snuggled on the couch, and enjoying the sounds of the kidley-winks playing.
• the smells of soups, chilis, casseroles and breads emanating from the kitchen
• the look of the snow in the backyard
• the sights and sounds of the kidley-winks playing in the snow
• christmas parties. 'nuff said. 
• hot apple cider. preferable mulled with all those lovely things like cinnamon, cloves, orange slices... mmm....
• comfy cozy slippers. espcially leopard-print comfy cozy slippers.
• yoga pants and my pink, over-sized coconut joe sweatshirt. (quite a picture i paint, no?)

and one other thing. this afternoon, i went out to the shed to get the shovels. as it happens, they were buried under 50 lbs or so of carpet and underpad. and it was wedged between all of that and a pile of boxes. nice. anyhoo, as i was swearing grunting and pulling and trying desperately to not pull all that carpeting on top of myself, my neighbour came outside and asked if i'd like him to shovel the driveway for me. he's out there right now, not so much "shoveling" as "blowing" the snow.

so, ok. i'll admit. there are some wonderful things about winter.

and cherish this post. come february, i won't be so keen on finding blessings. by then, i'll be cursing the snow and the cold and the ice and the lack of sunshine and being stuck inside all day... ugh. but for now, i'm choosing the focus on the good things.

now, please pass the vitamin D supplements. 

best. product. ever.

ok, so we all know that i love to cook. love it. and i'm learning to {mumble, mumble, mumble}.

what's that? you didn't understand me there?

sigh.

ok, fine. i'm learning to enjoy baking, too.


there, i said it. sigh.

and so, in that vein, i am learning to appreciate certain products that i never fully appreciated before. and one of those products is

Europe's Best frozen berries. honestly. i lurv these things.

now, usually, i prefer the raspberries. because raspberries rock. but, the kids prefer the mix, so that is what i end up buying, nine times out of ten.

why do i love these so much, you ask? well, gentle reader, let me tell you!!

1. not overly expensive. even on my "budget." and sometimes you'll find them on sale. and yes, they sell them at Shoppers Drug Mart, so i get a 30% discount, which in my books, makes them pretty darn reasonable.

2. frozen means "not packed in sugar and preservatives." that's right, folks, nothing added. just berries and cold. sure, they're not fresh. i understand that. but they're fresh when they get freezed (as opposed to "when they are frozen," which is the state in which i buy them... see the difference? and yes, i invented a word. but i'm a writer, so i'm allowed some creative license with the language, i think. {wink}) so that's good enough for me (except when they're in season, but it's almost december here, so pretty much nothing is in season at the moment).

3. yumminess. again, raspberries FTW ("for the win," for you non-cyber-types). the blackberries are also nice. and the kids love the strawberries and blueberries (pa-tooie!), so it's all good.

4. healthiness. is that a word? who knows. who cares. you know what i mean. and really, do i need to elaborate on this one??

ok, ok, i'll grant that some people will have complaints about frozen berries. specifically, that they get soggy. and yes, ok, i'll admit, that if you're just pulling some berries out of the bag, thawing them and eating them straight up like that, yes. they're going to be soggy and gross. but! to those people, i say...

dude, seriously! diversify!!!

here's a list, totally off the top of my head as i'm writing here, of things you can make with these berries:

• smoothies
• milkshakes (which in this house, are the same thing as smoothies. but bram doesn't like smoothies, but he loves milkshakes. just don't tell him they're the same thing. {wink})
• parfait, a la Europe's Best website.
• parfait, a la heather. which is, in this order from bottom to top: yogurt (vanilla or berry), frozen berries, granola. le yum!
• pies. and really, who doesn't love pie?
• jams
• muffins
• banana bread

need i go on? or are you getting the idea? i sure hope you are.

i also hope you're grabbing your purse and heading out to the grocery store and picking up a bag of these little drops of baking heaven.

and yes, in case you're wondering, they have a bunch of varieties of fruit, not just berries. they also have cranberries, mangoes, peaches, blueberries, etc. and they have veggies, too. asparagus (which is lovely), spinach (a post is forthcoming about that little gem, too), potatoes, and many others.

and also, in case you're wondering, if you click on the links in this post, you will be taken to the Europe's Best website. there you'll find the complete list of products, as well as a whole lot of recipes. and who doesn't love recipes, eh???