Healthy Snacks...

Lately, I have been looking for ideas for yummy, healthy snacks.  We usually eat pretty well for meals, but when it comes to snacks, we tend to just eat whatever we can find.  Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know there are carrot sticks, apples, and other fruits and veggies to snack on, but that doesn't always cut it.  I want something with a little more substance, but that is still good for me. 

I found a recipe for homemade granola bars on A Hint of Honey (check out Chewy Granola Bars in her recipe index for the original recipe).  I LOVE this blog!  She sometimes uses a little more fancy ingredients that I don't tend to buy, but its great for inspiration.  This recipe is so yummy and super versatile, so you can make it different every time if you want different flavors. 

Here is how I did it today:

2 cups rolled oats
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup wheat germ
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg (I like a little spice, but you can definitely leave this out)
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup honey
1 egg, beaten
1/2 banana, mashed
1/2 cup applesauce (instead of oil)
2 tsp. vanilla
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350.  Generously grease a 9x13 baking pan.  In a large bowl mix together dry ingredients.  Make a well in center and pour in remaining ingredients.  Mix together with hands or spatula (it's a little sticky, so maybe oil the spatula).  Press the mixture evenly into the pan.  Bake 18-25 minutes, until tops are golden.  Remove from oven and cool 5 minutes in pan, then cut into bars while still warm.  Store in an airtight container or freeze. 

They have never lasted long enough for me to freeze any, so I can't tell you that they thaw well or not.  You can add so many different things to this recipe...pumpkin, coconut, almonds, raisins, flax seed, craisins...anything you have in the cupboard.  I used whole wheat flour, which requires a little extra liquid (so I added the 1/2 mashed banana).  If you use regular flour, you could go without the banana. 

Ok, now it's your turn!  Do you have any great healthy snack recipes??  I'd love to try them out!!

Be Joyful Always...

"Be joyful always; pray continuously; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Jesus Christ". 
                    1 Thessalonians 5:16

I am really trying to make this my life verse, especially in this season of life.  I am finding, as a mom, there are so many things that can easily turn my day for the worst.  A grumpy kid, having nothing ready for dinner, forgetting my coupons at home when I go grocery shopping, running out of 1/2 and 1/2 for my coffee...the list could go on.  There are so many days where I could use extra encouragement, especially on the days when my only human contact is with my sweet boy who looks at me and says "dada"...yeah, makes me feel really special :)  I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE being a mom.  It is the ONLY thing I have ever wanted to do and I am beyond grateful that God has blessed us with Calvin, and blessed me with a husband who wants me to stay home with our kids as badly as I want to.  There is just no denying that there are hard days. 

So I am challenging myself to look to the Lord for encouragement, not to those around me.  It hasn't always been easy for me to stay consistent with my quiet times with the Lord, but I know I need them, and I see the obvious difference in my attitude when I have those quiet times.  I know it will help me feel more encouraged...I know it will help me be more patient with Calvin...I know it will help me have more productive days.  I love this verse because it tells me exactly what God wants me to do...and if I'm doing exactly what God wants me to do, how can I feel discouraged??  I love that the sacrifice Jesus made makes it possible for me to have a personal, joyful relationship with the Lord, and I am going to try and make that the focus of my day...not the things that are going wrong. 

Will you pray for me?  That I will seek the Lord for encouragement?  I will be praying for you, too! 

And just to put a smile on your (and my) face...

Fabulous Fourth!

Well, it was a little bittersweet celebrating the last of Calvin's "first" holidays...but it was so much fun!  He did great all day!  We celebrate our fourth of July up in Blaine every year with my extended family.  If you've never been up there for the fourth, they put on a great show...parade, street fair, bands, and wonderful fireworks!  Honestly, some of the best fireworks I've seen, not just because they're big, but because you can pretty much be right underneath them...awesome! Calvin "mostly" enjoyed the fireworks.  We were hoping he'd take a "nap" at his normal bed time, but didn't so he was exhausted.  He watched the first few minutes of fireworks, fell asleep, then woke up a bit later and was not so happy.  But it was a great first attempt :) 
It was a great, relaxing day celebrating with family, and enjoying the sunshine!!

WAY too cool!

Parade Fun!

So happy my cake turned out!  It isn't near as pretty as the one on Glorious Treats, but at least it looked like it was supposed to!!  I was really nervous cutting into it :) 

Hurry up and start, fireworks, this boy won't sit still!!

Fake Weekend

With Jake's schedule at Costco, he typically doesn't have weekends off.  But every once in a while, he gets two days off together in the middle of the week and we have a fake weekend!  We knew we needed to do something, so we headed back out to Lummi! 
It rained on the way out there, and then was sunny for two days!  I'm pretty sure the clouds part over Lummi Island because it is ALWAYS sunny out there!!  We had a fabulous, restful time, walking up and down the beach, finding sea glass and starfish, playing games, and spending time as a family.  We also visited the beach where Jake proposed almost four years ago.  We hadn't been back since that special day and it was so fun to relive those memories.  Can't wait for our next fake weekend!!

We love the beach!!

Church Beach--where Jake and I got engaged almost 4 years ago!!

Oh, Lummi...

I LOVE Lummi Island!  Jake loves Lummi because it holds his boyhood memories of running through the woods, and spending the majority of daylight hours turning over rocks looking for crabs on the beach.  For me, Lummi is only a part of my recent past, but it still holds a special place in my heart.  It is like a magical retreat.  It feels like you're on vacation, even though you are only minutes from town.  I love hunting for sea glass...I could spend all day beach combing.  It is where Jake and I got engaged, so it will always remain the most romantic place in the world!  :) 

If it didn't cost an arm and a leg to get over (seriously, $21 for us to drive over on the tiny ferry...sheesh!) I would spend most sunny afternoons over there.  Fortunately, Jake's grandparents own a home right on the beach, and a few times each summer, Jake's dad pulls out the boat and ferry's us across to the magical land.  Yesterday, we went out to celebrate grandma and grandpa's 60th wedding anniversary!  It as Calvin's first boat trip and first time on the island, and he really enjoyed it...I think he thinks it's as magical as I do :)  It was such a fabulous summer day!

Bad Mom Day

So I was reading a blog yesterday about how mom's are afraid to admit to having bad days.  We always want to say we adore being a mom, and everything that comes along with it.  We never yell at our children, we never let a load of laundry go unfolded, and we always have dinner on the table at a reasonable hour.  There is so much pressure (most of it put on by ourselves) and we are just afraid to admit sometimes it isn't always perfect. 

Well, it came at the perfect time for me, and I admit that today was a BAD MOM DAY!!  I brought it on myself, staying up too late last night.  But Calvin woke up early and was crabby, which made me crabby.  I found myself getting super irritable and yelling at him for things I wouldn't normally.  And he was being in super discovery/destruction mode.  He was able to somehow unscrew the bolt that held together a stool I have had since I was little.  And where did I find the screw?  In his mouth!!  BAD MOM!!  I try (and am usually able) to be really patient with him, remembering that he is learning and discovering, and not always intentionally trying to push my buttons...yet :)  Anyway, I almost decided not to go walking with some of my gal friends, but last minute changed my mind, and determined to change my attitude. 

I came home feeling much better and Calvin took a great nap!  After his nap though, I changed his diaper and found the first of what I can safely assume will be many, many "discoveries" in his poo.  A rubber band!!  That couldn't have felt good being digested...hmmm...maybe why he was so fussy yesterday and slept poorly??  BAD MOM!!  (Sorry if that's too much information for anyone). 

I know I am still new to this mom thing, and there are many of you out there with oodles of kids who always seem to have it all together.  I am still learning so much but even as I learn and grow, I am still going to have rough days.  I praise God for blessing us with sweet Calvin and I love him more than imaginable.  I really, really love being a mom...even on the bad days!! 

I know, seriously, who could be crabby with this sweet face to smile at!!

The Gang's All Here!!

Today was our first accountability group meeting with all four babies!!  It is amazing that we started meeting together when I was still pregnant, and since then, all three of the other girls have had their babies!!  These girls (and their babies) hold such a special place in my heart.  They are such an encouragement to me and we just have a blast together.  It has been so amazing to have a great group of other first time mommies to walk and pray through this experience together.  I love them!!

The Gang

Calvin (9 months), Katelynn (7 months), Analynne (6 months), William (1 month)

Typically, Calvin is the one making the girls cry, either by yelling too loud or flailing his arms in the general direction of their face :)  But today he was on his best behavior.  We can't wait to watch these kiddos grow up, and hopefully, become good friends!!



And I couldn't resist throwing in some photos of Calvin in his new jammies.  Good grief he's adorable!!  And doesn't he look like a little boy??  Where'd my baby go??