mom hack: how we solved the toothpaste battle at our house

Here's how we solved the endless nighttime toothpaste battle among the children:

Four tubes of toothpaste = 1 per kid. And not one of those tubes belong to anyone. They have to share all of them. :)

It's been working!

In the past, either someone wouldn't share, someone wouldn't be patient, or the "kid" toothpaste was lost somewhere {where could it go? under the sink? in the dryer? stranger things have been found there!}. 

They say pick your battles, and so far I'd say buying toothpaste in bulk and using them all at the same time was a battle won. ;)

How do you do the toothpaste thing with multiple kids?

Any ideas on how to get kids to brush longer? 

I try to tell them to sing the ABC's 3x, and then they start singing out loud and spit toothpaste everywhere and laugh like it's the most hilarious thing ever. :P

what we've been up to for the last few days

A new, unwanted first happened this week: the first stomach bug in our family in over a year, and little Zane's first one ever.  :(

Apparently there's an evil bug going around that lasts for several days. :( Zaner mostly had stomach cramps instead of other symptoms, so I felt especially bad for him being so little and in such pain. It would come and go, and some days were randomly worse than others! Thankfully, he is finally getting better since yesterday.

So far it seems to be only affecting the littles- no one else in our family has gotten it. {praying that Lord-willing, we won't!}. 

It's so hard to see my babies get sick. I was thinking about it as I held him for all of those hours... what about all the children around the world who get sick and have no one to hold them and stroke their silky little heads? :(

I felt so thankful that my little Zane has a mama, and it made me ache and pray for all the little ones who were alone and felt like he did. 

And then I thought of all the mamas who have littles with chronic illnesses, and my heart hurt for them. Imagining having a baby in pain constantly, and not being able to do anything for them... oh, I need to pray for these mamas way more often. What an incredibly hard thing. And you know there are so many hurting families under this trial right now.

Even in sickness, and hours of holding babies on the sofa- there is so much to be thankful for- the blessing of health every day, the blessing of medicine and the medical help that's readily available, the blessing of a God who hears and calms our fears, for milk, pedialyte, and fresh water for the baby, for His gracious timing that we weren't all sick at the same time...

Maybe someday I will no longer be surprised by the fact that there is always so much to praise Him for. :) And hopefully by that day I will also remember that there is always someone to pray for at the same time...

Do you know of anyone we can pray for with a chronic illness today? Or any illness?

a whirlwind week, joy unspeakable + having your cake and eating it too

The weeks are flying by this April! We packed so much activity into just a few days. It was a whirlwind. :) I baked two cakes{?!}. Can you believe it? I can't. It's been so long since I've baked anything. :) 

This one was a sugar-free mix cake for my dad's birthday- we went out for dinner and then came back for cake and presents:

And then we took off for Good Friday and went to the zoo with Abbie's crew. It was a gorgeous day, and before we went in I had to record this sweet memory:

I had a specific photo in mind when I took that one. It wasn't so long ago we went to the zoo and they were this size! :(

Oh my goodness, this was only six years ago:

Babies grow up way too fast. I never really believed all those sweet older ladies who told me they would, but I do now.

Speaking of growing up fast- these little twin cuties are starting to talk and run around:

Two little ones in the stroller, one at home here = still lots of little people all around. :D I think we're so used to our clans, we don't realize how many people do life with us until we see a pic. :D

I still can't believe they're so big. And even more funny- as Abbie said, this was only 60% of our kids! :P We've truly been blessed with babies. :) They are a gift from the Lord.

misformama instagram

After the zoo, we squeezed in a trip to the bread outlet to stock up. We scored this cart plus more full of bread for $35!

The outlet is across the street from the factory, which means we get to try all kinds of breads we've never seen before- like this pull apart bread we were excited to find:

I get excited about new kinds of bread. :) I only eat bread regularly when I'm pregnant or nursing, so I am living it up. :P That one was a little too dense/sweet/processed for my taste, but it was fun to try.

And you know me- I also get very, very enthusiastic {ahem} about new kinds of cake. I made this Tres Leches cake this weekend from scratch, and it was good. It's different- you really have to be willing to try wet cake, but I can honestly say I enjoy anything sweet soaked in condensed milk! Are you kidding me? Yum. The only thing I would change is possibly using cake flour versus all purpose next time. With the liquids, I felt it was a bit too heavy/coarse, even after whipping the egg whites separately.

We brought the cake to my in-laws lovely house for Easter:

And we canoed as the sun set on their lake. :) It was fun.

Nana {Rob's mom} kept little Zaner for us so we could all go together!

And after church on Sunday, my dad bought us lunch out. It was a very good weekend in terms of food and fellowship. :)

We took communion at church yesterday, and for some reason, instead of feeling sobered by it like I normally feel, I was just so happy. Jesus died and rose again for ME! I realized as we were singing yesterday that Jesus said to me, "Mandy, come forth!" And I did. I am alive because of Him!! He called me and brought me out of death and into life. It's too incredible to even understand.

He lives, and because He lives I get to be with Him. Nothing is impossible for the Lord.

It's only Monday, but it's already a good week. :)


How was your Easter weekend?


Did you enjoy good food and fellowship in celebration of what Christ did?


Did you have cake too? :P Do you have a great recipe for Tres Leches I could try?

also, from the archives: 

the day after Easter: 

three practical things the disciples taught us to do after Jesus rose again

december 2013 so far: tree hunting, bears + elves, and considering a name change

We've been so busy this month, in a fun way. I'm about 73% done with my Christmas shopping, and 0% done with Christmas day planning. :) It seems like Christmas came out of nowhere and suddenly it's time to party! I guess it helps that I was in the postpartum fog for the last 4 months of the year. ;)

The weather helped my brain make a quick leap to the holidays for sure. It went from this:

To the mid-20's in two days! My poor Texas roses were confused. And frozen. 

We had another first this month- our very first build-a-bear session:

It was a reward for good behavior, and I was thrilled they were all still young enough to enjoy it. This kid-growing-up thing is hard on a mama's heart, I tell you.

Teddy bears + little kids = sweetest combo ever. Even Zane got one. :)

Speaking of amazing combos, this is one you have to try:

The pretzel crisp is non-negotiable and the Ghirardelli puts regular almond bark {which I previously loved} to shame. You don't even need to dip the whole thing in the candy. :)

Did I ever tell you that earlier this month we went Christmas tree hunting on my in-laws' property? They were kind to let us chop down a tree and take it home:

I somehow didn't realize there would actually be dirt in the forest {ahem}, and of course wore the wrong footwear. I didn't want to get my shoes all muddy, so despite all of my weak protesting, Rob insisted on carrying me over this huge ravine:

I have it rough, I know. I'm thinking about getting my name changed to Princess.

We found a good tree fairly quickly:

It was so tall! 

And the story ends with us buying a tree stand, and getting home with a tree that would not actually stand up in a tree stand. After all of that, we put up the old artificial one. :P

At least it was still fun. :)

Last week, we had dinner by candlelight one night.

And 3 out of the 5 went for haircuts last Friday. I don't know why, but no one was super excited about getting a trim. They must get it from their dad, because I love getting my hair done.

Yesterday after church we went to the library and stocked up for the next few cold days. We've never done elves before, but our library had an elf-on-the-shelf contest so it made it fun for all of us. :) Noah and Bella spotted him:

And this little {not-so-little} boy keeps growing. :D I am planning to do a 4-month update soon where I tell you how much he weighs now... :P It's crazy.

We have lots more to squeeze in this week- I have a big to-do list building now that Christmas is only a few days away! :) I'm going to do a little more man shopping today and I think I'll be done! :)

Are you done with your shopping already? {I'm amazed by you if so!}

How has your December been so far?

Do you love or hate candy-coated pretzels?
I am not a fan of chocolate ones, but the white ones are my favorite! They are definitely part of my favorite Christmas memories! :D

  

weekend life: dating, painting, and my personal cooks

Weekends are the best.

Something about homeschooling four kiddos full-time makes me appreciate the weekend days like never before. :) Maybe because the weeknights look like this by about 9:30 at our house these days:

But our weekends are free and easy. They're usually unstructured, include lots of sleep, church with friends, and a date night alone. 

On Friday night our gym hosted a date night for the parents, and we were all over that $5 per kid childcare. :)

Where did we go for dinner?  You probably know the answer. :)

Chuy's is our favorite. We're a little weird- we always pick one place and go there until something changes. We become such regulars that everyone remembers us. :) And we always order the same thing. We like comfort zones. ;)

After dinner on Friday night, we headed over to Barnes and Noble for the hubs favorite coffee drink and this cupcake:

And yes, I always take pictures with my desserts. ;) That's how much I love my cake.  And chocolate fudge cupcakes may be my favorite. {Though tres leches is extremely good too.}

 I have to be honest, though- Rob had some serious competition on this date:

He's a good sport- he understood why I was so charmed by another fellow when he saw the smile.

Ahhh. It's so cute I can hardly stand it. That smile keeps me entertained all day long. :)

While at B&N, we picked this up for me, thanks to so many of your recommendations:

And then at the register, they gave me this, and I would love to know if you have any insight on their recommendations???

The Communist Manifesto is to the Power of a Praying Wife as ______________ is to ______________? I used to be good at analogies but this one stumped me. haha!

Another great weekend moment? We did what Texans do for fun...

Try on cowboy boots. ;) It was our first time and we were looking for something specific at the western store, so we had a little fun while we were there. I've never seen so many boots in one place before! They have some amazing boots. I think tall embroidered western boots need to go mainstream. They're so pretty! :D

It was a fun experiment, anyway. Another out-of-the-ordinary experiment we're trying? We decided to start sampling a strange, mostly foreign cheese every week. 

Last week was Irish natural cheddar from Irish farm cows, and this week is Jarlsberg imported from Norway. The Irish cheddar was excellent, but the the Jarlsburg is a little too sweet for me. I don't eat it with or on anything, though. Maybe I should?

We ended the weekend with Rob making his very first primitive fire {is there anything the man can't do??}:

And then a little painting time before bed last night. I tried watercolors for the first time!! 

And then it was Monday again, and I put my three cooks back to work:

We're having beans and rice for dinner tonight, and I'm teaching BODYCOMBAT after we get done with school and picking up the house today.  

The good news about Mondays? They're great days to get things done! Hey, if fun weekends were all we ever had, our house would be a mess and we'd have no food to eat. ;)

How was your weekend? :D

Any favorite imported cheeses you love that we have to try? 

I'm a cheese novice. I like feta and cheddar- anything salty and sharp.

Random question- do you ever make taco shells at home without buying them pre-made? Do you have a recipe? Please tell me it's not just pure lard and flour. Or don't tell me if it is. ;)

sweet kiddos + praising God for changed plans

Busy doesn't quite do the last week justice. Every moment was filled with four birthdays, parties, and events- here, and out and about, making food, grocery shopping, plus a good mix of company and regular life with kids issues... it was crazy. :) But the best kind of crazy!

And I mentioned Monday that Elijah turned 10 last weekend. That was a big deal! I can't believe we have a ten-ager now! ;)

He's so precious. Here's what he loves to wear these days- he's becoming quite the little hipster musician! {which cracks me up, because they don't have TV or watch much of anything but cartoons!}

He's taking on a style all his own. :D I bought the hat for his birthday because he loved them every time he saw one in the store. And he's the kind of kiddo who almost never wants anything. :)

And his brothers and sisters love him so much they wrote him a birthday song disguised in hieroglyphics and sang it to him, then spent their own money and bought him a gift, complete with cards and homemade wrapping paper. :D

They looooove him. :D

The song went something like: "One day there was a good day, that God made the sun, and the stars, and the trees, and the grass, and you." :)

And they wrote him a card that said, "even when your reward is heaven, you git a reward here."

It was one of those moments when your heart is so full it could burst. It makes me wonder how the Lord feels when His children love each other, you know?

Sometimes it hits me {like a punch in the stomach} that outside of God's grace- if I would have had it my way- we might have had only two boys {or even none!} way back then. Look what preciousness we would have missed out on:

I can't imagine a world without Zane in it- or Bella, or Ava. What joy, what an incredible blessing our family would have missed if we had chosen to follow my 8 year "plan"...

Oh, thank you Jesus for these sweet little ones. Thank you for not leaving me to my own plans.

Have you ever had a plan that you were grateful God didn't let you follow? Or a prayer He didn't answer that ended up being for your good?