Children of Two Homes

It is with great pleasure that I introduce you to my new or not so new children's picture book Children of Two Homes.

I usually do not post much about me or my journey that has brought me to where I am today.  But in light of me introducing you to my book Children of Two Homes which is the story of my own children and their journey of living in two homes.  I thought it was time for you to get to know the authentic me.

If you knew me, you would probably not guess that my family is a blended family or that there is a divorce behind me. I will say that is has taken me years to get where I am today and that it has been a journey of ups and downs for me and our children along the way.

 Finding the new ME

After crying for days or longer I cannot remember, I finally picked myself up and put away the wine (not the kind found in a glass).  It was time to dust myself off.

I had to reflect back on the younger version of me.  The younger me that had hopes, dreams, strength and vision that anything was possible.    

I had to learn to succeed for myself and that of my children.

But how? was the big question I kept asking myself

The light at the end of the tunnel came when I faced up to all the hurt, humiliation, anger, tension, disappointment, feeling of failure and lose of relationships and let it all go.

I had to let go of all the memories and all the hopes and dreams of the past.

I had to mourn the old life, old house, old memories and the old me to give light to the new me.  I had to put it all to rest once and for all.

I stood strong and looked myself in the mirror and told myself that this hurt was not going to define me or my children.  It was going to make a better version of me one that I could be proud of and one my children could be proud of.

It took time to become the new me  

The truth is it took me a year or longer before I looked in the mirror and found the new me the stronger me that was filled with hopes and new dreams.

So why talk about it now?

I finally feel that now I have something positive to offer by talking about our story. 

Top Five Tips to become the new you after divorce

*   Let yourself mourn your old life

*   Let it all go

*   Rediscover your younger self

*   Don't waste time with regret

*   Discover the new side of yourself by exploring new interests

Next week I will reveal how to cope with two separate homes 

Household Tips and Tricks

Keeping it clean one house at a time

Tip #6

Use fresh squeezed lemon juice as a cleaner for some of your kitchen surfaces. It is a great way to go green and it is a great way to make your wallet a little bit greener as well.

Here are some of the ways to use it in your kitchen.

Stove top

It works great as a degrease and the acid from the lemons will break down stains on the stove top in just a few minutes. Squeeze the juice right where you need it and then wipe off with a rag. Stain gone.

Microwave

Heat a microwaveable cup with water and lemon slices in your microwave for 2 to 3 minute this will loosen up all the grime. Then all you have to do is wipe clean. Stains and grease will be easier to remove and all odors neutralized.

Kitchen Sink

Squeeze juice from one to two lemons. Mix lemon juice with backing soda to form a paste. Use a damp rag to rub the paste in the sink. Let sit for several minutes to allow the lemon acid to break down stains. Rub with rag just like you would with Ajax. Rinse clean.

Refrigerator

Cut a lemon in half and stored it in your refrigerator to help control and eliminate all those unpleasant smells.

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Show off at Oopsey Daisy

Linen Closet Freshener

Coupons keeping it all together

Using coupons is helping our family stretch the budget during this rough financial patch that we are all going through at this time. One of the most frugal, money-saving things that I can do is utilize as many of the coupons that are at my disposal as possible for the products that we use.

In order for me to utilize these coupons to the best of my ability I had to come up with a way to organize them so that I would be able to use as many as possible. The more I use the more I am able to save.

The first thing that I did was to organize the coupons into simple categories.

• Dairy

• Canned

• Frozen

• Baking

• Cereal/Crackers

• Boxed Meals/Sides

• Seasoning

• Snacks

• Cleaning

• Paper Products

• Beauty

The second thing I did was decide on if I wanted to put them into a binder or index box with dividers. I chose the binder, that way it fit nicely on my office shelf and was also easy for me to carry in the cart.

I used binder 5 tab dividers to divide all of the sections with. In each section I placed zipper pocket and baseball card holders to hold all the coupons in.

I like the zipper bags the best because it is easier to place the coupons inside. The draw back is that you can not see your coupons at a glance. So I have both in each section of my binder.

How to Make a Zip Pocket Holder for Binder

I cut down a gallon zip lock bag from the bottom end so that it will fit in the binder, next I cut a sheet of card stock so that it will slide into the zip lock bag leaving a little hanging out the end that you cut. Once that is done I use clear packing tape and tape the cut end closed. After the bag has been reinforced with the packing tape I punch holes in the zip bag with a three hole punch.

Using the coupons at the Grocery Story or other Stores

When I make out our shopping list for each store, I put the coupons I’ll be using in each store envelope. I then write my list for that store on the outside of each envelop and place a circled C next to the items that has a coupon. This way I make sure that I am getting the right item while at the store and it also insure that I will use all of them at check out.

 

Here is another cute coupon organizer from Glowgirl.

Glowgirl

Coupon Organizer

Pamper Your Feet

Our feet should not be left out of our beauty regiment. Our feet can benefit from some tender loving care. After all they get us from one point to the next. So let’s take some time and exfoliate those dry cracked overworked, tired feet.

Here is what you will need:

• Dish Pan

• Painters Sand Sponge

• Soft Towel

• Fresh squeezed lemon juice

• Extra Virgin Olive Oil

• Epson Salt

Make a massaging cream with olive oil and Epson salt.  Mix the two ingredients together until you have a oily paste.

Remove all of your dry calluses with the painter’s sponge before you soak your feet in warm water.   

Next rub lemon juice all over your feet with a cotton ball.  Allow the lemon juice to set on your feet for a few minutes to help exfoliate and remove all the dead skin cells.   

Place your feet a tub of warm water and allow them tootsies to soak and relax the days strain away.

After your feet have soaked for several minutes remove one foot at a time placing your foot on the dry towel and massage in the olive oil and Epson salt paste. This will buff away all of the remaining dead skin cell and leave you with smooth soft feet. Once your have massaged your foot well sit it back in the tub of warm water. Repeat with the other foot. Once both feet have been done towel them off and you will be left with some happy tootsies.

Homemade Apple Sauce with Crumb Topping

21 large apples I use Fuji and Gala Apples

2 cups water

½ cup brown sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla

1 teaspoon cinnamon

Peel all the apples and core them. Once you have them all peeled and cored cut the apples up into small chunks. Place the apples in a large pot, add water, brown sugar, vanilla, and cinnamon. Cook on medium heat with a cover. Once apples are soft about 20 minutes use a potato masher and mash the apples in the pot. Uncover and cook down until most of the juice is gone. Let cool and place in mason jars or container with lid. Keep refrigerated.

Crumb Toping

½ stick soft butter

½ cup flour

½ cup oats

½ cup brown sugar

Smash in the flour, brown sugar and oats into the butter using a fork. Keep mixing until it become crumbly. You might have to add flour.