Food For Thought

        

Today is the beginning of Lent.  I saw the following quote on a friend's facebook page and I thought I would share it:

Do not give up something that you are going to purge on Easter morning. Your Lenten sacrifice of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups does not make you a better Christian if you eat a bag full of them before sundown on Easter day and forget all about Lent.

God doesn’t want your chocolate, He wants you.

When contemplating your sacrifice, make sure you are growing closer to Him. Maybe you don’t need to give up anything. Maybe you need to give something… namely, yourself.

If you must give up something, give up sin.

The remainder of the devotional of which this quote is a part can be found here.

-Melissa

Happy Birthday to Me!

No its not my birthday just yet, but I am excited to say that I have decided on what I want for my birthday this year!

I want the ladies in my family to run a 5km race - doesn't that sound like fun? 

You may think this is a bizarre request but let me give you some history on it.  After Christmas in 2010 I proposed to my immediate family that maybe we could, going forward, tone down the money spending at Christmas in hopes of focusing more on the true meaning of Christmas (celebrating Christ not celebrating each other), however on the flip side they could (if they so choose) go hog wild for birthdays.

I decided that for my birthdays going forward I would like to do something special every year, something new that I had never done before and that I would drag the other ladies with me.  So last year we went to the Marilyn Denis Show in Toronto. 


Here we are at the Marilyn Denis Show last May in celebration of my birthday.  My sister-in-law was unable to attend so my cousin Rebekah gladly stepped in to take her place.

Left to Right:  Mom, Me, Cousin Rebekah, Marilyn Denis, Sister Heather

Last week I phoned my mom to tell her my great idea of training and running a 5km together in celebration of my birthday and she responded with something akin to "are you crazy - I'm not doing that!".  When I talked to my sister I was met with a small amount of resistance but by the end of the chat she was 95% convinced.  By time I spoke to my sister-in-law she had already heard the rumors and didn't require any convincing at all!  I am happy to say that everyone has come around and as long as we can find a race we can all run in then my birthday wish will come true!

We have decided to train for the race using the "Couch to 5km" method which can be found here.  It consists of three workouts a week for 9 weeks - starting off very slow with a gradual build. 

My hopes is that we all get a little healthier from this endevour!

Anyway I am off to buy some new shoes - can't start off on the wrong foot with my old ratty runners!

Cooking with Jude - Little Apple Snacks

Today I have an extra special guest who will likely become a regular face on this blog!



Welcome Chef Jude!

Today Jude is making little Apple Snacks.  I found inspiration for this snack over at Happy Together - a great Mama Blog with lots of great tutorials.

Here is a picture of the finished product to entice you to continue on:



Doesn't it just look so cute and yummy?!

So simple to make - here is the stuff you will need:

The apple and the peanut butter are a must but after that you can get creative.  For our toppings we used granola, shredded coconut, and chocolate chips however you can use any sort of toppings you would like.  Some more suggestions would be dried fruit (raisins, cranberries, etc.), banana, mini M&Ms - whatever you would like. 

To start off, slice your apple into thin rounds.  Using a cooking cutter (or similar object) punch out the middle core section of the apple (this was chef Jude's favorite part).

Spread the peanut butter onto your apple slices and sprinkle on the toppings.

Put the apple "sandwich" together and enjoy!

I don't know what was enjoyed more - the apple snack or the chocolate chips?

Caught you!

Tutorial Tuesday: DIY Drink Caddy for Stroller

So I thought I would start my first (of many to come) tutorial Tuesday with a nice, easy, quick, useful project!

I own a Phil & Ted stroller that I love.  We use it as our second car - we bought it because it is a compact double stroller that easily fits on the bus.  However one of the disadvantages to it being a compact stroller is that is lacks simple luxuries such as cup holders.  I've looked at several different attachable cup holders however they seem to be expensive for what they are and I would have to take them off when folding my buggy for storage.  While pinning the other day I came across a tutorial for a fabric cup holder found on the blog Sew Can Do and I was able to whip this up the other day during nap time.

Supplies:

Fabric, Scissors/Rotary Cutter, Ruler, Cutting Mat, Pins, Sewing Machine, Snaps, Round Tracer

Step 1: Cut Fabric

• For the body two rectangles 12inches x 7inches
• For the bottom two circles with a diameter of 3.8 inches (I traced a bowl with this measurement)
• For the strap one rectangle 9inches x 7inches

Step 2: Sew the Body

Fold the body piece in half lengthwise - good sides facing (so it measures 6inches x 7inches) and sew up the 7inch side with a 0.5 seam allowance.  Iron open the seams.

Pin circle to the bottom of the (now) cylindrical body piece - good sides facing. 

Attach using 0.5inch seam allowance.  Trim seam and zig-zag stitch to prevent fraying.  Fold over top edge 0.5 inches.  Pin and iron.  Repeat step two with outer body pieces.  At the end of step two you should have to cylinders with bottoms. 

Step 3:  Assemble the body

Place lining sleeve inside outer sleeve with wrong sides facing, matching seams.  Pin along top edge.



Step 4: Sew Strap

Fold strap piece lengthwise with good sides facing (you should have a rectangle measuring 9inches x 3.5inches).  Sew along long edge and one short edge using a 0.5inch seam allowance.  Trim edges and zig-zag stitch to prevent fraying.

Turn strap right-side out.  Iron edges flat.  Top-stitch around full rectangle. 

Step 5:  Attach Strap to Body

Sandwich strap between the inner and outer layers of the body cylinder.

Top stitch around top edge.  Sew strap area several times to ensure it is secure.

Step 6:  Attach Snaps to Strap

For this step I used my Kam-Snap hand pliers and plastic snaps.  You should probably use more durable snaps but I have an abundance of these snaps so if it comes apart I will just replace. 

And just like that you are finished.  No more spilt drinks in the bottom basket of your buggy!