Saturday, February 9, 2013

Oh, what a week.

This week has been...rough. It wasn't bad by any means, just so incredibly long and one of those ones that makes you realize you are alive and doing shit with yourself. I couldn't seem to get enough sleep, though I was sleeping at least 7 or 8 solid hours a night. I'm not sure if it's because I was super busy almost every day from 8am to 8pm, if it's because I started working out hard again, or because I've been working 6 days a week for the past month. Whatever it was, between today and tomorrow I'm hoping to give myself a clean slate for next week. I finally have two days off a week and I plan to use this weekend to read a lot, drink tea snuggled up on my couch while we get almost a foot of snow, watch a lot of Medium, catch up on Grey's Anatomy and Bones, go to the gym only on Sunday for a relaxing workout, and if I feel like it, do some laundry and clean the house. I also plan to make some paleo almond cookies with a cinnamon glaze and some paleo banana bread for next weeks breakfasts.

My house is a complete wreck because I've been too busy to clean it and Vince has been too tired from skiing on all his days off! Some wives would get mad at their husbands if the reason they couldn't clean was because they've been playing all day, and that's how I used to be, but I've started to relax about it. He (we) paid a lot for him to have skis and a ski pass and I want him to get the most out of it. He's happiest when he gets to do something physical, and I'd feel like an awful person to take that away from his right now. I know at some point we'll have a kid and he won't be able to do things like he is now, so he might as well enjoy it while he can!

One thing I do have to clean is the bathroom. I have a million little jars on the counter with the things I've been making myself like deodorant, toothpaste (two kinds because I don't like the one I first made but Vince loves it), coconut oil for lotion, etc. Vince can't seem to remember which one is his toothpaste even though they are in completely different jars and is afraid he'll use the one for my deodorant! But honestly, he could use any of them and be fine since they contain a lot of the same ingredients.

And lastly, I also want to do something with the succulents I bought.
I'm thinking of making a mini garden in a big pot. The problem is I don't have any space for anything in my house so I have no idea where I'd put it! Maybe I'll hang four mini shelves at differing heights and put the little pot on each? I feel some major rearranging about to happen...

How was your week?

16 comments:

  1. Will you share your recipe for deodorant and toothpaste?
    I always feel guilty when Ron does any cleaning (this happens very infrequently and usually causes more work anyway--think he does it that way on purpose!)
    Start another craft with the succulents-macrame. You can make knotted hangers for them or even a kind of mobile with tree branches that will move with the currents in the room if its not to heavy.
    How did the butter turn (churn?) out?

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    1. They are both so similar! For deodorant, I mixed coconut oil, arrowroot starch(or cornstarch), baking soda, and some essential oils for smells. The typical ratio to start with is 1/4 baking soda, 1/4 cup arrowroot starch and 6-8 tablespoons coconut oil, with 10-20 drops oil. My armpits were too sensitive for that much baking soda, so I did 1/8 cup baking soda, 1/3 cup arrowroot, and 1/2 cup coconut oil. Some people just mix it work a fork, but it was too gritty for me so I melted everything in a pan, then poured it into a small bowl. I stirred every 5-10 minutes for a half hour while it solidified because the starch sinks to the bottom. Now it's a solid and I just get a scoop out with my fingers and it melts on my skin! I let it soak in for a few minutes before I put a shirt on so the oil doesn't stain my shirt. It is oil, after all!

      For toothpaste, I'm not 100% sure on the ratios, but I'm going to make another batch soon (I just made a small one to see if I like it) and I'll be sure to write everything down!

      I like the idea of the mobile! I've made a few plant hangers a few months ago and love them.

      Unfortunately it snowed too much today to get the dairy! It's a 3 hour drive away, and the lady only made it half way before she had to turn around because of the snow. It's snowing in places that don't usually get snow so they had no plows and roads are closing down! I'll have to do it next weekend. =(

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    2. Oh, and the essential oils I use are 7 drops tea tree for antibacterial and 13 drops sweet orange oil!

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  2. Yes, I'd love for you to share your deoderant and toothpaste recipes too!
    I have seen succulents all over the blog world lately. I was actually inspired by someone else's succelent-planting to plant strawberries again! I know it's early but they're inside on my window sill and staying warm so hopefully they'll grow okay!

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    1. I'm copying the response to my grandma: They are both so similar! For deodorant, I mixed coconut oil, arrowroot starch(or cornstarch), baking soda, and some essential oils for smells. The typical ratio to start with is 1/4 baking soda, 1/4 cup arrowroot starch and 6-8 tablespoons coconut oil, with 10-20 drops oil. My armpits were too sensitive for that much baking soda, so I did 1/8 cup baking soda, 1/3 cup arrowroot, and 1/2 cup coconut oil. Some people just mix it work a fork, but it was too gritty for me so I melted everything in a pan, then poured it into a small bowl. I stirred every 5-10 minutes for a half hour while it solidified because the starch sinks to the bottom. Now it's a solid and I just get a scoop out with my fingers and it melts on my skin! I let it soak in for a few minutes before I put a shirt on so the oil doesn't stain my shirt. It is oil, after all!

      For toothpaste, I'm not 100% sure on the ratios, but I'm going to make another batch soon (I just made a small one to see if I like it) and I'll be sure to write everything down!

      I saw them on Enjoy the Small Things and fell in love! I've wanted some for a while but they are so expensive at Warner's, and then I saw these at New Fro for only $3!!

      Mmmm, strawberries! I'm definitely doing those again this year, but even more!

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    2. Oh, and the essential oils I use are 7 drops tea tree for antibacterial and 13 drops sweet orange oil!

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    3. Thank you! And good point about letting it sit before putting my shirt on!

      That's actually where I saw them in the first place too ha ha. I've never had succulents before but I loved having strawberries always around so I figured I'd go ahead and get started on them since it's warm enough in our little home for them now!

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  3. I hope you enjoy your weekend :)
    And always feel happy and grateful that Vince loves to play physically! He has a good, healthy hobby. You're lucky he doesn't play video games 20 hours a day ;) hahaha

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    1. It drives me nuts even when he plays 2 or 3 hours of his NFL game every so often...I couldn't imagine longer than that with gun sounds! haha

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    2. Ha ha, I just saw this... Hi Veronica!
      Steff, Veronica and I used to become bachelorettes at the same time because our husbands would get on and play for hours, so ridiculous! I don't care when Ryan plays but more than two hours is crazy to me.
      He never gets to play anymore since no Internet though.

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  4. Hey Steff, you can try the wall garden- you should be able to find one at Home Depot

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  5. Love that you're working on finding some healthy balance in your schedule. I'm trying to do the same--it's not a simple task!! I also admire your thoughtfulness when it comes to your husband enjoying his hobbies, and not getting all worked up about him not cleaning so much. My hubs plays hockey usually 3-4 days a week, so I know what you mean. Nice to have a reminder to stay relaxed about the cleaning, though! :) Also, as embarrassing as it is to admit this, I had an adorable little succulent and I managed to kill it. :( I am so sad! I noticed it just slowly started to die as it got colder. I kept it inside, but usually near a window. I'm not really sure what I did wrong (forgive me if it's blatantly obvious--I clearly have no idea). I do know my cat tried to eat it a couple of times. :( I'd take any advice. And I LOVE plant hangers! So adorable. If you make some please post!

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    1. You're right, it's not a simple task! I hope you're successful though and find a balance!

      I think succulents are supposed to be in warm weather, so I bet it was just too cold! Our living room is the only room in the house that stays consistently warm when there's a foot of snow outside, so I'm leaving them in there for now! I bet if you had it in a warm room it would be good, and probably not in a windowsill because they get cold.

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  6. you're so diligent! I really like that you make your own cosmetics. I also made a deo for myself and it works better than any I have ever bought. :D

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    1. Right?! I love the one I made. It works way better!

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