Declutter. A hobby?

I love to de-clutter. I think it is one my hobbies. Can that be a hobby? I collect nothing, I purge (nearly) everything.  It is hard with kids. Which paintings and drawings to keep and which ones to pitch?  Maybe they will be a Picasso one day and I would have thrown their masterpieces to the trash.  I'll take my chances.  And the toys, the stuffies. So much stuff!  Here ia a link to Zen Habits and how to simplify your life.  I attempt to do point 3.
I took a Feng Shui course many years ago and we discussed the importance of allowing the energy (or Qi) to flow smoothly in your house. Spring is a great time to release the winter hibernating energy and you can start by de-cluttering. In Chinese medicine the Liver is in charge of the smooth flow of Qi and when things build up or collect, energy stagnates. No one does well with stagnation
I was reading the new Oprah magazine (I had it as it got left behind in my house :-) ) and there was an article with very interesting facts.

• more than 4 million pairs of eyeglasses are trashed annually
• 22.3 billion pounds of textiles were thrown away in 2010
• 38,000 miles of ribbon is tossed out every year (enough to tie a bow aroud the earth! see my simple wrappings are truly environmental!!)
• each year 350 million pairs of shoes march into the landfill
• 15.8 million tons of reading material and other paper products (magazines) were trashed in 2010
• over 10 million bikes are dumped in American and European landfills yearly

Before throwing away items to the garbage, donate, donate donate!! 

Here are some inspiring photos!

7/52

"A portrait of my children, once a week, every week, in 2013."

A: lover of music
B: lover of all things small
K: lover of our dog, dexter

One! and a Giveaway!

Our little Kai officially turned one today and for that I am going to give one lucky reader a gift!  Keep reading and you will find out more....
To be honest, the bday today was a little anti-climactic. He was born on family day last year, which was Feb 20th, so I kinda feel like his birthday was on the holiday monday, which was the 18th this year. I think from now on I will celebrate it on family day, regardless of the date.
A few words about this now 1 year old. He is very sweet, loves to eat (unlike the other 2 at this age!), he has taken a few steps, he is a BIG boy (once again unlike the other 2!) and weighs about 6 pounds less than his 5 year old sister. He loves the drum and to play with balls. He loves his dog.  He is a very happy, content and sweet little boy. He makes me tired and I often feel old, but I simply adore him and could not imagine life without him.

I was a bit worried about the cake. It seemed a bit dense but I think it turned out ok.
Here is the recipe. (i made half the recipe). It is from "Get it Ripe" by Jae Steele
The New Classic Chocolate Cake
3 c flour
2 c organic sugar
2/3 c cocoa powder (I used organic Cacoa)
2 t baking soda
1 t sea salt
2 c organic non-dairy milk or milk
1 c oil
1 T pure vanilla extract
3 T apple cider vinegar
Preheat oven to 375.
Use two 9 inch cake pans
Whisk together the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda and salt in a large bowl. Pour in milk and oil and vanilla.  Mix until all flour is absorbed.  Add the vinegar and stir quickly-you'll see pale swirls as it reacts with baking soda.  Stir just until vinegar is evenly distributed throughout batter, and immediately pour batter evenly into pans.  Bake for about 30 min, until a toothpick inserted in centre comes out clean.  Remove from oven and allow to cool in pans for 10 min before transferring to a rack to cool.  
We topped it with freshly whipped cream and strawberries. 
Delicious!

Lastly the give away! To honour Kai's bday during the coldest and darkest months of the year (at least in Canada)

I am giving away one vitamin D drops 1000IU made by Genestra.We all need a little extra of this sunshine vitamin during the bleak month of February. 

And an all organic Green Drink called Greens First. It tastes great and helps give you an extra boost while we wait for the warmth. (value 70$)

 
All you need to do is 
1. Follow my blog (if you don't already) and 2. Leave a comment on this post! I will pick a winner on Monday March 4th.  I will ship anywhere!  Good Luck!

6/52

"A portrait of my children, once a week, every week, in 2013." from Che and Fidel

A: taking in the view post-snowstorm after walking home from school

B: enjoying a lick of the fresh cold snow

K: his last week before he turns one, always trying to keep up with the older two. here he is trying to get in the shower with them.  love that tummy roll.

5/52

Week 5 of http://cheandfidel.blogspot.com/2013/02/552.html#more 52 week project. Here we are.....

Aidan: Early morning jazz hands for the 1st (and most likely only) snowstorm this winter. I love how clear the outside looks this early morning.
Bella: A mouse cake for my own little mouse turning 5. Where does the time go?
Kai: Who needs toys when you have a dog?

I'm planning a winter giveaway soon. I'll keep you posted!

Busy in the Kitchen

I love being an ND. It is wonderful to help people, listen and bring optimism to their lives. I always work on Mondays and it is always a busy, busy day. Emails, patient bookings, clinic hours, orders. The other thing I love about my job is that I get to work part-time and make my own hours. So when Tuesday comes, I switch to my other job, being a mom and spend the day taking the kids to and from school, going to music class with the wee one and cooking in the kitchen.
Today I made....
Baby Food- I pureed pears, bananas, mangos and swiss chard. It was a hit!
Pumpkin Squares- I posted this recipe a few years but altered it a bit. I cut the oil form 3/4 to 1/4, cut the sugar from 3/4 to 1/4, and with the pumpkin puree I put 2/3 pumpkin and 1/3 of the baby puree I made! They were really good and we were left with what you see on this plate.

i

The pictures of dinner are below- veggies, lentils, salmon, rice

and here is the little one enjoying his meal! 

that's it....back to work tomorrow....

and now she is 5 with a new "doll"....

bella turned 5 on january 31st. we have been busy with celebrations over the past few days. her party was today. it was super cute and simple. 

just girls. an amazing art project. ice cream sundaes. 

we had our friend and art teacher susy come over and help bella and her friends create. susy is wonderful and teaches the most amazing art classes where the kids get to create freely in a warm environment and she gives them cut up fruit, peppermint tea and occassionally freshly baked cookies. so sweet. she also runs art classes at birthday parties and we knew she would be a great fit!  

she came up with the idea to make dolls weeks ago, when she came across yarn spools and thought they would make great bodies.  such a great way to upcycle materials and i am always a fan of that.  each girl got a basic body (she had pre-glued foam balls on for heads) and then they got to make the doll however they wished. Susy had different patterened clothes, paint, buttons, feathers, yarn for hair etc... she even cut out egg cartons so each girl could design a hat for their doll. so cute!  here is a look at the day.....

before. getting organized.

after