Unplanned Utopia

We are having so many adventures this summer & really having a blast with each other. Secretly, I was so apprehensive of this summer because I decided not to master plan it this time. If you've known me for any length of time, you know I am a p.l.a.n.n.e.r. In the past I have either had summer classes, part time or full time jobs, and 4 kids to keep busy. I HAD to plan it all out well. Every detail. Every meal & every activity. Since we recently unleashed our business to other avenues, I get to spend this summer focused on my family. It really is a wonderful thing but a mental adjustment for me nonetheless. This summer, I didn't know what to expect, it was going to be a new season for all of us. I really didn't know how to plan it this time. I decided we would just roll with whatever we decided to do. IT.HAS.BEEN.A BLAST!

Since half the kids got out almost 2 weeks before the others, we started off the summer with a countdown of activities, canvas painting, terrarium building, summer movies, played in the rain, just little things so we could save the real fun for when we were all together. Also everyone was still accustomed to getting up early and going to bed at a semi decent hour. This has since drastically changed and we are staying up late/sleeping in all morning- hey, its summer, right?!

 

 







Randy & I celebrated our 11 year anniversary June 21st. Oh, how I adore this man! He is still my best friend and love living life with him every day. Usually I  plan some sort of trip for our anniversary but he had work travel the next day so we needed to do something local. Hmmmm, it had to be fantastic....with the help of my sister, We got to take a private flight over the city of Dallas! And a 3 course dinner after. It was such an adventure!!

We have also had 4th of July family visits, summer camps, golf outings/tournaments, summer trips. unexpected kittens, hero moments, kayaking, camping, and more. Sometimes the unplanned life really is a sort of utopia.

Summer Bloggin'

Yesterday was the last day of school for 3 of our 4 kiddos. Its always bittersweet. We had some great teachers this year and our kids even earned some awards for all their hard work. Its hard to believe next year we will have 2 high school students, a 4th grader, and a 2nd grader. 

Well...Let's face it. I've been supa lax in keeping up with my blogging- which I love (when I do it). I'm going to try to make sure I'm blogging more, even just little posts. To keep up with all the memories this summer will hold. I will also try to incorporate some throwback post from all the things I've been meaning to blog about over our adventures the last few months.


Our big kids have camping plans this weekend for Memorial Day. Saturday we will participate in Bountiful Baskets, our local food coo-op I help coordinate, and then I see some house projects and even some swimming in our future. We'll shall see. ;)

While we may be playing the weekend by ear  and relaxin all summa long, there are some things we will not be letting slide. If you have known me for very long, you know I'm a teeth Nazi. I have famous tooth fairy tales and we are never without a toothbrush.  Brush, brush, brush. Floss, floss, floss. So although the kiddos are encouraged allowed to sleep in all summer, they must never skip a brushing or a flossing. Thanks to How Does She & Chickabug for an awesome post and free printables to keep us on track this summer. Check them out and maybe you'll find them helpful too!

It's good to be back friends- I've missed you.

love,
Alice

Just an Ordinary Day

Well, kids..... the day has come. The day I have finally completed college, 11:54 pm April 18, 2012 to be exact, But who's counting. ME! While there is much to blog about and reason to celebrate, we shall save that for another blog. Today I want to talk about the day BEFORE the final day.

Perhaps that seems cryptically peculiar, what relevance could that ordinary day hold in comparison to the final day.  You see in the life of a Chase, no day is ordinary. (No, really. If you know my family personally, Can I get an Amen?)


Let's recount the days events: 
7:00 drag myself out of bed searching for the coffee pot, exhausted from a week or more of late night studying
7:15 throw lunches and in backpacks and get dressed.
7:30 alarm sounding like an old car horn announces that is time to leave the house.
7:45 Drop big kids off at Jr. High
7:55 Drop littles off at elementary.
8:30am-2:pm write papers, take exams, blah, blah, blah
2:05pm (here's where it gets interesting) receive text from my best friend. The message goes something like this:
BF: Am I picking up the children today?
Me: No, I can get them but I have a little adventure to go on. Wanna join? It's a local adventure.

BF: Does it involve butter?
Me: Nooooo


BF: Squirrel hunting? (she is merely joking. Its not like these things have actually happened. well....maybe)
Me: Noooo. But this one may top them all.

BF: Okay, you got me. I'm in.(side-note: neither of us can pass up a good adventure. "Adventure is out there"-Up)
Me: Ok, I'll tell you where we're going when I see you.



10 mins later----
BF: So where are we going?
Me: The cemetery.

BF: What?
Me: Yep. Its research for a paper. Death, Grief and Dying class. (no, no that's not a joke)
BF: reading my paper assignment :" Research in a manner that an anthropologist or private detective would...."Wait! Let's be detectives! We are going to need more time. We'll get the kids first.

The rest of the day goes something like this:
Remove baskets from back of van to allow room for people. Chase baskets that roll out of back of van when opening van trunk. Grab healthy snacks from home. Pick up littles. Help do littles homework in the van,. Pick up big kids. Take them to church to volunteer. Submit camp applications.Talk to various persons interested in Bountiful Baskets. Talk over new business idea with husband on the way.Take littles BF & husband to cemetery to do research.

It was a lovely day for a stroll through the cemetery. There is actually a lot of history to be learned there. However, it only occurred to me on the way there that the littles had never actually been to a cemetery or had we ever discussed what a cemetery was for. Now seemed to be a good time to bring that up.

Well, conversations with my littles are always colorful to say the least and this conversation would provide to be no less entertaining. We recapped our beliefs on where soul vs body goes, why we were going today, and what could be learned, and proper cemetery etiquette.

Some questions that arose were:

So, Why I can't jump rope in the cemetery? Are we going to dig them up? You men, they are ALL dead? Are we going to die too? Are they going to come alive one day? (yes we covered the rapture) Which person should I wish to come alive? Why can't I? Is that how we get zombies?

All was going well until....."Oh oh look they're just doing some work out here...no no...that's a grave". Yep, my course did say not to neglect exposing children to death. I'll just put a check next to that one. 

What I really want to be doing......

This season of my life is filled with lots of pressure. Timelines and stress. All good, well mostly good, things going on in my life. This is my last semester of college, WooHoo! It is something I have been working to complete since Sebastian was 3 months old. Nothing like taking 15 hrs and completing an internship in one semester.

Then there are the usual mom duties with 4 children. To-From school pickups, homework- theirs and mine, meal planning & dinnertime, bathtime & bedtime, stories & prayers, lunches to be packed and laundry to be completed. In my spare time, (ha), I like to schedule CPR classes and plan our annual booth arrangement at our local Home & Family Expo. Well, that and SLEEP. I love sleep. Trying to be better about doing that on a regular schedule too.

All of this said not to brag on what I am "busy" with but really to reflect on what my heart longs to do more of. Those things that are painted on sign like "I'd rather be" fishing".  Today, I'd rather be reading books to my littles like How I Became a Pirate or using my extra thoughts to think up healthier "fun" lunches   packing them in cool lunch boxes, instead of the boring sandwiches, carrot sticks/apple slices, & water bottle combs that are occurring almost daily right now.  I would also rather blog more. I have lots of thought and happenings in my life that i would really like to get archived somewhere. I'm sure some of it is interesting ;).

 And I want to plan more parties. I LOVE planning parties, mostly kids parties. Although any party will do. I love the theme planning, all the little details, the cupcakes, the favors....Ahhh just everything. I would spend my time throwing my kids and their friends and mine parties, play dates, etc. I love celebrating the moments of everyday life.  Now in my life there is ALWAYS celebrating, don't get me wrong, but there would certainly be more of it.

 

In a few more months, 2.5 to be exact, this is what I will be doing. When people ask me " So what are you going to do after you graduate?' My answer will be " I'm gong to read more books with my kids, make funny shapes out of food, blog more, and throw more parties. & take a family vacation to Disney"  Oh yea, I also want to go to Disney World. I'm going to do that after I graduate too. Seems normal right?

Until next time friends :)

Bountiful Baskets- Eating Well for Less

So many things going on in my life right now but one great blessing that I want to share about is Bountiful Baskets!! I probably shouldn't have waited to blog about this one- I haven't been keeping it a secret on purpose I just haven't taken the time to blog in awhile.  Because I am short on time and word is REALLY getting out I thought this may help get the info out to everyone interested (plus I want to brag about how GREAT IT REALLY IS!!!) It'a just $15  for a Conventional Basket and $25 for a 100% certified Organic Basket. There's no commitment, no contract and no long term investment. 

The pictures below are some of my own pick-ups from bountiful baskets. The quality is amazing &  it has saved our family of 6 a great deal of $$ in the grocery budget. 

21 plums, 21 peaches, 9 mangos, 3 organic cantelope, 5 6oz. containers blueberries, 5 pints heirloom snacking tomatoes, 15 bananas, 3 heads romaine lettuce, 3 bunches celery, 9 yellow onions, 21 sweet potatoes, 3 1lb bags( approx) green beans, 3 dozen fresh corn tortillas, 3 dozen flour tortillas= $56.50

!!

3 pints strawberries, 3 heads romaine lettuce, 3 pineapples, 6 honeydews, 6 yellow squash, 9 cucumbers, 6 kiwi, 36 roma tomatoes, 12 bell peppers, 36 bananas, 3 bunches green onions= $45.00

Bountiful Baskets Food Co-op distributes produce baskets, organic produce baskets, artisan bread and sandwich bread every other week. Its a group of people who work together for mutual benefit. This is a grassroots, all volunteer, no contracts, no catch co-operative. Since there are no employees at Bountiful Baskets, we as a group pay rock bottom prices on your food. This also means the co-op would not happen without volunteers. All it takes is a little time, energy and a smile. Volunteer opportunities include helping prepare the baskets, breaking down boxes, assisting with the distribution, and packing up. To help out, simply arrive an hour early dressed and ready to work with water to drink. To quote a press release that a local City put out to encourage residents to consider participating, “Bountiful Baskets Food Co-op is a participatory experience. Participants all save a substantial amount of money on healthy food. In exchange there are no employees to guide participants through the experience.”

Wanna check it out? Here's how: 

ORDERING:

Bountiful Baskets is a non-profit food co-op for any individual or families that want to have more fresh produce for less money. In order to participate, you must set up a free account on the website.  www.bountifulbaskets.org

   

Contributions are accepted beginning Mondays (week A) at  noon until Tuesday night. Making a contribution is sometimes referred to as ‘ordering,’ but this is not accurate. We call it ‘contributing’ or ‘participating,’ because Bountiful Baskets is not a business that you buy from, but rather a co-op where we all pool our money to buy things together.

   

To make your contribution, follow these steps:  

• Go to the website during the contribution time period. Some sites fill up quickly, so you may want to get on early for your first time.  Each site has an allotted number of baskets that it can accommodate. The contribution time ends on Tuesday night.  
• Click “Get my produce basket” on the right hand side under where is says Current Offerings. There’s a picture of a vegetable basket where you click. If there is no “Get my produce basket” link, it means the website is not ready for contributions. If it is during the contribution window, it’s possible the website is having technical problems. Close your browser and try back in a few minutes.  
• Click on the North Texas basket.  
• Enter your email and account password, then click “Submit”.  
• Choose your county from the drop-down menu. Ellis county is now an option! YAY!  (To make a selection in a drop-down menu, click on the little down arrow on the right-hand side of the little box. It will bring up all available options, and you can click on your desired selection.)  
• Choose your Waxahachie pick-up site from the next menu. If it is not showing in the list, it means it is full for the week.  
• Select the number of baskets you would like in the next drop-down menu. (up to 3 per participant)  
• On the “First Time Basket” menu, choose Yes if it is your first time participating. This $3.00 fee is only charged your first time. The money goes into a pool that is used to buy baskets for the volunteers to sort the produce into. You don’t bring those baskets home with you, they are left at the site to be used every week. So you will need to bring a container for carrying your produce home.  We have some boxes available that the produce was delivered in, but not enough for everyone to use.  
• After that, there are several choices that you can select in addition to your produce basket if you desire.  You can also upgrade to 100% certified organic produce for an additional $10.00. In most areas, there are also add-ons such as bread, specialty packs, or cases of canning vegetables. If you would like one of those items, enter the number you would like in the box to the right of the description.  
• Before you click submit, read the message at the bottom of the page, and review your selections to be sure they are correct. Then click submit.  
• This brings up your “Cart” and gives you one more chance to review your selections before you finalize the transaction. Be sure you have selected the site you want and all the add-ons, as these things CAN NOT be changed once the transaction is finished. If you are sure everything is correct, click on “Check-out”.  
• This brings up the checkout page, where you will enter your name and payment information. Be sure to use the address that is associated with the credit or debit card you are using, or the transaction will fail. You must READ all of the bullet points and click the boxes next to them to indicate that you agree to the co-op policies.  
• Once you click submit, wait for the transaction to complete before clicking anything else. It may take a few minutes if the website is extremely busy. A confirmation page should appear when the transaction is complete, and an email will be sent to your account.  
• Print the email and bring it with you to the pick-up.  If you do not have access to a printer, you can write down the number or pull it up on your phone for verification purposes.  Money never changes hands at the site.  All contributions have been made beforehand.  
• If the website gives you an error before you receive confirmation, log back into your account in a few minutes and check the “Contribution History” link on the right hand side before you submit another transaction. If the transaction shows in the history, then your contribution went through. If it is not there, you must re-submit your contribution, but you may have to wait a few minutes for the website to re-set before it will accept your transaction.

When you check out, you agree to be on time to pick-up your produce. Our pick-up time will be  3:45pm (for now, our route times are subject to change as additional sites are added)  on Saturday and every OTHER Saturday after that.  It is helpful to double-check the time on the website under “Locations” each Friday night to be sure there hasn’t been a last-minute change.

You have a 20-minute window to pick up your produce. If you are late, or do not show up, your produce will be donated and will be unavailable to you.

   

You also agree to volunteer on occasion. This is a volunteer organization. We all chip in, no one gets paid, so all of our money goes to buying great food at great prices! If you are able bodied, we ask that you volunteer at least once every 6 to 8 times you participate.  If you can not, then don’t worry about it.

 

If you are unable to come get your basket you may send someone else with your Contribution Confirmation (a.k.a. receipt) to get it for you. 

  

PICK UP DETAILS:

There will be two lines on pick up day: one for the regular baskets, one for the organic baskets and add ons.  You will need to sign off for your basket and wait for a volunteer to pull a pair of baskets over for you to transfer to an available box or basket/ grocery bags that you brought from home.  When you finish, please return the white baskets to a volunteer.  If you have an organic basket or add-ons, you then line up in the second queue. In this line, you will need to inspect your produce before you sign for it.  When you sign for it, you accept the entire case. 

  

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to ask. Just comment below!!

Pajama Glam 7th Birthday Party- The Details.

First off, I have to say I typically swoon over details. I tend to believe it truly IS the little things that matter. All those things that don't cost a lot but added up can make a huge impact. Those little things that make the everyday seem magical, i.e. the kiss before leaving the house, a thank you note in the mailbox, jazz music playing while you clean, and flowers in the kitchen just because "its Tuesday". That being said when planning Kaitlyn's 7th birthday Pajama Glam party we were paying attention to every detail!   Kaitlyn had seen her older sister have sleepover after sleepover this past fall and desperately wanted a sleepover of her own. I was afraid the girls may still be a bit to young for an "all-nighter" away from home so we decided to host a mock slumber party instead. We planned all the things you would normally do at a girls slumber party just minus the slumber part. The girls arrived early wearing their pajamas,  a wonderful friend of mine (who was a former Libby Lou party artist) did fancy hair for each of the girls, manicures & pedicures all around. We served a fancy spread of breakfast for dinner. Then we had cake and presents, played princess games, and snuggled down with our sleeping bags and bowls of popcorn for a movie before the party girls parents arrived  for late night pick up.  

It all started with this thrift store chandelier.

 I had originally purchased it to install in the girls closet. Instead, it soon became the inspiration for our party.  

Voila! Some beautiful black and white fabric from Hobby Lobby provided our backdrop.  Upon inspiration from a blog post my sweet friend Heather did at AtoZebra Celebrations, I created the awesome table skirt or "table tutu" as I've been calling it. It was super easy and well worth it for the setting!    

Our cake was an 8" white cream cake with coconut icing. We topped it with a "K" monogram ( I LOVE monograms!!) and a few jewels. We then added a ribbon to match. And presented it on a gorgeous black cake stand I found at the last minute. (I love cake stands too!)

THE Snowballs. These silly things were at the request of the birthday girl. She had Oooh-ed over them in the store for weeks.  I offered to make some fancy cupcakes but my offer was no match for the pink "snowball". It was her party after all so I topped them with a cupcake topper anyway and served on  matching platter they looked great and the girls Oohed over them the same way Kaitlyn had!  


Did I mention I love monograms?!

The dinner table was set with bright pink flowers, a satin table runner,  black and white plates, pink napkins with big diamond rings as napkin holders.  For dinner the girls were served mini breakfast quiches, silver dollar pancakes,  blueberry muffins, and strawberry lemonade.

All that was left to do was was wait for the guests  to arrive. Kaitlyn greeted each guest at the door, so excited for her first "sleepover". The sound of giggles when each girl arrives and presents were opened was unmistakable,and the unforgettable laughter of all the girls was SO FUN! It is bittersweet watching each one of our children grow up more and more but I am enjoying celebrating every moment and milestone in their lives. I am so grateful to have them in my life- Happy Birthday Sweet Kaitlyn!   

The days are long but the years are short

"The days are long but the years are short." This is my favorite quote by Gretchin Rubin, author of the Happiness project. It is the sum of all my emotions concerning motherhood. From their infancy you think you'll never outlive the sleepless nights, the hours they wont stop crying, the endless days of potty training, the incessant whining, and chronically messy house. But then comes kindergarten, little voices reading the nighttime stories to you, and not nearly as many nighttime cuddle sessions because the dark just isn't as scary as it used to be.  The weeks fly by and you turn around to say something and you are eye to eye with a teenager. Although we are long past infancy, we have children at almost every stage now. I am learning to cherish every day even the ones I think I'll never outlive.

That being said yesterday was a very special day for me. My little girl, Kaitlyn's 7th birthday was yesterday, April 1st.  We threw her and her friends a mock"sleepover". I'll post another blog with all the party details because it really was an adorable party!! And the girls were fantastic. We really had a great time.
I was reflecting the other day as I realized that next year Randy & I will have been married for 10 years. A whole decade! I thought back on all the days in a year. And then all the days in a decade. I was overwhelmed by all the happy days we've had together. Randy is the fairytale of my life. Our family is so precious to me- not perfect but precious. Perspective is important. The happy days far outweigh the bad ones. And before you know it all those days have turned into years.