DIY Soy Candles
Saturday, December 31, 2016
A simple candle recipe that's great for gift giving!
Yes, I know the holidays are over, but I had to share this soy candle recipe that I made as a last minute gift for our neighbor. It's super easy, inexpensive, and if you love candles, like myself (before kiddos), you can make some for yourself.
Ingredients
-Microwavable Soy Wax
-Mason Jars or Tumblers
-Old Microwavable Bowl
-Candle Wicks
-Wooden Dowels
-glue stick (optional)
-Essential Oils (optional)
Directions
1. Put some newspaper down to keep any wax from dripping on the surface.
2. Pour soy flakes into microwavable bowl. Set time for 90 seconds to 2 minutes for every 8oz of wax melted.
3. Check wax and stir. Continue to microwave every 30 seconds until wax is fully melted.
4. Place wick in center. You may need some glue to help secure the wick to the center and a wooden dowel (I used a grill skewer) to keep it upright.
5. Pour wax into jar or tumbler. Add desired amount of essential oil to wax (wait until wax has cooled a bit, but still in liquid form before adding oil. The heat will cause the scent to lose potency). I used DoTerra Serenity, which is like a lavender blend, and DoTerra Breathe, which is like a peppermint blend, as my scents for these candles. Save some wax for the end.
6. Let wax cool for 30 minutes to 1 hour, then use toothpick to poke holes around the wick, about 4 cm deep, to let air escape. Then remelt remaining wax and pour over holes until the surface of the candle if flat.
7. Continue to let wax cool for 4-6 hours, then trim wick to 1/4" if needed.
And Voila! You have a beautiful scented candle. If you choose to make them for gifts, I bought these tags (Similar here) from Target for $3 and used them to write a "name" for the candle that resembled the scent.
Happy Gifting!
Snapshots: Traditions
Friday, December 30, 2016
When I was growing up during the holidays, my parents and I used to spend our Christmas' in Charleston, South Carolina. It was my parent's hometown and a lot of my dad's family still resided there. All the family would come together. There would be lots of food, crab cracks, gift exchanging, and lots and lots of laughter. There were some years where us kids would put on talent shows for the family. Eventually, we started spending Christmas at home, but there was still the dinners, the laughter, the games...just on a smaller scale. These traditions were what I looked forward to the most during Christmas. Yes, I loved getting presents, but nothing beats having family around.
These are the things I want my kids to look forward to during the holidays. I want them to have memories like I did and continue to have as the years pass. As the years come, I would love to do more and make more memories. Maybe getting around to an Advent calendar too.
These are the things I want my kids to look forward to during the holidays. I want them to have memories like I did and continue to have as the years pass. As the years come, I would love to do more and make more memories. Maybe getting around to an Advent calendar too.
What are some of your favorite family traditions?
Three months of Gideon
Monday, December 19, 2016
I definitely dropped the ball on giving
an update on Gideon since he was born. I guess it's true when
they say the second child does get the short end of the stick!
they say the second child does get the short end of the stick!
One
month was definitely a trial and error month. While I was waiting for
my milk to come in, we supplemented a little bit because he lost 1 pound
while in the hospital. During that time, he would spit up a lot, which
wasn't unusual for c-section babies. Then there were those times where
it seemed to be too much spit up to the point where it didn't seem
normal. So I took it upon myself to try a dairy-free formula because I
was thinking it was a possible allergy to the formula we were using. He
seemed to keep the milk down better, but I didn't worry about it because
I was able to breastfeed at this point.
Well,
the spitting up started back again...I mean, projectile type spit up.
Even though he was classified as a "happy spitter" there were times
where it seemed as though he was irritable and in pain. I informed his
doctor of my observations and we ended up testing his stool to see if
there was an allergy/sensitivity that was causing Gideon to spit up.
Sure enough...he has a dairy allergy.
Normally
I would opt to switch to formula because there is no way I could give
up dairy. I mean...no milk chocolate, no ice cream, no cheese, not even
certain barbecue sauces. Yes, I know there are alternatives, but do they
really even taste good? On the other hand, I made a pact to myself that
I was going to breastfeed Gids longer than I breastfed Norah, which
would be longer than 5 months. Not too mention, formula expense is not
in our budget right now, so I have to make the free milk, the good milk!
In a future post, I'll share some of my favorite dairy-free products
and provide a list of non-dairy free items.
Since
the transition to dairy-free, Gids would still spit up, but it's not as
much and would be more from him being so full. He ate every 2 hours and
would wake at least twice during the night. He is such a happy baby
overall and he smiles all the time, which Norah didn't do until she was
about 3 months old.
Then here comes three months! Total ladies man! If you call him handsome or cute, his smile would make you blush! He's so full of coos and cackles this month. He loves to watch Norah play and be all in his face. He likes the mamaroo, which he wasn't a big fan of when he was a baby. Too bad he won't be able to use it for too much longer. He still sleeps through the night, but may not go down until close to midnight. When I had Norah, I was implementing a bedtime routine closer to her two month birthday. I've started giving him his bath at night with his last feeding around 8:30pm- 9pm. Some times it works, other times it doesn't, but I will continue to implement this until he gets the hang of it.
Nursing throughout the whole pregnancy has been a breeze. My problem is just carving out time to pump! When I'm at home, I normally wouldn't pump because I would be EBF, but at work it can be a bit tricky because my days are so unpredictable. On average, Gids eats every 2-3 hours. Once he was about 2 months old, he skipped the overnight feeding. If I did have to supplement especially if I ate something with dairy, I used Nutramigen for his feedings.
Happy Quarter of a year Gids!
Norah's 2nd Birthday Elmo Party
Thursday, November 3, 2016
A couple weekends ago, we celebrated Norah's 2nd birthday. The theme this year was Elmo per her request. Actually she agreed to a lot of her favorite themes, but we knew that Elmo wouldn't disappoint.
I have to say I didn't go too overboard with this party, which after the fact I had a little "mom guilt," but her smile made all of that go away. We invited family and close friends over for some pizza and dessert. I purchased her cake, cupcakes, and cookies from one of my favorite bakeries, that specializes in vegan/gluten free baked goods. If you're thinking how odd they must taste, you're wrong! You can't even tell the difference, which is awesome! Trust me. On another note, since I'm breastfeeding and Gideon has an allergy to dairy, I had to transition to dairy free, which was another reason I purchased vegan goodies.
I couldn't wait for her to see the play kitchen that we found on Craigslist. It was made by Pottery Barn Kids and we paid 80% less for it than what we would pay in the store. Not to mention, they also included play food, a blender, and toaster, which made the purchase an even better buy. All it needed was a good wipe down and it looked practically brand new. The best part was Norah was so excited to play with it. Utilize your local neighbors people..it can save you some money!
We had a Sesame Street mural up for pictures. We barely took any pictures of her in front of it because she just had to play with her kitchen at every single moment...kids! She did kiss each of the characters and said their names near the end of the night, which was really cute. She also loved her play doh, crayons, and markers, which we all dug into once guest started to leave. Overall, the party was a success and we had one happy two year old on our hands. I hope you all have a great day!
Froyo Fruitsicles
Tuesday, June 21, 2016
Cheers to summer finally making it's presence! I've been looking forward to getting Norah out of the house and enjoying the sunshine while we can. Rochester can be quite unpredictable, but I have a feeling that summertime is here to stay...for a while anyway.
I've switched gears with the way I'm thinking about toddler food in terms of providing healthy food/snacks that are always easy accessible. With an active toddler in action and the days becoming so unpredictable, having snacks on hand makes life a lot easier. I decided to make Froyo Fruitsicles, as I like to call them, which are easy to prepare and the ingredients are probably sitting right in your fridge. Not to mention, they make for a cool, healthy snack on hot summer days like today.
I kind of winged this recipe because I was making them on a whim with what I already had a home. In which you should definitely alter the ingredients to your liking. Also, keep in mind that each popsicle mold is different in size, so you may need less or more of each ingredient. I used these Ikea Popsicle Molds for this recipe.
Here are the basics: I cut up about a handful each of strawberries/blueberries and 1 kiwi, all into bite sized pieces. I placed them into the molds first filling each mold about halfway with fruit. For my recipe, I kept the fruit separate, but you could definitely mix them up if you're feeling adventurous. In a bowl, I mixed about 1 1/2 cups of yogurt with 1/2 cup of almond milk to help the yogurt mold around the fruit better. The yogurt I used was Organic Valley Grassmilk plain yogurt. Norah happens to love this yogurt (I'm not too big of a fan) and it's full of natural omega 3s. It also comes in vanilla, as well. I added about 1 tbsp. of honey and 2 tbsp. of flax seeds to the mixture, as well. If you want a sweeter taste, add a little extra honey. Once everything was stirred, I poured it into the molds. After that you add the sticks, place it in the freezer for about 4-6 hours and "Voila" you have six molds of amazingness.
Now I just have to keep my hands off them, so Norah can enjoy!
Happy second day of summer!
We're having a Boy // Gender Reveal
Saturday, April 23, 2016
From the first moment that I found out I was pregnant, I knew we were having a boy. Unlike my pregnancy with Norah, which was practically a walk in the park, I was consistently nauseous, I had aversions to certain foods and drinks (especially coffee...sad face), early onset pain, and consistent headaches. I believe us mothers are so in tune to our bodies that even we can predict the gender before an ultrasound picture tells us.
When I scheduled the appointment for my 2nd trimester screening, I wasn't thinking when I scheduled it mid afternoon on a TUESDAY! There was no way that if we planned another gender reveal party that I was going to wait until the weekend to find out what we were having and I didn't just want to find out at the appointment without some family or Norah around. Thinking fast, after the appointment, we decided to go to Carter's, pick two outfits (one boy and one girl), hand the cashier the envelope with the picture of the gender, and as we walked away, she packaged the outfit and we checked out once she was done.
Once we arrived to my parent's house, we had Norah open the box to reveal what Baby Caruso #2 was going to be. I'm having the hardest time uploading the video. One day I'll figure it out to share.
My husband, who was team blue prior to Norah, was now team pink and loved the thought of having another girl, so he was a little disappointed, at first, but can't wait to raise a little boy.
As for myself, I'm just taking in all the blessings God has bestowed upon our family. To be a mother of soon to be two children is better than all the gifts in the world. My heart is so full right now and I cannot wait to see the bond between Norah and her brother, as they grow up together. On the other hand, I'm definitely going to be doubling up on prayers and coffee during this season of motherhood. This will definitely be uncharted territory for me, so I'm taking in any advice you can give.
The second best part....SHOPPING!! I didn't have an excuse before to spend money, but our little boy needs some clothes and I saw that Carter's, Gap, and Old Navy all have awesome deals right now...Come to think of it, Norah needs summer clothes too!
Guilty, but not guilty!
Guilty, but not guilty!
Shaping Little World Changers
Wednesday, March 16, 2016
"Rise and shine and give God your glory, glory."
"Rise and shine and give God your glory, glory."
"Rise and shine and (clap) give God your glory, glory."
"Children of the Lord!"
Every morning when I'm able to get Norah up, we sing this verse from this song. When I would point up to God, Norah would look at the fan and say, "whas dat?" *as I would side eye roll* I would explain that that's a fan, but that mommy is pointing to God. Days would go by, we would sing, and she would still ask about the fan. Well today folks, she pointed to the sky (not the fan...phew), swayed back and forth, and we worshipped together to this little children's hymn.
God has a perfect timing for everything and even when we think our kids aren't paying attention, they're always watching. Every word we speak, how we treat others, what we hold value to...just everything. This is just one daily routine that I do with Norah. I believe that if we want to create future world changers for God, we have to equip them and make God a priority everyday. Pray over everything, read your bible as a family, go to church weekly, be a faithful tithe-r, and serve in your community.
Now us Caruso's are still a work in progress and there are some areas, in which, we need to improve. By doing all these things with Norah, I see our family growing and learning everyday.
What are some of your Christ building routines you have created with your kids?
We're Pregnant...Again!
Saturday, March 5, 2016
We are beyond excited to be adding another little Caruso to our tribe!
My friendographer (friend/photographer), Justine, came up with this cute way to announce to our family and friends about the great news. I always wanted to do a shoot like this with Norah, so I'm glad we were able to do this as a way to share our news.
I encourage you to take photos like this with your littles at least once. Moments like these, are often missed and then, before you know it, our kids get older. Don't get me wrong, Norah didn't make it easy, at times, because she wanted to do things her way and she definitely needed a nap, but I wouldn't change it for the world! Trust me...you'll thank me later!
Words cannot express our thankfulness and I can't wait to see Norah become a big sister!
Now bring on the no sleep and yoga pants!
Sweet Potato Pancakes
Monday, January 18, 2016
Well the snow is finally making it's presence known this morning, which made for a nice cup of coffee and a little extra time to snuggle under the covers until Norah woke up...which lasted a whopping 30 minutes.
I decided to become Betty Crocker this morning and make a homemade breakfast. I have wanted to make these sweet potato waffles for a while now and I thought it would be perfect to make on a morning like this. Since having Norah, I always want to introduce her palate to new things and give her healthier options. I know that is not always realistic because life is busy, we are tired, and sometimes a bowl of cereal sounds like the best option ever. So when I have my days off, I utilize those times to make Norah some good meals.
Just like any other recipe that I plan to execute on a whim, I didn't have the most necessary piece...a waffle maker! So, pancakes it was. I added some blueberries and raspberries with them and Norah loved it! I even ate a few. I added some syrup to mine, but left it plain for Norah. These go perfect with any typical morning side like eggs, BACON, sausage, the whole bit.
This was meant to be a toddler meal, but can be a great hit with the whole family. Well, not my husband, unless I don't tell him what's in it.
Enjoy!
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