Ramblings

It is Friday afternoon and I have the house to myself.
My loving husband took the kids so Mommy could
get some sleep after working all night.
Loving that man of mine.
Having this time alone has given me time to
ponder and put down many of my rambling thoughts.
Here goes.....

Update on our attempt to reduce our trash impact:
It is going good. Our trash container has not been overflowing
for over a month now.
We have greatly reduced our paper towel usage.
I use microfiber towels and rags for all my cleaning now.
Would love to totally rid our need of paper towels,
but my hubby still is addicted to them. Smiles.

When we finished up our store bought laundry detergent,
I made some homemade dry detergent.
My recipe is simple:
1 bar Fels Naptha - finely grated
1 cup Arm and Hammer Super Washing Soda
1/2 cup Borax
I use 0ne tablespoon for light loads
and two tablespoons for heavier loads.
So far, I am pleased.
I have thought about putting a few drops of
essential oil in the washing water.
A little nervous though, maybe in the sheets first.

Potty training: Is still an ongoing process.
Pull-ups are still being bought.
I am trying to be patient,
but find myself getting frustrated.
The twins do good with pee-pee,
it is the poo-poo that is their roadblock
to diaper freedom.
Next week will be interesting, the twins
will be going to a VBS from 9-12 M-F.
I am going to put them in "big boy" pants
and see what happens. Pray.

Garden: I have tomatoes coming out of my ears,
but loving it!
Having fun coming up with new recipes.
Peas are having a hard time with the intense heat here.
I am really enjoying the garden.

home school: Only formal schooling we are doing during
the Summer months is reading and math.
We have gone on lots of field trips--
Alligator farm, The Kennedy Space Center,
a WWII museum, science museums, beaches, etc., etc.
This has given us a much needed break while still
learning.
Have not started with planning on our upcoming year.
I think that I will start that around the end of June.

Running: Recovery from a back injury is a slow process.
It is happening though.
I ran my first mile yesterday since my back
injury back in February.
And I will be "speed walking" a 5K on Saturday.
Really looking forward to getting back to running.
It will be awhile before I tackle any long distances.
I am okay with that.
Just happy to have my back back.

We are in the process of finding a new church.
This has weighed heavy on both my hubby and I,
but we know it is the right thing to do.
We love the people of the small church that has been
a part of our family for over 9 years.
This decision did not come lightly.
We have thought and prayed about it for many years.
We are in no hurry to find one.
We plan on visiting around a lot and praying a lot
about this.
Going to church as a family is very important to us.
Please keep us in your prayers.

I think that is enough rambling for now.
Thank you for letting me share some of my pondering thoughts.
Many blessings.