New Pendant Light

I have been looking for a cheap pendant light cover that I could live with in my home for about 4 months. Our old one was dated and ugly. (Sorry, no before picture.)

Last week I found this tutorial and decided to give it a try. When I told my husband what I wanted to do he thought I was crazy and that it would look awful, but I convinced him to let me give it a try and we could keep it or go back to the old, ugly cover if my DIY attempt failed.

After a couple of shopping trips I collected the list of supplies. This past Friday a bunch of my girlfriends were getting together for a Ladies Night In to craft and hang out. (We're a wild bunch, I tell you.) I took along my supplies and got to work. For the most part I followed the instructions in the tutorial. I found it was easiest to do as the author did and put the glue on my gloved hand and run the string through the glue as I wrapped it around the ball. The tutorial says that it will take one container of glue but I used nearly two. It also said I would need 900ft of hemp string, but I only used 400ft because the globe was already looking pretty full and I wanted the light to be able to escape easily.

I did make one other small change. My pendant hangs from a 15 foot (at least!) ceiling and I didn't want to have to borrow a ladder to climb all the way to the top to detach the electrical wires so I could put the pendant kit through one of the small openings in the ball. Instead, I left an opening at the top of the globe that would fit just the plastic piece that the light bulb would screw into. I put the new hemp globe over that plastic piece, then I took a metal ring that was holding on the old glass pendant cover and screwed it on so that it was holding my new hemp globe in place. I put the light  bulb back in and called my skeptic husband to come look at my work.

He approves! I get to keep it! I must say I am really proud of myself for deciding to give this one a try and figuring out how to make it work with the pendant kit I already had hanging from my ceiling. I love the change it makes in our entryway. What do you think? Do you like my new pendant shade?

For Sale

How in the world do some people manage to get so much done in a day?! Honestly, I feel like my days must have 5 less hours in them than the days everyone else lives. What other explanation could there be for me still having 5 hours worth of work to do when other (read: more rested) people are going to bed?

Maybe it has something to do with the fact that our house is on the market and we get calls for showings with sometimes as little as 30 minutes notice. I guess we could turn down the appointments, but we really want to sell our house so we take every appointment that comes our way.

Keeping a home showing ready (or 30 minutes of mad rushing from showing ready) at all times is no small task. Add in a three year old boy with tons of energy and it is exhausting. I feel like I spend my days planning how long it will take the washing machine to run and if I'll have time to switch the wet clothes to the dryer before our next showing? Will there be time to run the dryer? It is in the kitchen and a bit noisy and makes the room feel humid so I don't want it running during the showing. What about folding and putting all those clothes away? At what point of the day can I squeeze in nap time? If I have to wake up Evan from his nap in order for someone to come in and see the house will I have time to put him on the potty or should I put a diaper on him and run out the door? What about snacks? I just vacuumed two days ago, do the floors look like they need it again? Has anyone forgotten to flush a toilet? Leave the seat up? What will we do while someone is looking at our house? Go for a walk or run errands? Oh, it's a 100 degree day? A walk is out... the pool? A neighbor with air conditioning that won't mind a visit? Oh, and did I mention the toys that get spread out around the house while I am cleaning the bathtub or scrubbing floors?

So I'm venting. Listing a home for sale is hard work!

We recently found out that our neighborhood is not approved for FHA loans. Our condo association has too many homeowners late in paying their condo fees and as such FHA won't approve loans in our neighborhood. Also, anyone with conventional loan financing will need to have 20% to put down or they won't be able to get a loan either. Frustrating! I found out yesterday that we have 7 homeowners who are one month late in paying their fees. If they pay up we will be within the guidelines set forth by FHA and they will be able to approve loans for purchases in our neighborhood again. All our association would need to do would be reapply for "approved" status. We are VERY hopeful that this will happen soon! The likelihood of a buyer with 20% or more as a down payment is slim and we are one of four homes on the market in our neighborhood.

We are anxious to move. More on that in the next post. For now I leave you with this picture. See? Isn't it a beautiful home? If you are local and are looking for a place to buy or know of anyone looking might I suggest our little corner of the real estate market?

Alright, here is a picture of the inside too.

And this one.

Exhausted, but hopeful.

~Genelle

Yeah, so I stink as a blogger. A ton of things have changed in my life since the last time I posted. Obviously. When does life NOT change over the course of nine months? I have a bunch of things on which to update you.... not that you are even still here after nine months of radio silence on my end, but I figured I should write it all down for my own benefit at the very least.

Over the next few weeks I'm going to try to update more regularly and cover the following topics, all of which have significance in my recent life.

• Listing our home for sale
• Long distance moves
• Thyroid disorders and why they stink
• Adrenal Fatigue
• PCOS and fertility issues
• Weight loss efforts
• Salt and iodine
• Potty training a three year old
• Crafting - my stress buster
• Gluten-free recipes
• Paisley Peach Designs plans - relaunching and building up the business

For now, I'm going to set this to post and get myself to bed. I have fallen into a bad habit of staying up too late and then dragging from tiredness the next few days. I really need to nip the late nights in the bud for the sake of my health and sanity. A sick, exhausted wife and mother is no good to herself, her husband or her children. In my case only one child, but he still needs me to be operating on all of my cylinders.

Good night!
~G

Nonnie's All-Naturals

Just this weekend I learned about a great new start-up company owned by the sister of one of my good friends. Natalie is the mother to adorable little boy Talon who has some health issues that make it necessary for their family to eat gluten and dairy free and also to avoid many additives. She has created her own house cleaning products, 100% soy candles and has recently added a line of homemade, organic pie fillings to her inventory! I just placed an order for both her pear and apple pie fillings as well as a peach and ginger scented soy candle. Her prices are very reasonable at $5.00 for the pie fillings and $12 for the candles. I'm so excited to receive my order and bake up some pies while I burn my yummy scented candle!

Natalie just started a Facebook account for her company. Please visit Nonnie's All-Naturals to learn a little more about her company and message her if you'd like to place an order. 

Disclaimer: I have not received any free product from Nonnie's All-Naturals nor am I being compensated in any way for using the space on my blog to let you all know about her company. I'm just excited about this new company and thought I'd share the news and help a fellow mother get a start with her new business venture. Any opinions expressed are completely my own.

 Thanks for reading!

Yummy, HEALTHY Dessert - Pecan & Grape Yogurt Salad

I don't know about you, but I'm always on the lookout for dessert options for my family that are healthy and still delicious. While making dinner tonight I was munching on a few pecans I found in my pantry. I realized that if I chopped the nuts and combined them with some fresh grapes it might make a tasty combo. I tried it and it was! Then I got to thinking that I should try to make some kind of dessert using that combo. I've heard of similar desserts using a pudding or whipped topping type base that the nuts and fruit are stirred into. While that sounds delicious, I really wanted something healthier. I can't eat dairy or sugar right now, but my husband and son can and this dessert was really for their enjoyment so I decided to use some homemade, plain yogurt. I made this yogurt just last night from our raw cow's milk so it is really fresh and delicious! I also added a touch of real maple syrup to sweeten it up. I served it with dinner and both Josh and Evan loved it! They both had seconds. I guess that's a win!

Recipe

Ingredients:
Bunch of grapes
Pecans (or other nut), chopped
Plain yogurt
Maple syrup

The amounts of all the ingredients are based on  your taste so add as much or as little as you want. Remember that the amount of yogurt you use will determine how "soupy" the consistency of the dish will be so keep that in mind as you are determining how much you want to use.

Just mix everything together and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Enjoy!

Asian Style Chicken with Pineapple Fried Rice

I'm making dinner tonight for a friend who recently had a baby. I remembered this last night at dinner. Today I looked in my freezer to see what was available and decided on chicken something. Yes, you heard that right. I had NO IDEA.

After a trip to the gym, lunch and then putting Evan down for his nap I got started. I knew I wanted to chop the chicken into chunks to make it cook faster so I started to work cutting the boneless, skinless breasts into one inch cubes. As I sliced I started to think about cooking the chicken in olive oil and Italian spices, but changed my mind when I realized that I had a pineapple that needed to be eaten. I quickly switched gears and decided to cook the chicken in Braggs liquid aminos (sort of tastes like soy sauce), with coconut oil, ginger, garlic, sliced onion and a bit of pepper. For the last 10 minutes of cooking I added some cubes of pineapple. I'm pairing this with rice cooked in water and pineapple juice, then sauteed with more pineapple and peppers in coconut oil and a dash of Braggs liquid aminos. Makes me wish we were having more than just leftovers for our own dinner tonight!

Here's the recipe.

Ingredients

Boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cubed (I used three large breasts)
Onion, chopped or sliced
Fresh Ginger, about a 1 inch chunk from the root, peeled then pressed through a garlic press
Fresh Garlic, 3 cloves, put through a garlic press
Black Pepper, to taste
Braggs Liquid Aminos, to taste (I used appx. 1/2 cup)
Coconut Oil - 1 tbls, maybe a bit more if you like the coconut taste
Water
Pineapple cubes (as much as you like)

Throw everything but the coconut oil and pineapple in a baking dish and stir until the chicken is well coated with the spices and Braggs. Throw in the coconut oil in one spot. (It will melt after it heats up and disperse through the dish.) Add water so that it covers the chicken about halfway. Bake at 400 until done. In the last 10 minutes or so of cooking throw in the pineapple chunks and stir.

Pineapple Fried Rice

Brown Rice, cooked according to package but put a little pineapple juice in the water too (I pressed a few slices in a lemon press to get the juice out.)
Coconut oil
Pineapple chunks
Pepper chunks
Braggs Liquid Aminos
Black Pepper, to taste

Saute pineapple and sweet pepper chunks in coconut oil until they just start to soften. Add in rice, Braggs and pepper and saute until the rice is hot and everything is mixed. Easy!

Sorry, no pictures again. I'm in a rush to get my friends this meal so Evan and I are headed out the door with no time to stop for pictures.

Taco Crockpot Chicken Recipe

And I use the term "recipe" loosely... I rarely measure ingredients, but rather tend to throw a little of this, a dash of that into a pot and turn it into dinner. Hopefully that doesn't throw you off if try to copy a recipe. Just add the ingredients to your "taste" and it should turn out fine.

Taco Crockpot Chicken

Ingredients:
Chicken (Any type, but whatever you use boneless, skinless will be easiest) - I used boneless, skinless thighs.
Chili Powder
Minced Onion
Garlic Powder
Onion Powder
Cumin
Red Pepper Flakes
Oregano
Salt
Pepper
Water

Put the chicken in the bottom of the crockpot. Throw in the spices until you feel like there's enough flavor on the chicken. (I warned you!) Add water until it almost covers the chicken. Stir. Set the crockpot to cook on low for 6-8 hours or high if you have less time. (Not sure how long it will need on high so just make sure to check to be sure the meat is cooked before you dig in if you choose to use the high setting!)

When the chicken is done you can shred it (It practically falls apart anyway!) and put it on a salad or put it into taco or tortilla shells with other taco type toppings and enjoy! It's also great if you serve it with a little cilantro lime rice (just cook rice and then refry it with cilantro, lime juice and salt thrown in. Yum!)

I ate mine on salad with a little olive oil and lime juice as dressing and Josh had his on a tortilla with various toppings.

For Josh's lunch the next day I threw some of the chicken into a lidded dish with leftover rice, frozen corn, chopped onions, raw milk cheddar cheese, salsa and homemade plain yogurt (made with raw cow milk) instead of sour cream. He said it was tasty!

If you give this recipe a try I'd love to hear how it worked for you and what you thought. Oh, and feel free to ask me any questions you might have too.