DIY - Slow Feeder Dog Dish

This dog is a sweet little girl who loves three things in life.

Her ball, her people, and her food.

We didn't raise Jinx from a puppy and so we did not get a chance to help her develop good eating habits. 

This girls can down her dish of doggy kibble in less than 30 seconds.

This results in the most noxious gas emanating from a peacefully slumbering pooch that you have ever smelled.

She can clear a room, people.

So I hopped online to do a little research on what could be done about doggy gas. I learned 2 helpful things;

elevate her food, and get a dish that will cause her to eat slower.

When I looked online for these fabulous dog dishes, I found that they could run anywhere between $10 and $25.

The cheaper ones are made out of plastic.

I didn't like the plastic versions and the stainless steel ones were expensive. I got to thinking about it and thought that I could come up with my own solution for much cheaper.

My solution cost me less than $5.

Want to make your own?

This is what you will need:

2 stainless steel bowls.

These were purchased at our local hardware/home improvement store. The little one cost less than a dollar and the large one cost less than $4.

You will also need some silicone sealant.

Now because Hunky Hubby is a carpenter, we happened to already have a tube of silicone. However you should be able to pick up a tube for around a buck. You could also look for a silicone glue like E6000 in the crafts section of your nearest big box store.

Just a little warning: you will not come close to using all the silicone.

Turn the little bowl upside down and glue it into the bottom of the large bowl.

Let dry.

Boom!

You now have your very own slow feeder dog bowl.

Want to see it in action?

I know you do.

Miss Piggy now has to take smaller bites in order to eat around the small dish in the middle. 

I could actually hear her chewing!

Now, because I have a Lab, I wanted to use the large dog dish so I would have enough space for her to get her muzzle in between the sides of the dishes. I also wanted to be able to add enough food.

These sizes worked great for us.

The next step is for H.H. to build a stand for the dog dish to sit inside so it can't be knocked off the overturned laundry basket it was set on.

Do you want to hear the best news?

These two techniques have definitely slowed down Jinx's food gulping. It has also seriously reduced the amount of stinky flatulence that emit from her!

This is a win-win, people.

Cheap and easy project + less stinky dog.

Guess what?

Our Jinx is going to be a mommy!

If you or anyone you know are interested in a labradoodle puppy, stay tuned for future updates and pictures. They are due in a little over 2 weeks.

Egg Decorating

This year our egg decorating party included some of the girls from NBI.
It was so much fun! 
Most of us were old egg dying pro's, but one of us had never dyed an Easter egg before in her life!
I won't tell you who it was, but I don't think this will be her last time. 

Because I am a bit thoughtless, I forgot to take a picture of the boys dying eggs too. We were all in this together, even Hunky Hubby.

We really get into our egg dying around here. We made our own dye with food coloring and Vinegar.

We use wax, glue, and crayons to put designs on our eggs.

We dye them once, and then again, and sometimes a third time! 

It's hard to know when to stop.

Dying things is addictive.

Anyway, I love it when the girls come around. 

The boys don't mind it either.

Don't let them convince you otherwise.

God didn't give me a daughter of my own, 

but each year I get one, or a few, to enjoy.

There is always a lot of laughter and fun when these girls are around. And best of all, they are sweet young women who love God and want to serve Him. 

Plus they do their own dishes! 

It doesn't get much better than that.

Easter Traditions

I have two favorite holidays, Christmas and Easter.
Both of these holidays are based on and centered around Jesus. 
The most important man to have walked the Earth. 
Both of these holidays have been commercialized to the point that some children could actually grow up and not know that these days have anything to do with Jesus or God or salvation. 
I absolutely don't want my kids embracing the commercial ideology of these Holy holidays. I don't want my children's main reference for these holidays to be about Santa or the Easter Bunny. I'm not saying that I think those things are wrong or evil. But I don't want these worldly icons to be the first thing that comes to mind when these holidays are mentioned.  I want my children to understand that these holidays wouldn't exist if it hadn't been for the birth of a baby named Jesus. In fact, they wouldn't even be referred to as holidays if they hadn't begun as Holy days. 
As the keeper of traditions in my family it has been up to me to find meaningful ways to teach our kids the Biblical importance and meaning behind these Holy days. 
I like looking for new ways that we can stress the religious importance of these days with our kids. One thing we have participated in has been the Good Friday service at my Father's and Mother's church. This year, we are participating in our first Seder meal with our church. 
But, one of the simplest tools we have found to use is something called Resurrection Eggs. 
It is like an advent for Easter. You all know I love a good advent.
Resurrection Eggs were developed by the ministry, Family Life. 

Inside each kit is a dozen colored plastic Easter eggs.

There is also a guide and devotional for each day.

It contains daily Bible references for reading the Easter story and a devotional narrative. 

Inside each egg is a small object that coordinates with the days devotion.

The objects are sturdy for little hands.  

I have found that the hands on aspect of the objects in the eggs helps the daily lesson be more concrete in the minds of my children.

The last egg is saved for Easter morning for a very important reason. My little boys would always ask "Why is it empty?" because they were expecting another trinket. To which I could then respond, "Because God's not Dead!"

What a great object lesson to share with them! 

We really love this easy and creative way to keep Christ as the center of our Easter traditions. It is a great way to break down the Easter story in small bits for a child's short attention span. The hardest part is remembering to get it out 12 days before Easter!

You can find your own set of Resurrection Eggs here. It is being sold for only $9.99! 

We have had out set for 5 years and everything has held up really well. I would suggest that you keep it set apart and not let your children play with it like a toy.  We only get out the egg of the day and pass around the object inside. Then we put it away. Losing the pieces would make it a lot less fun next year. At the end of the holiday, I just pack it away with the rest of our Easter stuff. Because even though I want to keep our main focus on Jesus during this holiday, we still decorate eggs, have Easter baskets and egg hunts! I'm not about squelching all of the fun, just changing the focus!

If you are really crafty, I am sure you can find a few examples on Pinterest for making your own set of Resurrection eggs. 

It's not too late to start a new tradition for your family. Or you could pick one up as a creative baby shower gift! Do it this year even though you're getting a little bit of a late start. Otherwise you know you'll forget until next year! 

This opinion is my own. I was not compensated in any way by Family Life for the review on this product. 

My Neighborhood

Since this winter is dragging on and on and on and on.... 

(you get the drift),

I thought you might enjoy a few glimpses of my neighborhood. 

It really is beautiful the way that God blankets the barren trees and fields with bright white snow.

If you take a walk down my road, this is what you would see. 

I love the way the sun reflects and glistens on the snow.

It looks like trillions of pieces of glitter. 

Especially when a breeze blows a dusting of snow 

through the crisp, cold air.

It is amazing that God made a provision for beauty even during the season when every plant is hibernating.  

There really is something to love and appreciate about each season.

Even winter.

It is a picture of our life.  No matter what season we are in, God can make something beautiful out of it. 

Laundry Room Re-Do

When we first moved into our house the laundry/entry room was painted stark white on every surface.  Now white can be a clean palette for some people, but I like a little color in my life.

I decided to take the room from drab to fab by painting it a bold color.

I am usually color conservative.  But I always admire other peoples bold colors in their homes, so I thought I'd try it myself.

I shouldn't have.  

I made a mistake by choosing a deep color for a small room with no natural light.

Although I really loved the color, instead of making the room fabulous, it made the room feel small and dark.

I painted the room a hot pink/raspberry color that was bold, exotic, and fun - and completely wrong for the space.  

I had originally thought to make it into a glitzy and glamorous space with a fun chandelier and a wild rug, but after I got the painting all done, I realized that finishing the room wouldn't improve the cave feeling that was prevalent.

Although I didn't love how the paint turned out in the room, I couldn't justify spending more money to repaint it.

Paint may be a cheap way to update a space but it isn't that cheap!

So, the laundry room stayed that color for over a year. 

I didn't hate it, but I didn't love it either. 

Hunky hubby didn't love it, and neither did the boys. 

There were a few friends who liked it and there were even some people who never even noticed the color!?!?

Then, finally, the opportunity arose for the laundry room to be repainted.

We had been wanting to add some storage cabinets. Friends of ours picked a couple of matching cabinets up for us at a Habitat Restore. 

I gave the cabinets a face lift with a couple coats of paint and some new handles.

Before installing them though, I convinced H.H. that this would be the perfect time to repaint. It honestly didn't take much convincing because he didn't like the pink anyway. 

So on New Years Eve we repainted the laundry room!

I still wanted the color to be something feminine, but I learned my lesson with the bold color and decided that less is more.  H.H. helped me choose a pretty lavender color. 

It's girly without being overly girly. 

I love the color now. 

It is hard to see in the pictures, but it is perfect in the room.  It brightens up the space helping it to feel larger.

H.H. hung the cabinets above the washer and dryer.  Then he attached a pole for hanging shirts to dry and placed a shelf above that.  The cabinets add great storage and keep the room looking neater than the bare shelf that was in there before.

I would still like to replace that old gold light fixture with a cute chandelier. I'll be keeping my eyes open for something at a yard sale or flea market so I can have another DIY project. 

I picked up the wall art on clearance at TJ MAXX.

It says "smile, happy is beautiful".

I find this to be a helpful reminder when I am knee deep in laundry.  It is even more helpful when I am rushing out of the house after corralling kids and 2 dogs and coming back inside 3 times to grab the forgotten items off of the counter. In all that chaos, my face is seriously lacking a smile. I need this little reminder to stop, take a deep breath, and smile. Smiles help not only your face be beautiful, but your heart as well.

We added double rows of coat hooks behind the door.

This is for my coat fetish that I inherited from my Dad. That's right, I said Dad.

We also keep the bulletin board, calendar, and phone charging station in here.  There is a row of hooks under the shelf for the boys coats, although I am sure they will be outgrowing that soon.

The peg board wall holds baskets for 5 peoples shoes. It also holds house tools, hats, and duct tape.  Behind the wall on the left are 3 shelves that hold an array of miscellaneous junk that I have a terrible time keeping organized.

I think this is the most multipurpose room in the whole house!

Personally, if I was able to design my house, I would never have my laundry room be my entry room.  But my Mama always told me  "You need to do the best with what you've got". Sound advice that can be applied to many things, even laundry/entry rooms.

All things considered, we have done the best we can.  The new color helps.  I love the clean white cabinets and trim. It all comes together to make a pleasant room to be in. Which is nice because I am in here a lot.

I'd love to hear about your painting mishaps and what you did about it.  Leave a comment below!

Thanks for looking at our space.  Organizing ideas are welcome. As long as you can tell me how to train the kids to always put their stuff away. 

Book Review: Orphan Justice

Orphan Justice: 

How to care for orphans beyond adopting.

 by Johnny Carr

My husband and I have been praying about how adoption could play a part in our family for a long time. As of right now, we haven't felt like we are in a position to pursue the adoption of a child. This decision has not come lightly or easily. So in this season of waiting, we have been looking around for ways in which we can still play a part in the care of orphans. 

The desire to do something to aid in the plight of the orphan comes from the Bible.  James 1:27 says "Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you."  

God wants us to be concerned and to have compassion for the orphan. What do you think of when you think of orphans?
Well, often you think of children who are living in an orphanage or in the foster system because they don't have parents who are able to care for them. If you believe that all children deserve a family then you also think about adoption.
But here is another truth.  Even though God calls all of us to care for orphans, he doesn't call all of us to adopt.  
So if adoption isn't an option either for the orphan or for your family, what can you do to help?
That's where this book comes in.
Johnny Carr speaks as an adoptive father who is passionate about caring for orphans but see's that adoption isn't the only option, and sometimes not even the best option.
He sees the big picture of the plight orphans around the world are facing.  He gives Biblical and practical advice for ways that you can get involved and make a difference.

Some of the topics that Carr tackles are:

orphans and human trafficking, AIDS, orphanages,

poverty, foster care, racism,

abortion, the Church, and spiritual warfare.

He isn't afraid to talk truth about the hard things.  His writing is relevant and challenging.  

I appreciate that at the end of each chapter Johnny offers practical ideas about how you can get involved. 

Things as simple as raising awareness for adoption in your local church to starting a backpack food ministry in your local schools or  supporting a ministry that is working to end Human trafficking.  You may decide to become a foster parent, or simply support a family who is fostering or adopting.  You might begin by volunteering at a local clinic, by supporting refugee care or by praying. There are many important options that will help to change the future for at least one needy child.

Maybe you will decide that adoption is for your family. 

That is wonderful! 

But if you don't believe that you are able and called to adopt, there is still so much that can be done.

"Adoption is not for everyone, but caring for orphans is for everyone."

I plan on sharing my copy of this book with everyone I can.  Although you may want to get your own because mine is full of highlighted passages! 

I truly believe that it is a book that every Christian should read.  I also believe that orphan care is a cause that everyone should and can get behind. 

I am excited for our family as we pray about how we should move forward in orphan care.

What about you? 

What can you do?

Oh Summer, Where Art Thou?

Just because this winter seems like it will never end.
Just because I miss summer.
Desperately.
I am going to post some of my favorite pictures from summer that haven't made the blog yet.

Is there anything cuter or more summery than a baby bunny?

One of my favorite annuals.  

I have no idea what its called.  

But it has very unique foliage so I can buy it every year.

I love this shot. Gonna have to use a wheat field in some Senior portraits or family pics this summer.

Can you smell summer in looking at this pic?  I can.

I miss summer.  

I cannot lie.  

There are many nice things about winter, including the Olympics this year.

 But, summer wins, hands down, every time.

May you go to sleep tonight appreciating what is, and dreaming of what will come.  

Because it will come.

Eventually.