Heavenly Homemakers

Encouraging women in homemaking, healthy eating and parenting

Make Fun Candy-Free Easter Baskets Your Kids Will Love!

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Here’s how I’m putting together candy-free Easter baskets that I know our kids will love!

Why candy-free? Well besides the obvious answer that candy isn’t good for us, I’m actually filling our baskets with fun practical items that I want our kids to have. I have no doubt that they will love what’s in their baskets! And don’t worry. They’ll still get plenty of sugar on Easter Sunday, and yes, even candy.

It’s hard to get all five littles in one picture!

Holidays at our house are so much fun right now! We’ve currently got five little ones in our home, plus Malachi (16) and we’ll have a houseful of college students join us for Easter dinner and an Easter egg hunt after church. It’s tradition. Hopefully, all of our older boys can join us for the day (and their girlfriends too!).

With five little ones though? Boy am I having fun putting together Easter baskets! Instead of filling individual baskets for every single kid, I’m just putting together two: a girl basket and a boy basket. And now let’s all pause a moment to reflect on this:

LAURA IS PUTTING TOGETHER A GIRL BASKET!

Yes. And also, for the first time in my mom-life, I bought Easter dresses and Easter bonnets. Was it fun? Oh was it fun!!

I’ve always had fun dressing all of our boys, and I still do! But right now I also get to dress little girls and fix their hair. You can bet there’s a lot of pink, a lot of bows, a lot of sparkle, and a lot of ruffles involved. :) :) :)

So back to the candy-free Easter baskets.

There were several items our kids needed, so I found fun versions of the following items (like toothbrushes featuring their favorite characters) and put them into the baskets. We go through lots of bubbles (the toddlers ask for them daily!) so of course, our baskets include bottles of bubbles.

Sky’s the limit on little items we can include in Easter baskets that will be fun and useful for the kids. Here are some ideas:

  • These fun Index Card Books (Use the code heavenly15 to get 15% off your order!)
  • Sunglasses
  • Hair Accessories (Sparkle. Bows. I’m a gonner.)
  • Fingernail Polish (Did I tell you that Justus – age 21 – has learned how to put fingernail polish on his little sisters?! He practiced first on his girlfriend. Mom sheds a tear…)
  • Hot Wheels (We’ve pretty much acquired new toy cars for the past 23 Easters.)
  • Bubbles (We can never have too many bubbles.)
  • Balloons
  • Fun Straws (Did you know smoothies taste better to kids when sipped through a straw? True story.)
  • Sidewalk Chalk
  • Umbrella
  • Sandals
  • Lip Balm
  • Toothbrush
  • Toothpaste
  • Nightlight
  • Flashlight
  • Wrist Watch (Our 5 and 7 year olds feel so grown up when they wear a watch. And I never have to wonder what time it is because they tell me every two minutes.)
  • Fun Socks
  • Card Games

Side Note: This year I purchased baskets that can be used year-round in the boys/girls’ rooms. I paid more for them than I would have paid for a simple Eastery-looking basket. But it was worth it because we’ll use these baskets to hold odds and ends in their rooms instead of having to store them away to only use on Easter each year.

Easter Baskets for Big Kids

I don’t always fill a basket for our adult/college age/teen kids. But when I do, it’s filled with things like:

  • Gum
  • Mints
  • Toothbrush
  • Toothpaste
  • Body Wash
  • Soap
  • Headbands for sports
  • Coffee (We love supporting Purple Door Coffee!)
  • Popcorn
  • Beef jerky
  • Other favorite snacks
  • Gift cards to use on outings with friends
  • Pens
  • Kitchen gadgets (because most of my big kids have their own kitchens now)
  • Flashlights
  • Decks of cards

So far, I haven’t filled a teen/adult girl Easter basket. ;) If and when I get to, I’m thinking I would add things like:

  • All of the above
  • Earrings
  • Lip Gloss
  • Hairbrush
  • Hair accessories
  • Necklace
  • Cute notebook and pen set
  • Fingernail polish
  • Journal

You all can help me out with adding to this list. And all the others too. :)

And what about Jesus?

For many weeks leading up to this holiday, we’ve been excitedly talking with the kids about the reason we celebrate Easter. I love how teaching our kids reminds us adults of the Truth: Jesus defeated death!! We are in Him so we get to stand in this victory with Him! Satan was defeated that day, once and for all. Praise God, we can live forever with Jesus!

I praise God for Easter and other holidays and events that give us an opportunity to reflect on the goodness God has provided for us all. His plans are perfect. He thought of everything. We get to celebrate this and live this daily!

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How to Make Quiche for a Crowd

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Making quiche for a crowd is a great and easy meal option. I’ll show you all my tricks for making this as simple as possible!

Yum

On the particular day I chose to serve quiche to my family and a living room (I prefer to call it my loving room) full of college students, I took about half an hour to put together six quiches. Truly, that’s all the time it took!

Cut into eight pieces each, this makes 48 servings and in our case, fed about 13 people. (We had a couple of pies leftover.)

I loved how easy it was to make this meal, and all of our guests felt like I was serving them something extra special!

Now, if you don’t have your very own 2-year-old to help you crack all the eggs, I’m very sorry because this endeavor will be less of an adventure and much more predictable. Egg cracking is one of Keith’s greatest kitchen pleasures. Thankfully, only 1 out of 36 eggs landed on the floor on this particular day.


Along with a helpful two-year-old, I also utilized another fantastic resource: frozen pie crusts. From the store. Someday maybe I’ll make pie crust again. Though when making this many quiches at once {Laura pauses to look up if quiche is plural of quiche}, I may always enjoy the ready-made crusts that the store provides so that I can instead use my time to love people rather than floury countertops.

Here’s another trick I enjoyed: I put all the eggs into my Blendtec and let this appliance do the work (in 7 seconds, thank you very much) to whip all the eggs for me. This was extra helpful because once whipped, I could then easily pour the eggs from my blender into my prepared pie crusts. Oh! Because I’d already filled each crust with a variety of quiche ingredients. Then I added eggs and stirred it all around.

How did I fill my quiche? Quiches? (Turns out, either one works as a plural form of quiche. Ya learn something new every day, thank you Google.) I filled them with a variety of goodies to give our guests lots of options. Some were filled with veggies like broccoli, sweet peppers, and onions. Some had ham and cheese. Some just had cheese. All of them had salt, eggs, cheese, and cream.

But I loved that I could set the crusts all out like an assembly line and fill them quickly with whatever I intended to put in them. Then after the eggs were prepared, I poured it in and stirred it around, then boom. They were ready to bake!

How to Make Quiche for a Crowd

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How to Make Quiche for a Crowd
 
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Author:
Serves: 8 per pie
Ingredients
  • Per Quiche, which makes 8 pieces:
  • 1 unbaked pie crust
  • 6 eggs
  • ⅓ cup heavy whipping cream
  • sea salt to taste
  • ¾ cup shredded cheese
  • 1½-2 cups other fillings like diced ham, cooked sausage, cooked bacon bits, broccoli, onion, sweet peppers, spinach leaves, etc)
Instructions
  1. Place fillings into each pie crust.
  2. Whip eggs, cream, and salt together in a bowl or blender.
  3. Pour egg mixture over the pie fillings and stir.
  4. Bake quiche in a 425 degree oven for 45-55 minutes or until a knife poked into the middle comes out clean.

Quiche is great served with a salad and fresh fruit. :)

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Almond Orange Paleo Salad Dressing

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Tasha’s here again with an awesome new recipe just in time for spring!

Almond Orange Paleo Salad Dressing

by Tasha Hackett

What’s with the Paleo, Tasha? Okay! Sorry, just read this instead: Sugar-Free, Dairy-Free, Soy-Free Salad Dressing that will make you and your family cry tears of joy. Better? Hmm. But really, I can hardly describe the level of happiness this paleo salad dressing makes me. I never knew a salad dressing was capable of bringing forth such an emotion. Almond butter and orange juice? Who knew! Don’t be scared. This paleo salad dressing is delicious on, wait for it, SALAD, but also works great as a veggie dip. In fact, it is even edible straight from the table as pictured below. Not recommended. But acceptable.

toddler messes

Yum

My salad dressing is better than your salad dressing.

The original recipe that I adapted had a few more ingredients and it only made one tiny serving of dressing. I don’t know about you, but if I’m going to go through all the trouble of making a salad dressing from scratch to eat with my paleo food . . . I’m making more than one tiny serving. Clearly, the chances are high that I will be eating salad again in the near future. I’ve made some version of this dressing at least 5 times in the last month. If you’re drinking your salad, skip the dressing and add some fruit. **Insert puking face if you just envisioned drinking a garlic and olive oil flavored smoothie.

Almond Orange Paleo Salad Dressing

Make as directed for a typical dressing consistency. Though if you want it thicker, just add more almond butter. My salads are usually quite epic. I will rarely just eat lettuce, but this dressing has enough going on, that I have eaten it on plain old leaves before. My kitchen hack with this paleo dressing is to make it in my almond butter jar when there’s about half a cup left. Saves times scooping almond butter AND I don’t have to wash any jars just yet. Sometimes I’m pretty smart like that.

My new favorite salad includes the following:

  • Mixed greens (heavy on the spinach)
  • Chopped romaine hearts
  • Pumpkin seeds
  • Sunflower seeds
  • Chopped avocado
  • Slivered almonds
  • Dried cranberries or cherries
  • Chopped cold meat of some kind (ham, chicken, salmon, tuna, or even boiled/scrambled eggs, etc)
  • Chopped dill pickles (tricks me into feeling like I’m having a sandwich)

Yes. My toddler eats salad. What can I say? I think it’s the dressing.

Toss it all with Almond Orange Paleo Dressing and my kids fight for the last serving.

I’ve been serving my family made-from-scratch salad dressings for years and I absolutely love how freely we use them. No worries here about what we’re smothering our vegetables in. As a result, we don’t skimp on the dressings for health reasons. Everything in this dressing is Food. For. Fuel! Go make ya some and tell all your friends about how amazing it is and then invite them over for salad. I dare them to go home hungry.

Salad for dinner! Again! #paleohasmelike #sorrynotsorry #iheartsalad

Almond Orange Paleo Salad Dressing
 
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Prep time
Total time
 
Author:
Recipe type: Dressing
Serves: 2 Cups
Ingredients
  • ½ Cup Almond Butter
  • ½ Cup Red Wine Vinegar
  • 1 Cup Olive Oil (Can use part MCT oil or other oils)
  • 1 tsp Salt
  • ½ tsp Black Pepper
  • ½ tsp Granulated Garlic Powder (Or two fresh cloves, minced)
  • Juice of two Oranges
Instructions
  1. Mix all ingredients and stir or shake vigorously.
  2. Taste and adjust to preference.
  3. For a thicker dressing, add more almond butter.
  4. For a sweeter dressing, add a splash of apple juice.
  5. Store in the refrigerator.

 

Quick! What’s your go-to salad dressing? Store-bought or make your own?

Lastly, be sure to check out some of the other dressings on our site.

Tasha HackettTasha Hackett, friend of Laura and author of Bluebird on the Prairie, a Christian historical romance releasing Spring 2021, is fueled by sunshine, paleo pudding, or hot chocolate—whichever is more readily available. Though she often pretends to be a ballerina while unloading the dishwasher, her favorite thing is writing with hope and humor to entertain and encourage women. Her time is spent with four chatty children and an incredibly supportive husband. They give her the kind of love people write books about. You can connect with her at www.TashaHackett.com or Instagram @hackettacademy or for Laura @heavenlyhomemaker.

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

How to Get Some Cool Spring Freebies from MadeOn (For our kids and/or for ourselves!)

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Renee at MadeOn is one of the best people to work with! Basically, I told her that my little ones have chapped lips and chapped cheeks and chapped hands and that I bet after a winter like we just had – you all also probably have little ones who are all chappy-chappy. I asked if she’d give us all a fun deal to help us with our little chapped children, and here’s what she is offering (because she is AMAZING):

We can all get a FREE Lip Balm and a Pocket-Sized BeeSilk Jr!! These are the exact products we need right now as we head into spring! (We are going through these like crazy right now at our house!)

How it Works

The coupon code hhspring will take $19 off orders of $45 or more. It just so happens that the Lip Balm and a Pocket-Sized BeeSilk Jr cost $19 (thank you, Renee, for making them both free!). It also just so happens that we get free shipping when we spend $45.

So, we can head here and put $45 worth of goodies into our cart (I’m going with the Simply Shea Facial Emollient for my personal chapped cheeks and extra Lip Balms and BeeSilk Jr Pockets for backups). Then we can add a Lip Balm and a Pocket Sized BeeSilk Jr to our cart and the code hhspring will zap the cost of those off during checkout!

Or actually…

The coupon code will take $19 off of ANY $45 order, so you can get ANY products worth $19 for free that you like!! How ’bout that?! ($64 in your cart total before coupon.)

Okeedoke:

Head here to enjoy this wonderful offer!

Use the code hhspring to get $19 off plus free shipping!

Offer good through Friday, March 12.

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

Are Vanilla Bean Prices Going Down?

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Is it true? Are vanilla bean prices going down? After several years, I can finally tell you yes!

What happened to the vanilla bean prices?

Back in 2017, there was a major vanilla bean crop failure which caused a shortage of beans and a huge price spike. It was a big bummer for those of us who love to use vanilla extract for cooking and baking, but even more so for those of us who love to make our own vanilla.

Finally, about a year ago, I checked prices again and found that there was a little bit of a rebound. Prices were lower. Not low, mind you. But lower than they had been. So I did the math and began to again recommend that making vanilla would save you money. (Because the price of commercial vanilla had also gone way up! Making it at home saved money even though vanilla bean prices were still on the high side.)

{Bonus! Olive Nation gives us an extra 20% discount when we use the code home, so that helps even more!}

Then, just a few weeks ago, a reader emailed to clarify what kind of vanilla beans I usually buy. See, in this post I had said that you can buy 25 beans for $91 after our special 20% discount. But she saw the regular price for 25 beans listed at $62. Was she looking at the correct beans?

I didn’t read her email correctly at first, so I thought, “Oh no! Did the price go up again?” Haha, Laura. Read the email again. :) :) Not up, but down! The price went down!!!

You guys! This is all so exciting! We’ve waited a long time for this and we can all get vanilla beans at a much lower price and make vanilla extract again for huge money savings! Not to mention – homemade vanilla is amazing!! 

Where I get my vanilla beans

I always buy from Olive Nation. I’ve worked with them for years and am always so happy with all they offer. Their prices are the best. Their quality is the best.

Side note: Once, a long time ago, I bought from another source and the beans were dry and shriveled. Never again. Olive Nation always now for me!

Because Olive Nation has worked with us here for so long, they really appreciate Heavenly Homemakers readers. They give us a forever discount because they want us to be extra happy with our purchase. They know we all love to save money as we care for our families well. So they’ve set up the code home and it gives us all a 20% discount on our vanilla bean orders! (Orders over $50 also receive free shipping so there’s that perk too!)

What kind of vanilla beans do I buy?

I currently purchase Olive Nations Papua New Guinean Beans. Why? Because they are the lowest in cost right now.

When the vanilla bean shortage made prices go up, Olive Nation started bringing in a supply of beans from several different countries. The prices from each range from $62-$172 for 25 beans from different areas around the globe. I’ve definitely found that the quality of the less expensive beans is still wonderful! So I go with the $62 bean package and have been very happy with what I get!

Another side note: I rarely only buy 25 beans at once. Usually, I buy two-four times that many. But I’m using that as an example because I’m guessing some of you don’t make homemade vanilla in such bulk quantities!

Is it hard to make Vanilla Extract?

Not even a little bit. It’s incredibly easy. Get all the details and see a full tutorial here. Or follow these simple instructions:

Are Vanilla Bean Prices Going Down?
 
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Author:
Serves: ½ gallon
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. Slice through each bean lengthwise, leaving about one inch at the top of each bean uncut so that it stays together.
  2. Place all of your cut Vanilla Beans into a half-gallon jar.
  3. Fill the jar with vodka.
  4. Secure the lid and put the jar in a dark place (like in the back of a cabinet).
  5. Allow it to sit and "extract" for 4-6 months.
  6. Every few weeks during extracting time, shake the jar to mix it up a bit.

Bonus Resources:

Time to make vanilla again!

Enjoy this fun price dip and the discount we receive to go with it. Make some vanilla to enjoy in your kitchen – how fun!!

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Heavenly Homemakers’ Reader Favorite Recipes (The Best of the Best!)

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Today we’ve got a list of our most well loved recipes!

We’ve been sharing recipes here on Heavenly Homemakers now for over a decade. During that time, we’ve created hundreds of recipes for you to share with your family! Some of you have been reading Heavenly Homemakers since the very beginning, and have incorporated these recipes into your family’s meal plan for the past decade.

Readers are often messaging me, sharing their very favorite recipes that they have made and loved for years! I love this, because it reminds me of recipes I haven’t made myself for quite some time!

Recently we asked our Heavenly Homemakers’ community on Facebook (if you aren’t following us, join the fun here!) what their absolute favorite recipe was from our website. We asked them, what was one recipe that they return to again and again. A recipe that have become a family favorite over the years.

We received so many responses that we decided to share that list with you today! We have SO many fun recipes on our site, but we thought you would enjoy a hand-picked list from other readers.

Top 15 Reader Favorite Recipes

1. Spicy Chicken Pizza

Yum

Says reader Kim: “I made the Spicy Chicken Pizza today and EVERYONE loved it!! Definitely going to be made often in our home!”

2. Chocolate Pudding

Homemade sweet chocolate mouse in the glass,selective focus

Reader Christine wrote: “Chocolate pudding!!! I use it for my pies every holiday season and they always, always get rave reviews. And it isn’t so unhealthy either!”

3. Peanut Butter Cups

Says reader Kim: “The peanut butter cups! Such a healthy, delicious treat”

4. Ranch Dressing

This recipe was mentioned over and over again by readers!

5. Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Muffins

Erin said: “Most used (almost weekly for years) would be chocolate chip pumpkin muffins.”

6. Taco Seasoning

Lisa wrote: “Taco seasoning, yes! Fine recipe, but I love to reread it because all the shaking makes me laugh.”

7. Alfredo Sauce

Kristin wrote: “Alfredo…my kids would eat it every week if I made it.”

8. Raspberry Oatmeal Bars

Shannon wrote: “Raspberry granola bars. It was the first recipe I made from you and what made me start following your blog. We are still making them 5 years later (round about).”

9. Creamy Cheesy Chicken Pasta

Rebekah wrote: “I have so many how do I pick. Creamy cheesy chicken pasta, stir and pour bread, breakfast casserole, strawberry fluff stuff. Do you See my problem.”

10. Coconut Flour Cheddar Drop Biscuits

Jackie wrote: “I make the cheddar drop biscuits all the time.”

11. Creamy Chicken and Rice

Teresa had a few favorites: “Italian dressing mix (I use it on so many things) and creamy chicken and rice!”

12. Giant Breakfast Cookies

This recipe was brought up again and again! Stephanie said: “Most used for us… giant breakfast cookies, raspberry oatmeal bars, and several of the muffin varieties. Thank you!!”

13. Sloppy Joes

Several readers mentioned that they make this Sloppy Joe recipe over and over!

14. Warm Vanilla Soother

Perfect for this time of year, reader Tara put her vote in for this comforting drink!

15. Tortillas

Several readers said they loved the tortilla recipe! You can find that recipe in the Totally Tortillas eBook! Gain access to this eBook, and countless others, by joining our Club Membership!

Honorable Mentions

Here is a list of the most well-loved recipes on Heavenly Homemakers!

Several other recipes didn’t make the top fifteen list, but were reader faves all the same! Here are a few more recipes that readers have tried and loved.

Now the only question is, which one are you going to try first?!

Your turn to share! What is your absolute favorite recipe you’ve found on Heavenly Homemakers? Share in the comments!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

P.S. This week only, be sure not to miss the 2022 Home Management Bundle —> Head here to get this at 97% off. OR, read here first to see why I think it’s worth it. :)

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

How Can a Mom Take Care of Herself?

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This is the question I’ve been asking myself for the past thirty-twelve years. With all her other responsibilities, how can a mom take care of herself?

Here’s what I know to do to take care of myself:

  • Eat nourishing food
  • Drink water
  • Exercise
  • Take some time alone
  • Go to the chiropractor and/or to get a deep muscle massage as needed
  • Take time with the hubby
  • Get enough sleep every night

But right now, I look at that great self-care list – and then I look at my five kids under seven, my high schooler and his needs and his friends, my two college kids and their needs and their friends, my adult kid and his girl that I don’t see nearly as often as I’d like, my husband who is busier than ever right now with huge work responsibilities – and I launch into that freakish laugh-cry thing moms do when the thing is not at all funny, so it kinda hits you funny, and then you cry because it’s not funny but there you are, still laughing. Bless.

I know what to do so that I can take good care of myself. Yet in reality, I find it very difficult to pull off right now. But awww, would you just look at all these beauties:

Silly but true: sometimes I’m jealous.

How silly that I would ever be jealous of anyone else, seeing as I love my life as mom! But if I’m not careful, I can see what other adults around me are doing – super extravagant things like going to the bathroom alone or reading books without pictures – and I start to feel a tad bit jealous. “Must be nice,” thinks me. After all, I have very few chances to head to the bathroom without toddlers following me to pull down toilet paper and squirt hand soap into their hair while I pee.

They look so innocent when they aren’t in the bathroom with me.

Fun fact: when my husband needs to go to the chiropractor, he simply calls and makes an appointment.

But I’m not jealous of this, of course, because I’m a super sweet wife who is always super sweet. I am truly very happy for him to go to the chiropractor when he needs to go. Because I am super sweet.

So you must be wondering…can I actually not go to the chiropractor? Can I not read a big girl book? Is everyone around me living their lives in total freedom while I, the mom, languish at home alone – though never, ever actually alone – need I remind you of all who accompany me to the bathroom?

The truth is that I can do any of the things I need to do to take care of myself. But I sometimes feel like I have to move a mountain or three to make them happen…

This seems like the right time to talk about the cookies.

Do you know why a usually reasonable and rational mom might sometimes grab cookies or chips instead of eating the salad she knows she should eat? I think the reasons are two-fold:

1) Because cookies and chips are faster than salad. Faster food is important while striving to keep toddlers from emptying glitter bottles into their mouths or smearing oatmeal all over themselves. And…

2) Because the days can feel long and hard and a mom may feel a little bit deprived. This may lead her to think that a cookie will help her to feel better. Maybe it will bring a little joy in the form of a chocolate chip, you know?

It’s a temporary fix, and as we all know, chocolate doesn’t actually bring true joy. “Only Jesus brings joy, amen,” says the healthy mom. But shucks if she doesn’t try again tomorrow to let the fulfillment come from a Dorito.

You thought I was kidding about the oatmeal…

…and the glitter.

I love my life!

There’s nothing I want to do on earth more than to be these kids’ mom, to be my husband’s wife, to be my friends’ friend, and to live this full, abundant life God gave me. So I’m not complaining – not even a little bit. I’m just sharing a little bit of my current motherhood reality. Basically, I need to make a chiropractor appointment, and I can’t figure out how. That is all. Thanks for listening.

So How Can a Mom Take Care of Herself?

Beats me.

Just kidding.

Heh.

Twenty-three plus years into this gig, I’ve learned that motherhood-self-care takes some doing. It doesn’t just happen. It really does seem easier to reach for a cookie than to get out the carrots and hummus. But this leads to a mama feeling sluggish and depleted, so don’t get sucked in to thinking that the chocolate chips will help. (Now, coffee on the other hand…)

Advocate for yo-self, sista

I’ve found that I have to recognize where I’m lacking. Where I’m feeling depleted. And I have to advocate for myself.

Why does a mom have to advocate for herself? Is it because no one respects her or cares about her needs? Nope. I think it’s the opposite! I think we are highly respected by all! And I think moms are really good at momming! In fact, we’re so good at it that it’s possible that our husbands or friends (or even our very own selves) don’t always realize that we might be one toddler-filled pee-break away from a freakish laugh-cry break-down.

On the outside, I can look like I’m doing great. The kids are clean(ish). The house is – well, it hasn’t quite fallen down around us. There’s food on (but also under) the table. I always smile hugely and beautifully when hubby comes home at the end of the day. (He thinks I’m just happy to see him. Well, sure I am. But the truth is that I AM SO HAPPY TO SEE HIM!!!!! Because he brought his arms home with him and now he can also hold one or two of the children.)

So moms? We have to advocate for ourselves. We have to recognize what we need and go ahead and move those mountains to make them happen.

Sometimes I don’t even know how to do this and therefore find it hard to reach out for help. This is not because I don’t like asking for help (being served by others is glorious!). But I’ve found that asking for help also takes effort. Effort that seems hard to come by when keeping everyone safe and happy until bedtime seems difficult enough each day.

But one or two texts sent out to friends? We can make that happen, right? We can say something like, “Hey, are you free to stay with the kids while I head to the chiro tomorrow morning?” See, that wasn’t so hard.

I think I may try this. I’ll let you know how it goes.

And how about you? Are you working to take care of yourself – even though it’s legitimately hard – though not impossible – to do?

When it comes to nourishment, you can do what I do and drink a salad every day. It goes down fast and easy and can be enjoyed even while children are hanging on your legs. They may even want to drink some too.

I don’t have much time to exercise right now (and winter doesn’t help) but I do run up and down the stairs carrying children or laundry baskets multiple times a day and I try to do some yoga-type stretches in the living room a few times each week. As soon as the weather is nice again, we’ll be doing what I call The-Best-Mom-Fitness-Program: loading kids up in strollers and bikes and taking long strolls which is super good for all the reasons – exercise, fresh air, sunshine, good conversation. But the best reason of all: IT WEARS THE KIDS OUT SO THEY TAKE BETTER AFTERNOON NAPS. This is for their own good. This is all I care about. The good of the kids. ;)

Let’s review and let’s do this!

  1. Moms, we need to take care of ourselves, on purpose, for a purpose, because we are fantastic and wonderful and so very loved by so very many.
  2. And speaking of love, I haven’t even mentioned God yet. Oh dear one, God loves us all so much. He wants so much good for us. He’s right there, daily providing for our every need, every minute.
  3. Ask for help. There is no “Way to go, you did it all alone!” trophy. Who would even want one of those? I’d rather have a daily “You made it through the day because of your awesome community!” sticker. Sign me up. I want this. I have this, praise God.
  4. Rest when you can. We really won’t be tired forever. I promise, because…
  5. This season will turn into a different season. I’ve done this before so I know that it’s true. Eventually, everyone will be able to wipe his or her own bottom – true story. Eventually, the kids can unload the dishwasher and do their own laundry and STAY HOME ALONE WHILE MOM GOES TO THE CHIROPRACTOR. I am so serious. This season is temporary and so very precious.
  6. See the good. I will never be that mom who says “enjoy them while they’re young because they grow up so fast yada yada blah blah” because I’ve been there and done that and I’m doing it again. WE MOMS ARE ENJOYING THEM WHILE THEY ARE YOUNG but we are also tired and covered in spit-up. Much of the day is hard, but much of the day is also oh-so-good. The sweet cheeks and squishy kisses, the way they say words wrong, the times they share with their sibling and giggle and have fun, the way they let us dress them in adorable outfits and don’t have opinions about their attire. I could go on and on. There is so much good in every day. God sees to that. Our job is to see what He sees to. <— Read that again. We can easily see all the good He provides when we are looking for it. It’s constant because He is God and He is good.

Motherhood-self-care looks different through the seasons. Eventually, it will actually be easier to do what we need to do for ourselves each day. But for today, let’s do what we can. Let’s drink the salad. Let’s make the stress-free simple meals. Let’s enjoy the fun books with pictures. Let’s take walks in the sunshine while pushing the stroller. Let’s have Jesus-discussions with our babes and be made aware all over again why Jesus called the children to him and told us to have hearts like them.

Let’s learn and grow from the place where we are. God provides. Always.

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P.S. I finished writing this article (thanks to babysitters, woohoo!), moved a few mountains (texted friends and asked for help), and I’m happy to report that I will be going to the chiropractor on Tuesday at 11:45.

P.P.S. Turns out, it wasn’t so hard to move that mountain so I moved a couple more. I’ll be getting my hair trimmed next Thursday at 1:00. And tomorrow afternoon I’m going to go see my therapist for a much-needed session in hopes of turning my currently too-frequent freakish laugh-cries into my more typical I-love-my-kids-so-much-laugh-cries.

P.P.P.S. Decided to send hubs a heart emoji and some words of encouragement because he works so many long, hard hours every day and still comes home with a smile and arms so willing to help his weary wife with the littles (and the bigs).

P.P.P.P.S. Your turn. Go move a mountain. You are so loved. :)

 

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Club Member Exclusive Printable Pack for March

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Winter has been brutal. This, of course, makes me think about tomatoes. You too? I thought so. ;)

What I mean is, I’m ready to get our garden plans in place for the year. Many of you have likely already started this and now that it’s almost March, it’s time to get serious!

Introducing our Heavenly Homemakers Club Member Exclusive Printable Pack for March!

Remember, along with all of our eBooks, eCurriculum, Simple Meals Plans, bonus articles, printables, and everything else included in our Membership Site – we are now offering an exclusive monthly printable that is only available for members.

This month it only seemed right to create a Garden Planner Pack for us all to enjoy! Current members can go download it now. Not a member yet? Please head over here to learn about all our members have access to. Then sign up to join us. You’ll be amazed at all you’ll get!

 

 

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10 Easy Food Items You Didn’t Know You Could Make at Home (Save $$!)

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I bet you didn’t know you could make these food items at home! (Actually, if you’ve been reading here long, you probably do know about most of these, but act surprised anyway.) ;)

The old me used to make EVERYTHING from scratch. Some of you probably remember that girl. I made homemade ketchup, homemade tortillas, homemade grape nuts cereal, homemade hashbrowns, homemade tator tots… Wait. Homemade Tator Tots?? Yes. It was a reader request and I figured out how to do it! I was what one might call “an overachiever.” (Or “that really crazy heavenly homemaker lady.”)

Now I’m in a different season in life with a big houseful of littles and have decided that there are some food items that aren’t worth my time to make at home. Loving my people is more important than making Homemade Peanut Butter Captain Crunch. Oh my goodness yes. I even tried that too.

But today I want to share 10 food items that are easy to make at home, will save a lot of money, and are worth your time!

10 Easy Food Items You Didn’t Know You Could Make at Home

1. Vanilla Extract

We’ll start with my favorite! This saves a lot of money and is amazing to make in your very own kitchen!

2. Peanut Butter (super creamy – spreadable, like Skippy or Jif)

This tastes so much better than any store brand and is so much fun to make. Watch peanuts turn into peanut butter! So cool.

3. Gatorade

This costs pennies and is so much better for us!

4. Chicken Wings

I always thought this was restaurant food. Turns out, it’s super cheap Friday night dinner at home.

5. Whipped Cream

No, it isn’t cool whip. It’s 1,000 times better.

6. Ranch Salad Dressing

Hidden Valley who?

7. Poptarts

These taste so incredibly good and are easy to make in bulk amounts to freeze and pull out for easy breakfasts!

8. Graham Crackers

The kind from a box will never taste as good as these gems. You can even make them chocolate!

9. Instant Oatmeal Packets

Make a bunch of packets or make a big batch in a jar for easy, inexpensive breakfasts!

10. Frappe

Because why pay $5 at a coffee shop when you can make it for much less at home?

Stevia Sweetened Chocolate Frappe

Which of these have you tried? Ready to try something new?!

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Decadent Simple Paleo Pudding

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Decadent Simple Paleo Pudding

by Tasha Hackett

I was Surprised by my Love of Paleo Puddings 

I’ve been eating a paleo diet since December 20th. Do some math there—it’s been a few days! And for most of that time, there was no pudding. Truthfully, I was blindsided at first: No sugar of any kind, no grains of any kind, no legumes of any kind, and no dairy of any kind. Quickly I discovered a whole new world of food that has brought delight to my family as well. One of our favorites is Salisbury steak with a mushroom gravy and mashed potatoes and asparagus. I’m drooling just typing about it. 

coconut vanilla pudding

Yum

paleo vanilla pudding

And Then There was Coconut Vanilla and Pumpkin Pudding

Most winters I make Laura’s vanilla and other flavored soothers for my family. Instead of hot chocolate when they come in from the snow, they get a protein packed healthy version.

My paleo version, I believe is even healthier, doesn’t have any dairy, hardly any sweetener, and a solid amount of healthy fat for growing kids and all of us using up so much energy trying to stay warm this winter. 

Dairy-Free Paleo Pudding Special Ingredients

Coconut Cream  

I ordered a case of this from my local grocery store for a small discount. It’s not cheap. But I found I can get it for much cheaper from Azure Standard. (Currently $2.30/can.) Though I haven’t tried the Azure ordered cans yet, it will be coming on the truck in a couple weeks! Canned coconut milk has a higher percentage of liquid and less of the fat/oil. You can use that in this recipe instead of canned coconut cream, just factor in the extra liquid. You may need to add more thickener. 

Coconut Milk in a jug

I buy the jug in the cold aisle and go through about one a week. Be sure to buy unsweetened and check labels if there are options at your grocery and get one with the fewest amount of added ingredients. I use this in my coffee, smoothies, baking, and pudding! It is much yummier than almond milk. I’m just going to pretend I didn’t even mention almond milk, because I like to pretend it doesn’t exist. Almond Milk in my opinion is one of the most disgusting . . . blech. So, don’t even. Get yourself some unsweetened coconut milk from the jug. 

Egg Yolks

You can make this recipe with whole eggs, but I’ve had better luck just using the yolks. Egg whites will curdle and get chunky if you heat past 165* and nobody in my family wants to eat curdled pudding. Save the whites in another bowl because you can use them in baking or scramble with a few other eggs. Go ahead and store them in the fridge for a few days. 

Arrowroot Powder

I ordered a bag of this years ago and use it in place of cornstarch. If you’re not on a restrictive diet, cornstarch will work. Or you can skip this entirely if you want to drink your pudding. A healthy gelatin powder, or collagen works to thicken puddings, but they thicken upon cooling. To recap: if you use gelatin to thicken pudding, it will not thicken on the stovetop!

Sweetener

My preference is maple syrup. For the vanilla pudding recipe, I only used one tablespoon. I think the natural coconut cream is quite sweet. The vanilla extract needs the sweetener, I think. If you wanted to try this with NO syrup, I suggest going very easy on the vanilla extract. The pumpkin recipe calls for two tablespoons to counter the spices and vanilla. Start with less, you can always add more. Feel free to experiment with honey or stevia or other sweeteners of your choice. 

Simple Paleo Vanilla Pudding

  • Four egg yolks
  • One 13.6 oz can of coconut cream
  • 13.6 oz of coconut milk from the jug (use empty can to measure)
  • A couple dashes of salt

Mix those three together in a pot and then turn on the heat. Be careful not to boil.

Scoop out a ¼ cup of pudding and mix a slurry with ¼ cup of arrowroot powder and stir it back in the pot.

Once it begins to thicken, turn off the burner and add in:

  • One teaspoon of vanilla extract
  • One tablespoon of maple syrup. 

Taste and adjust sweetener if necessary. 

Either drink warm or chill for pudding. 

Frequently I serve this chilled for breakfast with toasted shredded coconut and pecans, blueberries, sliced bananas, apples, or any other toppings to create a full breakfast. We love this for a make-ahead breakfast. My kids can’t get enough. 

Simple Paleo Pumpkin Pudding

The same as the vanilla pudding, except add in:

  • A can of pumpkin,
  • 2-3 teaspoons of pumpkin spice
  • An extra tablespoon of maple syrup to counter the spices 

I poured this one in a paleo pie crust and pretended I was eating pumpkin pie for breakfast and had enough for six small servings for the next day. (No, it wasn’t as thick as a traditional pumpkin pie. But it was just as good!)

paleo puddingpumpkin puddingpumpkin paleo pudding

Psssst! All of these great ingredients can be purchased from Azure Standard!

Paleo isn’t a Prison

Clearly I’m not saying everyone must eat the way I do, but I have found it to be more freeing than I ever expected. My motivation for staying on this diet is different than most. If you’re curious about that, ask any questions you have! I’d love to chat about it. I’ll just briefly explain, though some people have found great success losing weight with this meal plan, that is not my goal. I’ve suffered headaches for over a decade, and recent lab results show evidence of chronic inflammation and infection among other things. In a nutshell, the paleo diet eliminates all foods that are prone to causing inflammation, as well as cutting out any processed foods that add toxins that prevent my body from healing itself. 

God is Greater than Paleo

While I 100% agree that love is better than food and who even cares about free-range chicken anymore? I know I’m on the right path. Laura spent years developing simple recipes and then they were there for her when she needed them! I believe the same has happened to me, for the first time in my life I have the budget to purchase more meat, vegetables, and nuts, to fill in the extra calories I’m no longer receiving from grains and beans and other “cheap” fillers.

Honestly, two years ago I fed my family on $200 a month. Six months ago it was about $450 a month. Paleo food for six (thankfully three of them are still tiny) is costing me $900 a month. If a doctor had told me to eat this way three years ago I would have cried. Point is: Food isn’t everything. Do what you can. Love your people. Love yourself.

Right now, for me, loving my people and myself means spending more time in the kitchen figuring out how to make paleo simple. For Laura, it means spending less time in the kitchen and more chicken nuggets. And we are not trying to confuse you. Ha! 

toddler messes

And just in case you think I have my act together, this salad-dumbing disaster, in some form, happens daily. Canned chicken on salad is a go-to lunch for us and that is not the face of a repentant toddler.

What’s your greatest struggle in the kitchen right now? Are you spending more or less time in the kitchen these days? Have you ever been put on an elimination diet of some form?

Paleo Coconut Vanilla Pudding
 
Save Print
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
Author:
Recipe type: Breakfast
Serves: 6
Ingredients
  • 4 egg yolks
  • 1 13.6 OZ can of coconut cream
  • 1 13.6 OZ of coconut milk from the jug (use empty can to measure)
  • A couple dashes of salt
  • ¼ C arrowroot powder
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 Tablespoon real maple syrup
Instructions
  1. Mix egg yolks, coconut cream, and coconut milk, in a medium-sized pan.
  2. Add a few dashed of salt.
  3. Heat mixture on the stove being careful not to boil. Stir constantly.
  4. Remove ¼ cup of the mix and make a slurry with the arrowroot powder. Mix it all together in the pot.
  5. Keep stirring and just as the mixture begins to thicken, turn off the burner and add in the vanilla, and maple syrup. Taste and adjust sweetener if necessary.
  6. Drink warm or chill for pudding.
  7. Serve chilled pudding with a variety of toppings for breakfast or snack: sliced apples, bananas, cherries, blueberries, toasted coconut, pecans, etc.

Try both and tell us your favorite!

Paleo Pumpkin Pudding
 
Save Print
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
Author:
Recipe type: Breakfast / Snack
Serves: 6
Ingredients
  • 4 egg yolks
  • 1 13.6 OZ can of coconut cream
  • 1 13.6 OZ of coconut milk from the jug (use empty can to measure)
  • 1 can of pureed pumpkin
  • A couple dashes of salt
  • ¼ C arrowroot powder
  • 3 teaspoons of pumpkin spice
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 Tablespoon real maple syrup
Instructions
  1. Mix egg yolks, coconut cream, and coconut milk in a medium-sized pan.
  2. Add a few dashes of salt.
  3. Heat mixture on the stove being careful not to boil. Stir constantly.
  4. Remove ¼ cup of the mix and make a slurry with the arrowroot powder. Mix it all together in the pot.
  5. Keep stirring and just as the mixture begins to thicken, turn off the burner and add in the vanilla , spice, and maple syrup. Taste and adjust sweetener if necessary.
  6. Drink warm or chill for pudding.
  7. Serve chilled pudding with a variety of toppings for breakfast or snack: sliced apples, bananas, cherries, blueberries, toasted coconut, pecans, etc.

 

 

Tasha HackettTasha Hackett, friend of Laura and author of Bluebird of the Prairie, a Christian romance releasing Spring 2021, is fueled by sunshine, paleo pudding, or hot chocolate—whichever is more readily available. Though she often pretends to be a ballerina while unloading the dishwasher, her favorite thing is writing with hope and humor to entertain and encourage women. Her time is spent with four chatty children and an incredibly supportive husband. They give her the kind of love people write books about. You can connect with her at www.tashahackett.com or Instagram @hackettacademy or for Laura @heavenlyhomemaker.

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