Arm Yourself Against Mom Blues and Winter Woes

Staying in the house for the majority of the day feels like absolute torture. I never imagined that I could feel so captive in my beautiful, cozy home! If you're a new mom or a very experienced mother or surrounded by thick white mounds of snow, you know what I am talking about.

When I lived in Cedar City, Utah there were so many things to do outside! When winter hit and my one year old wasn't walking yet, going outside wasn't as easy anymore. Minor depression started to sink in and I found myself using technology as an outlet. I suppose this is the one downfall that comes when your 1 year old is not walking yet. Well I started thinking, "What in the world did moms used to do without technology?! How did they survive their days inside?" So I asked my mom, mother-in-law, and a few other family members for ideas. I will grace you with their answers and a few that I added for myself when I was in a state of feeling like, "There's nothing to do, and my home is my new prison."

--> Go to the public library. Ours is amazing and has a fantastic area for kids. A lot of moms that I introduced to the library had no idea how resourceful and kid friendly it is. Check yours out and make sure to see if/when they have "Story Time."

--> Set up play dates. The most successful play dates are with a few people and repeat each week on the same day and same time with either a varying location or the same place each time.

--> Go to parks (indoor on super bad days such as an indoor pool, trampoline gym, mall play area, fast food place with a play area, etc. AND outdoor parks on fairly good days).

--> Read books. Read books. Read books!! This is for both you and your kid(s). Again, use your library! It's free!

--> Find a store you can simply roam if you hate shopping like me, or go shopping! Making sure to take your time and let people talk to your baby and that you talk to them.

--> Any type of crafting. Color, play dough, bath tub paints, paint in a ziplock bag, use old baby cereal as a sand pit or the purees as paint, chalk, etc.

--> Activities! Some of our favorites include bubbles, balloons, racing, obstacle courses, playing music, dance parties, hide-and-seek, etc.

--> Turn bath time into play time. You can do paints in the bath, these fun aqua beads, glow in the dark sticks, etc. Find new bath friendly toys around the house such as your pots, pans, cups, bowls, plastic animals/objects, balls, etc. Whenever we use bath time as a time to play I do it at a different time than normal and I don't stress about cleaning as much as I stress about playing!

And here are more technology free examples for what YOU can do either alongside your child, while your kid is entertained with something else, or while they are taking a nap:

--> Become more invested with your church calling or religion. Read scriptures, prepare for lessons, learn a new song, etc.

--> Sew your kids' clothes or a new blanket, anything really! Crochet, quilting, etc.

--> Make cooking more fun. Learn how to can and preserve food. Make a new meal. Bake some goods and bring them to a neighbor with whom you can bond with. Build a chalkboard and start menu planning.

--> Find a way to get out of the "mom" routine. Volunteer, have a girls night out, get a part time job, or an at home job, etc. (The key here is to do something without your precious wee one, but even if you have to haul them with you do something to change things up!)

--> Visit a grandparent, family member, or a nursing home.

--> Set goals for yourself that will help you become the mom, wife, and person you have always dreamed of becoming with a specific way to achieve said goal. (Make it S.M.A.R.T.) You can also start up an accountability group that consists of close friends or family members to help you maintain responsibility for your goals.

--> Read a book!

--> Gardening! Plant some flowers and/or plants in or out of your house. This is possible no matter where you live.

--> Journaling. Write in a journal, on a blog, on your phone, record videos, etc.

--> Go to different types of ball games in the community or get involved in them yourself!

--> Join a class of some kind, aerobics, Zumba, sewing, sign language, etc. A lot of public libraries have free classes.

--> Learn something new! A new language, a cooking technique, how to run a business, new parenting techniques, etc.

--> Teach your kids new songs, numbers, colors, etc. and go around the entire house finding new things. You can use nap time to prepare props that will be age appropriate for your kid so they will get more involved and have more fun. Depending on their age you can hide things or store certain objects around the house that they can go find.

--> Go on a walk. If the weather is terrible walk around the mall, a store, on a treadmill, etc. get creative!

--> Start a project. Most of my projects are things to decorate my home (like this map I made), or decluttering, organizing, deep cleaning, building something, etc.

--> Serve someone. Make it more thrilling by doing so anonymously. Take your time to study what the person truly needs and then make it happen!

If you have anymore ideas to add, please let me know! There can never be too many ideas. (:

By the way, I just read today that, "Children that play outside in all weather grow up resilient." After reading this I immediately felt inspired to get outside no matter what. Read this article and feel inspired, too. So basically if you remember only one thing from this post, let it be this...GO OUTSIDE! You will not regret it.

DIY World Map on Canvas

Many of you have shown interest in creating a map for your home! Here is a step by step guide of what I did. Get creative and find what will work best for your space. Can't wait to see what you come up with! My inspiration came through walking the aisles of Walmart, seeing a 3 piece canvas with a rainbow colored world map on it, checking the ridiculous price, and saying to myself, "I could do that!" and then proceeding to find all the tools I would need and comparing the price. Such a fun and fulfilling project!

Step 1: Figure out where you would like to put your DIY world map and how many pieces of canvas you would like to use.

Step 2: Buy cheap canvas here or by searching the web for the style and price you want. I got 18" by 24" for my project.

Step 3: Decide on the color. I chose a classic black and white and love how it turned out! But really any color will do. I bought my paint here but of course it wasn't white, it was black. For some reason black only shows up in the smaller amount online. I didn't use the full 8 ounces but I am sure I will find ways to use the rest of it. You could buy 2 or 3 smaller ones and save money if you wish.

Step 4: Get yourselves some variety pack paintbrushes. Any kind will do. I got a small fine tip type brush to outline the maps, and then bigger brushes for filling in. Pretty straight forward.

Step 5: Find a picture you want to copy. My must haves were that it had to include Cape Verde and Fiji and every other island possible. We can't forget the little guys, they are important, too. And I wanted to make sure it would fit across 3 pieces of canvas. This is the picture I "copied." I used this one because of the grid in the background. I also scrolled through the different pictures on this website and took the bulk of my project from the picture that isn't split into 3. I didn't like that this particular 3 piece canvas map had South America on two different pieces.

Step 6: Use a tape measure or ruler to lightly pencil a grid onto each canvas. Sometimes I only drew the grid when things were especially tricky. And I didn't draw it in places that I knew I wouldn't need the guidance. For instance, to the left of South America and under North America. My first canvas grid matched the etsy shop grid perfectly and then the last two I had to do a slightly different measurement getting a bit bigger each time. The horizontal lines are all the exact same measurement, it's the vertical lines that get a tiny bit bigger over each canvas. Just be sure to remember that, especially if you end up using the 18" by 24" like I did.

Step 7: You know how they have those grids in coloring books that make you look like a better artist than you really are? That's the exact same idea here! Just go to town with your pencil (and eraser) sketching the world onto a blank canvas. It's so enjoyable! Even more so if you pair it with company, Netflix, music, Ted Talk, General Conference, etc. This part takes the longest. It took me nearly 3 weeks of half-heartedly working on it during nap time. The important part is to have fun and be creative!

Step 8: Trace over your sketch with paint! Save yourself some time and fill in the islands and little crevasses with the little brush as you trace otherwise you'll have to do that later when you're filling in with the bigger paintbrush.

Step 9: Fill it in. I debated for a while on filling it in or leaving it outlined. I love what I decided on. I also love the etsy shop look from the original link above.

Step 10: Hang it up in your beautiful space. Take a picture and share it with us! And now enjoy seeing something you created.

Let me know what questions you have. I tried to leave a lot of freedom and creativity up to you, so just let loose and be you.

Bruschetta Chicken Bake

Bruschetta Chicken Bake - Eric Griffin SHC

1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes, undrained

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 pkg. (6 oz.) stuffing mix for chicken

1 1/2 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite sized pieces 

1 t. basil

1 C. shredded mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 400. 

Place tomatoes with liquid in medium bowl. 

Add garlic and stuffing mix and 1/2 cup water; stir just until stuffing mix is moistened. Set aside. 

Place chicken in 9x13 inch baking dish; sprinkle with basil and cheese. 

Top with stuffing mixture. Bake 30 min or until chicken is cooked through.

Aloha Banana Cake

Aloha Banana Cake - Mom

Bake 350 degrees for 30 min

Mix in order:

1/2 C. butter

1 1/2 C. sugar

2 eggs

1 C. milk + 2 t. vinegar

1 t. vanilla

1 C. mashed bananas

2 C. flour

1/2 t. baking soda

1/2 t. salt

Top with:

3/4 C. brown sugar

1/2 C. chopped nuts

1/2 C. chocolate chips (throw these in so they sink into the middle/bottom)

Meatloaf

Meatloaf - Mom

2 eggs

3/4 C. milk

1/2 C. bread crumbs

1/2 onion

1 t. salt

1 1/2 lb ground beef

1 C. ketchup

2 T. mustard

2 T. brown sugar

350 degrees for 50 min

Combine eggs/milk

Stir in crumbs, onion, salt, and 1/8 t pepper

Add beef; mix well

Pat into pan and put in the oven

Spoon off fat

Put ketchup, mustard, sugar mix on top and bake 10 more min

No Bake - Gorilla Poop

No Bake - Gorilla Poop

1 C. milk

1/2 C. cocoa

4 C. sugar

Bring to a boil and boil only 1 minute, REMOVE from heat

1 C. peanut butter

1 cube butter

1 t. vanilla

Stir into hot mixture until all melted then add:

5 C. oats

White Spinach Lasagna

White Spinach Lasagna - Kelyn

Preheat oven to 375 bake 30 min or until cheese is melted/golden

Sauce:

2 C. low-fat milk

1/3 C. (3 0z) cream cheese

2-3 T. flour

1 t. salt

1 T. butter

3 garlic cloves (3/4 t. garlic powder)

1 C. grated parmesan cheese

Put milk, cream cheese, flour, and salt in blender until smooth. In a saucepan melt butter (med-high) then add garlic and sauté 30 seconds. Add milk mixture to the saucepan stirring constantly for 3-4 minutes or until simmer or desired thickness. Remove from heat and add cheese, stir, cover, and let stand for 10 minutes.

Spinach Mix:

12-16 lasagna noodles, cooked

2 T. butter

3 carrots

1/2 head cauliflower

1/2 yellow onion

1/2 bag of spinach sliced up

16 oz cottage cheese small curd

4 C. mozzarella cheese

Use a ninja chopper to dice the carrots, cauliflower and spinach. Sauté butter, carrots, cauliflower, onion until tender then add spinach and cook for about 1-2 minutes. Layer in 9x13 pan enough sauce to cover the pan-roughly 1/4, noodles, 1/4 sauce-enough to just cover the noodles, 1/2 spinach mix, mozzarella cheese-personal preference-roughly 1 and 1/4  cup per layer, noodles, 1/4 sauce-again, just enough to just cover the noodles, last 1/2 of spinach mix, mozzarella cheese, all of the cottage cheese, noodles, rest of the sauce, mozzarella cheese.