Friday, April 26, 2019

Friday Favorites: 5 things I'm Loving Right Now

It came close to hitting triple digits today.  It's April. Send Help.  Just kidding.  Or not.

I promise it's not completely horrible. This is actually the summer weather I love.  Cooler mornings, breezy, and beautiful evenings are the best!   The evenings are perfect and no one wants to go to bed because it's perfect ball playing or splashing around in our little blow up pool .  So, sorry to my kid's teachers.  Oops.

Ethan counted that there were around 30 school days left, not including weekends. I haven't double checked his numbers, but we are ready for quiet, lazy days and adventure!

Also, I am beach bound without kids tomorrow and it's going to be in the 60's.  Bring on cute hats and sand between my toes.  I am ready!

Let's talk about some things I am loving lately.  I don't even know if you really care, but these are cool things that I really am enjoying.  No one is paying me to say anything.  Just things that are cool.

1.  Honest Mascara
I have been looking for a great mascara that doesn't clump and I thought I would try this one.  This one is awesome! I haven't had any issues with clumpiness and it continuously gives me longer looking lashes. . . and that's something I need!  Plus, it's at target for about $15.99 and it's super clean (I am turning crunchier by the day!).  The pink end is a primer and the white end is the mascara part.  I love having them all together!

You can find it here.

2.  Minidip pools
I came across these a few weeks ago, when it wasn't warm enough to even think about jumping in a pool and knew we needed something like it.  They are cute (my boys don't even notice I picked out the girliest print) and think it's pretty awesome.  They have grown out of those small little pools and we needed some way to cool off when we can't invite ourselves over to friends for swimming (we don't have a pool . . . it would mean sacrificing our grass/soccer field for a pool).  We tried this one out tonight and it worked great!  The material is super thick and I am pretty sure it will last all summer. . . and maybe next year, too!  We don't fill it up all the way, because that's a lot of water, but they were able to splash, soak, and immerse their whole bodies!  It's marketed towards adults and claims to fit 3 adults in and it totally can!  I am pretty sure this family of 4 might find their way into it this summer!

We found ours at Target for 39.99.
Here's a link.

3.  Everything Bagel Cream Cheese (non dairy)
The lure of Kite Hill products being 40 percent off for Prime Members made me do it.  And Oh, my! It's so stinking good!  My kids really liked it too!  I don't think it's going to last very long.  But, really they had me at everything. . . I am a serious sucker for everything EVERYTHING.  This is a great one for bagels and I'm thinking it might taste really good with egg over easy on top.  Okay, I am getting hungry just writing about it.  It's good. It's dairy free.  It's amazing!

They also have a strawberry one that Weston is waiting for me to find.  These new flavors are just the best!

Also, Amazon prime for the win.  It's really enabling my love of high end non dairy finds! 

You can find out more here.
We bought ours at Whole Foods.

4.  Write the Word Journal
I am loving this journal!  Writing scripture down is just one way we can engrain it into our hearts stronger than just reading it, and this journal is perfect for that.  Plus, it has a whole section for daily prayer.  I've really been loving the challenge in my life to become more of a woman of prayer and this book is really helping.  I've been marking the spots in the margins where God has just answered something. . . even the littlest thing and it's pretty amazing the ways that he works daily, that I often miss because I'm not taking the time to write my prayers out.

I started this in July and I don't do it everyday, but it definitely is something that I have been trying to do a few times a week.  I already know I am going to buy another one (they have other themes).  Plus, they are simple and pretty all a the same time!

If you are looking for a simple way to challenge your faith, prayer life, or work on being more joyful, these books are perfect!

I got mine on Amazon!

5. Navy Blue. 


 I just bought the kids some spring clothes, because they keep growing.  It's an endless cycle.  They eat (a lot) and grow (a lot) and need new clothes.  Apparently everything I am buying right now is Navy Blue.  From my dress to the boys shirts and a few other new additions to our wardrobes, summer will be very blue at our house. I'm completely okay with it.  Also, denim and chambray. 
(Both boys shirts and my dress came from the Gap.)

I hope you all have a wonderful time this weekend!  Thank you so much for taking the time to read my blog!  I can't tell you how much it means to me. . . seriously, it makes my heart so happy.  If you don't mind, I would love for you to comment below and tell me something you are loving right now.   I love hearing from you! 


 

Wednesday, April 24, 2019

Teacher Appreciation 2019


 Teacher Appreciation Week is coming soon.  Actually, it's the week of May 6th, which is just a couple of weeks away.  If you've been reading my blog for awhile, you might know that I love spoiling teachers.  They need all the encouragement they can get and many times their job is thankless.  But, really, teachers are working so hard daily and in their spare time to make our child's school experience wonderful and their brains full of knowledge.  As a former teacher, I know all of this first hand and want my children's teachers to feel loved.

 I have had the privilege the past few years planning out our Parent Faculty Club's celebration of Teachers and it's just so much fun that I thought I would pass them on to you.  I have created a page of tags that you can use to bring your child's teacher a little gift all week long.  They are fun and I promise won't break the bank. 
 On the first day, We gave the teachers one of our favorite pens and an invitation to a taco feast at the end of the week.
 You're a very POP-ular Teacher!  Just add a popcorn package and this one is set.  Get a little crazy and add a redbox coupon for popcorn and a movie!  (you can order codes on their website). 

 You're SO-DA Bomb!  I had fun making this one to match coke bottles, but you can find what the teacher's favorite soda is pretty easy. . . you're child might even know! 

 This Mint Printable is created to wrap around a pack of gum or a small container of Altoids.
  And finally, a bag of chips to wrap up the week! 

All of these are super easy and super cost effective and a lot of fun!  Plus, even though they are easy and inexpensive, just taking the moment to do something special really makes your child's teacher fill loved!  A teacher doesn't need you to buy them expensive gifts, but even little notes from your child to say thank you go a long way! 

 
You can click here to print out the printable.  

 Don't forget to tag @jolieklassen or use #outoftherightbrainblog to share 
how you are spoiling your teachers! 
 

Tuesday, April 16, 2019

Dairy Free Snacks

Last week, as I was checking my son's homework, I couldn't figure out why we were missing a reading log.  I knew we had done homework every night this week, but we were still missing one.  Several minutes into my search, I realized it was only Wednesday.  I must have been in a big hurry for Friday to get here.  Honestly, I was.  It's a super busy season and this mamma rushed into Spring Break like it's the Christmas morning.  Well, it kind of is.  Seven days of minimal plans and time with my kids and I am ready. Today we have declared it movie day, complete with popcorn and sour patch kids and later brownies and ice cream (after dinner!). 

But, while I am sitting here watching Hook, I thought I would write a quick blog post.  I've been finding more and more really amazing snacks out there that are both dairy free and soy free and often times gluten free which has been awesome.  I also want to preface this by saying we live in a really awesome time with so many companies who are making the switch to cleaner ingredients, which means they are often making the switch away from soy based ingredients.  But, also a lot of these companies are getting really creative with what they can do to make it dairy free. These are more often than not, smaller companies and they are awesome!  My tummy is so thankful for these people!

All of the snacks in today's post are approved by four of us. Which is a big deal.  Go back a few years and there wasn't a whole lot to pick from and what was there was pretty much nasty.  So, when I can buy something that the whole family will and can eat together, I call that a win!

It's also been a while since I've done a dairy free post, even though I am constantly finding and posting over on instagram (they are all saved to my highlights), I thought I would share some recent finds that are great snack foods perfect for lunches or a quick treat.  Most of these we keep in our house regularly and also in our son's classroom when he can't have what someone else brings. . . like cupcakes. 
Siete is a fun brand that has figured out how to make the best chips dairy free, soy free, and grain/gluten free.  And seriously, they are amazing!  They also have some really great queso and I've heard their tortillas are to die for (we aren't gluten free, so I can't bring my self to spend the money on them. . . but if you are it's probably worth it!).  These are currently Weston's favorite thing and I kind of left a bag out the other day (it was a smaller bag), but he almost ate the whole thing!  You can find these at Whole Foods and Sprouts. 

Another brand that is doing such a great job is Miyokos. (we are obsessed with their butter) and then I bought their vegan roadhouse cheese spread and it pretty good!  It's kind of like some easy cheese or one of those cheese balls that people buy around the holidays.  Weston loves to eat it with some crackers or pretzels as an afternoon snack. 

Paleo Puffs "No Cheese" Cheesiness snacks are awesome!  I've been curious since I've seen instagramers post this find at Expo West and I almost squealed with joy when I found them at Whole Foods last week.  Weston has been munching on them ever since and we will definitely be buying these again and again! 
Cauliflower Crackers are one of my favorite finds!  These are pretty similar to Cheese-its.  They are smaller and crunchier, but taste really good!  Plus if they are made out of vegetables, my kid is getting his veggies, right?  Weston and I really liked these and I found them on sale, so that was a win.  I found these at Sprouts and they were less than $3, even on sale these are still pretty inexpensive compared to a lot of other snacks out there! 

Not pictured: Simple Mills makes some really delicious cookies and crackers that are soy, dairy, and gluten free and don't taste like saw dust.  They are really good and we all eat them and nobody notices that they are gluten free.  In fact, I served them at Weston's birthday party and nothing was left over!  I don't think they even noticed! 

And last but not least here are some of our favorite fruit snacks and granola bars.

Granola Bars: 

We love Made Good.  They are free of the top 8 or so food allergens, which is a huge plus. Also, they sneak in some veggies that Weston has no idea about.  So, sure, have a chocolate granola bar. . . eat those veggies as mom laughs quietly to herself. 

We have also found that Annies organic granola bars and Kind Kids bars are dairy free and soy free. 

Weston loves kids RX bars, which a great because not only do they not have dairy or soy or grains, but they also have no sugar and keep them full longer.  We like to keep these on hand when we are traveling just in case there's not an option for Weston and it holds him over while we eat and can get him something for him. 

Food Stirs also makes a great granola bar mix (super easy!) and they are also dairy and soy free.

Fruit Snacks:

Annies Bunnies are our go-to.  They use fruit juice and don't use colors with numbers to make them and I'm pretty sure the sugar content is a little lower (but don't hold me to that. . . I haven't double checked).

Yum-Earth makes some amazing sweet snacks.  Their fruit snacks are super clean and they are constantly coming out with alternatives for the holidays.  Just this Easter, I found sour jelly beans (in a carrot like bag as well as the giant easter egg).  We are also huge fans of their cinnamon bears.  They don't use high fruitcose corn syrup and food dyes (i'm not a fan of food dyes). 

Bear Real Fruit Yo Yo's are the kids favorite snacks.  These are fairly new on the market and I hope they stay.  The only ingredients are the fruit they use.  That it.  They come on a trading card that has country facts and you can collect them.  My kids are obsessed! You can also save each UPC code and send them in for cool things, but they never make it home.  Oops.


And that's it!  Now time for me to wrap this up so I can go finish the endless cycle of laundry and maybe catch the end of Hook.  I hope that helps with your dairy free snack questions! 



Wednesday, April 03, 2019

Bathroom Update: Cabinets

 The best time to start a project is right before Christmas.  I say that sarcastically, but really I think there's some truth in it. Christmas was coming and there was no excuse to not finish so our front bathroom could be usable.  So, I started a thing.

Our 2019 project is our front bathroom, which I've talked about some here and there on Instagram.  Since our home was built in 1966, we have some great (insert sarcasm here) mid century features. . . like blue tile and blue sinks and a lovely blue bathtub.  And while I joke about the touches of blue, it could be way worse and be pink. . . and trust me, there are houses in my neighborhood with pink everything.  Blue is doable.  Blue doesn't drive my boys crazy.

When we first moved into our home, we just went through and painted all the walls to give it a fresher look.  The walls were desperate for some paint!  Also, Ethan was a whole year and a half and took baths, so the lack of a shower really wasn't a big deal. Fast forward 10 years and now 2 very active boys that need their own shower.
Our plan is to keep the current tub, toilet (we replaced that a few years ago), and counters/sinks and make the bathroom work for with what we have by adding a shower, some new tile, and new flooring and then on the wall with a window add some ship lap to give it some character.
The cabinets were our first step.  They were a really dull brown and just screamed blah.  So, I cleaned them up with some vinegar and water and my magic eraser.  I used  Annie Sloan's new Pure White chalk paint and sealed it up with some clear wax.  I am loving the way it came out!  Without even changing the wall color (soon!), the room brightened up so much! 
 
I found some super fun hardware for the drawers on super clearance for $1.38 from Target's Hearth and Hand line.  I loved the aged metal and new that it would be perfect for covering up the wholes and indents from the previous knobs.  Plus, you really can't beat that price!  It took a little more effort to find the pulls for the cabinet doors. . . aged metal is harder to find than I thought and did not want to spend $10 a pull.  Lowes and Home Depot had some really great ones but they were all too shiny.  I finally found some knobs that came super close at Hobby Lobby on a day where they were 40 percent off!  SCORE! 
 I am so excited to have this phase of the project done and am so antsy to move on to the next project.  I've met with 2 contractors and waiting on a third to see what our options are for putting in a shower and tile.   I'll be honest, I was kind of hoping that it would be quicker than this, but at the same time life has been incredibly full lately and maybe it's a good thing we haven't found the right contractor yet. 

This project is teaching me a lot about patience.  Most of our big projects I've been able to do or Jon and some friends have came over and worked on our flooring.  We are definitely going to be learning a lot through this project and I can't wait to share more. 
















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