One of the biggest ways we use essential oils (especially for the boys!) is for sleep support. There’s nothing quite like settling in for sleep with a soothing diffuser blend and some calming music!
I’ve compiled ten great blends to diffuse at bedtime. Which one are you going to try first?
I recently connected with Navixha, a content creator over at Organicize Your Life. Navixha periodically hosts panel discussions over current events or hot topics; this week, she’s hosting Reopen Schools? - Openly Discussing Opinions, a discussion over some of the concerns surrounding the upcoming school year in the time of COVID-19.
Navixha will be joined by five panelists with varied views and concerns — and one of those panelists is yours truly!
Join us Friday night at 9:00 P.M. EDT on Facebook for this discussion!
What is a thought or concern you have surrounding reopening schools?
I'll be real, everything has been hitting me a lot harder the last couple of months, and I just haven't felt as inspired to blog. But I'm doing my best to get myself out of my funk, and I figured this was a great time to focus on something I love -- Magic Kingdom!
I'm going to be running a tournament to figure out the best ride (not attraction -- I'll do a separate one for shows and such) at Magic Kingdom by running polls in my Instagram stories! I'll be posting the first round match-ups today, and we'll narrow it down each day until we get to one ride to rule them all!
I used a bracket generator to randomly assign positions to make sure it was fair. For my purposes, Carousel of Progress is not included in this bracket; it will be included in the shows tournament. The Liberty Square Riverboat will not be included in this round.
Round 1
Peter Pan's Flight vs Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin
Pirates of the Caribbean vs Space Mountain
Tomorrowland Transit Authority PeopleMover vs Splash Mountain
The Barnstormer vs Dumbo the Flying Elephant
Tomorrowland Speedway vs Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
Astro Orbiter vs The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
The Haunted Mansion vs "it's a small world"
Jungle Cruise vs The Magic Carpets of Aladdin
Mad Tea Party vs Seven Dwarfs Mine Train
Under the Sea ~ Journey of the Little Mermaid vs Prince Charming Regal Carrousel
I think it's pretty obvious by now that we've been missing Disney. This is the first year since 2015 that Tom and I haven't been at least once, and the first year since the boys moved in with us in 2016 that they haven't been. In order to keep us from being too sad about it, I've been trying to incorporate ways to keep the Disney magic alive at home.
And last week, that meant strawberry soup.
If you haven't had strawberry soup, you're seriously missing out. A staple of 1900 Park Fare at the flagship Grand Floridian resort, this cold, creamy soup is so refreshing on a hot Florida day. After my first taste, I knew I was hooked. And best of all? This recipe is SO simple to make!
Strawberry Soup
Serves 6
2lbs frozen strawberries, thawed
16oz heavy cream
2oz sour cream
3oz plain yogurt
1/4c sugar
fresh halved strawberries to garnish, if desired
Combine all ingredients in a blender, and blend on low until smooth. Chill until serving. If desired, garnish with fresh strawberry halves.
That's seriously all you have to do. It's so easy.
I actually made mine in my stand mixer, because I realized we'd somehow brought the pitcher and base to two different blenders to the new house, and they don't match up. An immersion blender would probably also work well, if you have one.
Now that we're settled into our new house, and I'm off work for the summer (well, hopefully just the summer), I wanted to start experimenting more in the kitchen! With the kids home all day, every day, I feel like they are constantly hungry, so we go through a lot of snacks. I figured whipping up a batch of homemade granola bars was a great idea!
I didn't want just any old granola bar though; I decided to take inspiration from one of my favorite candy bars -- Almond Joy! Milk chocolate, coconut, and almonds? You can't go wrong there!
These are easy to throw together, and they're a great way to get the kids helping in the kitchen!
Almond Joy Granola Bars
Yield: 12 bars
Ingredients
2 1/2c old fashioned rolled oats
1/2c slivered almonds
1/4c unsalted butter
1/4c honey
1/3c brown sugar
1tsp vanilla
1/4tsp salt
1/2c coconut
1/4c milk chocoalte chips
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 F.
Line a 9" square pan with parchment paper, leaving enough on the sides to easily remove the granola from the pan. If you don't have a 9" square pan, you can use a 9x13" pan; just don't use the whole pan!
Spread the oats and almonds on a baking sheet, and toast by baking for 8 minutes.
While oats and almonds are toasting, cook butter, honey, and brown sugar in a saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Once the butter and sugar have melted and combined, remove from heat.
Stir vanilla and salt into the butter mixture.
After moving toasted oats and almonds to a large mixing bowl, pour the butter mixture over the top. Stir to combine, making sure all the oats are evenly coated.
Add coconut to the mixture.
If you want to be able to bite into the chocolate chips, wait about 15 minutes to add them, or until the mixture is cool. If you add them in with the coconut, they'll melt. I like to add half when I add the coconut (I think the melted chocolate helps bind them a bit more) and add the rest when the mixture is cool.
Transfer the granola into the parchment-lined pan. Flatten with a spatula (or fold down the edge of the parchment and press to help flatten and shape), and chill for at least two hours.
Using the extra parchment, remove the granola from the pan and cut into bars.
I like to store these in the refrigerator. You can store them in an airtight container, or wrap individually in plastic wrap.
Among the hardcore Walt Disney World fans, there is a challenge at the parks that looms large in the back of our minds: visiting all 4 parks (Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Hollywood Studios, and Animal Kingdom) in one day.
In 2018, at the spur of the moment, I decided to complete this challenge.
Now it's not enough to just actually go into to the parks. Anyone can do that. You have to set parameters.
For me, I decided that I needed to accomplish the following:
Have a photo taken in each park, either in front of a recognizable icon or with a character
Experience an attraction (ride or show)
Have a snack in each park
Originally, this was just supposed to be an Epcot day for me. We were there around my birthday, and I had wanted to take the World Showcase: DestiNations Discovered tour. However, they ended up not offering it on our free day, and it wasn't worth losing our Fastpass+ and advanced dining reservations to shuffle the schedule around to accommodate it. However, since I love Epcot and never get to enjoy the World Showcase as much as I would like, I had planned on just spending the whole day there doing whatever I wanted while Tom and the boys hung out at the resort. However, I suddenly got it into my head that it was the perfect opportunity to try the 4 parks challenge (I had an annual pass, so there wasn't really anything holding me back).
***If you want to see my real time videos from this day, they're on my Instagram page under the "travel" highlight***
I drove to Epcot and parked there, but instead of entering the park, I jumped on the monorail and headed to Magic Kingdom. As I rode over, I checked the Fastpass+ availability and grabbed one for Mickey's PhilharMagic (which I one of my favorites anyway). The ferry was heading back to the TTC, and there was no Magic Kingdom monorail in sight, so I took the ferry over (I've always loved a good boat!). Once inside, I swallowed my pride and jumped in line to have my picture taken in front of the castle. I used my fastpass and decided to try something I'd never had -- a Citrus Swirl. I made my way over to Sunshine Tree Terrace in Adventureland, and ordered one.
Y'all.
I have always been a HUGE fan of Dole Whips, but this put the Dole Whip to shame. SO GOOD.
I did a little people watching while I ate, and I got the chance to chat with a cast member who was sweeping the area. His name was also Alex. We chatted about the Disney College Program, what I was doing, and the Citrus Swirl.
After I finished, it was on to the next park! I decided to take the monorail back to Epcot. I once again checked for fastpass availability, and I was able to snag one for Soarin'! Soarin' is one of my favorite rides, and this was my first opportunity to experience it since they had switched the film from California to the world. The lines to take a photo in front of Spaceship Earth were ridiculous, so I just took a selfie. I had some time to kill before my fastpass window, so I stopped by Club Cool for a shot of Beverly (yes, I actually like Beverly) and some Inca Kola, and rode Journey Into Imagination because the wait was short.
After Soarin', I wandered over to World Showcase, because there's no better place to grab a snack. I grabbed my FAVORITE, school bread, in Norway, but wanted to try the brioche ice cream sandwich in France (you pick your ice cream, and they press it in a brioche roll). It's not something I'll probably order again (the bread and the ice cream just didn't mesh well together for me), but it was an interesting experience.
I wanted to linger in World Showcase longer (with antsy kids, we don't spend as much time there as I'd like), but it was time to hop a boat to Hollywood Studios! Unfortunately, I was unaware that the friendship boats weren't actually running between parks that day, just the resorts. Now I could have just walked from the Swan/Dolphin (we've done the walk before to get to our breakfast at Trattoria al Forno, and it's not that bad), but I'd already done a lot of walking and still had a lot to do, so I took the lazy route and waited for a bus at the BoardWalk.
I wasn't really hungry bu the time I reached the Studios, but I was crazy thirsty, so I stopped by the Trolley Car Cafe (the Starbucks location at DHS) and grabbed a passion tea (not the most inventive way to take advantage of a snack stop, but again, I just wanted something refreshing to drink). I stopped and took a picture by the film strips near the the cafe. There hadn't been any really good fastpasses available, so I decided to do Star Wars: Path of the Jedi since I hadn't experienced it yet. It was a fun diversion, but not really something I'd normally go out of my way for (but at least it was nice and cool in the theater!).
I had one more park to go, so I grabbed a bus to Animal Kingdom. There was a fastpass available for DINOSAUR, which I had never ridden (my best friend had told me how much she hated it, and it didn't sound like anything Tom or Jeffery would like). I FREAKING LOVED IT. It's one of my absolute favorite rides. And on our last trip, Tom and the boys decided to try it, and they liked it too! After DINOSAUR, I pushed down my anxiety and met a character without my kids present. As a lifelong Ducktales fan, I couldn't NOT take a picture with Launchpad McQuack ;) I made my way over to Pandora to grab a cheeseburger pod at Satu'li Canteen, and with that, I officially completed my adventure!
It was a total blast, and it will be a memory that I'll always carry with me. I'm not sure if I'll ever do it again, but I'm so glad that I took the plunge. If you ever get the chance to try this crazy challenge, DO IT!
I had originally planned to share this post last Friday (it was National Donut Day, after all), but since I decided to mute myself last week, it's happening today!
If you want donuts in Lafayette, our recommendation has always been Mary Lou Donuts! Mary Lou has been a community staple since 1961, and you can tell how much the community loves their donuts when you drive by (especially on Saturday mornings) to find the drive-through line wrapped around the adorable A-frame building (for real though, it's the cutest).
They have a fairly extensive donut menu, with several varieties of both yeast and cake donuts (I do wish they would sell plain glazed chocolate yeast donuts -- they were my favorite as a kid, and they remind me of my grandma, who would DOWN some chocolate yeast donuts -- but they DO have tiger tails, so I can still get some of that chocolatey yeast goodness). They also have a variety of pastries, cookies, and popcorn available (the cookies are really good too -- I used to have a student whose grandma would bring in iced sugar cookies from Mary Lou for holiday parties).
Tom only likes plain glazed yeast donuts (he's the most boring eater I've ever met, if I'm being honest), but the boys enjoy trying new donuts. They love the sprinkle donuts (shocking, I know), but they also love the chocolate iced devil's food cake, blueberry cake (always a good choice), and the chocolate iced coconut yeast. My faves are the chocolate iced yeast custard filled, powdered lemon filled (I don't really like the powder per se, but the white icing for some reason is way too sweet for me, and I LOVE the lemon filling), and the French cruller). If you're a fan of apple fritters, they make an excellent one, but beware -- this thing is MASSIVE. Like, you're definitely going to have some leftover unless several people are eating it.
The donuts are so flavorful, with an amazing texture. They're soft and chewy, and the crullers practically melt in your mouth. These donuts are so good that Nolie asks for a donut tower instead of birthday cake every year!
On a normal, non-quarantine morning, you'll usually find a few older guys sitting around the horseshoe-shaped counter, drinking their coffee from little ceramic mugs and talking while they enjoy their donuts. The interior is pretty small, so things can get crowded both inside and in the parking lot (again, it is not at all uncommon for the line to be wrapping around the building and around itself). In the past few years, they've actually introduced a donut truck that they can take places for events and such, and on National Donut Day, they were actually using it to distribute pre-ordered donuts to help reduce the wait times.
If you ever find yourself wanting to try some of the best donuts in Indiana, you're definitely going to want to stop by Mary Lou Donuts, located at 1830 S 4th St, Lafayette, IN!
Most of the time, at this point, I'm pretty good at dealing with my feelings about my infertility (I mean, it has been more than nine years since we first started TTC).
But the other day, I just cracked open, and a bunch of stuff I didn't realize I was holding in came pouring out.
I had gone to Target to grab a new shower curtain rod (the boys had managed to pull the old one down so many times that it was basically unusable), and I saw this little boy (he was probably two) shopping with his dad. He was zigzagging around the aisle and just being generally adorable (the boy, not the dad), and it put a smile on my face. All I could think was I miss the boys being this little, but then I realized -- they never really were, at least not for us. Nolie was briefly, but we never experienced any of the toddler stage with Eric. And it hit me that we weren't going to get to experience that stage again. Though we had dreamt of a large family, it looks like we'll always be a family of four.
Later that night, we were watching a show, and a woman had been trying to get pregnant with another child, but hadn't, and went to her doctor for a checkup.
And something in me just broke.
I started sobbing. Tom freaked out and shut the show off. And when explaining to him what was going on, and how I was feeling, something came out of my mouth that I hadn't even really thought of before:
I never had a chance.
The doctor that diagnosed me with PCOS told me that he thinks I'd always had it, and that my (horrible) decision to get Depo-Provera when I was younger hadn't had a negative impact on my fertility and my inability to ovulate. Which means that I quite possibly never ovulated on my own.
And if I never ovulated on my own, I never had a chance to get pregnant on my own.
It was a weird realization.
Like, I think it's always been somewhere in the back of my mind, but it just never came to the surface until then.
Tom asked if I wanted to adopt again, but I don't think I do. The process took a lot out of us, and honestly, as selfish as this may sound, I want a baby. I want to be able to experience pregnancy. Plus, we don't really have room for another child. We have a three bedroom, but it's not really a great idea for the boys to share, and our house doesn't have any other rooms that would make a good bedroom for a third child.
I guess I'm just not as okay with everything as I thought I was.
One of my favorite things about Young Living products is that they're generally very concentrated, so you can dilute them. This helps stretch the product AND your dollar!
In this video, I show you how I take a 10oz bottle of Copaiba Vanilla Shampoo and get four times as much!
What's your favorite hack for getting the most bang for your buck?
I ended up muting myself after I found out about Blackout Tuesday last week. I took the time I'd normally be posting here, or on Instagram, or discussing unimportant things on Facebook to instead read the stories of the racism Black people have faced, show my support, and share information that could help others who want to be better allies. I did most of this on my personal Facebook page, but I will be adding a Black Lives Matter highlight to my Instagram, so be sure to check there if you're looking for good resources to learn more about racism and what we can do to fight it!
Like many kids growing up in the 90's and 2000's, Disney Channel Original Movies (DCOMs, as they're commonly known) were a staple of my weekend television time. I can literally count on one hand the number of DCOMs I haven't seen. Even now in my 30's, I still love to watch them and share them with my kids.
With everything going on right now, I thought this was the perfect time to talk about The Color of Friendship.
Premiering in February of 2000, The Color of Friendship tackled much tougher topics than your average DCOM. Based on real events, this movie does not shy away from its depiction of racism. Set in 1977, Piper Dellums begs her parents to host an exchange student from Africa. Her parents agree, and Piper is thrilled when she finds out that they will be hosting a girl her age from South Africa named Mahree Bok. However, both girls find their worldviews shaken when Mahree arrives -- and she's white. Mahree, the daughter of an influential policeman, benefits from apartheid, and assumed that the Dellums family, based on Piper's father Ron's position as a congressman, would be white. Piper and her family assumed that their exchange student from Africa would be black. Things get off to an extremely rough start, but over the course of the movie, the girls find out they have more in common than they realize. Mahree is forced to confront the racism she doesn't realize has been permeating her entire life, and the Dellums family helps Mahree open her eyes to the plight of those who do not have the benefits afforded to her based on her skin color.
Disney wanted to do this right. To make sure the story and the topic were handled appropriately, they consulted the Dellums family all along the way. It was helmed by blackmen; Kevin Hooks directed (he would later go on to direct the BET miniseries Madiba, based on Nelson Mandela), and Paris Qualles (who would later write The Rosa Parks Story and the television adaptation of A Raisin in the Sun) wrote the script. The movie went on to win several accolades, including an Emmy and an NAACP Image Award.
The real Piper Dellums was 11 when this happened, and I was 11 when this film came out. I had gone to primarily white, rural schools, and knew basically nothing about South Africa or the history of apartheid, so this movie was very eye-opening to me. Is this movie going to help your child fully understand racism? No. But it's a good place to start the discussion.
The Color of Friendship is available to watch on Disney+.
My birthday was about a week and a half ago (May 21st, to be exact).
Having a birthday during a pandemic was strange. In actuality, it wasn't that much different than any other year (we never really go out and do anything), but the way time has felt over the past couple of months seemed to warp my sense of time. I kept thinking I was turning 33, when that's not happening until next year.
But since we couldn't really do anything or go anywhere, I decided to take myself on a virtual vacation to Walt Disney World!
I decided to spend the day at my favorite park, Magic Kingdom, riding my favorite attractions and visiting some of my favorite restaurants (I started the day with a character breakfast at 'Ohana, and I did actually make the pineapple-coconut breakfast bread using this recipe). The only thing missing is some shopping and a Citrus Swirl!
So now that things are starting to open up in Indiana, I figured that it would be a great time to revive my short-lived series on local businesses and events in Lafayette (who would have thought that the next week we'd be in the middle of a pandemic?).
This week, I'm highlighting one of our favorite seasonal places -- Budge's Drive In!
photo from roadarch.com
Tom and I actually used to live around the corner from Budge's, so sometimes I would walk Archie down there and get him a little cup of vanilla soft serve while I enjoyed their fabulous breadsticks (seriously, my favorite breadsticks and cheese ANYWHERE). Even when we moved to our last home, it was just a couple of minutes away.
Last weekend, Nolie had been begging us to go to "the place with the chef holding a burger" and we couldn't figure out what he meant. When he mentioned he had a grilled cheese there, I finally realized he meant Budge's (it's crazy that the logo stood out to him that much)! We tried to go last Sunday, but the line was craaaaaazy long (the hot weather had everyone wanting ice cream), so we told him we'd go Tuesday (and we did); the poor kid cried all the way to another ice cream place though, because he wanted Budge's!
Budge's has been a Lafayette institution since 1942. It's what you'd expect from a walk-up stand -- your typical burgers and soft serve -- but with fun twists added. In addition to the traditional peanuts and sprinkles, you can get your cone rolled in Fruity Pebbles or crushed Oreos. They have flavor-infused soft serve (called Flavorburst) that the boys like to get; they're both big fans of the Blue Goo flavor! On the food side, they have the Indiana favorite, the tenderloin sandwich (breaded or grilled), as well as unexpected items like taco salad and breaded mushrooms. Like many local Lafayette places, they have their own version of "Fruit Drink"; everyone has their own recipe, and Budge's has had theirs for over 75 years (I've never had a bad version of Fruit Drink, though they definitely all have their own flair!).
One of the best parts about Budge's is that it's affordable. Their prices (even for bigger items like tenderloins and banana splits) tend to be a few dollars cheaper than comparable places around town. It's a bit off the beaten path, but if you ever happen to be in the area, it's definitely worth the trip! It’s a walk-up place; there is a small, covered seating area, but it’s currently closed due to the pandemic.
Bonus: If you follow them on Instagram, you can get a small cone for $1!
My favorites: Breadsticks & Cheese, Banana Split, Waffle Cone
Budge's is located at 1102 North 14th Street, Lafayette, Indiana.
Like many of you, I've been spending some (okay, maybe a lot) of my quarantine time playing Animal Crossing: New Horizons. It's been a great way for me to unwind and get my mind off of things over the past few weeks.
One of the cool features in this game is the Custom Designs feature. This is available throughout the game, but eventually, you can unlock the Custom Designs Pro Editor. The main difference is that with the pro, you can actually design different styles of clothing, not just one basic design.
Since I'm such a Disney fan, I've been using this feature to create Disney-inspired outfits, particularly outfits designed to look like cast member costumes!
I'm always adding more, so feel free to check out my creator code (MA-7771-6285-1759) from time to time to see if I've added anything new, but in the meantime, feel free to use any of these designs to add a little Disney to your island!