Mrs. Makuta!

We would like to introduce you to the newest member of our family, Mrs. Makuta! We adopted her from a wonderful woman, LeeAnn, and we are just so thankful for her. She is so beautiful, and her personality is just a perfect match for us. As you can see, we love her already (and sorry for the TV noise in the background, last minute video decision)!

Welcome home Mrs. Makuta!

How Spending $10 Saved Me $60!

Hey now GFFs!

We used to buy and use paper towels for everything. Paper towels and money, rolling into the trash can every week girl! That adds up year after year for our landfills and also for our pockets!

The solution for us: cloth napkins! We got ours at BED BATH & BEYOND, 12 for $8 (using a coupon). I looked at other stores but I needed black and they were the only store near me that carried them. My husband loves Siracha and would have stained any other color.They have held up well, I love them! They usually have a coupon available for 20% off if you sign up for their email list. Cloth napkins cost the same as the average 8 pack of paper towels, and you won't be throwing them away! 

Now, don't get me wrong, we still buy paper towels. We have kids, dogs, chickens, ducks and a cow, some messes you just want to throw away... or hose off! 

The first-day making mud pies this year =)

This has been a very easy transition for our family. Over the past year, we have saved at least $60 plus trash going into our landfills... and that is just in one year! It's the little things in life, right? What are some of the ways you have found to save money or reduce waste around your house?

Purim!

Hi GFFs!

Purim is right around the corner, on March 23rd and 24th and we are so excited! This is a holiday for all who believe in the Bible! You can read all about it in the book of Esther. If you Google the holiday, you will probably find it described as a Jewish holiday. We believe the whole bible is true and the canonized Bible is made up of the Tanakh and the Brit Hadashah, or Old and New Testaments. Our Jewish bothers and sisters do not generally believe in the New Testament. That is one of the differences between the Jewish and Christian religions. I would love to answer (to my best ability) any questions you may have for us in the comments below!

This holiday is really important! The bottom line is, there was a man who wanted to wipe out the Jewish people. If all of the Jewish people were to die, our Savior Yahshua (Jesus), would have never been born! Queen Esther, the brave cousin of Mordecai, stepped up and convinced her husband (the king) to put a stop to this genocide.

We will celebrate by reading the book of Esther with our children... I think this year we will probably let them dress fancy like Queen Esther! Last year was the first year we celebrated and it really blessed our family. We enjoyed a great dinner and wine on our small patio together with our kiddos... Blaxican Style by eating tortas! Lighting a few candles, enjoying the sunset and just being together made the night really special for us! 

Some people choose to celebrate by dropping off gifts to their friends and families or donating to a cause that is close to their hearts. My sister is an illustrator and has a fabulous blog! She has created a coloring sheet of Queen Esther that you and your littles can download and enjoy any day of the year!

We hope you enjoy Purim and that it brings you closer to YHVH!

The Free Stuff Jackpot... Craigslist!

Everyone loves some free stuff! Am I right? Okay... maybe not everyone, but I do!

I frequent the Craigslist classifieds for "Free" stuff at least once a month, because you never know what you are going to find! If we are looking for something specifically, I usually start there. We have found so many free things over the years. For example: a ton of greenhouse glass, wood, and compost. Recently, I feel like I hit the jackpot! I ran across a "Must Take All" ad not too far from my house and was curious, so I texted. About an hour later I walked away with things that were on my "Wants" page in my bullet Journal... for FREE! I cannot believe I walked away with the letter "G" that I've been wanting, from a random craigslist pick up.  I think I saved myself over $200 for home decor in that one trip!

I have been longing for a large wall clock. I wanted one that was around 2 feet and I got it! I googled it and this clock is sold out at $72 on Amazon but you can find it on Ebay for $80 + $40 Shipping. I cant believe I got mine for $FREE.99! I also needed (and got) a large, coffee brown frame with a white mat for the art I want to put behind my coffee bar cart (pictures coming soon). I got a large silver mirror, a real copper hurricane oil lamp, a couple of pretty vases, and a pair of sweet book ends that I really love.

I also received two, round, brown lamps that weren't my favorite. However, I really liked the narrow, oval lampshades. We had two lamps in need of shades. One lamp I received from Chilo's mom about 4 years ago and I think it is feminine and darling and the other is a solid, masculine lamp that we've had for a while too. So the shades now have a permanent home pulling the two mixed-matched lamps together. They are now flanking our bed as our his & her lamp set.

I was able to give the lamps that didn't match our decor to Chilo's Stepmom, as well as a charming hand painted bowl that was in the loot. The other things that do not really fit with us, will soon be dropped off at Goodwill to hopefully find a new forever home.

I urge everyone to be cautious while meeting up with anyone online, be it dating, Craigslist pick up, or whatever. Use common sense. Meet during the day in a public place and let someone know exactly where you are going and any information of the other person that you may have... bring someone with you if possible. If you are uneasy for any reason: ABORT MISSION!

Let me know if you have found any treasures online please! Happy hunting and be safe!

Pee-Pee in the Potty!

One word... Skittles. Don't judge me, it worked. My sister says Lieli potty training in a week is my blessing for nursing for so long and I agree! We have been potty training for 6 days now and accident free for almost 3.

She had been taking off her diapers as soon as she tinkled and saying a form of "barrrat, brrrart, baaarrraat" when she poops. This word can stand in for anything gross though, bugs, mud, poop, trash. If she thinks it is gross she says barrrat. Now when we want her to stay away from something we tell her it is barrrat lol. One day, we were getting pretty low on diapers and I asked Chilo to pick up Pull-Ups for her if he made it to the store. The day got away from him, so I ended up running in after church on Saturday night. We cloth diapered for the first 18 months and after that Chilo has usually bought the diapers and wipes, so I was in shock when I saw the prices of the Pull-Ups! I decided to just go all the way and I bought a pack of like 25 Pull-Ups, a pack of 10 panties and a few plastic covers. That combo was basically the same price as 50 Pull-Ups. When I got in the car, I made a big deal about her big girl panties! She loved them. When we got home I went straight to the washer and threw in a load of clothes with the new undies because I knew tomorrow would be the big day!

The first day was tough, accident after accident right after sitting her down on the potty. I'm not going to lie, I thought about giving up and waiting a while (she's not even 2 yet). By the first night she did not want the plastic pants anymore, only her "manie" as she calls them. She sat on the potty and had her first success and it was awesome!!! I rewarded her with a song and dance (no, I do not plan on recording it for anyone else to see). I realized by her excitement for my awesome dance moves that a reward system was necessary.

I asked Chilo to pick up a bag of Skittles on his way home and we have been pretty much accident free since then. Every time she tinkles she gets one skittle and if it is a poop she gets five. She has actually gotten up from a nap, asked to go potty, used the restroom and went back to her nap. SUCCESS! I have potty trained many kiddos as a nanny and a momma, so I am not naive to the fact that we will have accidents in the future. However, I am looking forward to no more barrrat diapers!

Motivation & Accountability

Almost every Sunday Chilo takes charge of the house and kiddos and I have a day to do whatever I want. I have been taking advantage of it by sleeping in, watching the folks I like on YouTube, prepping for the upcoming school week, and a ton of reading and writing. It has been such a blessing to be able to recharge and get ready for the week. He actually brings me coffee in bed and makes breakfast, lunch and dinner... and lately cleaning up too. Thanks hubby, I am a blessed girl!

All of that being said, I feel like I have to get busy! I think I needed that time for recharging and appreciate it so much but lately I feel like I have been wasting this opportunity. I have so many ideas that I want to explore and things that I want to create and share. We are settled into our home, homeschooling is on track, I have my body back from breast feeding and my hormones have stopped attacking me. I am feeling like myself again. So if you know me at all, you know that means I am on to my next challenge. I have so many plans and I am motivated to start doing them!

I spoke with one of my good friends this week and we decided to get back to being accountability partners. I encourage you to pick one of your close friends to partner with. Then choose a day that works for both of you to send a detailed list of things that you have been wanting to accomplish (I think it is best to start with just a few things and work your way up from there), that you haven't been motivated to accomplish on your own. Then the next week go over your lists together, cross off what is completed and add new goals. When you have to report back what you have accomplished, it is definitely motivation to complete that list! This is my list for the week:

• Drink 3 of my water bottles daily (72oz)
• Research ASL certification and decide the route I want to take
• Organize my writing projects
• Bullet Journal at least twice this week
• Work on Logo
• Workout 3 times this week

This week I am choosing things that I slack a bit on (working out and water), things that I just need off of my list (logo, ASL, writing organized) and keeping up with the work that I have already done to get organized (bullet journal). By the way if you do not have a bullet journal it is worth looking into creating one. ANY notebook will do, which is the best part! I use a large, hard cover, squared, white Moleskine notebook and I love it.

I would love if you would share one thing you would like to accomplish this week in the comments below... cause I'm nosey! 

My YouTube Top 5

As an adult I have had times where I did not own a television. I think it can be a trap and it can keep us from the stuff we really want to do in life. We still limit our TV watching now, and I only have a couple shows that I really care to keep up with. Our kids don't watch TV Monday-Friday unless it is a 30 minute video teaching American Sign Language or Spanish to unwind before bed. Chilo and I are usually on YouTube when we have down time and want to watch something.

I thought I would share some of the YouTube channels that inspire me. *Cough, I rarely miss a video, ahem.*  They are in no particular order:

• At Home With Nikki
• Passion For Truth Ministries
• House of Aqua
• How Jen Does It
• A Farmhouse Full

Each of these channels inspire me for different reasons. Some for motivation, home decor and organization, some for my relationship with God and some for homeschooling and parenting. I usually watch videos on my phone at night while loading the dishwasher. Basically, if it's either the mundane task of dishes or laundry I am usually watching or listening to a video. 

That being said, I do try to be present when my family is around, so I finish what I am doing quickly and put my phone down. Though, they usually know better than to come hang out with me while I am washing dishes or folding clothes because they know I will put them to work! 

I hope you check out these channels and that they inspire you as they have inspired me!

Animal Charmer

So this week the Animal Charmer, also known as my husband, decided on Friday he was going to bring home 10 chicks. I was not surprised when I saw the familiar bird box with fluffy yellow birds on the side because he frequently does this to me. I was just surprised that he chose right before sundown to do it! We keep Sabbath, so working isn't really an option and he had about 20 minutes to get the little guys settled.

I have learned over the last 10 years this is just part of who he is. His big heart gets the best of him and he "impulse buys" animals. That reads the wrong way. We actually talk about the animals that we would like to have, research them and agree that we will EVENTUALLY get said animal. Then he randomly sees the animal and I get to meet the fur/feather/mucus ball after he's already fallen in love and it is in our home. I can expand on that another time, but I can honestly say there has only been ONE animal in our home that I have met before he has brought them to live with us. For all of you asking (in their mind and maybe even aloud), yes, at times this part of him pisses me off lol. But, I have to say, the fur members of our family fit us perfectly. I have come to understand when it is right, its just right and you figure it out later!

As a kid living in a small town in southern Oregon, Chilo spent most of his time outside catching and releasing animals. He hasn't changed much in 30 years. He has brought home pretty much everything from stray dogs (until they could be reunited with their owners), to tree frogs and snakes so that the girls can get a closer look before they are released again. Today he came knocking on our bedroom door with a new surprise. I can honestly say I never expected him to show up with one of these little guys!

"She" hung out for a while in the barn. Chilo put out some wild bird seeds which drew in a few more of the birds. Eventually when the food was gone, they all flew off to live their lives. I need to learn more about the native animals here. I think she is a Marsh Wren. I believe she may live in the pond on our property. Maybe we will see her again!

DIY Bedside Carafe Set

Hey GFFs!

Chilo usually brings a glass of water to put on his nightstand before bed just in case he wakes up thirsty in the middle of the night (obviously lol).  Though, many times it sits on the dresser until the morning and then he will drink it... I think that's gross.

Let me explain. This is not because of my Acey Deucey.  I know this is just the name of a game for many of you. However, growing up it was my family's name for a milder form of OCD. Three of the five of us kids seem to have been unofficially diagnosed with it. Our symptoms seem to show when it comes to germs, folding blankets correctly, spreading condiments to the edge of slices of bread and stuff like that. It is also not just the thought of dust settling in the glass or *cringe* a bug taking a sip in the wee hours of the night, it's because I have taken a sip of the water in the morning and I can taste the difference! I carry a metal water bottle with me pretty much all of the time and I can't taste a difference no matter how long it sits. Chilo is a chugger. Like he can finish a gallon of water in no time! Water bottles don't really work out for him, he'd rather carry a gallon with him.

Okay, back to the point... my husband was being gross by drinking dusty bug water and I had to do something about it. I was on Zulily one day and saw the solution! I was really contemplating spending over $30 (I'd have to pay for shipping too) to save my husband from this nightmare. Then, I got myself together and remembered I am WAY too frugal to spend that much on two glasses. So the search began! I ran into this beautiful Oscar De La Renta night set on Google for over $150 dollars! I know there are people out there that will gladly spend this but for everyone else, I decided I will find something for 10% of that cost. I saw a blue set from Crate&Barrel and really liked the lines of it, but again it was way more than I wanted to spend.


I was wondering around Ross for some black cloth napkins, didn't find any there but I did find the carafe solution! There was a glass milk bottle there for $3 dollars. Yes, $3! It reminded me of the blue set that I liked. I searched around the other shelves for individually sold glasses and found a rounded class for $1. The total for his set was $4!!! When I got home, I remembered we had a glass that was flat on the bottom with longer lines that we got from the Dollar Tree for a project that we never did. I asked him which he liked better and he chose the flat glass.

I'm happy with how it turned out, especially for under $5! I did find a set for under $15 from CB2 that I considered. However if purchasing it, you should read the reviews to make an informed purchase. I am pleased with the sturdiness and thickness of the glass, as well as the pour of the pitcher which were some of the concerns of the CB2 version. Anyway, I hope this inspires you to think outside of the box as well as to save a "coint" or 2! Please share with me in the comments what kind of projects you like to DIY, or your money saving ideas so that I can do some of them too!

Wild, Delicious & Cold Turkey!

My life has been bombarded by Turkey this week. We have had wild turkeys hanging out in our pasture, we've ate a few delicious turkey, cucumber and spinach sandwiches and oh yeah, I quit breastfeeding COLD TURKEY!

I have breastfed Lieli for 20 months now. I can't lie, I LOVE breastfeeding. I never thought I would be the mom with the kid over one still breastfeeding. I think I held on so long because she is our last kiddo, unless God preforms a miracle, and I am not ready to let go of having her be a baby yet. I'd stop nursing during the day and was only nursing at night for about two months. I was feeling ready physically to stop nursing since her first birthday but couldn't let go emotionally! My sissy and I were talking one day and she didn't realize I was still breastfeeding. She reminded me ever so gently, mmmhmm, that my plan was to stop months ago when Lieli was 18 months lol. The worst part was Lieli still waking up in the middle of the night to nurse. 

I realized this is my own doing and I had to get it together girl. Then one day, I had a talk with her and told her my milk was "all gone." She signed "all gone milk" with me and then went to play. She spent the day with her dad and great grandma, G.G. Kay and when she came home I didn't nurse her before bed. She slept through the night. I decided I wasn't going backwards.  I do not recommend stopping cold turkey!  Mm-mm, don't do it. I could not sleep, stretch out my arms, or hug my kids because of the pain of being engorged. I have never wanted to THROW my sweet baby off of my lap, I mean look at this face... 

BUT, one day she was sitting on my lap and got excited and threw her head back and headbutted me right in the sweet spot. I was in so much pain that my pain was having pain! I couldn't help the "hhaarrahhhghgghhh--hhuuhh" that left my body as I tried to fake smile as I put her down to play so I wouldn't freak her out lol! The intense pain of being engorged lasted only about 2 days and has slowly dissipated. I can at least hug my kids now. If I had more will power, I would have just taken out one feeding at a time as I did before. At least now I am done!

I am stoked... and a little offended actually. She could care less!!! She has only asked me to nurse maybe 5 times. Each time I sign to her that my milk is all gone and then she asks for something else to drink by either signing what she wants or saying, "Mon, Mon, and signing milk while walking to the refrigerator. It has been a journey. I have loved nursing my daughters. I know what a blessing it is that my body was able to carry my children and produce milk and I am so thankful God has chosen me to be their momma. Time to close the chapter of little babies in my home, on to the next challenge we go!

Missing Home

Hi GFFs! I've been unpacking like crazy and trying to get my life together this past week. I have a lot of projects going on and I hope to share some of them with you soon. Can I be real? I feel like it has been a nice distraction to the nostalgic feelings creeping up for the past couple of months.  I've been in Oregon for about 18 months now (last visited CO 11 months ago) and though I love it, I have been missing Colorado!

I miss knowing where I am driving. Though I would get lost all of the time, I would at least kinda know where I was! I have a terrible sense of direction and now I am trying not to rely on my GPS to get home. Though Portland has an amazing food scene, I miss certain places I used to frequent in Denver like Panzano’s happy hour… one of the BEST happy hour menus! I miss the fact that the sun was shining on my face most days, and the direct heat you feel from being a mile up from sea level. I miss City and Wash Park. I miss driving to the Mountains. I miss walking to Schlessman Library. I even miss the snow at times. Mostly, I just miss my friends and family. 

I miss being able to drive over to see them whenever I want. I miss going to get breakfast at Snooze with my girls. I miss lying on my mom’s couch while she plays tea party with my daughters. I miss watching movies at my dad’s… but not really watching them because we are all talking too much. I miss hanging out, watching the fights with my husband and his best friends sharing bar food and laughs. I miss my brothers and my cousins. I miss all of the littles in my life, cousins, nieces and nephews. I miss my sister. I miss inviting my girlfriends over for dinner. I especially miss my cousin popping up at my house randomly, to just talk and let our kids hang out.

I was talking to my best friend before we moved to Oregon this last time. We talked about our experiences moving away from Colorado and missing home. She said something that stuck with me, “Wherever Josh is, that’s where home is to me now.” I never put the thoughts to the feelings before she said that. Truthfully that is exactly how I feel, whenever I am with Chilo I feel more at home than I ever have anywhere else… no matter where we are.  Whenever I feel homesick he is my comfort. I'd go with him anywhere.  I'll of course be going back to Colorado soon to visit my friends and family. I miss them so much! But, I can honestly say I am home. 

Genesis 2:24

Welcome from Chico and the Black Gonzalez!

There are so many things I want to write about!


It was hard to pick, but I thought I would just share a bit about my husband and I since you are going to be our GFF, Gonzalez Family Friend. My name is Tiffany and my husband's name is Chilo. Some people have thought he is saying Chico, little boy in Spanish, or Shelo. Our little cousin has been known to call him "Uncle Cheeto"... maybe because he can sometimes be a cheese ball. :) It is, however, pronounced CH-e-low but he is flexible and has been known to answer to any name!  Next, I'm black lol. There has been many-a-time that my last name was called and I stood up only to have the person calling "Gonzalez" look around me, waiting for someone else to stand up. To which, I smile and say, "That's me!"

I was born and raised in Denver, Colorado. My husband always says he moved to Colorado from Oregon to meet his wife and bring me back home. He is originally from a small town in Southern Oregon. We tried the small town and it wasn't a good fit for this city girl, so we ended up back in Denver for a couple of years. Then, I started to really miss Oregon. We decided to compromise and move to Portland. That worked for us for a while but Chilo always wanted a farm and I did too, just don't tell him that! We recently moved to a farm about an hour away from Portland which is the PERFECT compromise. Still close enough to enjoy a date night but living in the country, working with the land and animals, is how we want to raise our kids.

We have three little girls and 4 kiddos from Chilo's previous relationships... that is right, seven in all! On our farm there is currently two dogs, a cow, a few chickens, quail, and a few stray cats who visit us regularly. This number is sure to change at any given time because Chilo always surprises me with new residents. He actually came home with a rooster a couple of days ago! Now I wake up at 3:30am to Cock-a-doodle-do... I just want to reach over and slap him. Do ya'll think that's rude lol? We hope you follow us while we figure out how to navigate our life. That is a bit about us, please share something about yourself in the comments below, I would love to get to know who our new family friends are!