I’ve been hoarding links and things to share all month – I better get down to it before the month is over!

Why You Should Drink Warm Water and Lemon

After I read that article (the comments in particular!) I decided to try it.  Hot water with just lemon?  And no tea or anything else?  It was very simple, and I felt like it was worth a shot.  (a shot of lemon.)

It was… nice.  And then I made coffee (with coconut oil) because coffee is nice too.

What Did You Learn Today?

October 13th, 2011 | Posted by Alison Spath in Life - (5 Comments)

I don’t know about you, but we learned how to ride the bus.

The Bus Stop

Crazy, no? We’ve only lived here for nearly two years now.

Did you know that Google Maps makes it EXTREMELY easy to figure out how to get from Point A to Point B on the bus?

Google Maps Bus

Yet another thing I learned today!

With an afternoon class on the schedule for the girls, we decided to try the bus and let Zak take the car to work.

The Plan:

Divide and Conquer

October 5th, 2011 | Posted by Alison Spath in Parenting - (Comments Off on Divide and Conquer)

An evening ride was in store for us after dinner tonight. The big one went with dad so they could go further and faster. The little one stayed with me for an easier and shorter ride around our neighborhood.

Sometimes it’s nice to not have your bossy big sister around. Sometimes it’s nice to not have to wait up for your pokey little sister. Sometimes it’s nice to give each child some undivided attention.

Evening Ride

And sometimes it’s nice to give two kids a blast of cool, autumn air at the end of the day – practically guaranteeing a swift and gloriously easy bed time.

Zucchini Oatmeal Breakfast Cakes

September 26th, 2011 | Posted by Alison Spath in Breakfast - (9 Comments)

I seem to be on a pancake kick recently – but ’tis the season for warm breakfasts after all! Let’s roll with it.

After I spied a small zucchini hanging out in the fridge this morning and feeling very much in the mood for something substantial after an early morning bike ride, I decide to whip up some zucchini pancakes today. Zucchini is awesome for it’s ability to taste like nothing in baked goods, while quite generously giving you a serving of vegetables at the same time.

Zucchini Pancake Ingredients

Homeschool Lessons for All

September 13th, 2011 | Posted by Alison Spath in Fitness - (1 Comments)

Now that Maxine can ride her bike, Homeschool Phys Ed class is officially in session.

Riding Buds The Claw Over My Shoulder Ready to Ride

Is this really Phys Ed? Or is this just a morning run in disguise?

Whatever you want to call it, a bunch of lessons were learned on our group outing this morning – lessons for both young and old.

A Lesson for Mom

When Maxine says “Whoa, whoa, whoa!!”, that means she’s about to come to a sudden and complete stop in the middle of the sidewalk.

This lead to the discovery that I run too closely behind Maxine.

Last summer I wrote about Ava learning to ride a bike with the “balance bike” approach.  I’m here now to sing the praises of this method once again.  It’s worked just as well for Thing 2 – but this time two years sooner!

The balance bike approach is exactly that; no training wheels.  It’s about learning to balance first, pedaling comes later.  A “real” balance bike has no pedals – but we just used a regular, very small bike for Ava.  You don’t need a special bike, what matters is that they can easily catch themselves when they lose their balance.  Ava was 6 when she learned, so her legs were long enough that the pedals didn’t get in her way while she was learning to balance.

This is the second post in a three part series about measuring the various aspects related to weight loss to more effectively achieve weight loss success.

I want to start by saying that when it comes to losing weight, I use to put WAY more emphasis on exercise than I do now.  Being active is certainly an important part a healthy life – but studies suggest (and from what I’ve found in my own experience as well), improving the quality of your food and being mindful about how much you eat can have a much bigger impact on weight loss when compared to exercise alone.  This is why the calorie counting post came first and a post about keeping an exercise log came second.

The Squeakmobile

August 12th, 2011 | Posted by Alison Spath in Morning Craziness - (6 Comments)

I slept with my camera on the bedside table last night, ready to capture my daily wake up at the ass crack of dawn. 

(It came at 4:32 yesterday!)

When I heard the squeakmobile coming down the street this morning, it got all lights, camera, ACTION! up in here.  Now I can show you exactly what I’m talking about.

You can even hear the damn cat meowing at me at the end there.

I think the cat and the car are in cahoots to keep me awake.

CAN’T A GIRL GET SOME SLEEP AROUND HERE?

This is the story of how an SUV in need of new shocks inspired a sweet, frosty post-ride treat today.

Ready?

Every day at approximately 4:55 AM, the squeakiest newspaper delivery vehicle this side of the Mississippi river squeaks down my street. It makes two or three unbelievably squeaky stops at the houses directly across the street from our bedroom window and then moves on to squeak through and disturb the rest of the neighborhood.

Sprints Are Great, I Swear!

June 22nd, 2011 | Posted by Alison Spath in Fitness - (7 Comments)

I try to be a model parent.

I eat my vegetables.  I brush my teeth.  I make a genuine effort to not swear in front of my children – or so I liked to believe.

As it turns out, Maxine and I had a very revealing conversation at bedtime the other night while discussing homonyms.

(You know… their/there/they’re, two/to/too, you/ewe, know/no)

Maxine (contributing to our list of examples): Like, sit and sit!

Me: Sit?

MaxineSit like when you “sit down”, and sit like you say when you’re frustrated.

Oh, sit.