too many cooks in the kitchen...

well, sometimes. But I'll tell you what. Having a LOT of cooks in my home has been a MAJOR blessing!

When all my girls were younger they LOVED to cook with me. I would head into the kitchen to prepare some sort of snack meal or dessert, and instantly I had four sets of beautiful eyes sparkling my way. They climbed on counters, scoot chairs over for themselves and a sister and stood motionless ready for instruction. They were ready to help prepare food in an instant.  Of COURSE I wanted to share that time with them! Of COURSE I wanted to make memories sharing family recipes and some of my very own! Of COURSE I knew the importance of teaching my children to work in a kitchen and the importance of food. How it sustains our life. How delicious and fun it can be! How it can literally bring joy! And also how to be smart and safe about what we feed our precious bodies.  However, its not as glamorous as it looks on Pinterest with clean white counter tops and a small child sitting still and pleasant on said countertop with a silver bag of non GMO milk chocolate chips. Not a tear in an eye. Not a sprinkle of flour on their clothes. Not even an egg shell (or entire egg) spilled across the floor.  No, no. Reality is NOT Pinterest.

MY reality: ALL my girls wanted to put ALL the fun ingredients in the Kitchen aid for cookie batter. ALL of my girls wanted to stir the bowl when making pancakes. ALL of them wanted to cut, peel or mash anything we were making every time we prepared food. All of them had slimy goopy messy hands at the same! I would play the 'who can stay frozen until mama comes to get you" game while taking one child at a time to the countertop each them up. I would talk to my children like a puppy saying "staaaaaaaaay" while I wiped up the food off the floor that had been spilled. I would divide the ingredients up into little dishes (pre measured) so they each got to pour something into the mix.  It was mass hysteria. I wanted to cry EVERY single time we cooked or baked. And I DID cry a lot of the times. I wanted to scream and I wanted to stop. There was always a huge mess during and after. There were always messy hands and frustrated sisters. There were ALWAYS SO MANY DARLING LITTLE HANDS!

I had to get a grip. I had to figure something out! I had to think of something fast so these precious babes I have been trusted with would learn and grow and enjoy our time in the kitchen. So, I made a cooking day for them all. Monday was for {S}. She got to help me with all the things! We spent time talking. I taught how to use certain utensils and tools. She learned to cut and she learned to read the recipes. She got to learn how wonderful it can be in the kitchen creating. The got to have quiet calm pleasant time with her mother (and I with my daughter) without any frustrations. They ALL got that! Tuesday was for {E}. Wednesday was for {D} and Thursday was for {L}. And Friday was for pizza! Saturday and Sunday I got to cook alone (my therapy).

You guys! It was AWESOME! We did this for a year or two and then the magic happened. Little by little I would let them take over the entire meal for the night. I stood back and talked them through certain things. They excelled like I never would have known! They got to learn what they liked and what they didn't! One loves to bake! One loves to crack the eggs the very most! One loves to cook more than bake. One loves to eat and sample while she goes and one loves to clean while she goes. It was GENIOUS!!! The peace that filled my home was priceless. The lessons learned and time spent was priceless.

It has also brought so much relief when Mama has to be somewhere right at dinner time. I can assign a daughter to prepare a meal and it gets done! It has been therapy (like for myself) for a few of them. It has been a stress reliever and peace bringer. It has helped them learn service for others and it has taught them about health. It was a TON of work and I had to bring my most patience BUT! It has been one of the GREATEST rewards!!! The memories are there. The awful ones from days before which now I can almost laugh about ;) And the lovely ones from our special times together. I will complexity cherish that time with my daughters.

If you are struggling with cooking in your home, give this a try! Give your children a special day with you in the kitchen. Have them even choose the meal they will prepare. Hey, why don't ya even let them shop for the ingredients with you! Give them a small portion of that hefty shopping list and get them feeling important!

While potty training has and always will be my LEAST favorite part of parenting, teaching my children to cook is ranked up there with my MOST favorite parts.









xo-teresa

Looking through old family photos should be a no-no when you are pms-ing. For reals! As I was searching through the 24,000 photos on my phone this morning (yes thats right...I have much too many), my heart began to ache. Oh my darling little ones. Why did you have to grow up?

I have loved being a mother. Even on the rough days. Except for during the potty training days. Thats when I loved being a mother but also wished we were animals that lived outside. ;) But those don't last too long. I have loved watching each of my children grow and learn and become such cool humans! Every chapter, every paragraph has taught me something about this glorious life (and super unglamorous sometimes) that I wouldn't have learned without them. No college degree, no profession could teach me the things I learned.

The goal has always been to raise my children to one day be capable adults. So here I am. With amazing growing children. One about to become an adult. We have almost made it! And I sit this morning with heartache, missing my little ones. Missing the simpleness of our lives. Missing their tiny chunky hands and arms wrapped around me. Missing their wide eyes listening to my voice as I sing them to sleep. Missing the cuddles. Them climbing on my lap so I can rock them in my chair, while I dream of what you will become. Ooooh darlings. I sure loved those days. and I miss them.

So, how on earth can I get through this day without crying about it?! Well, nowadays, those little bright eyes have become bigger bright eyes, waiting to tell ME all about their days. Those simple days are FILLED with chatter about boys and things they are learning. We are busy running around watching them grow and become those beautiful humans I dreamed about. I am their assistant in this life. Guiding them, teaching them and listening to them. And they might not be as little as they once were, but they still snuggle next to mama and let me rock them and sing with them and embrace the glorious humans they are.  So THAT is what I will remember when I ache for those times. I will stay right in the moment knowing that this life is a gift! Each moment of it! And one day I will long for the days I am in right now.

xo-teresa

setting goals

I finished a book the other day. A friend recommended it to me. Girl, Wash Your Face by Rachel Hollis. I loved it. I loved it so much. While reading it I felt important. I felt motivated. I felt like I wasn't alone in the feelings and thoughts I have. And as per normal, I didn't relate to all of the topics she shared at this moment in my life, but some were spot on! Some were spot on for Teresa circa 1998. Some were Teresa circa 2007. Some of the topics are Teresa right this minute!

One of her topics about setting goals had my bestie thinking...which then got me thinking. The bestie said something to the effect of, "Dude! We are total losers! We don't have any goals!" jk. She didn't say it like that ;) But, what she did say was that we NEED goals. My rebuttal to that was, "Oh honey, we have LOTS of goals!" I started thinking of the goals and listing them. Getting children to bed on time. Getting family to church on time. Planning next activity for the youth in our ward. Washing and folding all of the laundry. Attending the temple once a week. As I listed and she listened, we realized all of our goals are mommy goals or calling goals. Some of our other pals chimed in as well and mentioned their goals. Making sure our children stayed alive each day was one of the responses...which is actually real life. Ask anyone.

As we kept thinking, we realized its so important to make goals as a mother, but we need to make goals for ourselves. This includes goals for our marriages. As a mother, we know how easy it is to be sucked into the Mommy Zone. Hey lemme just stop right there and say some of us LOOOOOVE the Mommy Zone! I can get lost in it for months, completely saturated in the work of my family  and be perfectly happy!! BUT, there will come the time when in some way or another we realize what has happened to us and we say, "Pump the brakes! I need a breather."

So, we decided to make some personal goals. Bestie said she wanted to make sure she had gum in her purse. So she did it. GOAL!  Start blogging again. GOAL! Running everyday was another goal. Not punching a wall when we get frustrated. Making dinner in the croc pot on tennis match days.  Read a book you love...the actual book, not audible, Teresa. ;) Make a certain time for just you and your spouse each day/night. These are great goals!

As I hit the ground running with these goals I feel better about myself already. I haven't made any long term goals quite yet, mine are for the next month. But, its start. And thats what I'd like to motivate you today with!

Start small.
A goal is a goal no matter the size. Tell yourself you want to accomplish SOMETHING. If you want a goal of traveling the world thats great! Write it down!  But if you haven't made and reached a goal for awhile you might want to pick something that will encourage you and not set you back. Seriously. I want so badly to travel to Jerusalem. Scotland. Iceland. Thailand. And more! But, if I get too far ahead of myself it will discourage me. Maybe you don't work that way... so have at it! London bound you are! But, I know I should start with something I KNOW I can achieve in the near future so I can feel pumped and believe in myself! Also...children. My big goals of traveling really do revolve around school schedules and budgets. Sharing my money with the minions is real life. ;)

Make a list.
Organize and prioritize your goals. See which ones you really want to get done. Ask yourself what their benefits are to your life. Which ones are attainable in the near future and which ones will take more time.

Achieve them!
Get moving! Nothing is stopping you from reaching your goals! Set your mind to it and go!! And don't forget to enjoy the ride!



xo- teresa

Hi. my name is mom...

Ooooooooh my goodness! Its been almost three years since I have blogged and I want back! I have found myself with a new motivation and a new name! I have a lot to say on a daily basis and have missed having an outlet...except my best friends ears! (poor girl) So, here I am. Ready to go at it again! Hopefully as I blog, I can share my experiences with you and you can share yours with me! If you find this blog uplifting or positive in anyway, please share!

xo-teresa