Pin it Valentines. Women love Valentines because they’re sweet sentiments from those who love them most. Whether they’re from significant others, children, relatives or secret admirers, they’re soul-spilling treasures of validation that we’re loved. That we matter. That someone thinks of us and smiles. Those sweet somethings are important to all of us, because we [...]
Pin it Who makes you smile? Your kids? Your puppy? Your significant other? Wouldn’t it be awesome to get a free trip to New York, a huge wad of dough and pampered like a queen–just for spreading the joy of your sassy smile? Share a great photo of you and a special someone and a [...]
Pin it You is kind. You is smart. You is important. ~Aibileen Clark, The Help There are a lot of wonderful things about the book and movie, The Help, but this quote touches me every time I hear it. While Aibileen was the little girl’s nanny, she was giving a gift to her that every [...]
Pin it I was given a super fun challenge by the folks at Bertolli: Make a weeknight meal special for my family with only an hour prep time. Challenge accepted! I love to do something special for my family on Valentine’s Day, and since it falls on a Tuesday this year, I thought that [...]
Despite my mild lactose intolerance, I still have a weak spot for good, old fashioned vanilla ice cream. So, when I find those gallon buckets of ice cream on sale, I’ll usually pick one up.
Not only do they last quite a while for quick treats for the fam, but I particularly like the buckets themselves. In fact, I always keep them to use around the house.
They’re pretty rad in the versatility department.
15 Uses for Plastic Ice Cream Buckets
1. Small Toys: My eldest son is six and my youngest is two, so some of his toys have small pieces that his little brother shouldn’t have. We sort those toys–like the action figures which come with no less than a bajillion little accessories–into the buckets and then he can put the lid back on and slide them right under his bed.
2. Tub Toys: I poke a few holes in the bottom using a hammer and a nail. The boys can put their favorite bath toys inside and excess water can still drain out.
3. Cleaning Supplies: I have my cleaning supplies sorted into different buckets depending on which room I use them in. Then I can just pick the right bucket and go.
4. Cleaning Rags: I cut up old towels, rags and shirts to clean with, and keep them in a bucket. As I’m cleaning around the house, I always bring a spare bucket along to drop dirty rags into so they don’t touch clean surfaces, bleach won’t get on clothing and I don’t have to keep walking back and forth to the laundry room.
5. Sick Buckets: It’s gross, I know, but every mom will encounter more than her fair share of kids with stomach bugs. It’s sometimes hard for little ones to run all the way to the bathroom in time, and the handles on these buckets make it much easier to grab in a hurry.
6. Art and Craft Supplies: Whether they’re crayons for the kids or goodies for my own side projects, ice cream buckets hold a whole lot. And, because of their lids, they’re easy to stack.
7. First Aid Kits: Those little first aid kits are great for bandages, but fully stocked kits need more room. I keep a kit in my house and one in the back of my minivan.
8. Cookie Cutters: I store my cookie cutters in these handy containers, and since I have so many, I even have them divided by holidays.
9. Dog Food: My kids like to help feed the puppies in the morning, but they have a hard time manipulating the big bags. So, I keep an ice cream bucket filled with dog food and toss a small butter container in as a scoop.
10. Soapy Water and Rag: These buckets work well for holding soapy water and a washcloth when you’re going fishing with the kids.
11. Camping Catch-all: Keep all the little things you’ll need, from matches to extra garbage bags, in there and everything will stay dry and in one easily accessible place.
12. Picnic Place Settings: Tired of trying to hold down napkins and paper plates? Put everything you need into an ice cream bucket and slap a lid on those babies.
13. Plastic Grocery Bags: Cut a small hole in the bottom and line it with duct tape. Then when you get shopping bags, put them in the top and when you need one, pull it out of the bottom. The handle can even make it easy to hang in a utility closet.
14. Extra Buttons, Nuts or Bolts: If you buy a new shirt or piece of furniture that needs to be put together, they sometimes come with extra small pieces. Put them in a little baggy or envelope, mark what they’re for and toss them into one bucket.
15. Toilet Brush or Plunger: I keep my toilet brush and plunger in a closet, because generally I don’t think of them as conversation pieces. I pop them, yucky end down, in an ice cream bucket and when they need to be sanitized, I just pour in a bleach and water solution.
I love reusing plastic food containers in new ways and ice cream buckets are no exception. They can hold a lot of loot, are easy to mark and can be used in any room of the house.
It’s hard for people to understand what it’s like to have an eating disorder unless they’ve actually been there. Today, Bethany continues her story by sharing what her daily life is like and views of food as a lifelong sufferer of body image issues and eating disorders. If you didn’t read yesterday’s post, The Origin of My Eating Disorder, it is an intimate look at how Bethany’s story, and struggle, began.
~Jessi~
I don’t have the luxury of a treat being just a treat, or taking a little taste. If I have a fry–I blew it. If I eat something more than what I a lot myself–I blew it. And, even if it’s healthy, if I have more than one–I blew it. I’m a failure, I’m worthless, and I will never be acceptable. For me, that chunky little girl who was constantly tormented by family and schoolmates for her appearance is still crying out to be someone loved and pretty.
When my mind turns to these guilty feelings and thoughts then–as my therapist likes to call it–my “f*ck it” mentality takes over. I reason, “Well, I had one fry and blew my diet, so why not have the whole bag?” I will continue to binge all day long feeling nothing but failure, guilt and regret. This will continue on and on until I get into the mindset that I’m going to eat healthy and I will get skinny. Then, I’ll go days eating only healthy foods–and very little at that.
My eating disorder is constantly at war with me and my life. Even though I get on a mental level that this is wrong and I don’t want my daughters to learn that this is okay, or even healthy, emotionally I can’t seem to let go. It’s difficult for me on many levels. I can’t even go one day without my body image or what I feel I’m doing right or wrong constantly crossing my mind.
What does give me hope that I will someday overcome my body image issues and eating disorders is that I was finally able to find an excellent psychiatrist and therapist that I’m really comfortable with. I want to learn to cope with the deeper issues that started my eating disorder, such as being neglected and abused, being left without food and never understanding what proper body cues are–like when you’re actually full versus the need to binge because you never know when your next meal is coming, getting over worrying that there will never be enough food for everyone in the house, because there certainly is, or finally not having to feel like starving myself to be accepted.
I would like to one day look in the mirror and actually love who is looking back at me, to be a confident person and healthy individual, and to also teach my daughters how to be confident and healthy. The last thing I want is for my girls to struggle with this. Therefore, I plan on continuing my journey to finding that girl inside me and helping her to cope with all she has been through, because I know for me this is something far more emotional than just an eating disorder.
Eating disorders are serious and can have deadly consequences. If you or someone you know is suffering from an eating disorder, there is help available. Please talk to your doctor, confide in someone you trust who will help you find assistance or contact the National Eating Disorders Association at 1(800)931-2237.
(Photo: flickr.com/photos/stofiska/3021577770)
According to the National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders (ANAD), eating disorders effect up to 24,000,000 men, women and children of all ages.
Today, we’d like to welcome Bethany, an MGF reader who bravely came forward to share the origin of her lifelong struggle with eating disorders. Because her story is extremely personal and honest, we’ve changed her name for her privacy.
~Jessi~
No one is certain what causes an individual to suffer from an eating disorder such as anorexia, bulimia, compulsive overeating, etc. There are many types of eating disorders that people struggle with every day. Some theorize that there are many who have a predisposition to developing eating disorders due to genetics, and many others who believe that eating disorders are born from traumatic life experiences.
I’m not certain whether it’s one or the other, because I’m no expert, but what I can tell you is what it’s like for me as someone who has struggled constantly with my weight due to my eating disorders. I’ve struggled with this for over 18 years, and for me it’s still a fight to keep it under control.
My struggle began far before my eating disorder took over. I was born into an extremely abusive home, where my siblings and I were left alone for days and sometimes even weeks at a time with no food. We were forced to live off of sugar water and garbage to survive–basically whatever we could find. When my grandmother would bring food for us, or our parents actually were there and bought groceries to cook, we would eat to the point of excess because we never knew when our next meal was going to come.
When school was in session, we were guaranteed at least one meal because we were on a free lunch program, but for me, school was a mixed blessing. Even though I was able to eat at least once a day, I was constantly teased because I was chunky from living off of sugar water and whatever else I could get my hands on between actual meals. Being teased didn’t stop with just my peers at school, but continued on with my parents when they would actually grace us with their presence between alcohol and drug binges. Needless to say, that my self-esteem was nonexistent, and by the time I reached the seventh grade, I couldn’t cope with the struggles I was faced with and something inside me just broke.
It was that year that I decided I couldn’t stand being teased by family and peers any longer, so I took on what I thought was nothing more than a strict diet. I wanted to lose any excess pounds and fast. I rarely ate, and I exercised three hours a day. I was so pleased with how quickly I lost the extra weight that I became hooked. At five foot two, I was able to get down to one hundred pounds or, many times throughout my life, less than that.
The problem I faced, besides becoming addicted to anorexia and never thinking I was thin enough–no matter how thin I became, was that eventually I would give into my urges to binge eat, causing my weight to constantly fluctuate throughout my lifetime.
In my late teens to mid-twenties I was even able to get so small that my waist was always around twenty-five inches with bones showing. My friends became concerned about me because they thought I looked sickly, I was always cold, and my uterus started to hemorrhage. Yet, despite all my issues, I felt fat even at my smallest.
It wasn’t until the birth of my second child that I really started to put on weight. I went through a period of extreme depression and went up to 145 pounds and then, for longer periods of time, almost 200 because I began binge eating to cope with what I was dealing with on the inside. On the inside, I felt lost, like a part of me was dead. I realize now that my issues with food stem from my hurt over such a broken and painful childhood.
My eating disorder has become more than just my past. It has been part of my life for many years, and learning to deal with it in order to live a better life on a daily basis is constant struggle.
Please join us tomorrow when Bethany tells us what it’s like to live with an eating disorder on a day to day basis.
Eating disorders are serious and can have deadly consequences. If you or someone you know is suffering from an eating disorder, there is help available. Please talk to your doctor, confide in someone you trust who will help you find assistance or contact the National Eating Disorders Association at 1(800)931-2237.
Photo: flickr.com/photos/caseywest/366618202
Getting healthy is one of my big goals for the year. Besides being more intentional about the food and drinks that I choose, I’m also looking for an exercise regimen that I can stick to and actually enjoy. To date, I’ve been doing walking videos, which I like, but I want something that’s more active and can be done from my own home.
I’m going to be brutally honest here. I’m not comfortable shaking my groove thing in front of a large group of strangers–for two reasons. One, I’m still trying to build my self-confidence, because I’ve always been a curvy gal who has always felt extremely vulnerable in those types of situations. And two, I’m not what anyone would call a good dancer. Coordination isn’t my strong suit, and if I want to embarrass myself in public, I’d rather do it with my mouth than by falling on my face amongst a room full of folks who were born to bust a move.
Still, despite my lack of booty-shaking ability and fear of public humiliation, I’ve been curious about Zumba since it came to my small community a couple years ago. I realize I could go to the gym and ask questions or watch a demo, but I’m also one of those people that feels compelled to buy, even if I’m not interested.
It’s like running into a restaurant or gas station just to use the bathroom; I always have to spend some money there just to keep from feeling guilty. So, I’m afraid that if I go and meet eye-to-eye with an instructor, I’m going to walk out with a membership that I might not exactly want or will chicken out and never use.
BUT…like I said in my planning spontaneity post, I’m committed to trying new things this year. So, I’ve been racking my brain to find a way to experience Zumba without making myself completely uncomfortable or laying down money I don’t wish to spend.
Then, I had a DUH moment.
“What about YouTube? Surely someone’s made a video or two.”
So, I checked it out and sure enough whammo–Zumba videos a plenty. And what I really liked about it was that there were so many options with so many instructors that I could pick a song that was particularly butt-shakey, like LMFAO’s I’m Sexy and I Know It, and find several routines to a song that I listen to over and over anyway. Or, I can select routines based on difficulty and intensity because different classes seem to work out at different levels. Pretty cool, huh?
And seriously…who can sit still when they hear that song? Take a look…
I totally love this particular class because the women are all different ages and body types. Rock on with your bad selves, ladies!
So anyhoo, my plan tomorrow is to go through YouTube videos of Zumba routines and make some playlists. Then, I’m going to play them on our XBOX and see if Zumba is really right for me. I’ll get a real taste of the workout without feeling self-conscious or backing myself into a corner that will end up costing me cash. Sweet.
Do you Zumba? Have you used YouTube for workouts? When I have some playlists put together, I’ll let you all know so you can check it out and see if it’s for you, too.
Photo: flickr.com/photos/ilovememphis/5619510684
I wish my guilty pleasure could be something as simple as a corny song that I love to rock out to, or perhaps a food that I indulge in from time to time.
But, alas, it is not.
My guilty pleasure is anything, and I mean anything, to do with do-it-yourself challenges. I take pride in the fact that I’m handy and have a decent concept of how to use basic power tools, etc, and I love being able to show off my mad girl power.
And, it wouldn’t be such a guilty indulgence if I just let it go at starting with something small, like perusing the aisles at my local Home Depot or building a bird house, except for this girl, who tends to think big, a little bird house isn’t enough of a challenge. When I get the itch, it’s got to be a show stopper. Go big or go home, right?
So, instead of a charming, pint-sized home for my feathered friends, I had an extremely brilliant idea to not only redo my dining room, but my kitchen as well–all by myself!
Looking back, I’m not sure if I was seduced by all those shows that make DIY home renovation look so stinkin’ easy or that I was pregnant with our third child and my nesting syndrome built up my confidence a touch too much. But, in my humble opinion, it was probably a pinch of column A combined with a dash of column B. Either way, that voice of reason inside my head that normally says, “Hey, Amy, maybe this isn’t such a good idea and might not be as simple as the Hollywood version that you get on the boob tube,” never chimed in.
Instead, I found myself in my second trimester of pregnancy vigorously ripping off wallpaper and tearing up floors in order to create my dream kitchen and dining room.
It was a process that started out with a ton of excitement and quickly turned into a dreaded nightmare. For every one thing I tried to fix, I found five other things wrong–or worse–made more problems for myself than I started out with!
Yeah, it was nuts.
Although the worst issue during the project was that the previous owners glued the carpet and its padding to the floor! “Nightmare” doesn’t even come close to describing that horror show. It took me what felt like an eternity to use special chemicals and painstakingly scrape every bit of it off of the floor base. Not to mention my family and I spent many weeks eating from TV trays in the living room.
To sum it all up, this is what I learned…
Television is just that. Television. And the awesome advice those inhumanly good-looking, handy hosts share rarely works in the real world, because you never really know what you’re getting into until you start. The people on TV often have actual professional teams working with them to show them the ropes and execute the heavy labor. It’s entertainment–not real life. If you have a job that requires a professional, then call one.
Also, always ask your spouse before you take on a big project when you’re nesting. When I’m nesting I feel like I can do anything–whether it’s realistic or not. Had I have asked the hubz instead of diving right in, I wouldn’t be living in a half-painted dining room, or a kitchen that is missing cabinets in certain spots. Yeah, it’s not bad, but it’s sure not going to be on the cover of Better Homes and Gardens, either.
I’ve also learned to turn off those shows when I start to get the harebrained schemes swimming around in my noggin. It’s just better that way. Not only does our house stay intact, but our wallets as well. Plus, I’m sure my husband would be grateful not to see a repeat of my DIY mishap!
Photo: flickr.com/photos/mscitykitty1/1261012980
When your mother was in school, odds are she sat down an one of those fancy typewriters and learned her way around a keyboard. Fast forward about 20 or 30 years and and you’re sitting in front of a Commodore 64 or IBM in elementary school, letting Mavis Beacon show you the skills you would need as an adult.
At the time, each of these was the cutting edge and considered vital to your future. Today, our children are learning to type at home from Mom and Dad’s computer, texting on the cell phone and sending instant messages on Facebook. Typing isn’t stressed as much because it has become a part of human existence.
Teachers are now focused on teaching 21st century skills in the classroom. It’s all reading, writing and iPads with touchscreens. We had Mavis Beacon and our children have Microsoft and Apple. We learned Qwerty and our children are learning about the keyboard swipe. Advancements in electronics happened so fast that the world is vastly different then when we were children. The skills needed to be an adult in the 1990s and 2000s are not the same as they will be for an adult in 2030.
My 6-year-old knows his way around the tablet computer better than I do and can operate not only the computer, but the DVD player, video game systems, and cable box. These are the skills that will be common place when he is an adult. The world of Star Trek with the touchscreen interfaces and three dimensional maps may be the norm in 30 years. We may not be venturing into the stars in faster-than-light ships, but technology is advancing at a breakneck pace and the world will be vastly different.
I can only imagine the skills my grandchildren will have to learn when they go to school in 20 or 30 years. Crazy kids.
Photo: flickr.com/photos/deryckh/2884858619
