The Power of the Mind

Do you know how much changing your outlook on little things can do for your life? If not, I'm about to tell you! 

For the past month, life in the Harmon House has been hectic. We have been through the drive through one too many times, we've missed naps and bedtimes, & J has been with family a whole lot while we took care of different things. The good news? We're in our home! The bad news? It's a wreck. 

This is only the living room. The rest of the house looks just about the same. 

The other night, I was so angry. I was so stressed. I was so tired. I was so fed up. After moving, we spent the entire day cleaning our old apartment. AND some of the next morning. So we didn't even get to use the full weekend to organize our house!! As I was driving home, I thought to myself, "You're only in a bad mood because you're choosing to be." 

& then I thought- "No, I'm in a bad mood because this blows and all I want is to hold my kids & be in my organized house." 

& then...this song came on. 

---

"This Is The Stuff"

I lost my keys in the great unknown

And call me please 'cause I can't find my phone

This is the stuff that drives me crazy

This is the stuff that's getting to me lately 

In the middle of my little mess

I forget how big I'm blessed 

This is the stuff that gets under my skin

But I've gotta trust You know exactly what You're doing 

Might not be what I would choose 

But this the stuff You use

45 in a 35 sirens and fines

While I'm running behind

Whoa ho ho

This is the stuff that drives me crazy

This is the stuff that's getting to me lately 

In the middle of my little mess,

I forget how big I'm blessed 

This is the stuff that gets under my skin

But I've gotta trust You know exactly what You're doing 

Might not be what I would choose 

But this the stuff You use

So break me of impatience

Conquer my frustrations

I've got a new appreciation

It's not the end of the world

Whoa ho ho ho

Oooooh This is the stuff that drives me crazy

This is the stuff 

Someone save me 

In the middle of my little mess

I forget how big I'm blessed

This is the stuff that gets under my skin

But I've gotta trust You know exactly what You're doing 

Might not be what I would choose 

But this the stuff You use

Whoa whoa ho ho

This is the stuff You use.

------

How true are those words?? MY attitude is something I've really been working on for awhile now. I've got a little too much attitude for one person. 

I started trying to work on myself because I was really struggling with a friend. Everything she did just rubbed me the wrong way. We used to be great friends and it was like slowly we drifted & became frenemies! I began to literally hate seeing her in our crowd of friends and wanted to avoid her at all costs! One day, I found a picture of when we were really close. & that's when I decided, maybe it's me. 

Maybe I perceive her intentions wrong. Maybe I haven't forgiven her. Maybe I am what is holding things still and keeping things from moving forward. So I decided, right then-right there, I was going to change. I was going to step back before becoming offended. I was going to stop dreading seeing her & instead embrace her as if nothing happened. I was going to move on. 

That was the best decision I've ever made. 

That's when I truly learned that apologies and letting things go aren't for the other person involved. They're for yourself. 

Are we just absolute best friends again? No, but I do enjoy her company. I do know that she's a good person. & I do know that it really was me. 

So, there I was, in a bad mood. & i thought about that friend, my attitude, & the difference I made when I changed my perceptions. So, I thought about all I'm blessed with. A beautiful home. A beautiful family to share it with. A loving husband. Three super cute babies to watch grow up in this home. I'm in a bad mood because my house is a mess? No, I was in a bad mood because I was forgetting all the reasons I had to be in a good mood. 

My house is still a mess. But my life isn't, and for that- I'm thankful. 

XOXOX, 

Harmon Housewife 

My Sweet J

Oh my sweet little lady. 

My first little baby. My ray of sunshine. You warm my heart in your own special way. 

You can be anything you want to be. But, you'll always be my baby. 

You are the one thing that changed me. You made me a better person. You prepared me for the life of a mom of three. 

These times are hard and it breaks my heart. I worry you don't feel love like you should or deserve. I worry I'm too preoccupied with babies to keep your needs satisfied. But one day, I think you'll see I tried. I tried to be it all and it sometimes falls short. 

But I remember when it was just you & me. I remember how you loved, how you laughed, how you cried. And I can tell, you're much happier now. 

You love your role as a sister. 

You shine. 

I know I did what was intended for you. I know that in the end, I gave you the best gifts I possibly could. Best friends for life. 

But just remember, there is no one who holds your spot in my heart. When things get crazy, don't forget you're my baby. Don't forget that I will stop anything to see the picture you colored. I will be there when you need me. 

You're so smart. You're so beautiful. You're so fun. 

You're so challenging. You're so stubborn. You're so persistent. 

You're so perfect. Just perfect. 

XOXOX, 

Harmon Housewife

The Grocery Chronicles

A few things you must know up front: 

-These items PLUS pantry staples I always have will be how I create the meals. 

-This trip does NOT include snack foods for J. At this time, she didn't need anymore. Things I keep on hand for her snacks are yogurts, Cheez its, granola bars, string cheese, & fruit. I buy those about once a month (occasionally twice). It also does NOT include gluten free (GF) bread/pastas, or my Ezekiel breads. I buy those at Reasor's. 

-We do have to spend additional money on the breads/pasta because of my smokin' hot husbands allergies. They sell GF products at Walmart but I prefer the quinoa pasta at Reasors so I just buy all my GF products there. 

-My pantry staples may be different from yours. I do the majority of my cooking from scratch because of GF so I have spices, sauces, marmalades, etc on hand. Things I use often, I buy in bulk. 

-We have a leftover/free for all night once a week usually. We always seem to have more than enough. 

With that being said, here are my $52 dollar groceries! 

If I'm being truthful, it was on budget before taxes. So I still think it qualifies to post. 

How did I do this? Meal planning. Price matching. Pantry browsing. & dedication. I'm a big temptation shopper. I buy things spontaneously and it gets me into trouble. But this week, due to all the things we've bought for the house, we don't have any extra. I accepted that. I went in with a strong mind and a full tummy (probably the most important part!). 

Meal plan. You know what your family likes and how much they usually eat. Use this as your guide. I feed 3 people. From these, I also have leftovers for Joe to take to work and usually enough for our free for all night. So these meals actually have 4 or more servings. 

Price match. Meet your new best friend. Live it, love it, use it. 

Pantry browsing. Some nights, especially lately, we end up eating out or with my in laws because of craziness that goes on. This means occasionally I have left over things that didn't get used. Also, when things are on sale, I very frequently stock up. Such as canned tomato sauce, pasta, rotel (always have this!), peanut butter, and frozen leftovers from meals I made a little too many servings. 

So what are the meals? 

Breakfast choices: 

>Oatmeal

>Scrambled eggs

>Peanut butter toast

>Shakers --- these are perfect for us on the go. I price match these for $1! Joe drinks one every day on the way to work. 

>Cereals ---we have a huge stockpile of cereals, it's a little ridiculous. 

Lunch Choices: 

>Leftovers --see what I did there? ;) 

>Sandwiches, hummus & cucumbers/crackers 

>Surprise Salads --I use things I find in my pantry/fridge to create a salad. Fruits, nuts, proteins, etc. 

Dinners: 

>Turkey tacos, spicy black beans 

>Buffalo chicken panini, oven fries 

>Grilled Lemon Pepper chicken, rice, roasted carrots

> Vegetable omelets, toasts (GF for Joe, Ezekial Bread for me, Wheat for J) 

>Leftover night 

>Chop steak & gravy, mashed potatoes, green beans

>Mexican pizzas (turkey), Mexican brown rice 

These meals are in order how I plan to make them here's why: 

1. First meal & last meal are turkey and Mexican flavors. I put them apart for this reason.

2. I put the meals that I used rice or potatoes away from each other as well. 

Here's what I'm using from my pantry/fridge stock this week: 

Rotel 

Corn tortillas 

Cheese

GF & Ezekial breads

Assorted spices for the dishes 

Beef Bouillon

Brown rice 

Cereals 

Peanut butter 

Sandwich meats 

Hummus

Cucumbers

Salad Mix

If I could keep this up, we could save a quite bit of money, I'm just not sure if I can do it! I guess we shall see. For the next 5 weeks, I will post my grocery bill for viewing. I will post the meal choices & pantry uses. I'll also post the excess (J snacks, GF products) so we can see how much my bill is for that. I'm not up for my bill to be $50 before GF products yet so I'm keeping that separate. Our actual goal is $75/week. I'm simply attempting to lower it if possible! Good luck on your soon shopping adventure! 

XOXOX, 

Harmon Housewife

The Fairytale Lie

Here's the thing I want to say before you read this post: I love my husband. I really do. I love my life. But, this is no fairytale. 

My marriage does not consist of my husband coming home with roses every night. We do not go on dates very often. We do not fly away to exotic places at the drop of hat. We have never done any of these things and I'm pretty certain that we never will. There is this picture that young brides see when they think of marriage. So take that picture & burn it. Because it is a lie. 

My marriage consists of constant encouragement to each other. My marriage consists of a husband who works from sun up to sun down to provide for my family. My marriage consists of laundry, cooking, cleaning, taking care of children. My marriage consists of laughter and love. True love that does not require makeup, fancy clothes, date nights, and exotic trips. (Although I'm not saying those things aren't wonderful!) I'm simply saying my marriage consists of real. 

The "house" game you play when you're a child is not the same as living "house". Why? Because you can't quit playing. You keep repeating it day after day. When I go to bed at night, I know the next day I will have to wake up to do the exact same things I did today. Every day is not happily ever after, every day is just a day. 

The life I live day to day, I never imagined. I always wanted to be a mom and a wife. Always. But in my head, my kids never pooped, I wore dresses like a Beaver-Cleaver wife, my hair was always fixed, my house was huge and clean, and I had heard nothing of this word called "budget". 

The life I live day to day, I wouldn't give up for a fairytale. I love that my husband works hard, because that shows me he loves. He loves me and my children so much that he is willing to sacrifice his time so that I can be free with mine. I love that I can wear sweats, have messy hair, and when he walks in the door he greets me with a kiss followed by, "Hello Beautiful." I love that we don't fly away to places because that means we have a family. I love that we love in a real way. 

I wish that I could tell you that being a young wife and mother is an everlasting fairytale, but I can't. What I can tell you is, this life is so much better. If you let go of what you thought it should or would be and just let it be, you will see the true fairytale is being in a life and love that can make it through real life. 

XOXOX, 

Harmon Housewife 

Turkey Chili

My smokin' hot husband loves chili. I've been working on what I like in my chili for quite sometime & I've finally found what works for us. This recipe is simple, quick, a healthier version of chili so there's no feeling guilty after! I like to make it early in the day & let it simmer, because everyone knows chili gets better in time! However, you could totally throw this together & get it on the table in 30 minutes and it would still be delicious! 

Ingredients:

1 lb ground turkey

1 red bell pepper, diced

1 yellow bell pepper, diced

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 can pinto beans

1 can great northern beans 

1 can black beans 

2 cans mild rotel 

2 tbsp tomato paste 

1 tbsp onion powder

2 tbsp chili powder 

2 cans water 

Directions: 

1. Throw diced peppers in a large pot & brown the turkey with the peppers. 

2. Add garlic, onion powder, chili powder, and tomato paste. Blend until spices and paste is mixed well with turkey and peppers. 

3. Add all bean & rotel cans to pot and mix well. 

4. Add water, mix well. 

5. Bring to boil and let simmer for at least 20 minutes. (I simmer longer but totally by choice) 

We topped ours with cheese tonight. This chili is also great with avocado, plain Greek yogurt, sour cream, or sriracha :) ....I've tried different combos several times! Try whatever you life & I'm sure it will be scrumptious. 

XOXOX, 

Harmon Housewife 

Scattered Thoughts

So much has happened these past couple of days. It's been a crazy non stop to-do list. I haven't had any time to just collect my thoughts to figure out what to post. So here are some scattered thoughts... 

-our house is coming together quite nicely...& I'm pretty excited about it. I can't wait for reveal of each room! 

-you should definitely call & tell your parents (or the people who raised you) that you love them-right now. I'm serious. Sunday morning I got a voicemail I needed to call home because my papa was in the hospital. Luckily, he's fine. But,  to be honest I was pretty much raised like a princess in that house. So entirely too much of the time I ask my grandparents to do things for me instead of asking what I can do for them. 

-I really really really want to start fully eating "clean" but junk tastes so dang good. I need motivation. 

-I need a mom break. Terribly. Joe's been working and then going to work on the house so my days are extra long. Extra long & wonderful of course but a girl can only handle so much. Plus I just miss my smokin' hot husband. 

-I'm pretty whiney....

-the twins are 3 months old !! 

-J is potty training. We're doing pretty good. She even almost peed in the potty today...but I found the pee right next to the potty instead. However, before dinner, she took her diaper off & sat down all by herself. Proud moment. 

-Joe's birthday is Saturday. Birthdays are my favorite. I can't wait to celebrate him all day long. I've already got his day planned out-cause I love him and stuff. 

XOXOX, 

Harmon Housewife

Life Skills

Here's the deal, I'm huge Montessori fan. Huge. I'm all about explorative learning using real life skills. You would truly be amazed at how much kids learn doing every day things that they need to be taught anyways. So, I thought I would share some simple activities I do with J/give to J to do by herself. 

-"folding" washcloths 

-doing dishes: I put sponges, her plates, cups, bowls, utensils, etc in a bin & let her wash them. She seriously has so much fun...it's kindof weird. But maybe this means she'll always do our dishes? A mama can hope. 

-choosing her own clothes, foods, snacks, drinks. It's all about choices. I'm not saying let them eat or drink whatever. But make them feel included in their life choices. Encourage independence. 

For example: "Do you want apple or grape juice?"

"Do you want to wear the pink shirt or blue shirt?" 

"Do you want eggs or cereal?" 

One day, they'll have to make these anyways. Help them learn to make the correct & healthy choice. Small things to you are big things to them. 

-taking care of baby dolls. This encourages J to practice basic hygiene & life skills. & it's so fun! 

-we talk about big,small, counting, etc. Language is your biggest tool-USE IT! 

-matching people in photos with names 

-retrieving objects (comes in handy with the twins, J is my go-getter) 

I can't emphasize enough that basic is best. These are not hard things, these are things that are often overlooked. Learn to think simple & you'll learn to think like your child. 

XOXOX, 

Harmon Housewife