Considering the fact that Traveler is the first of my three kids that I have successfully managed to breastfeed, I never thought I’d be in the position of nursing my 14-month-old. I’m betting that hearing that I’m nursing my toddler has you all now divided into two groups. Based on people’s reactions in real life there seems to be the “Good for you!” group and the “Ewwww!” group. It’s funny how divisive breastfeeding can be.

My plan was always to go with the child led weaning route. I guess I just figured he’d be leading us down the path of weaning by now. I’m kind of ready to wean. Traveler on the other hand? Not so much. So, here’s my question to all you nursing moms out there. How does this work?

1. Will he ever actually be ready to wean on his own?

2. Do some babies just need a push in the direction of weaning or am I just trying to rush him before he is ready?

3. How long does the weaning process generally take?

4. Is “Don’t Offer, Don’t Refuse” the best approach to take? I’ve not been offering but he asks an awful lot so not refusing doesn’t seem to have reduced the frequency of nursing sessions yet.

5. If I let him keep nursing until he’s ready to give it up how do I handle his insistent bra unfastening in public? When he wants to nurse and we’re in a public place he practically climbs inside my shirt. Any tips for keeping a very strong willed toddler out of there?

6. Because he eats regular food and drinks from sippy cups whenever he wants I’m thinking at this point he is mostly nursing for comfort. So, will it send him into therapy in adulthood if I try to force him to taper things off?

7. The biggest challenge seems to be that he cannot go to sleep without nursing. Even if he’s had a bottle and is totally full he HAS to nurse in order to fall asleep most nights. How and what do I replace this bedtime ritual with?

8. In the meantime, how do I handle the snotty comments from people who think I’m doing some sort of freakish psychological damage by continuing to nurse?

9. Should I just back-off and wait it out? Or should this weaning process be an active one with me trying to convince him it is time to be done?

10. How did you successfully wean your little one?

Got an answer to one (or more!) of the questions? I’d LOVE your advice. You’d think a mom of three would know more about this, but I’ve just never crossed this particular bridge before…

For more Top Ten Tuesday, head over to Oh Amanda’s!

I LOVE to shop thrift stores. I mean, I really, really love it. My home decorating style is a bit, um, unconventional to say the least. Actually, my mom calls it “Tacky Chic” and I don’t necessarily disagree. But whatever your style is you can find the craziest cool stuff at thrift stores. Sometimes you just have to be willing to dig deep and think a little outside the box!

So, without further ado, here are my top ten favorite thrift store finds of all time.

1. Jesus and Mary and Angels, oh my! (Forgive me, Lord, if that was sacrilegious. But I do so love these.) If you’ve ever visited my dining room you know that I am very much into religious art. In fact, its kind of the theme for our dining room. And what better place is there to get that type of thing than Goodwill or charity thrift stores? Mary in the egg was one of my favorite finds. And her price tag? A wopping $3.

2. La-Z-Boy and 3. Slightly creepy medical poster - In the past I have been a huge snob about buying upholstered things at thrift stores. I just worried that they would be stinky and absorbent and full of bed bugs. But I made an exception for this chair. I know, I know. You’re probably thinking, “Why on Earth would you make an exception for THAT chair?” Because, as it turns out, it was in great shape. Its a real La-Z-Boy chair. And just the kind of ugly we needed in our family room. It only set us back $20.

The creepy medical poster? LOVE it. That was one of those things where I spent more than I intended because I was afraid I would regret not buying it. It was $60. And I’ve since seen them on Craigslist and Ebay for $300+. The spine is made up of switches and you can turn each one on and see what part of the body it affects. It’s an awesome nightlight. And whether you think it is hideous or not the lesson to be learned here is that when it comes to finding wall art a thrift store is a fantastic place to look for things that you won’t find on everyone else’s walls.

4. Lockers - These are one of my favorite things in the house. They cost a whopping $25 a piece and were worth every penny. They initially didn’t have shelves inside but my handy husband fitted them with shelving and now we use them as our kitchen pantry. Fantastic.

5. Lighting - Okay, I technically didn’t get this from the thrift store since it belonged to my grandpa and I got it after he passed away but since everyone else in the family thought it was ugly it was sure to end up in a thrift store where I am sure some lucky person would have snatched it up. And how cool is it? Very cool.

6. Kid’s clothes - We have this really soft old vintage Copa Cabana tshirt I bought at a thrift store when Kai was Traveler’s age. All three kids have worn it and it gets better with every wash. This vintage kids’ dress is another awesome find. It cost me about $4 at the thrift store and it has been everything from a dress for Ivy when she was little to a cute little shirt to pair with jeans.

7. My Porcelain Ladies - I LOVE these. They were 25 cents a piece at a junk yard sale. How cool is that? And the one in the very back? She’s a lamp! She lights up right under her skirt!

8. Dishware - I have so many platters, plates, bowls and serving dishes that I’ve found at junk shops and thrift stores. I think it is a really fun way to get a cool (and inexpensive!) collection of dishware. This platter is part of a 10 piece set that I got for $12. I just love how retro they are.

9. Kiddie lockers - These were part of a liquidation from a daycare that was either closing or remodeling. They are the refrigerators for an old fashioned wooden kitchen set. And for $5 a piece we snatched them up to use as kiddie lockers for the homeschool room. They hold everything we need and look fun while doing it.

10. My most favoritest table EVER - This one we scored when our local Parisian’s was closing and selling off their displays. It wasn’t super cheap ($150) but I think it was a steal for a huge sturdy steel topped table that we have gotten so much use out of. It is perfect for crafting and now resides in the homeschool room where no matter what my kids put it through it is guaranteed to stand up to their abuse (as you can see by the super messy picture!).

So, that’s it. My Top Ten Favorite Thrift Store finds. For more Top Ten Tuesday, head over to Oh Amanda’s!

I had a post started with my Top Ten Favorite thrift store finds of all time. But, this day is kicking my behind. I’ll get that one up next week. In the meantime, here are the top ten reasons I didn’t get my original Top Ten Tuesday post done.

1. Bad attitudes. Kai is having a problem with talking back. And rolling her eyes. And acting like she is 13. I can’t imagine where she is getting this from. (me.) But it has made for a rough day today.

2. Over-ambitious crafting. I planned to make THIS awesome craft for Kai’s teacher. But with everything else going on it has been a bit harder than I anticipated getting it done. Still, I think it will be worth it when its finished. I just love this idea!

3. This messy house. Sunday the house was a disaster. Yesterday I got it mostly picked up. And today? We’re back to disaster. Sometimes I feel like cleaning is a futile activity…

4. Dishes, dishes, dishes. How is it possible that I never run out of dishes to do?

5. Diapers. I am really enjoying the cloth diaper experience. With one exception. Traveler has had some stomach issues the last couple days. I don’t know whether it is teething or a stomach bug or what. I do know that it means I am washing diapers all. the. stinking. time.

6. Fussy Toddler. Like I mentioned above, Trav is having some issues. He’s fussy. And doesn’t want to eat. And let’s just say his diapers are…bad. He’s also got at least 4 teeth coming in at once and has his hand stuck so far into his mouth that he nearly gags himself on a regular basis. We’re really running through the Chamomile teething tablets and the Tylenol.

7. Broken air conditioner- Our air works intermittently. Which means right now it is 78 degrees in this house. No joke. And it is hard for me to get anything done when our house feels like a hot box.

8. Schoolwork- I must have spring fever because I keep waiting until the last minute to get everything done. Tomorrow is the last day of school, though, and I have to say I am super excited to take a little break.

9. Target. I, um, kind of got lost today wandering the aisles of Target. I left with three seed packets for the craft we’re doing and a wish list a mile long of fun summer toys for the backyard. No wonder our kids tell people we live there.

10. I guess there were only nine reasons. Unless you count the Wife Swap marathon I got sucked into for an hour while I nursed Traveler. But, let’s just keep that one our little secret.

For more Top Ten Tuesdays, head over to Oh Amanda’s site!

Urban homesteading is in full force around the Loving house. We’ve got garden beds full of seeds & seedlings. We’re adding new chickens to the flock. We’ve planted blueberries and have fruit trees planned for certain spots in the backyard.

And this year, thanks to The Backyard Homestead, I’ve decided to plant an herb garden. We’ll have herbs for cooking but also a cold & flu herb garden. After taking the class “From the Kitchen to the Medicine Cabinet” at Harry’s earlier this month the cold & flu garden is the one I’m most excited about.

Here’s my list of the top ten herbs I’m planting for cold & flu. I’d love to hear your suggestions for more things to add!

1. Garlic - Garlic has powerful anti-microbial and anti-fungal properties. Taking up to six cloves a day help fight off cold and flu symptoms (though the smell may scare people away from coming too close!). In fact, the teacher at the class I took suggested it as a remedy for an ear infection. She recommended gently placing a large-ish clove in the ear and covering with a band-aid over night. She swore by that as a remedy!

2. Cayenne Pepper - This is an effective (albeit uncomfortable) remedy for sore throats. 1/2 tsp of cayenne pepper, 1 tsp salt & 1/2 C ice cold white wine vinegar makes a drink that will relieve cold and flu symptoms. Not the most delicious remedy, but effective nonetheless! Cayenne pepper has also been known to stop bleeding as well.

3. Yarrow - Can be used to treat fevers and pain. It is also an anti-inflammatory herb.

4. Echinacea - This is well-known for reducing the likelihood of catching a cold or reducing its severity. It can also be used to treat insect bites as well.

5. Peppermint - In addition to the well-known relief it gives to nasal congestion, Peppermint is also great for relieving intestinal troubles including nausea and diarrhea.

6. Rosemary - Rosemary has so many great medicinal uses. During a particularly bad cold it is nice to make a homemade bath tea with Rosemary to draw out congestion and alleviate cold symptoms.

7. Chamomile - Great to add to a tea for relaxation! Chamomile can also be ground into a paste and used to relieve sore gums or tooth aches.

8. Fennel- This one is good for digestion troubles. Fennel tea can be added to the bath to relieve aching muscles. Nursing moms will benefit from a mild estrogen effect that increases lactation levels.

9. Thyme - Known for having antiseptic properties it is also a great cough remedy. The anti-bacterial aspect makes it good for bronchial conditions & asthma.

10. Lemon Balm - This is a really versatile herb and can help ease anything from toothaches to menstrual cramps. It is also considered to have anti-viral properties and can be helpful in treating chicken pox, shingles, & cold sores.

Those are my top ten herbs in the cold & flu herb garden we’re planting. What herbs do you use?

For more Top Ten Tuesday head over to Oh Amanda’s!

1. Easter Grass Diorama from Hausfrau in Melbourne- How cute are these? I love that they look easy enough for even little ones to do and I can’t wait to try these with my girls this week!

2. Tweet Nest from No Time for Flashcards -  I love everything on this site. No kidding. She is amazing. And I think this craft is totally adorable as well. I’ve got tons & tons of yarn around this place and this will be a super fun way to use it up!

3. Bunny Ears a la Martha Stewart - Easter just wouldn’t be the same without bunny ears! These adorable ears will be making an appearance on all three of my kids this year. Now if only they would sit as still as the little girl modeling them!

4. Miniature Easter Buckets from Kid’s Crafts Weekly - These cute little Easter buckets are easy enough for preschoolers & elementary aged kids to do and will look adorable filled with yummy Easter candy!

5. Easter Egg Stitched Greeting Card from Make and Takes- This one is great for slightly older kids (and adults!) and I think it makes an adorable card to give. Actually, I don’t know why I’ve never tried this before with other holidays/special occasions. You could make adorable Valentine’s or birthday cards using this same idea!

6. Peek-a-boo Eggs from No Time for Flashcards - How cute are these? I will admit I have a soft spot for baby chicks and these play right into that. My girls are super excited about this craft, too, and I love that it is something age-appropriate for both my 3-year-old and my 5-year-old.

7. Yarn Flowers from Martha Stewart - I am in love with these! And not just for Easter. I think these would be adorable for the kids to make and wear throughout the summer/spring. They also make really pretty alternative to bows on presents or a sweet corsage for grandma (or mom!) on Mother’s day. We’re making them with all kinds of funky crazy colored yarn because I love the eclectic look of it.

8. Easter Cupcakes - Do you really ever need an excuse to make an adorable cupcake? Check out these cute cupcakes  and more at All Things Cupcake.

9. Adorable Easter Eggs from Good Housekeeping - We’ve got a stack of scrapbook paper set aside just for this crafty Easter egg project. I love that it goes beyond simply dyeing the eggs but it isn’t so complicated that the kids can’t do it with a little prep work from me.

10. Easter finger puppets from Craft Pad - This cute little finger puppet craft could be adapted to any age/ability level. Older kids can sew them or you could precut felt and use glue, googley eyes & pom-poms for the younger crowd.

So, there you have it. My favorite Easter crafts! Head over to Oh Amanda’s for more Top Ten Tuesday!

Kai and Ivy were learning about the 10 Commandments last week. And before we really started learning them I thought I’d give them a chance to tell me what they thought the 10 Commandments were. I asked them, “If you had to make 10 rules for the whole world to follow, what would they be?” And, well, they were interesting.

Behold:

1. Don’t worship Satan. (Always a good place to start.)

2. Don’t marry a new lady just stay with the lady you’re with. (My favorite.)

3. Never go into a boat without God. (Okaaaay.)

4. Never ever ever leave a store without your mom.

5. Never ever ever cut (with scissors) without Mommy & Daddy saying so. (Can you tell this has come up before?)

6. Never ever ever go on a vacation when you’re a little girl without Mommy & Daddy. (Unless your grandma wants to take you on vacation with her. Hint, hint Mom.)

7. Never ever leave the table without asking to be excused.

8. Never ever touch a poisonous frog. (A good rule for life.)

9. Never ever EAT a poisonous frog. (An even better rule for life.)

10. Never ever disobey the Bible. (At least they got a catch-all in there at the end.)

So, yeah, not exactly anything we’re going to be carving into stone tablets anytime soon, but I do think they are pretty good rules for everyone to follow. Especially the ones about the poisonous frogs. Because who hasn’t been tempted to hold and/or eat one of those in their life?

For more Top Ten Tuesday, head over to Oh Amanda!

I’m not blogging today. Okay, I am. But not really. Instead I’m doing this:

1. Playing in the snow.

2. Making granola bars.

3. Cuddling a sick baby.

4. Making Pho for dinner.

5. Catching Kai up on last minute homeschool.

6. Watching LOST!!

7. Eating my last box of Tagalongs. : (

8. Laundry.

9. Laundry.

10. Laundry. (What can I say? We have A LOT of laundry.)

For more Top Ten Tuesday head over and see Mandi at It’s Come 2 This!

I’m always amazed at the stuff I end up having to say to my kids. You’d think some things would be intuitive for little ones. But, alas, that is not the case. With a 5-year-old, 3-year-old, & 10-month-old I’m sure you can imagine the kind of things I’ve had to make into rules. And if you can’t, well, here you go…

Here are the top 10 rules I shouldn’t have had to make but I totally did.

1. Never put the toilet bowl brush in your mouth. (I wish I were kidding.)

2. Parking lot trash is not something we start a “collection” with. Let’s try Baseball cards instead.

3. No running around naked in the house when we have guests over. (That means you, too, Thomas!)

4. Do not tie baskets to the bunk beds to swing the cats in. Ever.

5. If you don’t know what something is then do not put in your mouth. (This one is for my 5-YEAR-OLD!!)

6. Barbies are never allowed to go in the microwave. No matter how naughty they were.

7. Never ask a person if they are a boy or a girl. You can wait until we get to the car and ask mommy about that one…

8. Tearing pages out of books is not a recreational activity no matter how much fun you think it is.

9. Hair dryers do not ever go in the toilet. That goes for hair straighteners, too.

10. Never ask strangers if they want to see mommy’s C-section scar. Not even mommy wants to see her C-section scar.

For more Top Ten Tuesday goodness, head over to Oh Amanda’s!

Apparently I’m turning into a crazy chicken lady. Which I’m thinking is worse than being a crazy cat lady. And I’m pretty sure my mom is wondering where she went wrong with me because here I am dedicating a whole Top Ten Tuesday to my backyard chickens. I may have officially lost my mind…

1. “Free” eggs! Okay, so I do have to pay for the feed and care of the chickens so they aren’t totally free, but by selling the extra eggs we offset the cost and get to eat delicious, cage free, free range eggs for cheap. And when they hens are at their best we get 8-10 eggs a day which is all kinds of awesome!

2. Chicken litter. We’re big into composting and chicken litter is one of the best things you can put into your compost bins. It’s awesome for your plants and breaks down pretty quickly and easily.

3. The entertainment value. Whether I’m shushing the rooster or unleashing a hen on a class of preschoolers, I have the craziest adventures thanks to these chickens.

4. Baby chicks! I was reluctantly talked into a rooster last year and it turned out to be a really fun addition to our backyard flock. Thanks to the very busy McLovin we had a dozen baby chicks last July and we’re planning to have more chicks again this spring.

5. They’re easy. Chickens really are about the easiest pet we have ever had. Feed them once a day, check for eggs, and clean their boxes once a week and you’re done. They’re less work than a fish tank and much more productive!

6. Teaching opportunities. The girls learn so much from our chicken experiences. They have a better understanding of where their food comes from, they learn responsibility from taking care of them, they learned about caring for baby chicks, and it provides lots of opportunities for hands-on science lessons.

7. The community. We joined the Atlanta Chicken Meet-up group right after we bought our first chicks and we’ve learned so much from the people in this community. We’ve had the chance to meet some really interesting folks and you might be surprised to find how diverse a group it is. In fact, in a recent tour of backyard chicken coops they had twice as many coops in the city of Atlanta as they had in the suburbs which I think says a lot about the new chicken movement.

8. They’re like a living garbage disposal. Here’s the thing you might not know about chickens. They’re a bit like pigs in that they’ll eat anything. In fact, we feed our chickens all of our leftovers. They love grapes and go crazy for spaghetti. And the better they eat the better (and more frequent) their eggs are!

9. They’re not disruptive. Unless you have a rooster, chickens are pretty much one of the quietest backyard pets you can have. Then make a bit of noise when they lay an egg but certainly not anything as loud as your average dog. And even our rooster is really not much louder than a medium sized dog and all of our neighbors have agreed that he’s a much nicer sound than the 100lb. great dane that used to live in our backyard!

10. Not just free eggs, but better eggs. Here’s the other thing about backyard chickens. Because they are cleaner than commercial chicken farms their eggs are less likely to contain salmonella. Which means they are safer. And since our chickens eat all of our left over fruits, veggies, & leafy greens their eggs are super nutritious and delicious!

For more Top Ten Tuesday about things other than my obsession with poultry, head over to Oh Amanda’s!

If you’re interested in learning more about Georgia’s “Right to Grow” bill check out the information here. And to support the rights of Georgians to grow their own food, contact your local representative.

(I had the best of intentions of posting this first thing this morning and then…life happened. But, hey, better late than never, right?)

I love Valentine’s Day. What’s not to love  about pink hearts, sparkle glitter, and chocolate candy?

And every year we go the route of the DIY crafty Valentine’s cards mostly because I just really love making them. My only problem? Picking just one style of card. Here are a few of my favorites. Click the link in the name for the how-to!

1.Plant One On Me from Disney’s Family Fun: This is the card we’re doing this year for all of the girls in Kai’s Girl Scout troop. I think it is totally adorable and I love that it comes with wildflower seeds. Instead of buying 30 individual seed packets I ended up buying bulk seeds and some coin envelopes to put them in. We’re stamping them with a pretty flower stamp to use in the Valentine. I can’t wait to see how they turn out!

2. Hearts & Blocks Valentines from Martha Stewart: I love these because they are simple and easy enough for even my 3-year-old to have fun with. Once you cut out the shapes, kids of any age can have fun stamping out the cards. You could have fun with so many different variations so each Valentine is as different as the person who is getting it.

3. Hearts & Lollipop Flowers from Martha Stewart: These are super simple to make and I know my kids always love getting lollipops so it’s a hit with them!

4. Get to the Point from Disney’s Family Fun: These easy Valentine’s are perfect for kids in classrooms where there are food allergies concerns. Not to mention, I’ve never heard of pencils causing sugar highs and hyperactivity so that’s a big plus. I think you could make these really cute and inexpensive with Valentine pencils from the Dollar Tree.

5. I Dig You Valentines from A Very Country Christmas: I saw these featured over on The Crafty Crow and I just love them! And they’re perfect for boys or girls. Not to mention, with Spring just around the corner everyone can use an extra sandbox shovel, right?

6. Play-doh Valentine: I made these a couple of years ago when Ivy was in preschool and the kids loved them. Of course they were only about 18 months old so they probably loved eating them, but still they were fun to make and inexpensive and easy and while not the most original idea still one that I think makes for a fun Valentine. Just drop them into plastic treat bags, attach a tag, and you’re good to go!

7. Paint Sample Bookmark Valentine from  The Quilted Turtle: This one cracked me up! When you think about it there are actually lots of cool Valentine ideas you come up with using old paint samples you have lying around. This bookmark is a fun (and frugal!) idea for older kids look for a green solution for Valentine’s day!

8. Origami Valentine Heart: I love origami and there are so many ways to incorporate it into a Valentine’s Day card. Origami paper is so pretty and charming and gives a fun eclectic feel to a Valentine.

9. Recycled Crayon Valentine from Disney’s Family Fun: We did these when Ivy was just a baby and I loved the way they turned out. If your house is anything like mine you’ll have tons of broken crayons under the sofa cushions tucked neatly away for just this sort of project.

10. Homemade Conversation Heart Candy: This isn’t technically a valentine but it is an awesome tutorial for making your own conversation heart candy. I am totally planning to do this as soon as my kids move away for college. Because that is probably the only time I’ll ever have enough peace & quiet to even think about attempting this one. Still I do love the idea of it…

For more Top Ten Tuesday fun head over to Oh Amanda’s!