Leadership Team/Mentor Moms

Hi ladies! For those of you who are unable to attend GUM (overseas) or did not make it to the first meeting, here is the flyer that was passed out.

Elizabeth Gregorich

I have two boys.  Levi is 4 years, Silas is 21 months and baby # 3 due in January. GUM is a place I can be real about being a not so perfect mom, laugh about the funny things and pray about the tough things. I am encouraged in the role God has given me and blessed to share with other moms too.  I love being a wife and mom. I stay home with my boys.  I love this church and learning more about the Lord from His Word and fellowship with others. Sometimes I have to force myself to talk, because I’d much rather listen.  My husband makes me laugh.  He can be a goof sometimes. My children make me laugh.  When other people laugh really hard, it’s hard not to laugh with them.

Mari Higerd  

 I have 1 husband, Gabe, and 3 girls, Caroline (6) Annabelle (5) and Grace (3) with one baby on the way due in February! I've been part of a MOPS/moms group/GUM since Caroline was a baby and would intentionally throw up each time I dropped her off - true story. GUM has been my hands down favorite. I don't think I would have survived these 6 years of motherhood without the understanding ears, laughter, and good food :) I love all the moms in GUM and can't wait to get to know everyone even more. I can't remember what I used to do in my free time, but I'm a football fan (Go APU!) and a thrift store shopper.

Manda Robinson 

  

I have one child, Ezra, who is 2 ½ with baby #2 due in Nov.  GUM (for me) is a place that I can vent my insecurities about motherhood and get prayer and encouragement for them.  I love working part time as a Physician Assistant and balancing that with being a mom/wife.  I enjoy art (other people’s, not my own), organizing, baking cupcakes, and trying new things. Things that make me laugh are puns and my son’s dancing. 

Stacy Thompson 

I have two boys.  Jordan is 4 ½ years and Lucas is 22 months. GUM is where I am able to share the good, the bad & the ugly, and to know that I am not alone in this journey of motherhood.  It is a place of safety, honesty, advice, laughter, love, encouragement, and prayer.  I am thankful that we have mentor moms who have traveled this path before us & can guide us, listen to us and tell us “it may not seem like it now, but you’ll make it through the hard times”.  I love to read, get together with friends and family, go for walks, and bake.  My husband and my boys make me laugh every day.                  

                       

Amie Wagenbrenner 

I have two girls.  Mya is 4 years and Winter is 2½ years.  GUM keeps me sane.  When I get home from a morning with other moms, I feel refreshed and recharged.  It also helps me remember that I cannot do it on my own. I need Jesus.  I love to be around people. I hate staying at home which doesn’t make me a very good stay at home mom J I adore my girls and I feel so blessed to have married such an amazing man. I’m pretty easy going unless I’m driving or my house is a mess.  I love to sing and dance and I’m into health and fitness.  I’m a bit of a perfectionist.  I’m fairly neat and I don’t like knick knacks or chotchkies that clutter my house probably because I grew up in a super messy small home.  I tend to like sarcastic humor and burps and farts have always amused me.

Aileen Jones 

I have been married to my very funny husband for 36 years.  I have a son, 26 & a daughter 30, & a very new son-in-law,29!  GUM is my very favorite ministry.  I love everything about it, and often feel I get more out of it than the mamas! I am a mid-50's woman who loves God, my family and travel!  I am fascinated by people and love getting to know new people I meet!  I also enjoy gardening, exercise, baking and reading.  

Cindy Kinnoin

I have been married to my husband, Carl, for 28 years. We have three children: Jill, who is 25 and lives in Santa Rosa, Laura, who is 23 and is earning her teaching credential at Cal Poly and Zack, who is 20 and is a junior at Cal Poly Pomona. I attended a mom's group when my children were preschoolers. I couldn't wait to go. When I left the house, I didn't walk, I ran to moms! I needed the love, encouragement and community of other moms going through the same things I was. It was such a blessing and a lifeline for me. I am so looking forward to being a GUM mom mentor this year. I like to travel, garden, decorate and hang out with my twelve-year-old Boston Terrier, Chessie.

Kathie Speck

I have been married to Dave for 32 years.  We have two children.  Our daughter, Stacy (30), is married to David and has two children, Jordan and Lucas.  Our son, Kevin (28),  is married to Kristen.  Stacy and David attend COD and Kevin and Kristen attend Grace Church of Glendora.  I love to read and ride my horse, Comanche! I feel so privileged to be a mentor mom for GUM.  Being a mom of a pre-schooler can be both an amazing joy and overwhelming.  To see young mom’s interact with each other and to strengthen their walk with the Lord is a blessing.  Watching them laugh, cry, pray and draw                                                       closer together is a gift God has gives to us “old women”  Feeling                                                             blessed!

How Do You Do It?

If you have not read this post - read it. Go ahead, I'll wait. 

http://www.shortstopblog.com/2013/08/to-moms-of-one-or-two-children.html

What did you think? It was a breath of fresh air to me.  There are days when I feel overwhelmed and think to myself "Moms of multiple children {and by that I mean more than 2}, you are amazing". Moms of one and two, you are amazing too! As someone who wonders if I will ever get a handle on being a mom to two and {ouch} being told that I really can only handle two, this blog post truly spoke to me. My favorite line, the one that convicted me?

You know, I needed God when I had one and two children. But, I had all of this stuff - books and gear and Grannies and know-it-all voices and I had me. 

I have so often found that when I rely on myself ... things collapse around me. I measure myself by impossibly high standards, standards that I have imposed on myself.  It does not help when my failures are pointed out to me or when I get dirty looks in the grocery store because my child is having a tantrum.  

I can not tell you how many times I have walked out of a store or left a park because my child is simply not listening and then throws a tantrum when he is disciplined. Embarrassment turns to anger and anger turns to me reacting more harshly than needed.  There have been times I drove away with him screaming & kicking in the backseat with tears streaming down my face.  

I had me. I looked at my screaming tantrum throwing child and measured my worth of a mother by his behavior.  I looked at the toys scattered around my house and the dishes in the sink and I measured myself by the state of my house. I had me. My high standards and my doing.  

I need Him to help me trade my doing for His doing. 

I need His patience. 
I need His joy.
I need His love.

I love what she wrote above.  This needs to be read daily. I want to write it on a post it & stick it to my children's foreheads {only b/c I cannot read it if it's on my own forehead!} so that when I look at them and get frustrated or exasperated because I have me ... I am reminded. 

I need Him to help me trade my doing for His doing. 

Being a mother is not easy. It is hard no matter how many you have, no matter how experienced you are.  We cannot do it on our own.  We need God. We need each other. 

Stuck In The Doldrums

Tomorrow it will have been seven weeks since my oldest fell out of a second story hotel window.  We spent four weeks "taking it easy" at home.  Before he fell, he had preschool three mornings a week, church, AWANA, soccer and play dates.  I went from having a schedule to keep my very active child busy & burning off energy to ... nothing.  My days turned into full days at home with both boys, finding myself saying 'no' far more than I would have liked, and racking my brain to come up with creative ways to keep my oldest entertained while being limited in what he could do.  Throw a few other things in the mix and it wasn't long before I became stuck in the doldrums - a dull, listless, depressed mood; low spirits.

Have you ever felt this way? It's not something we talk about as mothers.  When we are out & about, we put on that 'mask' that everything is just fine! Oh sure, I said I was tired and things were not easy, but we're doing fine!  It took some time before I realized that I was stuck in the doldrums and I was not fine.  It frustrated me that I felt this way. I had just seen, once again, what an awesome & mighty God we have! I should be feeling elated, joyful, thankful, blessed. Instead I felt overwhelmed, exhausted, mentally, spiritually and physically depleted. My daily prayer was "Please let me get through today without shutting down.  Just give me the strength to do the dishes.  Do just one small load of laundry."  I would get the boys fed, clothed, etc, but the rest of it ... I felt so overwhelmed that even one small task was daunting.

Jen Hatmaker wrote this:

Here is the bummer about the doldrums: the very efforts needed to lift out are the same things you’ve lost energy for. The simplest remedies feel like weights drudged up from the bottom of the ocean. Your mind knows to do them, but your will refuses to cooperate. Which makes your mind furious and mired in shame, which makes your will dig its heels and wallow, which makes you realize you are turning on yourself, you are your own worst enemy. No one can oppress me like myself.

I am still working through it. Some days are better than others. There are days I sink right back into it and I am overwhelmed by everything.  I am learning to give myself grace and to know that this takes time.  It was so easy to cling to Christ when I was in crisis mode and with all that was going on, He was in control.  It's the big things that are somehow easier isn't it? The little things, like the aftermath of that big crisis, those are when it can become hard to keep pressing forward and holding fast to that promise that Jesus is with us. 

Christ suffered for us. He is suffering with us. Whether we deem it big or small, it is not for us to compare our suffering to others.  That takes our focus off of Christ and onto ourselves, it minimizes what He is working on in our hearts and our lives.  

In Christ alone my hope is found,

He is my light, my strength, my song;

this Cornerstone, this solid Ground,

firm through the fiercest drought and storm.

What heights of love, what depths of peace,

when fears are stilled, when strivings cease!

My Comforter, my All in All,

here in the love of Christ I stand.

Happy Mother's Day!

May 24, 2010

I was watching the movie Motherhood yesterday and in the movie, the mom has a chance to submit an essay on what motherhood means to her. This got me thinking, especially as I watched Jordan and thought about what it meant to be his mother. What does motherhood mean to me? Keep in mind, that my life as a mother has only been in existence for 14 1/2 months :)

Motherhood is complex and full of emotions. Motherhood is something that you will never fully understand yet at the same time, you will embrace it completely without hesitation. The fears you had before your child was born is replaced by the fears you have as your child grows into their own. You learn to step back and watch as the child you love so dearly learns to do things on their own, even when it means watching them step off the curb and face plant onto the asphalt parking lot (true story, happened today). Motherhood is full of joy and laughter, tears and heartache. The tears in the beginning when you felt so overwhelmed and unsure of how to take care of this precious little one that is utterly dependent on you. The joy in being a mother, when others delight in your child. The laughter that bubbles over when your child laughs with you, for a child's laughter is the most beautiful sound. The heartache in knowing that no matter how much you try, you cannot always protect them from being hurt. 

It's when a chubby little hand reaches for yours, in complete faith that you will guide them in the right way, and be by their side as they learn to navigate the world on their own. 

Motherhood means days where you just want to get in the car, drive who knows where , turn the windows down and blast some music. Then there are days when your little one squeals in delight when they see you and comes running into your arms to give you a hug. The smile on their face makes up for the days of teething, sleepless nights, spilled cups on the floor, tripping on toys everywhere you step, and massively poopy diapers.

Motherhood is a journey - it's not easy but it is by far the most rewarding journey I've ever partaken in.

     

New Year, One Word

When someone asks me about my New Years resolutions, I cringe.  Hemming & hawing, I half heartedly come up with the typical ones. Lose weight, eat healthier, wake up early & have quiet time, spend more time with my boys, blah blah blah.

One morning in late December I was reading a devotional from Proverbs 31 Ministries.  As I read it, I felt like it was written specifically for me.  Did this lady know me & how I work? It felt like I could have written this devotional.  (Looking Around)

"the crux of my problem was waiting for everything to be perfect before I moved forward. If I didn't feel I could do something "right," I often didn't do it at all. If I couldn't control each move, or the outcome, I waited rather than began. And that meant a lot of things sat either un-started or unfinished."

When I was done reading the devotional, I scrolled down to learn more about the author.  I came across this:

Lose the long list of resolutions — all your sweeping promises to change — and do something about one thing this year instead of nothing about everything. In Rachel Olsen's newest book, My One Word, she and co-author Mike Ashcroft lead you in choosing just one word that represents what you most hope God will do in you, and focus on it for an entire year.

I had stopped making resolutions because I did just that - "nothing about everything".  There were many un-started or unfinished projects because I was waiting for things to be perfect. I lack confidence in my ability to do things & do them well, and many times I refuse to do or try anything. I (unwisely) measure myself against others (friendships, motherhood, personality, etc) and fall short every time. I focus on my weaknesses and not my strengths. This results in a lot of wasted time.

Inspired by picking one word instead of making resolutions, I went to the My One Word website & read the three steps to choosing one word.  I spent a few weeks thinking over the devotional & what my one word could be. Mostly, I prayed for God to search me & know me, to show me what I needed to focus on this year. 

"Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts" 

 Psalm 139:23

The word that God has put upon my heart is INTENTIONAL.  Intentional means done with intention. Intention means a determination to act in a certain way. I pray that God will teach me to find and acknowledge my strengths, to use them for His glory.  A prayer I have had for many years, that has yet to be completely answered, is to think before I speak! Many times when I am uncomfortable in a situation I just start rambling.  I want to be intentional in my speech, my thoughts, my actions. Live a life that is intentional(ly) pleasing to God in all areas.

In addition to picking a word, I also picked a verse to go with the word intentional.

"Be diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone may see your progress"

1 Timothy 4:15

As I end this post, I leave you with a question:

What is your one word for this year? 

I would love for you to comment and tell me your one word! 

One. Step. At. A. Time

There are many things I do not like about having a disability, but every once in a while, I use it to my advantage. When I need to decompress, take a moment to myself, shut the world out, I take out my hearing aids.  Then ... silence.  Complete silence.  This is me, at my most vulnerable point.  This is where I say "okay, here I am, coming to You, laying everything at Your feet".  When life gets overwhelming.  When I feel stuck.  When the little one is waking up 3-4 times a night screaming his head off & I feel so helpless because I cannot figure out why. When finances are rough. When insecurity, jealously, greed, or bitterness rears its ugly head.  When my heart is heavy with hurt.  I take off my hearing aids, meet God at my most vulnerable point, and pour it all out.  

I do not walk away with answers.  I do not walk away with everything solved.  All that I pour out at His feet, it's all still there.  There is not always some great spiritual awakening or revelation. I do not walk away convicted & ready to tackle everything.  My heart may still be heavy and burdened. Tears may still be flowing from my eyes.  

I do walk away with the knowledge that I am not alone.  My God is with me & for me. He is there, walking besides me. one. step. at. a. time.  That is all He asks of us.  To walk with Him in all we do.  That knowledge, that reassurance, gives me peace & strength.  Just one. step. at. a. time.

Too many times I try to do it all on my own.  When I allow myself to take out my hearing aids and become vulnerable, I let down my many walls & simply lay it all out at His feet.  He never fails to meet me there.  

And if our God is for us, then who could ever stop us.
And if our God is with us, then what could stand against.
And if our God is for us, then who could ever stop us.
And if our God is with us, then what could stand against.
Then what could stand against.

Chris Tomlin - Our God 

September GUM Flyer

*Introducing the mentor moms & leadership team*

Patti Anderson

 

I have been married to Norm for 40 years.  We have four sons, Doug, Dan, David and Michael and have three daughter in laws. Nancy, Francina, and Susan.  We have 6 ½ grandchildren; Jack, Ryley, Matt, Morgan, Cameron, Lea & the next one due is in February. GUM is so so dear to my heart.  25 years ago I was visiting friends in Boston & their church had a mom to mom program. I loved it.  It was so biblical as in Titus.  When Lindsey brought it up to me, I was thrilled.  I was involved for several years then had to drop out for personal reasons.  Now I am back & love love love it! I love the Lord, Norm, the boys & the little short guys so much.  I laugh easily & cry even easier.  I love to entertain, cook, the beach & our Oregon home.  Children make me laugh. My husband is very funny though he does not mean to be.  Dirty jokes make me laugh.  They should not but they do.

Paula Johnson

I have two children.  Daniel is 18 and leaving for college (Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo) on September 12^th.  Carolyn is 16 (almost 17) and a senior at Charter Oak High School.  GUM is a lifeline to our moms of young children.  I remember being at home alone with young kids, most of my friends were working and our families didn’t live close.  The bible study I was involved in at that time saved my sanity.  It was my spiritual and mental lifeline.  This is what I see GUM being.  A safe place for moms to come, to be loved, supported, prayed for and to not be alone.  I’ve been married 21 years (in November) and my husband is my best friend.  I love camping, music, playing hearts with my family at the Awanee, and watching my kids sporting events.  I work part time at Charter Oak High School in the high-functioning autism class.  My kids make me laugh, also British humor. 

 Aileen Jones

I have two kids; a daughter 29 & a son 25.  GUM is quite frankly my favorite ministry! I love everything about it & receive a lot of satisfaction & pleasure from serving the mamas! I am an outgoing middle-aged woman who loves God & my family! I really enjoy getting to know people, Bible Study, gardening, baking & reading.  My husband makes me laugh (often!).  It really doesn’t take much to crack me up.

Sherry Spradley

Steve and I have 3 children.  Brenda, who is married to Charlie. They have Elliot, Libby, and Ollie.  Daryl who is married to Becky and they have Natania and Claire.  Daniel who is married to Allison.  GUM has been a wonderful chance for me to be able to be with young moms and hopefully share some of my successes and failures as a mother.  I love the prayer time together.  I am an introvert, loyal and dependable person who loves the Lord.  I love to organize things and rearrange my furniture.  I now have arthritis and fibromyalgia that affects my life more than I would like but God is helping me through the hard times.  Things my grandchildren say and do make me laugh and so can my husband. 

Elizabeth Gregorich

I have two boys.  Levi is 3 years, Silas is 9 months.  GUM is a place I can be real about being a not so perfect mom, laugh about the funny things and pray about the tough things. I am encouraged in the role God has given me and blessed to share with other moms too.  I love being a wife and mom. I stay home with my boys.  I love this church and learning more about the Lord from His Word and fellowship with others.  Sometimes I have to force myself to talk, because I’d much rather listen.  My husband makes me laugh.  He can be a gooft sometimes. My children make me laugh.  Especially Levi, now that he can talk.  He says things like: “There’s Spiderwebman!” (Spide Man).  Also, when other people laugh really hard, it’s hard not to laugh with them. 

Amie Wagenbrenner

I have two girls.  Mya is 3 years and Winter is 1 ½ years.  GUM keeps me sane.  When I get home from a morning with other moms, I feel refreshed and recharged.  It also helps me remember that I cannot do it on my own. I need Jesus.  I love to be around people. I hate staying at home which doesn’t make me a very good stay at home mom J I adore my girls and I feel so blessed to have married such an amazing man. I’m pretty easy going unless I’m driving or my house is a mess.  I love to sing and dance and I’m into health and fitness.  I’m a bit of a perfectionist.  I’m fairly neat and I don’t like knick knacks or chotchkies that clutter my house probably because I grew up in a super messy small home.  I tend to like sarcastic humor and burps and farts have always amused me.

Manda Robinson

I have one child, Ezra, who is 21 months old.  GUM (for me) is a place that I can vent my insecurities about motherhood and get prayer and encouragement for them.  I love working part time as a Physician Assistant and balancing that with being a mom/wife.  I enjoy art (other people’s, not my own), organizing, baking cupcakes, and trying new things. Things that make me laugh are puns and my son’s dancing. 

                                                                              Stacy Thompson

I have two boys.  Jordan is 3 ½ years and Lucas is 9 ½ months.  GUM is where I am able to share the good, the bad & the ugly, and to know that I am not alone in this journey of motherhood.  It is a place of safety, honesty, advice, laughter, love, encouragement, and prayer.  I am thankful that we have mentor moms who have traveled this path before us & can guide us, listen to us and tell us “it may not seem like it now, but you’ll make it through the hard times”.  I am easy going and laugh easily. I love to read, get together with friends and family, go for walks, and bake.  My husband makes me laugh every day.  Jordan is at the age where his imagination has really kicked into gear & he cracks me up with his antics.  Lucas is now babbling away and when he laughs, I cannot help but laugh with him.  

This is not the blog post I had in mind for my 'debut' post, but it's something that God has been pressing on my heart today.  So here I sit, listening to what God's saying and willing myself to follow through on what He's telling me to do.  This means ignoring the dirty dishes in the sink, the crumbs underneath the kitchen table, the piles of laundry that need to be folded, the toys that are begging to be put away (only to be pulled out again fifteen minutes later), and letting the little one hang out in his crib *he's supposed to be napping*.  Is it just me or do you struggle with the moments of "slow it down, listen to what God's saying, and just focus on that.  Follow His instructions NOW - not later, not after the dishes are done, the laundry is folded.  Because by then, you'll be distracted and realized that you brushed Him off yet again, only to do something that could have waited".  

This morning was rough. Both my boys were overtired which resulted in tantrums & crying over every. single. thing. I was rushing to get the big one ready for school and found myself barking orders at him in short clipped sentences.  Things were going downhill & all I wanted was to get him to school, put the little one down for a nap, and get to the above mentioned to-do list.  After I dropped the big one off at school (tears and all), I came home, put the little one down for a nap, logged onto FB (for just a quick moment) and there God met me.  In the moment of quietness (only a moment, for the little one is letting me know he's unhappy that he's supposed be napping), I read a link my sister in law posted.  After reading that blog post, I clicked onto another blog post, and then someone posted in the GUM page. Between those three things I read, I had tears in my eyes & my heart was convicted.  The first blog post I read was titled "Dear Mom On Hard Days", the second "Dear Sweet Mom Who Feels LIke She Is Failing", and a wall photo about this day being a gift. I felt like all three summed up how I was feeling.  This line especially, made the tears spill over & my heart feel hope.   

"This is your life - and you - you are the perfect mother for those children. God knew when he blessed those kids to you."

The dishes will wait, the laundry will wait, the crumbs on the floor will wait (or be picked up by the crawling baby).  God will meet you where you are & give your soul what it needs.  Reassurance, on those tough days, that you are the perfect mother for your children & God knew that when he blessed those kids to you.  While I am still tired & weepy, my spirit is renewed.  I pray dear mamas, that this post & the others that I am linking below, will renew you as well.  This needs to be said again, read again, and held onto tightly.  

"This is your life - and you - you are the perfect mother for those children. God knew when he blessed those kids to you."

Dear Mom On Hard Days

Dear Sweet Mom Who Feels Like She Is Failing

Now, I'm off to pick up my baby boy & snuggle him tight.  He needs his mama more than he needs a nap.  (Let's face it, I wanted him to take a nap so I could get the chores done!)

Laundry Signals

Hi Mamas. I have some sad news. My dryer caught emphysema and died a couple weeks ago. It was painful for all of us, especially when my children had to hall loads of clean wet laundry around the corner to their cousins house to borrow their healthy dryer. Those three days were long ones. But it's okay, no condolences needed, we're over it now.

Why the callous attitude, you say? Well this new dryer has revolutionized my life, and I'll tell you why.

First let me introduce you to the beast. Let's call him Sal. As you can see Sal has is a lovely shade of...tan. So pretty, right? He's not much to look at for sure, but he does work!

Sal came to us from the garage of some wonderful friends who live a couple blocks from us. Sal was peacefully waiting for a new family to take him home and put him back to work. Our friends picked Sal up at the Sal-vation Army thrift store for about ten bucks sometime in the mid 90's (make note of the red Salvation Army sticker Sal still wears). Where Sal was prior to that no one knows.

 

Sal has worked hard for many a year, and after his rest in our friends garage, he was ready to get back to work drying our jeans and socks and sheets and softball uniforms. Sal's barrel is smaller than my old machine and this was quite a bummer of a realization when I discovered we'd have to wash smaller loads in order for them to dry in one load. Grateful to not have to tote laundry somewhere else or make a hasty purchase I wondered how I'd stay on top of all the laundry my household generates.

On the plus side, Sal was state of the art back in his prime. Made by General Electric, Sal is a Five Cycle Dryer with Automatic Dryer Control - Extra Care and Signal. Did you catch that? Signal. Translation. LOUD BUZZ noise at the end of the cycle. Now this isn't a new feature to me. My old dryer also had an alarm. It was an awful sound and like most of you, it was turned off. And here's where Sal has changed my life. Sal's signal can not be turned off until you open the door of the dryer!

At first, I was not thrilled about this new sound merging into our lives. I can no longer throw another load in before bed, because the signal will wake the household. This was really going to cramp my style! But Sal just isn't the cramp-your-style-kind.

I had always thought I was pretty on top of my dyer cycles. I listened for that low rumble sound with the clicks and clinks of the clothes spinning in the dyer and when it had stopped I'd change over a load. Efficient, right? Wrong! I have discovered with Sal's immediate and quite alarming signal, I change over more laundry in a day. So much so, I haven't had dirty laundry in the two weeks since Sal was installed in my laundry room. I find myself searching for towels and changing sheets much more often than previously, simply because I have an empty washer and dryer.

And there you have it. Laundry revolutionized. So today, on this sunny Wednesday, I challenge you to TURN ON the dryer signal. If your dryer is too far away to hear it, use a kitchen timer. Seriously. It will change your life. At least your laundry cycles!

Cooking Tips

1. Freeze your meat in marinade in a freezer bag. Saves one step when you pull the meat out to to thaw!

2. Trader Joes is your secret weapon. {Seriously, we could do a WHOLE other post on just Trader Joe's...hmmm...maybe I will!}

3. Don't use taco or ranch seasoning packets - they all contain MSG {which is a no no!} Instead make your own, keep it in a jar and use as needed. {Here's a launching spot if you want to try this - I've made my own taco & chili seasoning for over two years now! All Recipes Taco Seasoning I}

4. Put your avocado in the fridge to stop {or slow down} the ripening process.

5. Try cooking beans {black or pinto) in the crockpot, then freeze in ziplocks to use later. Blend to make refried style! {I have not yet done this, but its on my list, tutorial anyone?}

6. Put a layer of sour cream on your quacamole in the fridge to stop the browning. {Someone was hankering for some mexican food when we wrote these lists!}

7. Save water from boiled chicken for cooking rice. {This gives the rice a little yummy seasoning!}

8. Use a tea infuser for dusting cupcakes with powdered sugar.

9. Basic White Sauce: saute 1 tbsp flour with 1 tbsp butter, then add 1 c. milk. From here you can add other spices, cheese, wine or whatever flavor you like. {To make it a little creamier, use heavy whipping cream - Pioneer woman style!}

10. Ready to eat that avocado from #4 now, to ripen it or other fruit place in a brown paper bag on the counter. {For more avacado tips, read this article.}

11. Put parmesan cheese wedges in with your cheddar to keep them moist.

12. Tomatoes will last longer if you store them on the counter instead of the fridge.

13. Want to make your mac & cheese a little more fancy or save a little time? Add some frozen pea's or carrots into the boiling water for the mac noodles.

14. Home Made Red Enchillada Sauce: Purchase a bag of dried chile (California or New Mexico pods). Remove the stems and seeds and put dried chiles in the blender with 2-3 cloves of garlic and about 3 tbsp of chicken bouillon. Slowly add boiling hot water and blend. (Blender should be full) You can add a little powder masa to thicken. {Now that sounds delicious!}

15. Apples and pears turning brown after cutting? Just put a little 7-up on them!

16. To prevent boiling over, place a wooden spoon across your pan. {This totally works!}