How To Avoid A Salad Dressing Mess

Have you ever dumped way too much salad dressing on your plate?

Oh good, me too!

Have your kids ever done the same thing?

I like to buy salad dressings when they are on sale. That means that our brands vary and more times than not we open up the bottle to find an open mouth top which is just an accident waiting to happen. Not to mention the gooey lid that gets screwed back on the gooey top.

I was browsing Target one day and spotted condiment containers for $2.49 each. "Now wouldn't that be the perfect thing to help my kids not dump too much dressing on their salad," I thought to myself. Plus, we wouldn't have to unscrew tops and put them back on every time we brought out the dressings.

I grabbed six.

Now if only there was a way to hold multiple condiment bottles all at once. I walked up and down the aisles trying to find baskets that might work. Most of them ended up having extra room and the bottles would tip over. And then at the very end I spotted something in the summer, outdoor kitchen aisle that would work perfect. It came in a few different colors and I snagged this white one for $9.99. It holds 6 bottles perfectly, not to mention the fabulous holder on the top that makes grabbing it with one hand a breeze. Seriously...no more juggling six different gooey bottles, all you need is one hand!

I had just purchased some full sheet, clear labels to use on a toy organization project downstairs. I decided to give them a try and make a page with labels for my condiment bottles. This worked great since ketchup looks like catalina and honey mustard dressing looks...well, like mustard. We don't want our guests to get confused. :-)

I washed the bottles, added the labels, added the dressings and found the perfect solution to our problems. The kids think it is so cool as it sits on the middle of the table and we can spin it around to pick the right dressing. I'm not sold on the long term durability of those labels since eventually the bottles will need to be washed. I think a sharpie, directly on the bottle might come in pretty handy. 

Since we go into our yard a lot for picnics or bbq's, this will work great. With just one hand I can grab all of the dressings and condiments that we need!

When we are done, they go right back into the fridge. 

What once looked like this...

Now looks like this!

*Update: And then a  few days went by since the condiment's photo shoot. I was just waiting to publish this post on Wednesday and in the meantime we used this set at almost every meal. I discovered two things. 

1. We use it a lot and I love it!
2. However, the labels don't work. 

With the condensation from the bottles being in the fridge and then on the table it is just a smudge waiting to happen and ink gets all over whoever grabbed the bottle. Any ideas on how to label these? On a side note: I think I have concluded that our family eats a lot of ketchup too! :-)

Reasons Why I Love Our New System...

• No more dumping way too much dressing on our salad! 
• No more messing with gooey caps!
• Super easy to take out and put back in the fridge!
• Easy to use at the table!
• Great for taking outside!
• Kid Tested...Mother Approved! ;-)

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Why I'm Not Letting Carrots Convince Me I Am A Bad Mom

We live in a world that is oversaturated with information. The internet was born, social media thrives and at the touch of a button you can Google just about anything. Do you ever feel overwhelmed by all of this information? I do.

Let's take those cute little baby carrots for instance. 

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My kids eat them, they love them. (Let me stress that again, they are a vegetable and my kids LOVE them...they are like gold to me.) They are perfect to have on hand and serve with those million and one peanut butter and jelly sandwiches that are made in our house each year. We are making more and more healthy choices in our family and this is my proud moment of being a mom: teaching my kids to love and consume baby carrots.

Ok, so they eat other fruit and vegetables too.

But then I couldn't stop seeing things that people would mention online about how terrible these baby carrots were for you. Seriously, it was ALL over the place. Suddenly I felt like I was feeding my kids poison and forcing them to eat those terrible, terrible things.

I even started buying bags of real carrots. Ya know, the kind that you have to peel and cut yourself. 

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I'm lucky that my thumb survived as I attempted to cut those enormous things.

During that time we ate less "healthy" carrots because of the extra work that it took to prep them.

At the end of the week I concluded that this was so stupid. Here I am stressing out about some baby carrots that are going to cause great harm to my little treasures and instead I'm not feeding them any carrots at all.

I finally researched this topic out and discovered some information on those baby carrots.

Needless to say, on my next grocery store run I bought large bags of tiny, cute carrots and we gobbled them up. Why? Because the information that I found didn't cause enough concern for this mom to outweigh the affects in our family of not eating as many carrots.

In an oversaturated, information filled world, I'd like to encourage you to not stress over decisions that you are making as a mom. You are a great mom! 

You know your kids and your family dynamics better than anyone else. Don't let baby carrots stress you out and instead, use information to make decisions that work best for your family. Maybe that means that you are cutting up large carrots, or buying organic ones, or blending them in recipes just so that your kids will eat them.  Either way, you know your family best. You are feeding your children...you are a GREAT mom! 

Do you feel that this information saturated world has affected your parenting. Do you find it easier to make decisions with information more readily available or would you prefer to live in the early 1900's where information was less available?

5 Reasons Why I LOVE Blogging...and a Few Why I Don't

An Inviting Home's 6 Month Anniversary!

I won't be celebrating the blog's anniversary every 6 months. However, you know how it is when you start dating someone, small increments of time seem like MONUMENTAL ones until you hit your one year anniversary and then start celebrating annually. Yeah, it's going to be like that! :-)

The best part about celebrating when this blog started is that it is also the anniversary of when our adoption finalized. We celebrate "gotcha day" in January (on the date when our kids first came to live with us) but I know how much paperwork it took us to get to November 17th so this momma doesn't mind celebrating both!

To celebrate 6 months since An Inviting Home first began, I thought it would be fun to tell you...

1) Blogging Inspires My Creativity

I really enjoy the opportunity to be creative and to think outside of the box. Who would have thought that some file cabinets and dusty table leaves could create the perfect DIY desk for a small space, and why can't you have your office AND a coffee bar all in your dining room?

2) Blogging Motivates Me To Find Ways To 

Make Things Functional & Beautiful

I desire to create things that help us function better in every day life and I love adding a woman's touch. If I am going to put file folders in my dining room or create a pantry that was non-existent then lets make it functional and beautiful all at the same time. 

Bonus Nugget...My all time favorite movie just happens to be
 Calamity Jane, and who doesn't love "A Woman's Touch." :-)

3) Blogging Builds Community 

It is so fun connecting with others. I read every comment and try to respond to every one as well. I believe that blogging is about community...much like being a mom is. It is about sharing ideas and thoughts so that we can encourage one another. The blogs that I read daily are always inspiring me, along with the comments left by readers. This world is full of inspiring people!

4) Blogging Enables Me To Learn New Things

This little blog is where I choose to spend my mommy time. In posting about what I am most passionate about, I am always learning more about adoption, parenting, organization & decor. From the comments that are left, or the blogs that I follow, or the research that I do online...there is SO much to take in.

5) Blogging Is A Place to Encourage One Another

I'm still convinced that moms have the greatest job in the world it just also happens to be the toughest! My hope is that you can come to this site to find helpful information that might make your job a little easier. Hopefully you will find things that you can adapt to your space and family size...even tweak it all together and make it work for you! We all have to bathe kids, pick up after them, show them how proud we are of them, and most importantly love on them. 

A Few Reasons Why I Don't Love Blogging

1) I check my phone way too much. Once I turned off automatic notifications for each email coming in things got a lot better. Now I just try to check my phone at set times and wait to reply to comments and reply to questions until nap time or once kids are in bed.

2) I thoroughly enjoy blogging which means that sometimes our family paper clutter goes on the wayside. Things like sorting mail and balancing the check book aren't quite as fun as they once were...I would much rather pretend that they aren't there and get back to being creative. It is probably a good thing that they are in the same space where I blog so that eventually I have to get to them. :-)

Finally, it has been a GREAT six months and I look forward to celebrating more incredible times in the years ahead! I don't know if as a blogger you ever get use to people other than your mom reading your blog. It can feel intimidating, overwhelming and exciting all at once. You all have blown me out of the water with your kind comments and emails! You surpassed my facebook goal for 2013 and taught me to shoot for the moon! I hope that you find this space to be encouraging, full of community and a place to inspire! Thank you for following along!

Connect with An Inviting Home

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"What, You Grew Again?"

It is no surprise that children are always growing. However, sometimes we find ourselves totally shocked and unprepared for those three inches that they just grew in less than one month.

I shared 3 tips on sorting kids clothes all year round. It has been SO helpful to have a a place to put clothes when they have been outgrown or are being passed down.

In the past I tried storing clothes in those fancy space saver bags. I give them a giant thumbs down. Not only do the bags rip easily but they also don't seal all the way and end up being just another bag with clothes in it.

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If space is an issue for you, then try labeling some garbage bags by size and gender. I did that when our kid count was at two and it worked well. It kept me from having to sort through clothes every time I was looking for something new.

When we jumped to five kids I tried to find something a little more sturdy than bags.

We have a root cellar under the porch and since I only garden enough to fill zero percent of the space, the rest of the cellar became my storage room. 

Here is what our system looks like...

Each size is in a different tub. I simply taped a labeled index card inside of the tub. These can easily be changed out as the kids grow. I can take the smallest size down and create the next largest size...scoot the tubs over and we are good to go!

When a tub fills up with too many clothes then I go through the items and see what could be given away. For instance there might be 6 pairs of jeans in there and we don't need to keep that many so a few go back upstairs to the Goodwill basket.

The girls have totes on the right side of the shelves with the same system.

Having clear tubs is great. I can easily see what sizes I am lacking. This way I can be on the look out for those sizes. I also like keeping a tote designated for shoes for each gender.

Isn't editing great? I can easily crop out all of the other stuff in the room. :-)

I prefer to keep it real though...so come on in to my storage room. 

Sometimes I can't get to the totes because not everything fits or I just need to find time to sort things that have come from upstairs.

Either way, it is a working system and it takes away the shock when one of the kids comes and tells me that their pants have turned into capris in the middle of winter!

This is what worked for us. What works for your family when it comes to storing kids clothes? 

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JUST meat and cheese?

I'm convinced that we weren't created to simply have a family and live secluded in our own homes for the rest of our lives. 

Relationships are important. 

Relationships with other moms are important. 

I cherish the moms that are in my life, they are dear friends. We love to get together, get our kiddos together and simply share life. These women are precious and can totally relate to what crazy mom life is like; where you are convinced that you have the BEST job in the world...you just sometimes also want to call in sick.

When we get together we are bound to talk about things that we are struggling with as moms. Sometimes it can get deep, however most of the time, our conversations are about how to survive and THRIVE in the roles that we so dearly love. I am also always encouraged when I find out that my child isn't, the only one that does that... (fill in the blank!)

I've mentioned my lack of enthusiasm for cooking before. One day I was in desperate need of some help. I asked, "What do you serve your kids for lunch?"

Most of them told me that they just cut up some meat & cheese.

Brilliant! 

Come on Sarah, you hadn't done that before? It never crossed my mind.

I've given the kids meat and cheese sandwiches before but they never ate it like a sandwich and would never finish all of it. We have rules when it comes to food to teach the kids about being thankful for what they are given. I knew that I would follow through with having them finish their food or they would get a consequence..lose snack. However, sometimes it just feels like a battle I don't want to deal with today.

I did feel though that if I made PB&J or Mac&Cheese one more time I might give MYSELF the Academy Award for worst mommy cook in the world!

So, you mean I could just cut up some meat & cheese and not put it in a sandwich?

We had the best (and easiest) picnic lunch EVER the other day. 

In case you are wondering...if you try to slice a block of cheese that has been in the freezer it will just turn into crumbles. 

Thankfully my kids ate the cheese all the same and gobbled up the rest of the food as well. Sometimes it's just about making progress in the little things...the priceless things. When you live intentionally and in community with other moms you just might start thriving again!

So what do YOU serve your kids for lunch? I'm totally fishing for more great ideas and as you can see it is super easy to surpass my menu! :-)

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Why No One Should Have To Stand On Mother's Day

This day is meant to be celebrated, right?

We get to stand in long lines and go out to eat at a packed restaurant (kids in tow) and have an enjoyable time eating food that we didn't have to make while our kids are angels because they know that today is Mother's Day, right?

However, for some women Mother's Day is not a celebration.

I was one of those moms that had to make it through Mother's Day knowing that I had carried children in my womb yet had no children sitting next to me. Three Mother's Days were spent like that because of three miscarriages.

I have been in church services where all of the moms have been asked to stand. What do you do when you know you're a mom, but there are no kids there with you? I have been the one sitting there trying desperately to put a bewildered look on my face and pretend to smile while doing my very best to think of anything else...ANYTHING. Who wants to start crying in what is supposed to be a happy moment??? That would be awkward.

I remember crying out to God on a futon, in a room in our house, desperately telling God that, "I just want to have a child!" A room that was suppose to be the nursery but had been redecorated to be a "sitting room." Because when you are a couple in a house with many rooms you have to find something to call each one and no one wanted to call it, "the old nursery."

Then after some long hard years, God heard my prayers, man did he ever!

I was able to celebrate Mother's Day like I always imagined it would be. However, the more Mother's Days that I celebrated the more I learned the whole part about not requesting presents and instead, in desperation, just requesting some peace and quiet for this special day.

Many hard days of being a mom have come and gone and I take myself back to that room where I sat on a futon and cried my eyes out asking God for THIS CHILD. When I'm at the end of my rope and hiding in the bathroom fighting for a few moments of peace...I think about that futon.

We have now moved a few times to accommodate our family growth. A few things remain the same. There is a special room that I go to, to be quiet, spend time with God and just pray.

This room holds that same futon that many tears have been cried on. 

It also holds a memory box that I created for our first anniversary when we were joyfully anticipating our first child in 7 months, who we affectionately called, Jr. 

The glider that I rocked my babies in and that same reminder of HOPE are present in this room as well.

When Mother's Day comes around I count my blessings and they completely overwhelm me with joy.

Our experiences change us though.

I would be lying if I didn't say that I will also be sitting in this room reflecting and mourning for friends this year who are crying in great desperation today.

A friend who a few weeks ago lost her baby boy when she was 6 months pregnant with him. She is the mom who I will be thinking about all day long. Please don't ask the moms to stand. 

Pain is real.

Going through pain showed me even clearer that Satan is real. I wish that we lived in a perfect world where there was no pain or death, but then again, that is how God originally intended it to be and there will be a day when it will be that way again.

When I think of standing on Mother's Day I think of the pain of those who have lost their children, are struggling to get pregnant, or have other painful memories. Those whose hearts are yearning to be mothers yet who cannot stand.

Those who can hardly bear the pain of the memories, longings, or regrets.

When I think of that I remember that I have been there and even in the midst of the joy of celebrating this day I'm reminded of the pain that it means for so many others at the same time. On a day like today, celebrate; celebrate the lives that make you so overwhelmingly tired and so immensely THANKFUL. And pray; pray for friends who might not be celebrating today, because I know that prayer makes a difference. 

Don't stop there, encourage your friend(s) by letting them know that you are thinking of them...it might mean the world to them. Send them a note simply saying, "I'm thinking about you today." But please, please don't single them out or remind them of what's missing by asking all of the moms to stand. 

Our Porch - Another Space That I Could Stay In Forever

This time last year we were just finishing up our basement. When we had moved in (three months prior) the basement was unfinished and we knew that we wanted to create a space for our five kiddos to play and explore in. 

For the first three months of our arrival in our new house our porch was turned into a play space while the basement project unfolded. A three-season porch play room in the middle of winter...no problem! As long as mom remembered to turn on the space heater before 7am so that the room would warm up in time for morning play which sometimes became afternoon play instead. Needless to say, I didn't remember to turn on the heater all of the time. Does it make sense why we were finishing off the basement? :-)

One of my favorite things about our porch play space was using the unique door (that opened up midway) as a puppet show stage. No, I am not a Pinterest spectacular mom but I did grow up making these super easy paper bag puppets and my mom passed along some supplies to keep the tradition going. The kids loved them. Not to mention that this little half door kept my toddler at bay while I made lunch right around the corner...brilliant!

After three months of deep freeze playing, our basement was completed right before Mother's Day last year. The kids were thrilled to have more space to explore in and I found a new space which we hadn't really considered what we were going to do with it. 

Then with one idea it all came together.

How about mommy creates an inviting space to enjoy a morning cup of coffee with the bright shining sun included?!? (We also decided to use the space for other multi-functional purposes as well...like a mudroom in the winter time for snow gear and extra eating space when guests come over...space heater included and all!)

Last year, with my new found space, I was given the treat of heading to Target with some cash and picking out my own mother's day present(s). We decided to make use of furniture that had been with us since our newlywed days and spruced things up with some colorful accents. 

Not only is this space great in the morning but the string lights in the evening are so soothing...and oh that fresh air...LOVE! Not to mention the gorgeous dark wood ceiling...love, LOVE!

You might have seen a photo on Instagram of our winter "collection" that had collected in this room. Over the past week I have been putting things away and did a little spring cleaning to one of mommy's favorite rooms, just in time for Mother's Day. 

Do you have a "mommy nook" in your house...a place to sit and enjoy a warm cup of goodness?

I'll be posting something dear to my heart on Sunday. (*Update: Here is that post.) A little glimpse into why this room holds so much meaning for me and the lens through which I see Mother's Day every year. Have a beautiful, wonderful weekend friends!

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