Sweet Lemon Acres

Last night, as I was scrolling through Pinterest, I saw this: I tried to answer the question, but found myself having many thoughts on this. Having been a stay-at-home mom for 4+ years and then working this past year, I found that both have their pros and cons. For me, the decision to stay home with my first child was made solely because I didn't really like my job that much. Also, the thought of having a stranger take care of my baby all day made me nervous and sad. As my maternity leave was nearing an end though, my plan to quit my job and stay home turned into going back just part-time. I missed working and having some place to be. I worked just two days a week and we found a sitter near my office who we felt very comfortable with. Two years later when I got pregnant with Wyatt, I decided to go ahead and stay home full time. I quit work 6 months before he was born, so that I could spend some quality time with Rylee before her only-child status ended. I very much enjoyed...

The leaves are rustling and birds are chirping. Several yards away, I hear sticks breaking under the feet of the woodland creatures. The sky to the west is a hue of purple and gold as the sun is setting behind the land. Our farm cat's soft fur gently rests against my toes. "Life is better on the porch" -unknown, but I couldn't agree more. I've been spending a lot of time on my front porch. Generally, I spend about 30 minutes in the morning drinking my coffee and reading my book. Then in the evening, after kids are tucked in and hundreds of hugs and kisses have been given to their little faces, I slip back out to the porch with my book and a mason jar of water. Watching the sun set from this spot is an extra perk. When we were looking for our current house (actually we were planning to build again), one of my "must haves" was a large, covered front porch. I don't know what it is about porches, but I've always been so drawn to them. A beautif...

I know this isn't the first time I've written about my super picky eaters, but it just feels like it is getting worse instead of better in our house and I want to talk about. I've seen several others on Facebook talk about how their kids just want to snack all the time or do not want to eat what is being served for supper, so I know we aren't the only ones in this boat. I also understand that we created this issue ourselves (probably mostly me). PBJ, cheese taco, hot dog (only cooked int he microwave-- don't even think about grilling it), chicken nuggets. These are the only meals my kids will eat. Oh, and occasionally cheese pizza...if it's the right kind...you know...not spicy, no "green things" in it (seasonings) and the right color of cheese....and by the way, make sure the cheese doesn't have any brown on it (the heated spots from the oven). We make a lot of meals that we know they won't like, and on those nights, I really don't m...