The Big White Farmhouse

intentional living, little by little

{learn goals} Living Seasonally in March & a Free Printable!



This is a packed post.  Each month in 2016, I hope to share a bunch of ideas for living the fullness of that month.   The possibilities are endless, but I plan to include church feast days, small celebrations, books, crafts ideas and delicious foods to eat.  In no way do I think I will be able to pull off ALL of this, nor should you!  My hope is to provide a handy resource to check in on and get ideas.  I’ve also included a handy printable at the end. Here we go!  








Ahh, finally finishing this post a few days late!  I still can’t believe that it’s March already! I’m getting so excited for warmer weather, getting outside and planting a garden.  I plan to begin cleaning and decluttering my house (again!) and getting my bum in gear with healthy eating and exercise.  Spring is on the horizon, friends.

Below are a bunch of ideas for celebrating the fullness of this month.  Again, let me say that in no way do I think anyone (me included!) should think they can pull off ALL of this.  My hope is that you could pick and choose what you’d like to do with your own family.  I’ve done the leg work for you.  You just need to add the most important ideas to your calendar and get ready for memory making!


LITURGICAL YEAR



CELEBRATIONS
  • 1: National Peanut Butter Lover’s Day
  • 2: Dr. Seuss’s Birthday
  • 13: Daylight Savings Time Begins
  • 19: Return of the Swallows to San Juan Capistrano
  • 20: First Day of Spring
  • 25: National Waffle Day



    BOOKS TO READ



    ACTIVITIES TO DO


    {five favorites} Vol.15: Five New Workout Videos


     Welcome to the Five Favorites linkup!
    A reminder about a new twist I’m adding to the linkup this year: At the end of each month, I’ll be giving away a prize pack to one #5Faves participant!  Here’s how it works: every time you link up a blog post, it counts as one entry.  So if you link up a post every week, you’d get four entries.  I’ll keep track throughout the month and then randomly pick a winner on April 1.  



    First, let’s congratulate Jen for winning February’s #5Faves Prize Pack!  


    The winning post: Books on Marriage (5Faves)





    On to this week’s favorites:


    I’ve been in a bit of a fitness slump the past few months.  But like I mentioned before, I realized that in order to regain that excitement for working out, I just needed to change things up a bit!  DUH.  So I went on a big search for new workouts and the Internet didn’t disappoint!  Here are five of my latest finds:

     1 // Cardio Kickboxing with Chris Freytag
    This one is my favorite, hands down.  It’s 40 minutes, which can be a tricky amount of time for TJ (his patience threshold seems to top out at around 30), so I usually keep this workout for times when Mark is home.  It’s fun, empowering and the time goes by quickly.  Love it.

     2 // 10 Minute Tabata for Moms
    Have you ever tried a Tabata workout?  At just ten minutes, I stupidly thought this would be an easy day – NOT the case!  This video is 20 exercises, done for 20 seconds each with a 10 second “break” in between.  That “break” is more like catch your breath for 5 seconds before moving on!  It’s challenging, but doable and boom!  Done in 10 minutes.  

     3 // Burn to the Beat with Keaira LaShae
    So if you know me in real life, you’re already laughing.  Let’s just say, Mama doesn’t have a lot of rhythm!  But for the sake of really (literally?) shaking things up, I tried out a couple of the Burn to the Beat workouts: Hip Hop and Reggaeton Dance.  I closed the blinds to spare the neighbors, but they were actually really fun, even if I could barely keep up!

     4 // Fitness Blender
    Fitness Blender is an awesome site and they have videos for everything.  I tried the Fat Burning Tank Top Arms workout, which combined cardio intervals with upper body weight training.  Straight forward and well done, I really enjoyed it.  

     5 // Dollar Workout Club
    I follow Natalie Hodson on Facebook and love her honest approach to your post-baby body.  She is also a part of the Dollar Workout Club, have you heard of it?  After watching one of their videos on their Facebook page, I loved it so much that I joined on Sunday!  The price is only $1 a week and you receive five workouts, five recipes and five small motivational videos.  Such a great deal!  I love that they show beginner, intermediate and advanced levels and that the workouts are quick but effective.  I worked my chest and back yesterday with their 17 minute video and I am more sore today than I have been in ages!  Can’t wait to regularly add their videos to the mix.


    ——————————————



    I’d love to hear above five of your favorite things too!  Need some ideas?  Here are a few to get you started:


    + Share your latest library haul.  What five books (kids or adult!) have been your favorite?


    + Do you use essential oils?  Share five of your favorite ways you use them in your home.


    + Are you a small business owner?  Tell us about five of your products and the story behind them.



    {learn goals} What I Learned in February

    {via}



    (1) MEMORIZING LATIN IS HARD.

    I got a wild hair to memorize the Pater Noster (the Our Father in Latin) and wow. So hard.  I listen/watch the chant on Youtube (with the words – crucial) almost daily and am making small victories.  You know you’re a little bit crazy when the house sounds like a monastery and nobody bats an eye!  I told Mark that when I get it down, I’m going to stand in front of the living room and present it like I’m in the fifth grade, hah!


    (2) TODDLER WEANING IS ALSO HARD.
    TJ will be 18 months in March and I’m ready for a break!  Unfortunately, this is the first time that I’ve had a baby who shows no interest in weaning and I’m trying to figure out what to do.  We’ve reduced nursing to nap and bedtime, but he’s not above having a full-out fit when he doesn’t get his way.  It’s totally a battle of wills and I’m exhausted already.      

    (3) GOD’S TIMING IS MYSTERIOUS, BUT I’M GETTING BETTER AT ACCEPTING IT.
    You don’t have to read here long to know about me and my never-ending quest for contentment.  We had yet another teaser of an opportunity fall through and while this one stung, I’m slowly learning to accept that God knows best.  I’ve also been repeating the phrase, “And if not, He is still good”, which is sort-of based on Daniel 3:18.  I’m still not sure if God’s answer to our prayers is no or not yet, but God is faithful and I have peace.

    (4) MY NEW FAVORITE SAINT IS JOSEPHINE BAKHITA.
    I am ashamed to say that I had never even heard of her before working on February’s Living Seasonally post, but after hearing her story, I feel connected to her in a special way.  Not because our stories are similar in any way (the suffering she endured throughout her life was absolutely horrendous), but because I feel she has so much to teach me.     

    (5) THERE IS A LOT TO LEARN ABOUT THE STARS.
    I’m taking a new class on The Great Courses Plus called Our Night Sky.  When I chose it, I thought, “Huh.  I don’t know much about the constellations and it would be fun to learn along with the kids.”  Um wow.  Astronomy is no joke!  The professor is knowledgeable, but talks fast, and I’m trying my best to keep up!  I’m easily lost when he starts in on how this planet is this many light years away (all of the numbers, ahh), but I’m excited to save up for a telescope and actually learn through hands-on experience.  Until then, I downloaded the Google Sky Maps app on my phone and that’s been really fun to explore with the kids. (Another good resource: printing off the month’s Evening Sky Map) 

    (6) WHEN SOMETHING ISN’T WORKING, IT’S OKAY TO CHANGE THINGS UP.
    I’ve been in a big exercise rut the last few months.  And then came the “DUH” moment: as much as I love a plan set out for me, sometimes you just need to shake it all up and try something new.  I’ve been trying a variety of exercises and trainers and I’m actually waking up excited to work out!  

    (7) MY LAUNDRY DRIES FASTER AND SMELLS BETTER TOO BECAUSE OF ONE SMALL CHANGE.
    Through the rabbit hole of Pinterest, I came across this blog post and knew I had to try it myself.  I found a wonderful seller on etsy (more about that shop soon!) and tried them out right away.  And all of the claims in that post are true! 

    (8) I SEE COOKING AS A DREADED CHORE AND I WANT TO CHANGE THAT.
    I’ll blame it on my very stressful toddler (sorry TJ), but I just have zero enthusiasm for the kitchen right now.  Every meal seems like a chore and I get embarrassingly stressed about what to feed the family and myself.  I stare blankly at my meal planning notepad.  I just can’t get it together and it’s something I want to change.  And that’s got to be the first step to improvement, right?  

    (9) I’M STILL BABY STEPPING INTO ESSENTIAL OILS AND VERDICT: SO FAR, SO GOOD!
    Last month, I was pretty overwhelmed with all there is to learn about essential oils.  When there is a steep learning curve, I tend to paralyze myself with uncertainty: where do I even begin?!  In February, I decided to just jump in somewhere.  I finally tried the Stress Away from the Starter Kit, which has a roller attachment for applying to your wrists and neck.  (Mark likes it too.)  I took a class about the digestive system and am experimenting with ways to heal some symptoms I’ve been having.  I purchased the V-6 Vegetable Oil, so I can start trying the oils topically.  I have also been adding a few drops to my dryer balls and love the subtle scent on our clothes.   
    (My member number is #3507725 if you ever want to order something!)

    (10) WHEN YOU FEEL THE PROMPTING OF THE HOLY SPIRIT, ACT.
    Too often, I ignore that feeling in my gut for so many reasons: I doubt my ability, I don’t want to impose, I’m afraid I’ll look silly, etc etc.  Trying to remember that trust and going outside of my comfort zone can create good things in this world, if only I have the courage.




    What I Learned Archives // January

    {around here} Week 8/52: Week of 2.22.16


    A collection of our ordinary days, recorded every week.


    Around here, I have been:


    parenting solo while Mark worked a very big conference this week.  He had long days and was only home to sleep before getting up early to repeat it all again.  The kids are understanding and tend to take it all in stride, but Sophie had one sad moment and cried, “This is not a good idea!”  Needless to say, she is quite excited to have her Daddy back this weekend!


    playing at the park on Monday with friends.  When the weather is 50 degrees and sunny, especially when the rest of the week is rainy and cold, you take full advantage!  It was so good to smell the fresh air and see my kids running and laughing.  I can’t wait for spring.


    reading A Man Called Ove, 84, Charing Cross Road and Bakhita: From Slave to Saint.  I finished the first two and just began the third.  All so good.


    starting Easter shopping.  I have everyone’s Easter outfits (thank you, ThredUp!) and have just started on the baskets.  The goal this year (like every year) is simple, practical and fun.  


    staring at the coat rack Mark and I made last weekend every time I pass the laundry room.  There’s something so satisfying about seeing a project from idea to finished product, even if there were MONTHS in between the two!


    watching TJ and trying to enjoy this adorable, yet challenging stage.  I want to remember how he always gets his white blanket when it’s time to watch a show, how much he loves Daniel Tiger and how he initiates “Ugga Mugga” nose kisses.


    homeschool notes:
    + We started a big knights and castles unit and we are excited!  This week, we made catapults, learned about castles (this book is a good one) and are reading Castle Diary as our readaloud.

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