Trinkets of Thought

Life with the Littles-A lifestyle blog of living with five littles.

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The Toilet Seat That Saved My Marriage

April 11, 2013 by Maren 10 Comments

Which way should the toilet paper hang? Should the lid remain up or down? Do you forget to replace the toilet paper? You don’t realize when you say ‘I do’ how much of a big deal the toilet really is– Marriage arguments around the world hinge on the fact that spouses aren’t conforming to the proper etiquette of the toilet seat. So, maybe it would be a slight exaggeration to say that a toilet seat SAVED my marriage, but only a wee bit. And may I at least share that several areas of our longstanding toilet contention have been resolved by a simple toilet seat?

toilet

Now, I fully understand that it must be rite of passage in one’s life when a toilet seat receives so much fanfare…it’s a true sign of that I no longer rank among the ‘cool.’ And if it’s a toilet seat that makes me admit this glaring fact, then so be it. And for pity’s sake, please don’t tell another soul that I now start conversations with any new house guest as such, “So, did I tell you I got a new toilet seat?” I know my life is lame but I recently reached the pinnacle of exasperation from all the sprinkles and tinkles caused by a potty training two-year-old. I broke. That is, I broke the bank and bought the Cadillac of toilet seats. Yes, I’m no longer cool and I no longer care.

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In our marriage, there *may* be a slight role reversal in the traditional argument where the wife becomes exasperated with her husband for not putting the lid down. In our union, it is *quite probable* that the husband puts the lid down more than the wife *cough* (I’m talking about the top lid here). And when I DO remember to close the lid, it *may* just happen to be more of a slam which adds to the irritation of my very patient husband.
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I recently hired a marriage counselor to help with the predicament. The marriage counselor actually was shaped like a brand new toilet seat and came right to our house, sat on the john, and has not left since. It will be a permanent fixture for quite some time and let me tell you, our marriage has never been better! Ha! Again, I know it’s a sign of my 34 years on this earth, but I don’t care–it makes our family harmonious and quite frankly, there’s something to be said about harmonious new toilet seats.

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With this toilet seat, there’s something for all ages:

  • For the husband who hates the slamming of the toilet seat (when and if I remembered) there is now a gentle whisper close feature.
  • For the wife who got irritated about boys splattering/spraying over the walls, floor etc, there’s a built in toddler toilet seat!
  • For the wife who couldn’t stand the smell of the padded toilet training cushion seat, this here’s the Cadillac toilet training seat–complete with a magnet which keeps the kid’s toilet seat attached to the main seat when not in use.
  • And for the husband who hates the fact that his wife always forgets to put the lid down, because of the whisper close feature, our boys argue to be the one to put the lid down.

On all accounts, score! I only wish I’d splurged a little sooner on this here gem!!

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And if you are in the middle of the potty training years and want harmony in your marriage, may I suggest the Bemis 1583SLOW Elongated NextStep White SLOW Closing Potty Seat? Here’s the link on Amazon.  Your marriage will never be the same.

Faith to Life

March 12, 2013 by Maren 6 Comments

I fail to bring faith to life for my children daily, hourly, and sometimes by the minute.  But the beautiful thing about feeling inadequate in my parenting is that in my discouragement, Christ faithfully whispers to my heart 2 Corinthians 12:9… “Maren, My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in your weakness.”  Only by resting every day, every moment, every second in His power will my faith come alive to those around me.

My hope is that I am INTENTIONAL with my kids-my prayer is to live out Deuteronomy 6:7.  That as I go throughout the day, I will impress God’s truths on my three children and that through the ordinary and mundane days, my children will see my faith lived out. ‘Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.’

My hope is that I learn to rest as Matthew 11:28 encourages,  I pray my children notice where I find my solace. ‘Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.’

My hope is that my children see love through my every action.  Through discipline, through play, through work, and through instruction, it’s my desire that my children hear small whispers of truth that are forever engraved on their hearts.   I pray they never hear the clanging cymbal of a nagging mom, void of love. ‘If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.’

I fail more than I’d like to admit, but I rest in the promise that every morning, his mercies are new.  EVERY SINGLE MORNING.  I’m taking that to the bank, because I need it.  EVERY. SINGLE. MORNING.  Great is His faithfulness.

His compassions never fail.  They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.

 

***I’m linking up today with Kelly’s Corner for the ‘Build ’em Up Series.’  And for a bit of random news, my next post is going to be…wait for it…’How a Toilet Seat Saved My Marriage!’  HA!  And that, friends is why this blog is called ‘Trinkets of Thought’. haha!

Ladies’ Weight Loss Challenge

March 7, 2013 by Maren 5 Comments

Having three kiddos has kicked my butt to the curb in more ways than one.  And besides just kicking it to the curb, it’s done a few other numbers (in lbs) to many other areas I’d rather not start to list.  You are invited to join me for a friendly & fun competition to hold you (and ME!) accountable and inspire you (and Me!) to lose a little weight.  Please join me!

Cost to participate is $10.  This contest will run from March 10- June 2.  Two prizes will be awarded at the end of the competition–1 prize will be for highest weight loss percentage for the duration of the contest and the other prize will be for person with most accumulated points.  See below for further details!

Rules:
1.  At the beginning of the challenge, each contestant will submit their starting weight to me (will not be published with the tally spreadsheet) as well as create 5 personal goals that they will work to accomplish weekly for the duration of the contest.
2.  Each participant will daily track the food they eat.
3.  Each participant will drink 8-8 ounces of water each day.

No later than each Monday, you’ll answer a simple form (like this: http://bit.ly/YC9nS1) for the week prior:

  • Did you follow all five of your personal goals for the week?*
  • Did you track your food each day?*
  • Did you drink 8-8 ounce glasses of water every day?*
  • How much weight did you lose last week?**

*1 point will be tallied for each ‘yes’.

**1 bonus point will be given to the person who lost the most weight that week.  If there is a tie, the contestants who tied for the most weight lost will all get a bonus point.

The contest will end on June 3rd.  At that time, the total participant monies will be split in half and 2 prizes will be awarded.  Half of the prize money will be awarded to the person with the most points accumulated.  The other half will be awarded to the person with the highest weight loss percentage during the duration of the contest–Again, if there is a tie for weight loss percentage, the money will be split.

There is a $10 fee for participating in this contest.  You can pay by paypal to me (If you use a bank account or Paypal balance, it’s free to send money.  When you use a debit or credit card through paypal, there will be a $.59 fee for a $10.00 transaction). You can also pay by check in the mail or in person if I see you regularly.  If you decide to join, the participation fee will go towards the prize money pot and cannot be reimbursed, even if you bail out of the contest for whatever reason.

And by the way, I’m out for the win…so just because I’m doing the data entry of this here contest, I’m looking to win.  You can check my numbers on the ole’ spreadsheet…but take note that I’m hoping to smash my competition.

Wanna join?  Leave a comment and I’ll invite ya’ to the private facebook group.  Here’s to a successful challenge!  We can do this!

Shredded Wheat Chocolate Chip Cookies

November 14, 2012 by Maren 4 Comments

This blog post should also be called,   ‘Confessions of a Thrifty Cheapskate.’  In case you’ve ever wondered how much of a penny-pincher I am, here’s proof. I’m exposing my cheap ways in this post today. Will you still be my friend?

You know how at the bottom of every Frosted Mini Wheat box, there is a gaggle of crumbs that were once Frosted Minis? Well, I recently found myself with about a cup of the stuff and wondered if anyone had come up with a recipe. So not that I know (cough cough), but if you Google “What to do with leftover shredded wheat?” you’ll find a couple recipes for cookies. I know because I found a recipe here and decided to try it. My hunch is you could use most any crunchy cookie recipe and substitute the finely ground mixture for flour and then decrease a little of the sugar. (I’ve similarly substituted with oatmeal when I’ve run out of flour before–and it worked just fine.) ANYWAY…

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Light and Crispy Shredded Wheat Chocolate Chip Cookies (2ish dozen cookies)
Recipe Source

1 cup finely processed frosted shredded wheat crumbs
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips or any chocolate pieces (I chopped up some of my boys’ halloween loot for this.)
8 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup granulated sugar (I used the frosted kind so I really felt like the original recipe of 1/2 was too much.)
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract (though I always add a little bit extra because I’m a vanilla junkie.)
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

Heat oven to 375F. Put the cereal crumbs in a blender or food process until they are finely crushed. Then cream butter, sugars, eggs and vinilla. Next add flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder. Combine well. Add chocolate pieces. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto a lightly greased cookie sheet and bake for 10-12 minutes. Cool completely; store in an airtight container. These are better once they’ve been cooled. Enjoy! Then have a guessing game with your friends as to your ‘secret ingredient.’

My thoughts:
1. I think next time I do this recipe, I will toast the cereal first–I think it would make the cookie fantabulous, though the original recipe didn’t call for it and were good without doing so.
2. I’d crush the cereal a little longer and finer in the food processer–I was impatient and didn’t crush them long enough.
3. The frosted mini wheats made the cookie nice and airy and I’ll definitely use them again in a recipe.
4. And last, what on earth did I do before my BFF Google? (Yep, after two years, Google and I are still BFF’s.)

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Kid approved..Notice the crumb.

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Do you ‘upcycle’ the kids’ Halloween candy to make cookies? 20121201-_C017384.jpg

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