Sunday Citar

It is quite refreshing for me to admire and share some of the inspiring, funny and relatable quotes that I come across, and reading the ones that others find insightful.  I hope you'll consider joining in this week yourself.  It's great fun and there is even a prize at stake today!!

Oh and by the way, 'citar' pretty much just means 'to quote' in Spanish.  Pretty straightforward, nothing too crazy, it just sounded a bit more spicy than 'Sunday Quotes.'  Wouldn't you agree? And now on with my post.


“True Friends like ivy and the wall, both stand together, and together fall.”
~Anonymous





"A true friend unbosoms freely, advises justly, assists readily, adventures boldly, takes all patiently, defends courageously, and continues a friend unchangeably."
~William Penn

To all my friends, thanks for coming by!  

Ok, I did it. Let's hear yours...






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Dirty.



We've finally been getting our hands dirty in some fun family projects.  Hope your week's been filled with fun projects.

Speaking of one, don't forget to get your quote post ready for tomorrow! I'll have Mr. Linky up and going at midnight... I think. {grin}

More dirty pictures to come, dirty in the good, family kind of way.
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I'm Going To Call This Photo, "City Flowers"



Because I'm completely original, innovative, creative, clever, ingenious and visionary.  "City Flowers," so narrative, an epic title.

How does this "City Flowers" picture make you feel? Happy? Vibrant? Depressed? Cold? Content? Confused? Alive? Maniacal?

It actually makes me feel quite happy.  It makes me smile.  I'm drawn to the contrast of soft, delicate flowers to the soaring, rigid city behind it.  Kind of reminds me of my life.

Hmmm, that can be taken many ways.

Which reminds me of what I really wanted to say...

There are so many beautiful, eloquent, wonderfully put-together quotes that bring so much inspiration.  Thus the reason one of my favorite days to post is Sunday, for Sunday Citar (citar just means 'to quote' in Spanish), and I want to invite you to join me!  Thank you to those who've expressed interest in joining in on Sunday Citar, I should've set this up a long time ago.

So, get your quote and post together, it can be your favorite quote, something you've heard this week, anything that makes you laugh, cry, spit, drool, think or fall over... preferably something that makes you fall over.  And I'll get ready for your links on Sunday!

And I'm thinking that since I'm slacking on actually picking a winner from the last giveaway, I may just have to pick (by random number) someone who links up on Sunday as well, and send a fun surprise.

Happy Friday!

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Splash.





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Circles.

Walking through the streets of Chicago brought us quite a few fun places to snap a picture.  These circles were actually quite a bit more difficult to get into than I thought.  Good thing I didn't work out that day, I might not have been able to scale it. {grin}

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I {heart} faces


The theme this week at 'i heart faces' is silhouettes. My standby silhouette shot (nope, I didn't take a new one) is of my baby girl standing in her bedroom window.  It's closed of course.  



I just love that sweet little face, and I'm tempted to go into her room, wake her up, and give her a big snuggle and kiss.  Though, I remember how cranky adorable little toddlers can be when they don't get their sleep. 

I'll just get a kiss in the morning.

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The Windy City.



Our Memorial Weekend was spent frolicking through the city of Chicago.  Chris and I, along with my longtime friend Rachel and Briony,  walked miles, made funny faces, laughed, froze (since our light-weight clothing was not adequate, and no, the white jackets weren't planned), crossed bridges (eeck!), and just had a great time.  

Hope yours was great too!  What did you do?
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Croutons.



There's nothing like the wholesome crunch of a perfectly seasoned crouton on a fresh leafy salad... and nothing worse than bland, (or too salty) generic store-bought croutons.  Well, I guess there really are worse things, but they're not that far off.

So grab your stale bread, 'cause you know you're going to want to make these.  If you don't have stale bread and still want to make these, any bread will do.  I tell ya, good ideas, I'm full of em'.  You're welcome.



Just cut up the bread into chunks.  I like larger croutons, and the bread we currently have, what's shown here, is Ezekiel bread.  Really, any kind will do, baguettes, homemade, sliced or unsliced, and the list can go on forever.  But since I know that you really want to make these, I won't go on forever.



With the bread cut up, mix a concoction of about a 1/4 cup olive oil and your seasoning.  I used a little sea salt, agave nectar, rosemary, garlic powder, cayenne pepper and 1 tbls water.  This is just a base recipe, you can freely add ingredients to achieve the flavor you like.  I actually really like this flavor, try it and see if you do too!



Ok, where were we.... oh yeah, spread the bread out onto a pan greased with plain olive oil, and brush the oil/seasoning mixture on top.



Bake for about 20 minutes, flipping the croutons over every 5 minutes, you don't want them to burn.



Mmmmm. Croutons.



Our recipe:

Preheat to 325°

About 3 cups of stale bread cut up
1/4 cup olive oil
Handful of rosemary
1/3 tsp salt
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 tbsp water
Sugar or agave (optional)

Directions:
Remove rosemary leaves from stem and finely, finely chop (or use the seasoning from the jar if that's what you've got). Combine olive oil, rosemary, salt, cayenne pepper, garlic powder and a tablespoon of water in a bowl (if you're using agave nectar, add in here). Whisk together and set aside.
Cut up your bread. Brush your pan with a nice layer of unseasoned olive oil. Place bread cubes on pan. Lightly brush each cube with the seasoned olive oil (it’s okay if you don’t get all sides exactly the same). Sprinkle a little more salt over cubes (optional).
Bake on middle rack for about 20 minutes. You’ll need to flip the cubes every five minutes so they don’t burn.  If you're using sugar, then sprinkle before they cool.

Enjoy!

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Sunday Citar

"If you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change."
~Wayne Dyer

Here's to the beginning of a wonderful new week... looked at through new eyes!
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Through the Rough.

Remember that awesome, old abandoned window we found and just had to get pictures in?  Well, once we saw it, while driving, we had to figure out how to get to it.  The best route we found was hiking through this.

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We parked, and carefully creaked our way through, with branches and bricks crackling under foot.

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Being the adventurers we are, it was one of the most fun stops of our day.

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Sometimes you just have to go through the rough to reach the perfect destination.

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Bathroom Spa.


When I'm not making a big batch of cinnamon rolls (and thus reducing myself to licking the frosting bowl clean), or feeding my daughter popcorn and candy at the 'movie feater,' I like to be as natural as possible.  And by that I mean eat foods as close to their natural state as I can and using products that are made from such (when I'm not using a few of my favorite~ahem~non-natural products).  So, today, I bring you some of my own favorite natural tips that trick people into thinking I'm a semi-presentable woman.

Baths:
Detox Bath
I love Epsom salt baths to pull toxins from the skin, revive muscles and to leave skin cleansed and soft.  While in the bath, I use an exfoliating mitt to stimulate the skin. (I like the 'Italy towels' that are used at Korean bath-houses, you can find them at some Asian or health food stores, I order mine on Ebay.  And if you ever have the chance to go to a Korean bath-house, it will definitely cure you of Gymnophobia!)


Nourishing Bath
When I feel dry, I love hopping into an oatmeal bath.  Just blend or grind 1 cup of oatmeal until almost powdery and add it to a warm bath as a perfect way to moisturize and calm skin and to soothe nerves.


Moisturizer 
After the bath (or shower), I slather my skin with extra virgin organic coconut oil... it's sold in jars at health food or some grocery stores and literally melts on your skin.  Plus, it actually has a very mild scent if you're not into coconut, although I would love if it left a strong scent. {grin}


Body Scrubs:
Coffee Scrub
Mix 3 tbls olive oil, 1/2 cup Turbinado sugar and 2 cups coarsely ground coffee. Rub into skin in warm bath or hot shower to soften and cleanse pores.

Tropical Sugar Scrub
Mix 1 cup sugar, 2 tbsp orange juice and 1 cup coconut oil. Rub into skin to gently remove dead skin cells and rinse well.


Hair:
At-Home Hair Mask
If you've got a day off and want to do an intense treatment on your hair, some oils from your kitchen can do the trick.  Especially in these upcoming summer months, when hair can become dry and unmanageable, these treatments help your locks look their best.  I recommend using 1/4-1/2 cup olive or coconut oil and work it through dry hair, pull back into a bun and leave in for at least an hour.  Heat helps the oil penetrate, so if you're going to be spending your day outside in the summer, put the oil on in the morning and leave it until night.  Just make sure not to over-shampoo in the evening.  One or two washes is plenty.  Your hair will thank you.

Conditioning: Vinegar is a great hair conditioner and can improve cleanliness and shine. For simple conditioning, just add 1 tablespoon vinegar to your hair as you rinse it.

Dandruff:
Massage full-strength vinegar into your scalp several times a week before shampooing. This can help create healthy hair and control dandruff.


Other Treatments:
Chapped Skin: Mix equal parts vinegar and hand cream to help chapped hands.

Nail Polish: Make your nail polish last longer on your fingers by soaking fingertips for 1 minute in 2 teaspoons vinegar mixed with 1/2 cup warm water before applying the polish.  Or just apply vinegar to cotton ball and swipe finger nails before painting.

Puffy Eyes: To cool your eyes, make eye pads using thick slices of cucumber or use cotton pads soaked in cold milk.  Lie down and place them on your closed eyes and relax.  (Or just walk around holding on one eye while you chase your toddler around the house, and switch).  If  you don't have any of these products, just cool a spoon in the freezer for a few minutes to place on your eyes.

Are you ready for my favorite foot treatment?  I don't make this one myself.


To keep my feet ready for sandal weather, Burt's Bees Coconut Foot Cream is the best.  And since I'm so thoroughly enjoying this summer weather teaser we've been having, I want to send a tube to one of you!

You know the drill here, just leave any old comment at all on this post, and at random sometime next week, I'll pick a winner.  

Oh and don't worry, just because you're leaving any old comment, doesn't mean I'm going to send this old, worn-out tube... you'll get a shiny, new one.

Good luck and enjoy turning your bathroom into an all-natural spa!

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Contest has ended, thank you.

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Vintage.

I finally put the last pair of shorts and bottle of sunscreen away from our fun family vacation, and decided to take the suitcase up to the attic.  Since, well, it's coming into summertime around here, and we like to stay closer to home in the summer... the most glorious months (in my opinion). Plus, the short trips we do take won't require that monster of a suitcase.

I climbed up to the dimly lit attic, grunting as I huffed and lifted the suitcase towards it's place.  In order to get it nestled neatly by the other suitcases, I had to move a small box out of it's way.  As I looked closer I noticed the old latch across the front of the box and Bismark stamped across the top, it was an old cigar box.  Slowly lifting the lid to see what the box contained, I was startled by the creaking hinge, but my attention was quickly drawn to what was inside... these photos.



They showed a vintage Dodge truck, someone's prize possession.



My mind instantly raced to imagine the day these photos were taken way back when.... and why.



Was the photographer a man? A woman?  Why would anyone want photos of this old truck, when it's obviously not in the best condition?



Were these photos taken here?  Right outside my house?  Ohhh, my house back then, what was it like?



Were there little children running around the yard?  The pitter patter of little feet through the house as everyone was enjoying the day, the smell of fresh baked apple pie filling the kitchen and old jazzy blue's playing on the vintage radio.  Goosebumps ran over me as I thought about it, as well as a bit of hunger.



Then I woke up and realized I hadn't been up in the attic, my husband put the suitcase away a few days ago.



PS. I don't go into the attic, it's really not that big.

PPS. I actually took these photos during this photo shooting expedition.

PPPS. I'm done now.

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A View of the Sky

I had to get over a small fear of heights to climb into this abandoned window we found while driving past.  I'm so glad I did... though I did have some help, or dare I say, a lot of help.  {grin}



(Photos by FreshPapa)

(Except for this one, which was taken on my camera by Briony)

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I {heart} faces

This week at 'i heart faces' is picking a favorite photo... and it's actually really hard to pick a favorite.  Although one that I continually come back to is this photo of my baby girl... it always seems to suit my mood, whatever it might be.



Take a look at 'i heart faces' if you dare, but you may spontaneously break out your camera and take 726 random face shots of everyone you run into...

I am submitting this photo into the www.iheartfaces.com Blurb Book photo contest. I am granting I ♥ Faces permission to use my photo in a printed version of a book for commercial use and possibly advertising of a photo book on both the Blurb and I ♥ Faces web sites.

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