Our Halloween was OUT OF THIS WORLD...

Ha! You'll get it in a second... I hope everyone had a wonderful Halloween! We LOVE Halloween :)

Friday night Hunter and I had a date night: pumpkin carving, cookies, hot chocolate and Hocus Pocus? YES PLEASE!

The babies clearly had a great time too.

Unfortunately, Saturday we didn't make it to our Halloween party :( Baby girl was NOT in the mood and it didn't even start until after bedtime... We're learning to pick our battles! Maybe she was mad at her dad for putting her in a straight jacket... and a witch hat? I know it's mean but I still love this picture.

Now bring on the trick-or-treaters! How cute is the alien costume? Sorry to toot my own horn but I really love how it turned out :) Plus so cheap and easy. Love that.

**Sidenote: Hunter and I were planning on going to our party as Men in Black. Lily was the alien and Milo... well Frank, of course. We were so proud of our clever little plan, but oh well.

She's still the cutest little alien I ever saw. She didn't even fight the ridiculous headband. But she did try to eat the tutu. Ya win some, ya lose some right?

There you have it. Halloween 2011 Greeno style. Get excited for the Christmas Bazaar kick off tomorrow!!

Bad News/ Good News

I'm taking a little break from Field Trip Friday this week because we were moving all last weekend... which is pretty much the opposite of a fun field trip. I'll be giving my self an attitude check instead :)

Bad News- My baby has developed a new habit of screaming every time she's in the car seat. So lame.

Good News- She's super chill most of the rest of the time... um and really cute :)

Bad News- I still haven't started on Lily's Halloween costume.

Good News- Even if I'm up all night tomorrow, it's going to be SO GREAT!

Bad News- Moving into the in-laws basement.

Good News- The in -laws are incredibly supportive and amazingly generous... and in 18 months we get to buy our very own home... in our dream neighborhood... also no more dealing with the jerk of a duplex neighbor who lived downstairs.

I was way super sad about leaving Lily's sweet room and my lovely kitchen. BUT I do know that this is a the right place for us right now. It will be so worth it when we get to buy our own little home on Pearl Street :)

To get myself more excited, I'm going to blog about transforming the basement into our cozy little temporary HOME... on a tiny budget (the whole point is to save for a down payment remember?). So I'll be reducing, reusing and gettin' real creative up in here!!

Happy dance

My heartsy deal is being featured today!!! Yay! So exciting :)

(Can I be honest with you? It makes me feel super legit when I see my cupcakes pictured on other websites. That's my very favorite part.)

So anyway, there's that. Also when I get to 300 facebook fans I'm doing a giveaway so go LIKE Sugar Mama!

Psalm 81:1-7

Today sucks. Sorry for the negativity but I'm kind of in this mood where I just want to wallow in self pity... and bake. (It's my therapy.) But Lil just won't sleep. So I'm forced to put on my big girl panties and be a good mama. Fold clothes. Play with my baby and her babydoll. Smile instead of cry (ok maybe a little of both).

Sing praises to God,

our strength.

Sing to the God of Jacob.

Sing! Beat the tambourine.

Play the sweet lyre and the harp.

Blow the ram’s horn at new moon,

and again at full moon to call a festival!

For this is required by the decrees of Israel;

it is a regulation of the God of Jacob.

He made it a law for Israel when he attacked Egypt

to set us free.

I heard an unknown voice say,

“Now I will take the load from your shoulders;

I will free your hands from their heavy tasks.

You cried to me in trouble,

and I saved you;

I answered out of the thundercloud and tested your faith when there was no water at Meribah."

Sugar Mama's Christmas Bazaar

Remember how I said I want to be a better steward of our money by being more intentional and responsible with my spending? Well, step one went well. Sugar Mama just made a bulk order from Sweet Earth Chocolates that is 100% gluten free, vegan, organic AND fair trade!!

Ready for Step 2? Buy more handmade of course!! I do love handmade but I'm guilty of waiting to buy gifts until the last minute and then finding something quick & cheap at Target... VERY guilty. You might see a pattern forming here but again I just need to be more intentional.

So this Christmas I set a goal to either make or buy handmade for every single gift. And I'm encouraging you to do the same!! My friend Ashley asked me to be a part of her Holiday Craft Fair and I was inspired to create something similar here at go greeno.

Starting Novemeber 2nd and running through December 24 you can do all of your holiday shopping here! I will showcase my favorite shops so that they are just a click away. Easy as that :) So fun huh!?

PS: Do you have a shop that you think would be a good fit? I would love to have you join the fun! Email me: sugarmamabakeshop@gmail.com

{I'm linking up with Life Made Lovely because handmade crafty Christmas gifts are oh so lovely!!}

Field Trip Friday {Home}

We got to go home to PCMO last weekend!!!!!

Field trip indeed. We all needed it so bad.

Grandpa Brad hadn't seen this sweet girl since she was 4 weeks old... She's almost 4 months already! We've already made a pact not to go that long again.

My baby brother Travi (yep he still lets me call him Travi) ;) anyway he's a b.a. drummer on the drum line in the band. He's the section leader and it was so so fun watching him again this year as a senior. This picture is from the competition we watched. He's in the middle.

Here's a close up of Trav with Lil. What a couple of cuties :) Unfortunately this is pretty much all I got for pictures. I get so excited about hanging out I totally forget to take pictures sometimes. I have none with Gigi or Trey dang it.

I do, however, have another of Lily in her new pumpkin jammies Grandma got her. Gigi and Grandpa Brad were in a spoiling kind of mood... imagine that ;) I got a late birthday present: first facial of my life, pedicure with mama AND a crazy awesome massage from the pro herself.

ah.MAZING! Hunter got in lots of golf with dad and Trey!

Kandy Grimes you are my inspiration right now. Just wanted to let you know. The way you are making your dream business happen is beyond amazing. I'm so so proud of you for doing what you love and doing it so well!! I pray Sugar Mama can follow in your footsteps :)

How great is this shot my dad got of bathing beauty in the kitchen sink?! Man I am just so so thankful for amazing family. I am so blessed with two families now that are beyond incredible. Last weekend was so relaxing, life-giving, and just really wonderful. (Ty, only you could have made it better!)

Speaking of Fair Trade Chocolate...

I made truffles... Halloween truffles!!!

For some reason I always used to think that truffles would be really hard to make. I mean they seem so fancy shmancy. But then a friend some fabulous truffles and swore they were easy.

So I found this recipe... and it was easy!

I made a few adjustments & came up with a gluten/dairy free, vegan version:

• 1 (8 ounce) package Tofutti soy cream cheese, softened
• 3 cups Fair Trade Organic powdered sugar, sifted
• 3 cups Fair Trade Organic vegan chocolate chips, melted
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla, mint extract, espresso

Beat cream cheese until smooth and add powdered sugar gradually.

Stir in melted chocolate and vanilla (or espresso or mint) until there are no more streaks.

Scoop onto cookie sheet with a small cookie scoop and chill for 1 hour in fridge.

Shape them with your hands and roll in fun decorations! (powdered sugar, cocoa, sprinkles, coconut, etc)

See?! Super easy. Gluten free. Vegan. Organic. FAIR TRADE. Plus you'll probably impress everyone at your Halloween party. Definitely tell them they were really hard ;)

Fair Trade

I don't tend to be outspoken about much.

Actually I'm usually pretty go-with-the-flow.

But I'm working on taking a stronger stance on the things that really matter.

Lately, I have really been convicted about the way we spend our money.

We try to be good stewards, but I'm realizing that doesn't just mean being cheap.

The cheapest thing isn't always the healthiest or in alignment with my beliefs and priorities.

So what to do?

Well I'm praying. I'm figuring it out slowly.

I'm sharing it here because I would love to work through it with some input.

I have a bad tendency to jump into things I can't stay committed to so...

I'm taking it one step at a time :)

(picture from the Fair Trade website: http://fairtradeusa.org)

First up: Fair Trade.

I've known about fair trade coffee & I usually try to choose it but haven't made it a big priority.

Then I read this. And this.

Please find a couple minutes to read these blog posts.

They are so eye-opening & it's impossible for me to learn about kids being treated like slaves...

So I can have cheap candy bars and coffee.

I pray that your heart will be broken along with mine and that we can commit together.

I've been researching the best place to find fair trade coffee, sugar and chocolate.

The official website has tons of information and resources.

October is even Fair Trade month!

"We believe the rise of the Conscious Consumer will cause a fundamental shift in the way companies do business and create a historic opportunity to reward companies that embrace sustainability."

This quote is from the Fair Trade USA website and is so motivating to me.

It's so easy to go on not knowing better.

But the damage is still being done. We need to be conscious consumers!

Being a good steward of our money means being fair and just in the way we spend it.

Sugar Mama Bakeshop baked goods and mixes are already made with fair trade cane sugar.

I'm working on switching over to only using fair trade cocoa and powdered sugar as well.

I would like this to become part of my business plan and mission statement.

Do you do fair trade? Any tips? Anyone interested in committing to this with me?

The Holiday Gift Guide with Gussy Sews!

Sugar Mama Bakeshop is a part of THE Holiday Gift Guide with Gussy Sews!! Check it out:

YAY! Have a fab weekend.

Field Trip Friday & the devil drives a bus?

First things first. We're driving on Saturday and this huge bus cuts right in front of Hunter. He's pretty ticked and calls the driver an idiot (or something to that effect).

So I'm all:

"Better be careful. The devil drives that bus."

And he's like: "Um... what?"

Yeah, wait for it..........

Creepy huh? I swear we thought it said 666 DIE but now I'm pretty sure that's an O. Still though...

Alright moving on. I've been talking for awhile about getting to the mountains for some fall beauty. Surprise! Hunter got the day off Monday (and I don't care what you say about Columbus, I'll take a free paid day off with my man thankyouverymuch).

Golden Gate National Park was gorgeous and it was so great to just spend a day without an agenda. We even (barely) survived the temptation to eat out on the way home. Gotta love those leftovers :)

Lil & Milo weren't thrilled about our "cute family photo" idea. Whatev.

And now for those of you who were hoping to see way too many pictures of my sweet baby laughing...

You're welcome :)

I just really love Halloween

I honestly just love a good excuse to dress up so Halloween, of course I love you! Unfortunately I was looking through my older posts and I haven't posted about a single Halloween costume so here we go with a flash back recap.

This first lovely photo is from 2006. Haha TMNT with some of my best buds. So fun :)

Halloween 2007 I dressed up with my friend Zach as Shrek & Donkey. Does anyone else LOVE Shrek? Cause I sure do. Plus I look goooood.

2009 our first Halloween married we were Fred & Wilma. Cute huh? This was one of my favorites... but I could only find a tiny phone picture. Bummer.

Halloween 2o10 I we were an IPOD commercial. He was the cutest IPOD you ever saw & I was this... You remember those commercials, yeah?

Last year my love and I were "game night". I was totally pregnant but no one knew yet so I took jello shot... of just jello and walked around all night with a fake margarita :) Don't you worry though I can bust a move 100% sober.

Can't wait to show you all this year's costume! It's a big ol' family affair.

{I'm also linked up at Jamie's cute blog. Go enter your own Halloween post!!}

Giving

Happy Tuesday! Yesterday Hunter got an unexpected (and much needed) day off and we went romping around in the mountains. SO wonderful! Fun pictures coming soon :) Colorado really is such a wonderful place to live and I am feeling refreshed and full of energy today!

I'm also really really excited to share some fun news with you! A few months ago I came across this sweet blog and I fell in love. Carina is so genuine and I just love reading about her 3 precious boys. She also writes about adoption which is always on my heart. I know that now isn't the time for Hunter and I, but I still have such a desire to support adoption in some way.

In the past few weeks I've been putting a lot of time and work into building my Sugar Mama online business, but I've had some stress about it. The more I pray about it the more I feel like God is telling me to be generous. I have such a desire to help our family financially, but I can hear Him telling me to trust Him with our money and give.

So... long story short: I made a new Sugar Mama cupcake kit to support Nick and Carina's adoption! Carina does this awesome thing with her kids twice a month and she calls it Bakin' it to the Streets. Basically they make something delicious and then use it to brighten someone's day. They GIVE it away! So I've added a Bakin' it to the Streets Cupcake Kit to my etsy shop. For $18 you get a gluten free/vegan cupcake mix, a frosting mix, pink cupcake wrappers (new baby is a girl :) and sprinkles. Plus is all comes in a box that will fit 12 finished cupcakes so you can give them away if you're so inclined. Best part is that every sale puts Nick & Carina $8 closer to bringing home their baby girl!

**Even better: if you buy 2 the second one ships FREE so you might as well get one for yourself and one as a gift!

Please consider buying one of these cupcake kits to support Carina and her family as they follow God's will for them to add to their family by adoption.

"Light shines in the darkness for the godly.

They are generous, compassionate, and righteous."

Psalm 112:4

Sleep

I'm thankful for a baby that sleeps. Honestly, the girl really is a champ.

One of my biggest fears when i was pregnant was that I would never sleep again. Silly, I know, but I really like sleep. I mean it's not that I just want to sleep all the time, but 8 hours a night is good, thank you.

Don't get me wrong, I haven't seen a straight 8 hours of sleep in a while. Fortunately, the Lord has changed my priorities a bit and shown me how I can in fact still function without it :)

But I know that I get more sleep than many new moms and I'm very thankful...

Yes I'm thankful Lily sleeps. I'm also thankful that she doesn't quite sleep all night yet. I don't know if I'm ready. I really really love bringing her back to our bed at 3:3o to snuggle for the rest of the night.

I like that she still can't quite make it a whole night without her mama :)