Gardening With Kids: Creating a Beautiful Butterfly Garden

Want to attract more butterflies to your yard? By creating a butterfly garden, you allow the butterflies to have a space to eat, rest, and flutter around so they feel comfortable fluttering about throughout the year! 

Gardening With Kids

Gardening with kids has come to be one of my favorite hobbies these days. Not only does it give me much needed momma time with my two little ones, it also is a great way to teach them new and wonderful things.

I’ve also found that while we spend time gardening, we’re also growing something greater. We’re growing an amazing bond and a safe place for them to come and talk to me about just about everything. 

When the family and I headed to the store last week we saw some awesome 5-gallon lavender plants among a few other plants they were selling.

As soon as I saw them I immediately when to go scout them out and found one I loved. My husband already knew I was on the hunt for a lavender plant to help entice the butterflies to come visit more often.

Gardening with Kids lavender plant

We also have some kangaroo paw and other flowering plants that do so as well. But I love the smell of lavender and had to have a place for it. There are some great plants to bring into your yard to entice the butterflies to visit. Here are a few to check out: 

Butterfly-Friendly Plants For Your Garden

Attracting Caterpillars

  • Borage
  • Cilantro*
  • Fennel*
  • Grasses
  • Hollyhocks
  • Lupine
  • Milkweed
  • Nettle
  • Thistle

Attracting Butterflies

  • Alyssum
  • Aster
  • Bee balm
  • Butterfly bush
  • Calendula
  • Cosmos
  • Daylily
  • Delphinium
  • Dianthus
  • Fennel*
  • Globe thistle
  • Goldenrod
  • Hollyhock
  • Lavender*
  • Liatris
  • Marigold
  • Musk mallow
  • Nasturtium
  • Oregano*
  • Phlox
  • Purple coneflower
  • Queen Anne’s lace
  • Sage*
  • Scabiosa
  • Shasta daisy
  • Stonecrop
  • Verbena*
  • Yarrow
  • Zinnia

*these plants are edible

Gardening with Kids pulling out the lavender plant

When we got home I asked my son if he wanted to help me plant it. He jumped at the opportunity to get dirty and quickly helped me take the lavender plant out of it’s container and plant it inside a wine barrel we had just filled with dirt.

It was the perfect task for him since it involved digging in dirt, and watering afterwards. Dirt + water = mud and mud makes my son very happy.

Once we were done we stepped back and marveled at what we had just done together. I now have a lavender plant and my son has a new place to look for beautiful butterflies.

Gardening with Kids planting lavender in a wine barrel

Being able to get my hands dirty with my son and grow these memories and experiences are something I’ll treasure forever.

It’s more than just that lavender plant. It’s the bond I’m forming with my son while tending to that lavender plant.

It’s the moments we share watching the butterflies flitter in our yard and land on one of the plants. It’s seeing a caterpillar make a cocoon and watching a butterfly emerge.

Gardening with Kids lavender butterfly garden

Our ferns, kangaroo paw, and other ornamental plants in our yard have bloomed beautifully with a little love from the kids. And I’m sure this lavender plant will as well!

How do you Grow Something Greater?

Love to garden? Read on! 

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4 Tips for a Smart Home: Creating an Energy Efficient Home

Tips for a Smart Home: Creating an Energy Efficient Home

Ever since my husband first moved into our current home – a house built in the 1960s – we’ve been in a constant battle to create a smart home that was more energy efficient. And we’ve found that creating an energy efficient home isn’t as hard as we thought. It just takes a little time… and sometimes a little money.

But the outcome of creating a smart home has actually allowed us to save money each month on our energy bill and gives us a little satisfaction knowing we aren’t wasting precious resources.

Below are a few great tips to help create an energy efficient smart home of your own. Some tips are easy, inexpensive fixes, and others take a little more time and money.
home energy efficiency tips smart strip

4 Tips for a Smart Home: Creating an Energy Efficient Home

1. Unplug –

You’d think something as little as unplugging appliances and electronics you’re using would be common knowledge but even I had devices plugged in that I hadn’t used in weeks (like the charger to the camera).

Now I’m more aware of what is plugged in and I consciously unplug devices I’m not continually using. And for the devices that I have plugged in all the time, like my computer and printer, I use a nifty smart strip to help conserve energy.

Creating an Energy Efficient Home with smart appliances

2. Buy Energy Efficient Appliances

This one was a no-brainer for our family but it took a while for us to actually switch everything over. And we still haven’t purchased an energy efficient washer and dryer. But we’ve come to find some great rebates out there for energy efficient appliances.

When our old dishwasher finally bit the dust and my husband was unable to fix it so we jumped in and purchased an energy efficient one. Luckily there was a great sale at Sears Outlet AND there was a rebate through the energy company. Win win!

Another great big purchase is energy efficient windows and insulating the house. We had old, single pane windows in our home and I could feel the hot or cold air coming in and out of our home through the windows and the walls.

home energy efficiency tips weather stripping

3. Seal the Gaps

I’ve come to find that sometimes the simplest of solutions can be the cheapest. By using weather stripping on windows and doors, switching out lights, and purchasing a programmable thermostat for the home.

By sealing the gaps, and making sure that the temperature inside the house is regulated, you can make sure that the energy you are using isn’t wasted.

solar solutions

 

4. Go Solar

A great way to become more energy efficient is to create our own energy. Since we live in Southern California we have a surplus of sunny days. And recently we had someone come out and talk about our solar options.

We realized that it isn’t as much as we thought to add solar to our home and there quite a few options available to us. Plus there are great rebates that help reduce the cost of the solar panels even more. Check with your city or county to see if they’re offering these great rebates.

How do you create an energy efficient home?

Salad In A Jar Ideas

Salad In A Jar IdeasEven though I work from home, I need something quick and easy for lunch or else it’s 3pm and I’ve realized I haven’t eaten since breakfast. So when I saw a few salad in a jar ideas I knew I had to create a few of my own.

So when Fresh Express sent out a few coupons for me to test out their salads and partake in their 30-day Salad Swap challenge. Basically the challenge is to take mealtime favorites that are higher in calories and swap them for a delicious, lighter salad creation.

I just took the challenge one step further and put my salad creation into a jar for easy access and easy storage. Now I just have to grab a salad from the fridge and chomp away as I work without actually having to prepare anything! Win-win.  [Read more…]

Ergobaby 360 Carrier featured at Baby Bloggy Boot Camp

I recently checked out the new Ergobaby 360 carrier at Baby Bloggy Boot Camp. This post is written by me on behalf of Liz Lange and Ergobaby. Product was provided.

Ergobaby 360 Carrier featured at Baby Bloggy Bootcamp

Two things I absolutely love are babywearing and blogging. So when these two came together at Baby Bloggy Boot Camp hosted by the SITS Girls I knew I wanted to attend. Since I was already attending Women Get Social, coming in a few hours early wouldn’t be a big deal. Plus I got a sneak peek at the new Ergo 360 baby carrier and some other amazing products.

Baby Bloggy Boot Camp (#BabyBBC) was an informative mini blog conference that featured sessions on creating compelling content for moms, sponsored content tips and authentic story-telling. Each session was lead by bloggers in-the-know about what brands want and what readers want to see.

And in those 3 hours I learned a lot about how I can improve my own brand (this blog) and really deliver what my readers want to see. I’ve already seen an amazing change in how I view my blog and how I approach each and every post I share. [Read more…]

Growing Communities through Community Gardens plus a Hash Brown recipe

 I am a member of the Collective Bias Social Fabric Community. This shop featuring growing communities and an #OreIdaHashbrown recipe is part of a social shopper amplification for #CollectiveBias and its advertiser.

Growing Communities through Community Gardens plus a hashbrown recipe

While our community garden has brought our community together through growing food, it stays together as we share meals with one another and truly get to know each other. So when I considered how I could give back to my fellow gardeners, I thought it would be wonderful to share our first meal of the growing season together with a delicious Hash Brown recipe.

I invited all of the plot renters/growers to meet my family and me at the garden for a nice meal we could share. It would be the perfect excuse to get together between our community garden meetings and chat about more than what we’re growing. Plus I’d do all the cooking and clean up! Win-win, right?

By sharing these meals with one another we are truly growing communities and establishing strong roots in our neighborhood. I couldn’t imagine not having these wonderful people in our lives.

[Read more…]

2 Ingredient Chocolate Cake with Spiced Honey Roasted Hazelnuts

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2 Ingredient Chocolate Cake with Hazelnuts

There were some flavor combos that were just meant to be together. And most of my favorite combos always revolve around chocolate. So weird, right? So when I heard I could make a 2 ingredient chocolate cake I was kind of skeptical. But totally on board!

So I picked up some Nocciolata (you can purchase it here on Amazon) that was sent over to me for review and decided to jump in and try this 2 ingredient chocolate cake. All you need is Nocciolata hazelnut spread with cocoa and milk and eggs!

The outcome was delicious. I waited for this cake to completely cool, topped it with some delicious spiced honey roasted hazelnuts and a drizzle of Golden Blossom Honey. It definitely hit the spot. [Read more…]

Spiced Honey Roasted Hazelnuts

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Spiced Honey Roasted Hazelnuts

I’ve come to love stepping outside of the box in the kitchen. Spicing things up figuratively and literally. So when I started to plan how I’d spice up a 2 ingredient chocolate cake I immediately thought to turn to nuts and honey as my inspiration.

Because what’s better than chocolate, hazelnuts, and honey? Well… maybe peanut butter but peanut butter is everywhere!

I have never roasted nuts on my own before from scratch (besides one time when I purchased an almond roasting kit from Target a few years back on clearance for Christmas gifts… but that doesn’t count because it was a kit!). I’ve heard it’s easy and figured I’d give it a go. Luckily it was easy! If you remember to watch the nuts closely so they don’t burn.

And these Spiced Honey Roasted Hazelnuts really did hit the spot when topped onto the cake.  [Read more…]

Things to do in San Diego for Easter with Kids 2014

Things to do in San Diego for Easter 2014

With Easter right around the corner we’re trying to figure out what activities we want to partake in around town. And that means one thing to the kids… Easter egg hunts! They absolutely love meeting up with friends and participating in some of the fun hunts going on here in San Diego.

From events at the local hotels, to great programs put on by Parks & Rec, there’s something for everyone to do in San Diego for Easter with kids. You just have to know about it!

So we’ve put together a fun list of a handful of ideas for you to check out. If you do check out any of these events please let us know! And if you have any more ideas, link them up in the comments below! [Read more…]

Touch Feel and Explore at SeaWorld San Diego Explorers Reef

SeaWorld San Diego Explorers Reef

Last weekend my family and I were invited to check out a sneak peek of the new Explorer’s Reef at SeaWorld San Diego. Not only did we get an up close look at the new entrance to the park, we also got to touch, feel, and explore all of the animals in Explorer’s Reef.

From the moment we arrived at the new entrance to Sea World I knew the kids would have a blast! And boy did they. With four salt and sea water tanks filled with sea life friends, the kids were in for a treat.

They were able to go from one tank to another to explore the feeder fish, horseshoe crabs, rays, and shark pups. Throughout the whole experience they both had huge grins on their faces. [Read more…]

Chalkboard Easter Eggs

Chalkboard Easter Eggs

With Lent here Easter is just around the corner and that means that the Easter decorations start coming out. Our egg wreath is on the door, spring mantel is put in place, and a few crafts are ready to be made. Including these chalkboard Easter eggs.

Not only are these easy to make, they’re lots of fun for the kids! And the perfect way to keep the kiddy table at Easter brunch entertained.

My kids love that they can write their own Easter egg designs on the eggs and then wipe them off and start again. And it’s a great way for the kids to practice writing their names! [Read more…]



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