Weekend Links

Y’all. I miss you.

As Keeper of the Home grows and changes, we are bringing on delightful new writers, not to mention the most a.maz.ing team every to help me run this blog baby of mine.

To keep the home fires burning (or rather, the kids in {mostly} clean clothes, the grammar lessons complete, the chubby baby nursed, the husband loved-on, and proper dinners on the table), I’ve had to scale back on my writing in order to continue to run this site.

Though there is a freedom and release in doing so and knowing that my priorities are in order, there is also a sadness. This community is precious to me and “talking” to you all for the past 5 years has been an incredible privilege.

I still wanted a way to connect with all of you each week. Something that was just me… talking to you… sharing a little bit of my week, my thoughts, my life.

Out of that desire, I came up with adding a new weekly feature that gives me a chance to say “hello!”, share some pictures, a thought, a quote, a story, and also some fabulousness from around the web. Welcome to “Weekend Links”!

Links I loved this week:

All-natural “nutterfingers” candy bars @ The Nourishing Gourmet

What to do with babies while homeschooling @ Simple Homeschool

Thanksgiving entertainment for kids @ The Idea Room (most adorable traced hand “turkey” pictures ever!)

How to get a great family photo (with active kids) @ Kids Activities Blog (where was this post 2 weeks ago, before we attempted Christmas card photos?)

No-Bake Cookie Dough Balls @ Keeper of the Home (I can’t wait to try this recipe that Rachel shared- yum!)

miss lolly dolly… how to @ teawagontales (some very cute girlies may be getting these in their stockings… shhhh)

The power of one less thing @ Nourishing Days

And a new website… Together in Ten: Great Style in a Snap (simple style? for moms, by moms? This is a style site I’ll actually read!)

Giveaway winners

Plus, a few winners to announce, from the Healthy Living eBook Bundle sale that ran last week…

Royal Berkey Water Filtration System from LPC Survival – Linda ([email protected])

Omega VRT350 Juicer – Janice ([email protected])

Excalibur 9-Tray Dehydrator – Amber ([email protected])

Congratulations, ladies! You will adore your prizes!

Chubby baby Kepler enjoys a sunshiney walk in the crisp fall air. Sunny days during the West Coast fall = an obligatory trip to the park.

(Pssst… want to follow me on Instagram?)

This week…

What I’m reading: Unglued, Grace for the Good Girl, Well Fed

What I’m doing: Beginning my Christmas shopping. I’m having way too much fun with the Christmas Gift Guide!

What I’ve been making: Super delicious mushroom and brie cheese omelets. I’m on an omelet kick.

What I’m wearing: Dark blue jeans, a bold turquoise and navy striped top, long earrings with capri blue gems, and bare feet. Always bare feet.

What I’m enjoying: My 3 year old’s requests for “snuggle and pfway (pray)?” each time she takes a nap or goes to bed. Sweet, special moments.

Tell me about your week. Let’s catch up a little!

{Beauty in unexpected places… as everything else in the garden withers and dies with the November chill, these flowers somehow survived, and their cheeriness makes me smile each time I look outside.}

Links I loved this week:

Our fall chicken harvest @ Simple Bites {homesteading in action}

Creamy Roasted Garlic Butternut Soup @Kitchen Stewardship {another way to use those winter squash}

As children’s freedom has declined, so has their creativity @ The Creativity Post (thanks, Simple Homeschool!)

5 Easy Remedies for the Cold and Flu Season @ Health, Home & Happiness {I would add vapor rub and cold kicker to the list}

Sometimes “Being There” for Your Child is No More Than Just Sitting Beside Them @ A Delightful Home

Repurposing Sweaters (Day 30 of 31 Days of Sewing School) @ Simple Homemade {LOVE the vase holders!}

The Thanksgiving Tree (with free printables) @ A Holy Experience {did you see all these other great Thanksgiving links and activities?}

To all the heroes- yes you, the ones up to your elbows in ordinary @ Lisa-Jo Baker

{Dehydrating the rosehips I “wildcrafted” from my yard, to use medicinally in herbal remedies this winter, plus some banana chips from the huge bunch of discounted ripe bananas I purchased this week}

This week…

What I’m reading: The No Brainer Wardrobe and 21 Days to a More Disciplined Life

What I’m doing: Researching, continually researching, for a special family event. I’ll tell… eventually. 🙂

What I’ve been making: Experimental meals for our grain-free stint, mostly good. But. Please note- egg/coconut flour wraps do NOT taste good with Thai inspired chicken, veggies, bean sprouts and peanut sauce. But, pan-seared Ahi Tuna with homemade garden pesto sauce that I froze back in September? Oh. my. goodness. yum.

What I’m watching: Rain steadily drip, drip, dripping from green patio umbrellas.

What I’m enjoying: Working with my husband on business projects. We make a good team.

What have you been enjoying this week!

san telmo sunday market — A lively, bustling street market in San Telmo, Buenos Aires

Hello again! It felt so strange to be away from the blog for almost 3 weeks, the longest blogging break I’ve ever taken.

As many of you know, the blog vacation came about because our family has flown the coop, and we’re currently on the first leg of our around-the-world travels.

We arrived in Argentina three weeks ago today, starting in Buenos Aires. We spent two weeks there, including one week focusing on intensive Spanish language lessons, so naturally, we’re all practically fluent by now. Ahem.

kids on merry go round at park — Discovering a merry-go-round in a Buenos Aires park

Next, we moved on to a few days in Uruguay. We hadn’t initially realized how much Buenos Aires had tired us out.

Adjusting to the first couple of weeks of traveling with four young children, in small apartments, with a huge city that was difficult to get around had been harder than we anticipated, and feeling like we had to be constantly vigilant against theft or something happening to the kids was exhausting. The learning curve for us right now is steep.

pink building in colonia — One of the many incredibly gorgeous sites in old town Colonia, Uruguay

But once we arrived in Uruguay, that totally melted away. The small town of Colonia del Sacramento (just a ferry ride from Buenos Aires) was the perfect place for the last few days before my husband and I prepared to get back to working while we travel. It has a picturesque old town, left over from early Portuguese colonial days, and we loved every moment we spent there.

Following that, we ferried it back to Buenos Aires, just in time to catch a looong bus ride (22+ hours) to the Northeast corner of Argentina, to a smaller city called Salta. We’re fairly close to the Bolivian border, and everything here feels different.

Siesta is observed here, meaning everything shuts down for hours each afternoon. The population is far more indigenous, meaning that we stick our like sore thumbs (I mean, like really cool tourists). The scenery is lush, green and mountainous, with brilliant blue sky and low-lying clouds, meaning we’re in heaven.

view from right side of balcony — The view from our new home in Salta- amazing, right?

Since we found it so challenging to keep the children from going stir crazy in itty-bitty, big city apartments, and because we knew that we would be here for quite a while, we sought out a small house rental instead.

We found the perfect place, a just-right sized home with 3 bedrooms and a full kitchen, in a quiet and safe neighborhood. It’s beautiful and we all love it. We’ll spend a month here, establishing more of a regular daily routine which includes running both of our businesses, blogging more frequently, homeschooling the kids, and continuing to work on our Spanish.

You can read a more detailed update in our latest blog post The Never-Ending Bus, Our First Stolen Bag and Settling Into Life in Salta.

Giveaways coming right up!

Now back to a little blog business…

This Monday, you can look forward to a fantastic giveaway week with all sorts of prizes for the healthy homemaker… meal planning helps, all-natural soaps and body care products, a Berkey water filter and more!