It Starts With Us

It starts with us…the way our children’s generation will treat each other, the way our children treat this beautiful world we live in, and most of all their own character.

With the crazy times and still race and discrimination a big part of today’s culture, it is time we start teaching our kids love instead of hate, education instead of ignorance, and focusing more on the positive instead of negative.  I look at the news and it scares me to think after all Americans have been through we are still where we are today.  It is time for us all to stand up and teach our children the beauty in this world, and where we can go as a United Nation.  Because let’s face it, we all need one another.  No matter what color our skin is, our religious beliefs, or our backgrounds, we are all unique in our own way and why would anyone want to be exactly like someone else.  That would be boring and what would be the point.

Another big concern I have is the way our children’s generation treats this beautiful environment we live in.  We are very blessed that we live in this great time where (even though we need improvements) we can be who we want and love who we want.  But let’s face it, this environment that we live in is faced with global warming, expanding landfills, and active hurricane seasons (okay I live in Florida – it is a concern).  So I am raising my son and daughter to respect this planet we live on, to embrace the beauty, and live each day as an adventure.

One of my biggest goals as a mother is to guide my children to their best life ever.  I inspire to show them how important they are, how smart they are, and most important how loved they are.  I hope they know that their character and the way they treat other people shows what kind of person they are.  I want them to radiate their positive energy into this world to help make it a better place.

So for my children…I wish you love, I encourage your dreams, I respect your opinions, I hope you laugh, and most of all, I want you to know that I am extremely proud of you.

It starts with us.  As parents, we need to move this next generation to the next level.  To the place where we all embrace one another, where we can love without being judged, and where we are all striving for a more beautiful world.

It starts with us!

New & FUN Product Line

New & FUN Product Line @ www.treeofloveorganics.com/category_45/Spa-Such.htm

 makes eco-friendly eyepillows & neck pillows in whimsical designs. With so many different critters to choose from, you are sure to find a lovable sleep companion! Each animal is made with 100% certified organically grown herbs to help summon sweet dreams. Perfect for you, and perfect for all of your loved ones that need a little TLC.

Come check them out! They make awesome Christmas gifts for your friends & loved ones!

             

Just throw the Grumpy on the wall!

As you can imagine, life has been busy with a newborn and a headstrong three year old little man. Life is good and enjoying every minute of Motherhood —well except one— that moment when your precious, beautiful loved one throws the biggest temper tantrum ever! Don’t deny it, it happens to everyone! The moment when you look at your child and wonder if you picked up the wrong kid from daycare?

This is how throwing the Grumpy on the wall came to light. It was one of those mornings of trying to orchestrate our morning schedule when all of a sudden my son throws the biggest temper tantrum ever! And nothing worked to appease him. And as moms we are constantly coming up with ways (“games”) to both keep the peace while getting your little ones to do what we want. Needless to say, I had to throw the Grumpy on the wall. Bending down while making the loudest suction noise I possible could I proceeded to extract my son’s Grumpy, ball it up into a nice tight ball, and pitch it like a Major League Baseball Player onto the nearest wall.

Splat!!!

It worked! My son was now laughing and forgot whatever it was that was making him unhappy (still not sure what it was) and we were able to proceed with our day. In fact my son loved it so much we ended up throwing my three month old daughter’s grumpy onto my son’s teacher’s car since a wall was not available. Joey loved it! And it was quite comical to try and explain to his teacher that they needed to go through the car wash to wash the grumpy off.

So now when anyone is in a bad mood — we just throw the Grumpy on the wall! This is usually how my husband wakes up every morning – with my son “sucking the Grumpy out”. One can’t wake up in a bad mood after that! And if done right, nobody can resist laughing. At the end of the day, laughter is the best medicine.

To your non-grumpy day!

Jenn

P.S. If anyone knows of a good cleaner to remove Grumpy — let me know!

A Vow to Myself

Hi there, it’s Ally here. After I spilled my guts during the last post, I decided to go more light on this one.  😉

I am making a vow today.  

With the busy life of being a working mom & wife, I have lost a passion that I once had…. to read.  I enjoy reading any self-help book, nutrition & fitness book, motivational readings, biographies, some fiction, & of course some of those cute books that I still read my 4 year old daughter! My room & bookshelves are filled with books….a lot of great books that when I bought I thought they would enlighten me & I couldn’t wait to read. So the problem is not having material to read, it is the completion of a book. I honestly cannot remember the last book that I finished. Sad, I know. I guess I get sidetracked with everyday life & duties, and by the end of the day I end of passing out or watching a movie or documentary on Netflix. Lazy, I know. 🙂

Just a few of the books that await my attention…

• Stepparenting by Jeannette Lofus
• The 5 Love Languages of Children by Chapman & Campbell
• A Better Way to Think by H. Norman Wright
• 52 Things Kids Need from a Mom by Angela Thomas
• Have a New Kid by Friday by Dr. Kevin Leman
• Life Strategies by Dr. Phil
• The Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey
• The Raw Truth by Jordan Rubin
• Gut and Psychology Syndrome by Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride

I vow to read (at least)  ONE book a month! 

I say one book a month because that is very attainable for me. The first book that I will read & finish is Stepparenting. I think this book will be the most helpful to me right now in my life. My oldest two children are mine by marriage, and I have been raising them for almost 6 years now. With their birth mother not being in the picture, they have called me “mom” from the very beginning. I love them like my own, but sometimes there’s certain challenges (& heartaches) that go along with being a stepparent. (Btw, we never use the words “stepmom” & “stepkids” around the house).  They are 9 & 10 yrs old, the ages that they start to have difficult questions about their past life & situation. I want to be able to handle their concerns with grace, understand my position as the stepmom (now & when they are grown), & respect my husband with the wishes that he has for the kids.

So that is my plan. Wish me luck, I will need it. 🙂 If you are a mom & struggle with this or something else, I would love to hear about it. Also have you read any of the books that I listed above? If so, what did you think? Do you have any other book suggestions for me? Thanks, & I will write soon.

Ally Maw

www.treeofloveorganics.com

 

 

Balancing Life when my “SuperMom” cape is torn

So I am very new to blogging… I have read tons of helpful & funny blogs over the last few months that have inspired me & helped me to not feel so alone as a working mother trying to juggle it all. But still I seem lost on what I want to blog about, and honestly I am out of writing practice. I used to write & absolutely love the way writing made me feel… it can be very therapeutic.  I have lots to say… and my husband of 5.5 years would agree.  🙂 But I don’t quite know how to get it all out. I want to use blogging as a resource & a connection between the blogging world, our organic baby business, and myself… and a mom that struggles with the BALANCE of life. So be patient with me, as I become familiar with writing again, and hopefully getting to a great place in the blogging world so that I can maybe one day inspire other mothers. (We can always dream, right?)

I think I will start will what is heavy on my mind today, and for the last year or so…. the whole BALANCING act of being a mother, stepmother, wife, owner of 2 small businesses, and the force behind running the household. My life as a wife and (step)mother started fast and furious 5.5 years ago when I married my husband that, oddly enough, I meet on E-harmony in January of 2007. (Another crazy fact is that my sister Jenn, who I own http://www.treeofloveorganics.com with, ALSO met her husband on E-harmony years before me). Nate was from CA, and me from FL. It was love at first phone call. We talked, shared, laughed, and truly got to know each other over the phone lines. I knew that he was divorced, and had 2 beautiful children that he had full custody of… and that did not scare me off because I found something so special in this man. He was “The One” and I found this out with our deep conversations over the phone. We meet in person 3 months later, he came to FL for a week (my parents wouldn’t have it any other way, what if he was a crazy man pretending to be a nice, normal, loving father?), and during that week we knew that we were meant to be with each other. So of course I had to meet his children who would be a big part of my life (if all went well) , I traveled out to CA for a week to meet his kids, family, friends, and to get a taste of his world. Needless to say that I loved these two kids from the moment I meet them… all my life I wanted to be a mother, to love my children with all of my heart, to be a great role model, inspire them, teach them, but mainly just to love them. It all was so perfect, and we got along so well. To make this story shorter… because at this point you should know that I can talk…. 🙂 Nate sold most all of his belongings in CA, and he & his 2 kids moved to FL to live with me in my (newly kid-friendly) house months later. We were going to be a family. The kids were 4 and 5 years old, and called me “mom” from the very beginning. We got married in Key West, FL in June with a small group of our family & friends (only 6 months after we met on E-harmony). Life was going great, and got even better when we got pregnant & had another daughter, Lucy Analiese in 2008. I took just a month off (due to money being tight) from my job as a personal trainer after Lucy was born, and I got right back in the saddle to work part-time. I was very fortunate that I still was able to spend a lot of time at home with my new baby & 2 kids, and Nate & I scheduled our work around each other.  We became a happy and connected family. I put on my “SuperMom” cape from the very beginning & thought I could do it ALL!! Well…. News Flash…. it’s not possible to do it ALL & keep your SANITY.

Like most families, we have had many ups & downs. Our “ups” have been so much fun…the great memories, the exciting trips, the pictures, the laughs, our families milestones.

Although sometimes it’s the “downs” that seem to have affected me the most. More than a year ago, I had a cancer scare with a lump in my breast. During  this uncertain time, I had a painful biospy, a lumpsecomy, and then I decided to get a breast reduction that would further remove some of my many other lumps (from  fibrocystic breast condition). The stress took a toll on me. I truly admire those many women who have overcome breast cancer (and other cancers) & come out to be such a positive inspiration to us all. My cousin is one of those women. My lump was non-cancerous, but just the thought of the possibility really scared me. The reason this took a toll on my health & positive attitude was that I didn’t talk about it will anyone… didn’t share my fears, and concerns. I wanted to still be that “SuperMom”, even though my cape had some snags & tears in it.

Along with this health scare, my life got even crazier when I bought http://www.treeofloveorganics.com with my sister more than a year ago. Our plan was to be able to quit our “day jobs”, spend more time with our kids & husbands, do something that we are both very passionate about, and work from our laptops & iPhones from anywhere in the world. We had so much work to do on the business over the last year (and still do!), and didn’t quite anticipate a slow start with building the business & making that money we needed to quit our day jobs. So now we balance the 2 careers. And honestly I feel guilty. Guilty from the “pull” between the demands of work, and wanting to be that awesome mom that I always imagined that I would be, and the supportive & loving wife I want to be. I have always been a perfectionist, wanting to be the best at everything… wear many hats, and wear them well.  My family & friends have always been very supportive, and they have always encouraged me with great compliments. But still I am hard on myself.  Why do I do this to myself? Why do other moms out there beat themselves up for not being everything to everyone?

My goal & desire for my life right now… is to find that BALANCE as a working mother & wife. And ALSO to not lose MYSELF in this demanding world that we get so wrapped up in. To find my way back to the truly happy, less-stressed person that I once called ME. I desire to let go of my stress & anxiety, and to be ok with the fact that I am not perfect. I am a mother that loves her children, and a wife that loves her husband, and a person that wants the very best for them. I aim to have more fun, to be alright with the house being a mess at times, for things not going just as I had planned, and not being so hard on myself. I want to remember what is important in this world… my family.

I hope you will follow me during this journey, and I wish all the mothers out there like me find their peace & balance in life.

Bill would tell state how much of its water goes to bottlers

Bill would tell state how much of its water goes to bottlers.

Rain Cloud Costume

you and mie

Halloween is almost here!!  I LOVE making costumes and a few weeks ago, I posted this tutorial as part of The Train To Crazy’s Handmade Costumes series – click the link to see all the creative costumes that have been shared so far!

Since then, this costume made it onto the list of 21 Most Clever Halloween Costume Ideas for Kids on Babble, was selected as inspiration for Craftbaby’s DIY Halloween Costume Contest (go check it out and enter your costume!) and yesterday it was featured in a Martha Stewart Living article, DIY Kids’ Costumes from our Favorite Bloggers.  Martha Freakin’ Stewart, people!!  I nearly died.  (Check out Kristin’s Fanstastic Mr. and Mrs. Fox outfits on the Babble and MSL lists too!)  I really didn’t expect any sort of reaction to this simple costume, so I’m, quite frankly, shocked.  And psyched.

Anyways, I wanted to bring this post…

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Jenn’s Bio

About the Owners

Jenn Karasek

Welcome to our blog – two sisters striving to be loving partners and the best parents while committing ourselves to making a difference in this beautiful world we live in.

My name is Jenn Karasek and I reside in sunny Tampa, FL with my two favorite men – Michael, my husband, a very talented Executive Chef, and our son Joey (will be 3 yrs. in a month) along with our beautiful daughter Ella (2 months) who came into this world earlier this summer. I am truly blessed.

For the past thirteen years, I have worked in the Real Estate Profession for both Residential and Commercial Companies. Through my career and experiences, I have been rewarded by growing both professionally as well as personally.  When time allows, I enjoy biking, walking (preferably along the water), yoga, Pilates, painting, writing, kayaking, attending art shows and festivals, and spending time with my family.

Since becoming a Mother, I have found a new passion in doing my part to make a difference in both the World we live in and in my family’s lives. This is how http://www.treeofloveorganics.com/ came about. Two Sisters/Mothers wanting to find a way to help our children’s lives be more enriched while teaching them the benefits of going green, using more organics, and embracing eco-friendly ways.

I admit I have a long way to go in my new journey, however I look forward to learning new things, meeting new people, and living a better life.

 

Jenn

Jenn & Michael

Michael and Joey at the beach 

Joey my beach boy 

Joey and his pea plant 

Organic skincare for eczema

I will be on the look out for this product. My sister and I have been battling eczema since we were small chidren (and now we are in our mid & late 30’s). Thanks for the post!

Ally @ https://treeofloveorganics.wordpress.com  &
http://www.treeofloveorganics.com

Mulondon Blog

“I had a small patch of eczema on my elbow, and after using this once, I checked the next morning to find it all gone!!” – Emily tests MuLondon Organic Rose cleanser and moisturiser and reviews them on her blog. Check it out!

http://emilyjanereviewsthings.tumblr.com/post/30309924757/reviewing-mulondon-organic-rose-face-wash-and

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Buying Vegan Groceries on A Budget

Great info here!

Home Improvement Resource

Hi!!  Heather from healthyeating.com. So I’ve been talking a lot lately about groceries and how to maintain a healthy diet and a healthy grocery list and keep it on a budget and all that good stuff. And today well talk about things that are important to leave off your list because that is just as important as what you actually buy. When I first met Phil, he would always buy these baby carrots they come with little bags, they’re pretty expensive. When I showed him how much cheaper the regular carrots where he was pretty impressed. I think that might have helped my chances.

Anyway, and now he sees them as much of a rebuff as I do. So something’s that I used to buy and don’t anymore, mainly condiments, sauces, things in jars, things in cans because they often have things added to them. Salad dressings that come in…

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