So, do you like Taco Bell.

I do.  

But the problem is Taco Bell doesn't like me.  I don't have to wonder if what I'm eating there is bad for me.  I know it is, because it becomes obviously evident every time I give in to temptation.

Which is why I never go there.

But this week, I had a glorious discovery….

I can make soft tacos just like Taco Bell, only they are SO MUCH better.

 AND, they don't make me sick.  Big plus there.

I made my own taco seasoning from this recipe, and  dumped it on a pound of browned ground turkey. Add some cheese, lettuce and a warm tortilla, and you have the best soft taco ever.

Seriously, it's true.  Even my husband says so.  And he is not easy to please when it comes to fast food imitation.  

So this is our new favorite food right now.  Really good, super quick and easy, and very filling.

Do you have any new recipes you're in love with?

Okay here we go.  

Are you ready to know my secret????

Promise you won't stop being my friend?  

This is my confession…

about a month ago, I quit washing my hair.

Are you shocked? Don't be shocked.  It's not as bad as it sounds.

I still wash my hair, just not in the traditional sense.

Inspired by this post and others like it, I couldn't resist giving it a try. 

And of course I had to drag my girls along for the ride.  (Hombre kindly but firmly refused to be part of our experiment)

My expectation was that we would try it, our hair would be gross, we'd give it up. The end.

Only that wasn't how it worked.  

Our hair wasn't gross. Our hair felt totally clean.  And smelled totally clean.  And was really soft. 

And now these are my new favorite things:

Reasons I'm in love with this new hair care plan:

For my girls :

• prior to this my eight year old was developing a dandruff problem.  Since we've been doing this that has pretty much disappeared.
• We have eliminated the need for tangle spray, which was an absolute necessity before.  
• this is cheaper than the dye & perfume free shampoo and conditioner I was buying before.

For myself:

• It's great for curly hair.  I just comb it in the shower before rinsing the vinegar and my hair is done.
• It's made my extremely dry hair feel less like straw and more like hair.
• Biggest reason: I'm in love with the simplicity.  I have gone from needing dandruff shampoo + regular shampoo + high dollar conditioner + hair gel and/or frizz cream + hairspray, TO baking soda + apple cider vinegar + water.  So much simpler. And cheaper too!

I can't say if it would work for everyone.  I'm sure it's greatly affected by your hair type.  Maybe it won't work forever for me.  But for now I love it.

Don't think I'm crazy.

I promise I'm not a dirty hippy.

All of my life I've had one thing that I can't get enough of….

books.

I love books.  Not all books.  I'm pretty picky.  But the ones that I like, I absolutely adore.

So when I tell you that recently I read the best book I've ever read in my entire life, you have to understand that is really saying something.

First of all, my disclaimer **I know that books mean different things to people depending on the season of life they are in, so if you disagree with my opinion, you can just assume you are not in a place at this time where you can really enjoy the book.

Stepping Heavenward  by Elizabeth Prentiss has been sitting on my bedroom bookshelf for at least five years.  During that time I know I've attempted to read it at least twice.

I just couldn't get into it.  It seemed slow and kind of boring, and I never made it past the first chapter or two before I moved on to something different.

I've gone through several months recently where reading just did not hold the appeal for me that it once did.  I love reading with my girls, but reading personally for myself in my free time has fallen low on the list of priorities for me.  And if I do have time to read, I tend to stick with non-fiction…it just holds my attention better for some reason.

Anyway, this is where I was at when I picked up Stepping Heavenward a few weeks ago.  On the cover is a quote from Joni Eareckson Tada:  "A guide for those who desire to leave the dull, dry indifference of spiritual mediocrity to discover the rich, deep joy of knowing Jesus more fully."

I decided to give it one more try.

And for some reason, this time it grabbed me.  I couldn't put it down.  And I couldn't stop thinking about it.  

I'm a lover of good old-fashioned novels.  Pride & Prejudice has a prominent spot on my bookshelf, next to The Age of Innocence and Little Women.

Well, Stepping Heavenward can fit right in with all of those when it comes to good writing about another era.  But it was also so much more than that.

I don't really want to tell you much about the story, because mostly I just want you to go read it for yourself.  I just want to share that I really loved it, and as hesitant as I am to give this sort of praise to a work of fiction, I have to say this book was so impacting to me spiritually.  Every page and every piece of the story just turned my eyes straight to Jesus again and again.  And it all comes through the story of a young woman, who I think we can all probably relate to.  There's always so much peace in finding out we are not "the only ones" facing and feeling certain things. Right?

So here's a favorite passage from my reading of the book…I hope you'll go and check it out for yourself.  I have no doubt you will be blessed!

I suppose to those who look on from the outside, we must appear like a most unhappy family, since we hardly get free from one trouble before another steps in.  But I see more and more that happiness is not dependent on health or any other outside prosperity.  We are at peace with each other and at peace with God; His dealings with us do not perplex or puzzle us, though we do not pretend to understand them…

Do you remember those commercials?  The ones that made cotton sound like some romantic experience…

Anyway, I was just thinking about that because I wanted to share with you another one of my favorite cloth items.

I told you before about my love for handkerchiefs.

My other (and actually first) love is cloth napkins.

Cloth napkins were the first big change I made in our home when I became interested in eliminating spending on disposable items.

I’ll admit, it took a little while to get used to.  At first it felt really strange to get these pretty little pieces of fabric all dirty.

But I decided if we were going to do it I had to get over that.  And I have.  Now I have no trouble grabbing one to wipe smears of spaghetti sauce off of little girl faces.

And amazingly they really aren’t even that stained.  I’ve found one way to keep them looking nice is to stick with patterned fabrics.  Save the fancy whites for company.

If you start looking at the store, you might be intimidated by the cost of cloth napkins.  I certainly was. 

Until I found some one day at the thrift store.  I think I paid two dollars for six of them (as opposed to two dollars a piece at Wal-mart).  That started my collection, and I’ve picked up a few more sets here and there.  Then my mom was nice enough to finish the edges of some fabric scraps on her serger to make little mini-napkins for the girls. 

I’ve noticed sometimes when we have company that they are a little hesitant to really use the napkins… I try to encourage them that it’s OK.

And in answer to the most commonly asked question, no I do not feel that it adds to my laundry in any significant way.  I wash them with my kitchen towels in warm water with some vinegar thrown in to keep them fresh.

I love them.  In some silly way, it makes our meals feel a little bit fancy.