Home Maid Simple

Tag: social issues

  • Decorating the Heart of the Home from the Heart of Haiti

    Decorating the Heart of the Home from the Heart of Haiti

    I am a member of the Everywhere Society and Everywhere has provided me with product for this post about Macy’s Heart of Haiti and Rwanda Path to Peace. However, all thoughts and opinions expressed herein are my own.


    Hi, and welcome to my home. Today I get to show you some beautiful pieces of interior design made from artisans in Haiti and Rwanda. Through Macy’s Heart of Haiti initiative and Rwanda Path to Peace, you can help people the artisans make a living to provide for their families. 
    The Heart of Haiti initiative has provided some of the first sustainable work since the January 2010 earthquake. Each artisan receives half of the wholesale price, and also gets to connect through Macy’s program to US artisans. This helps broaden everyone’s artistic energy and inspiration. 
    The Rwanda Path to Peace has been doing a world of good for the country. Helping women lift their families and even whole communities out of poverty, providing a safe place for those affected with HIV/AIDS and bring women from 2 previously opposing sides together – I couldn’t be more inspired by this collection of hand woven baskets. 
    Before I received pieces from these lines, my decor was, well, not so very pretty. It was really more on the side of, we just moved, I got rid of most of my decor before, and this is a good place to set stuff for now.
    The Heart of Haiti pieces were just the right inspiration I needed for the top of the piano. The Papier Mache vase with Cord matched our set of snake skin drums perfectly. 
    I decided to keep our little Jazz Band as well, since the style just fit right in. The kids and I went shopping for some fake flowers, and found this gorgeous, yet so simple arrangement. The orange adds just another perfect pop to the vase. 
    It just didn’t feel complete until I added some of the gold leaf candlesticks and our chalkboard JOY sign. It’s a wonderful reminder to find joy in everything we do. From our home to our family, there should be joy in every aspect. 
    I couldn’t very well stop there so I headed to the kitchen to do some more decorating. Ever since we’ve moved in, there’s been this one wall – so empty and sad looking. 
    As I was looking at the Sunflower metal lantern and Blue Papier mache vase from the Heart of Hait collection, it dawned on me. I would need chalkboard vinyl, and a cute little table. I found the table at a yardsale, and ordered the vinyl from amazon. 
    Would you believe that’s the same space? OK, yes obviously…but the chalkboard just completely changed it for me. The kids are loving it as well, and since the the vase is papier mache, I don’t actually care if the kids play around it while coloring with chalk. I even used the Sunflower Wall hook to hold a piece of chalk for quick notes.
    I can not tell a lie, this basket is probably my favorite peace out of both collections. You can find it in the Rwanda Path to Peace collection. I think bread baskets are one of the most subtle ways to add style to a dinner table. When not being used for bread, I’m displaying the cutest little measuring cups my sister was getting rid of (so I gladly took them off her hands). 
    I still had a few more pieces, including my favorite from the Heart of Haiti collection – a hand hammered metal tray. With some more baskets from Rwanda, a soapstone dove (that the kids are convinced is actually toothless), and a few more gold leaf candlesticks, our decorating was finally complete. 
    The beautiful thing about using a tray on the table, is that when you sit down to eat, it’s easy to move all the decor at once – and equally easy to put it all back after eating. 
    What’s your favorite piece? Let me know in the comments.
  • Do Good Cherry Cheesecake Beignets

    Do Good Cherry Cheesecake Beignets

    I received product to write this post. All opinions are my own. 
     
    I couldn’t help myself people. I know I know, Beignets are normally left empty. I saw those little puffs of air though, and just had to get some cherry cheesecake goodness inside. I hope you enjoy. 
     
    Cherry Cheesecake Beignets #recipe
     
    Back in July, Mark was volunteering at a booth for the local July 4th activities. In the booth next to him was Robyn of My Sweet Mercy. They got to talking as people in neighboring booths do, and he mentioned this blog of mine. A business card was exchanged, and well, here we are. The following is My Sweet Mercy’s recipe for Beignets, with my cherry cheesecake filling. You can watch Robyn making them here.

     

    Cherry Cheesecake Beignets
    Fill beignets with a cherry cheesecake for a sweet treat you will love.
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    Ingredients
    1. Cherry Cheesecake Filling
    2. 1/2 cup cherry pie filling
    3. 1/4 pkg cream cheese
    4. 1/4 cup sweetened condensed milk
    5. Mix all together and refrigerate.
    6. Beignets
    7. 1 cup Sweet Mercy Vanilla Baking Mix
    8. 1/3 cup milk
    9. Oil for frying
    Instructions
    1. Mix together mix and milk.
    2. Roll out dough and cut into 2×2 squares.
    3. Heat oil to a sizzle.
    4. Brown beignet in the oil on both sides and then drain.
    5. Once they’ve cooled cut a little slit in the side.
    6. Fill with Cherry Cheesecake filling. S
    7. prinkle powdered sugar on top for a real treat.
    Home Maid Simple https://www.homemaidsimple.com/
     
     
    My Sweet Mercy began as a cupcake shop to get Robyn through a time of severe depression. It was her “sweet mercy”. Over time she decided to close the shop, but sell the baking mixes for home use.
    Robyn is on a mission to continue spreading sweet mercies to those in need. Right now when you purchase from My Sweet Mercy, a portion is donated to Operation Underground Railroad – an organization working to save children from slavery.
    While reading Robyn’s story, which you can find on MySweetMercy, I felt like I was reading my own story. Just swap baking with blogging and there it is. Did you know I started blogging because of depression? After Princess C was born I went through my own dark time. After a lot of counseling and reading self help books, I turned to blogging when I found myself pregnant again, and wondering if the PPD would come back. My journey began at 3 Princess Academy in 2010, where I continued to share family updates until almost 1 year ago when I decided to devote my full attention here to Home Maid Simple. 
     
    Over the years I’ve often thought of quitting. Other things got in the way, I didn’t feel good enough, who has the time, “you do what??”…but I always came back to why I began. This helps me feel good. Home Maid Simple is “my sweet mercy”. And every time you all read my posts it’s a reminder to me of that. 
    Connect with My Sweet Mercy
     
  • Social Media Effects the Home {Think About It}

    Social Media Effects the Home {Think About It}

    Twitter
    Facebook
    Pinterest
    Google Plus
    Instagram
    StumbleUpon
    LinkedIn

    Just a few of the many social media sites out there. What started as a way to connect with long lost friends, and family has grown into something bigger. We now connect with our favorite brands, companies, political parties, television shows and more.  We even “like” people/pages we don’t know for the sake of a giveaway, or to help a friend win something

    Have we taken it too far?  Has life online become more important than real life with real interactions?  What effect is this having on our families – in our homes?

    Many of you asked for this topic to be discussed. You wanted to know what effects social media has on the home, if there’s anything we can do to make it stay positive without overtaking our lives or our kids.

    I tell you it can. Social media can be used for so much good, and used right can be a tool for bringing families closer together.  Now, granted I don’t have teens, or kids old enough to use social media yet, so my thoughts are based on what I’ve seen others do.

    How can we use Social Media for Good?

    First off, we can use sites like facebook to connect with family. We don’t live very close to any of our family, so it’s nice to take a few minutes each day to see how our siblings are doing. If they’re sick, or having fun family vacations. We connect in a way, that otherwise we probably wouldn’t. Especially with Mark’s family scattered across the nation, I find I have a relationship and can help my kids know their cousins better through online interaction.

    Secondly – charities. There are so many ways to get involved online with charities. It used to be you’d get a phone call, or letter asking for a donation. We only heard of the groups that already had immense amounts of money because they could reach the farthest. With social media we can spread awareness for every charity, every sickness world issue. While speaking of it, let me tell you about the charity I support – National Alopecia Areata Foundation. You can read why I support this foundation on my sponsor page.  Social Media has created an online community of support and awareness I otherwise wouldn’t have had.

    When does it become too much? 

    So we know Social Media can be used for good. It’s not evil. But when does it become too much? I remember a few years ago, when I was deep in the thralls of facebook games….farmville anyone….. I heard stories of mothers shaking their kids, allowing anger to overcome them because a child disrupted their game.

    I mean really? It seems crazy to me that anyone could let something overtake their life so much like that. But then I started evaluated my life. I was letting the house go so I could play a game. I was checking into facebook every few minutes, putting things off until the last minute. I may not have outwardly shown it in my personality, but I was letting social media take over my life. That’s about when I started this blog. Something had to be done. 

    Maybe you take your kids to the park, and sit on a bench checking facebook on your phone. Or your missing the interaction with a live person as you check out with your groceries while tweeting about the crazy “Walmart fashions” you just saw.  Where is Social Media effecting you?

    Are you finding yourself sucked into social media? Neglecting your house? your kids? real relationships? 

    I find setting aside a specific time each day to leave the internet behind is the best way to bring the family back together in the home. For me, it’s dinner time. We ignore our phones, the ipads are kept out, and we sit at the table. Every night, we eat our dinner at the table. Sometimes we’ll have a picnic with a movie, but it is a very rare treat. At the dinner table we can talk, get to know our children better, and hear about their days.

    I want to hear from you. Where do you draw the line with Social Media? How is it effecting your home?

  • Social Impact on the Home {Think About It}

    Social Impact on the Home {Think About It}

    It’s a new year, and I’m switching things up with this weekly meme. When we began Think About It Thursday, I had some amazing co hosts, and we had a link party going on. It never really took off though. We were all getting burned out, and weren’t sure how to make it better. So we took some time off around the holidays.

    This week I’ve been thinking about it again, and decided I would bring back Think About It Thursday, but as a sole blogger. No link party. Just a weekly meme for me to talk about some deeper topics. I found in my Top 10 posts from 2012, that the majority of you visited when I got a little deeper. So my hope is this brings you back each week to have an open discussion on different topics.

    You may be wondering “but Adelina, how does that relate to the home?”  Well, let me sum it up for you with my new title –

    Think About It Thursday

    Social Impact on the Home

    I’ll discuss different topics as they impact home life. How as a stay at home mom, the larger social issues still effect me.  I want to help change the stereotype that as a stay at home mom I don’t have an opinion, that I’m somehow less than my husband, or that outside of my little family nothing else matters. It does. The world around me matters greatly, because it is a world my kids will face as they go to school, make friends of different faiths and races, and enter the workforce.
    I personally believe we should all take an active role in our communities, on a level that fits us. For some that means heading up the PTA, and planning events. For others it might just be silent support through voting on issues, and attending community events.
    Some issues we discuss may be political in nature, others religious. Sometimes I might tell you about local events, or national events and how you can get involved. I may discuss different charities I support, and some I don’t.
    Most of all, I want an open discussion with you my readers. I want to hear your thoughts and opinions. I want to know what’s important to you, and why you feel passionately about  it.

    Tell me, what topics would you like to see on Thursdays?

    What social impact do you feel in your home?

    *I’m excited to be kicking off our new Think About It Thursday: Social Impact on the Home with Blogelina’s 20 Comments event. Welcome new readers – feel free to browse around, and let me know what you think!