tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1325700989374915052024-03-05T02:52:25.513-05:00A Life Well LovedAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05603488747114931264noreply@blogger.comBlogger56125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-132570098937491505.post-40838855238760149342014-08-05T21:18:00.001-04:002014-08-05T21:20:29.855-04:00A saint for us to turn toI've sat wondering <i>why</i> and <i>how could it be</i> that God willed last week to unfold the way it did.<br />
<br />
I mourned. I mean truly mourned- just like the rest of my classmates, but I have no real claim to my grieving. I certainly can't claim my grief like so many who were so much closer to Sarah Harkins and yet so many of us have mourned a great loss. This is my attempt to process it.<br />
<br />
A Franciscan University alumni mother of four children born and one in utero passed away, as well as her unborn baby, Cecilia. They died due to a tragic series of events from multiple bee stings and a brain aneurysm. You've most likely read the <a href="http://news.fredericksburg.com/newsdesk/2014/07/30/pregnant-mom-of-four-dies-after-bee-stings/">story</a> because I've posted it several times on my wall this week.<br />
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Sarah and I were never actually friends. Uh, yeah I know, and I took it really, really hard when I heard she was rushed to the hospital and the outcome looked grim. I cried for a week straight- no joke, and Lena often asked me why I was so sad. She and I took many moments to pray for the Harkins family together. I initially saw her name and thought, "I totally remember her. I remember passing her in the halls of Marian. I actually remember passing her on the way to and from classes and strolling past the caf'." She lived in the same dorm as I but a lower floor and yes, I do remember her. That's about all our earthly encounter ever was.<br />
<br />
But something else tugged at me and then it hit me- my husband works with her husband. When he accepted his job we were both so excited to learn that several states away there was another Catholic family like us in our now "work family". Whenever Dan would head to the DC area I thought of them. He had gotten together with Eric a few times and I always wondered what his wife was doing at home with her littles while he was working. How did she handle being the wife of someone with this crazy job? What was she like? And I prayed for her because I know how this job can take a toll on the family. I thought of them often and felt so connected to someone I didn't know. I didn't realize then that I had seen her on campus until this week. When I realized <i>who</i> she was I panicked- I cried- I called Dan. He was shaken as well and we prayed.<br />
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The night of her passing Dan was out and I called him crying. He came home and we cried together. I felt like I lost someone so important, so connected to me. And I have. <br />
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It is so hard to imagine what her family will be going through and how they will move past this. How will her husband work? How will he ever go forward from here? Her dear children will have to adjust to a life at school without their mom, who homeschooled them. And their littlest, Faustina- a beautiful baby with Down Syndrome who had a momma who embraced her and loved the little gift her daughter was.<br />
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And we have all asked WHY?!<br />
<br />
Why her?<br />
<br />
For those who've read about her this past week, she's already accomplished much. You see, although this is barely a consolation right now, God brings beauty and grace out of tragedy. Her death has called us all to a new fervency in our faith. How would we be remembered if we passed away suddenly? Life is a precious, fragile gift and we have to live it realizing just how fragile it can be. On the way to the funeral in VA, my husband "ironically", though I think it was from the Divine, heard on the radio a sentiment posed: "Live your life today as if you're writing your own eulogy." And there it is.<br />
<br />
The Lord took someone incredible from this world to wake us up. He took a humble housewife. He gave us our modern day St Gianna to turn to. And He wouldn't have taken her away from an ordinary family. Imagine how much God thinks of the family she has left behind. He never gives us more than we can handle. In times like these it's hard to see that truth but He chooses the strong and the bold to carry on in the midst of such sadness.<br />
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Having had a terrible week with toddlers, I can attest to the grace we receive when we cast away from ourselves and look to Him. I had multiple sugar bowl sneakings and gritty floors because the potty-training-two year old wanted sugar as a "good job" treat. That sentence in and of itself should tell you a lot. And the clingy baby didn't help- at all. But I was here to clean up those messes, to pick up and snuggle and kiss the baby, to leave the laundry and help the two year old with her business. I was here to read to the older ones. I was here to receive their pictures and letters they made for me. I was here to cook dinner and hug my husband and just simply be with him. I was here. My husband was here. We are both here, together. And although Dan is away for 10 days, I'm still able to physically talk to him. Every time I've had a momentary "I'm going to lose it moment", I've begged for Sarah's intercession. I've asked her to help me be more like our Blessed Mother- to be kind, gentle, patient.<br />
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What's more, we prayed the Sorrowful Mysteries of the Rosary on the day Sarah was laid to rest and the Glorious Mysteries the day after, on Sarah's birthday. Through death comes life. Through sorrow comes joy. She who had such a deep devotion to Our Lady has brought us all closer to Mary through the rosary. Her ministry and devotion to the rosary has touched us all and reminded us what is worthwhile in this earthly life. She has brought us mothers closer to Jesus through Mary. We can relate to her as mothers and we can now ask for her intercession. <br />
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So even though I don't understand it and am so unimaginably heartbroken and sick for her family and her husband, thank you Lord for your gift of Sarah and an awakening that has been stirred in each one of us. Sarah, pray for us and help us here below.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"To Jesus Through Mary"<br />
A Sarah Harkins Clay Bead</td></tr>
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Read more <a href="http://catholicherald.com/stories/Local-Catholic-mother-of-four-dies-after-bee-stings,26768">here</a> for another beautiful articulation of how Sarah touched so many lives and gave of herself.<br />
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Go <a href="http://www.gofundme.com/c9t0j8">here</a> to help the family my making a donation.<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05603488747114931264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-132570098937491505.post-56372498969368210552014-05-22T13:50:00.001-04:002014-07-26T15:50:18.012-04:00Our Little Man's StoryA few months ago I read my sweet little nephew's birth story and became all nostalgic wanting to re-read my little guy's….only to find out I wrote most of it but never actually published it. So here it is, in case you care to read it :) This is mostly for me anyway, but I love reading birth stories so here is his!<br />
<br />
Thirty-seven weeks came- that most beloved day in an expectant mother's pregnancy- the day she knows it's almost over. She's held her little one within her long enough for this new phase to soon begin. It's also a day that comes and goes for many of us with not much more than the typical Braxton Hicks and maybe a few hiccups and kicks, although those aren't quite as often since that little one is pretty squished. I knew not to expect anything that day but was excited nonetheless. That day always means that within the next month I will be meeting this little one and I will start seeing signs that he or she is getting ready to come.<br />
<br />
My pre-labor "getting ready" signs have been the same with all four and I pretty much knew what a certain day's emotions and energy level meant the week before I had him. I knew this baby would be a little early because up until now, all the signs and the timeline had been the same for the other three. I had a pretty energetic week halfway into week 37. I cleaned and cleaned and cleaned some more. I wiped down every wall and corner of the house with a damp cloth. I got out all the little boy clothes we had been given and 3 little girl outfits.<br />
<br />
I spent about 4 days nesting with a big boom of energy on that fourth day. I made my Labor Aid and put it in the fridge. I made a big pot of bone broth, knowing I would need that for the after-birth-shock I experience. The day that followed brought on a ton of emotions from anxiety about having another baby to excitement to pure exhaustion and weepiness that this baby would never, ever, ever come. Although I obviously knew this wasn't true, you just can't help but feel like that when you can't breathe and are so uncomfortable. But I was also extra excited by my emotional state. In the past it has meant that after that intense cleaning the emotional phase follows and then the baby follows within a few days. That evening (it was a Friday), I remember being miserable on the couch and almost crying. We put the older two to bed and our little Sophie stayed with us in the living room. I was sleeping on the couch towards the end because I felt so nauseous in bed and my husband would claim the recliner with Soph, since she had been having some rough nights sleeping. I remember complaining to him and then following that up with, "You know this baby's coming this soon!" <br />
<br />
My best friends had arranged to have a girl come and clean for me that Saturday morning. Yes, I already cleaned……for her as much as for baby. I was excited since the last two days had brought on more messes from toddlers and our house would be fully set for the baby once she did a sweep through.<br />
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I lifted my head from the couch at about 8:05 am and felt "funny". I woke Dan up knowing something was happening, although I wasn't convinced yet. I sat up and instantly felt that pop and gush feeling I had with Sophie when my water broke. This time I knew to call our midwife right away. I was definitely in labor! (I also called and cancelled our house being cleaned. As a side note, it was a wonderful gift about 4 weeks later!) I had about 5 minutes to collect myself, wake up the girls and tell them the baby would be coming, and switch into some comfier clothes. I called my sister and parents and they came by soon after. By the time they arrived 15 minutes later, I was in full-blown labor with contractions coming so fast and hard they couldn't really be timed, yet in between each one my husband and I would be laughing and hugging, so I knew it wasn't quite time yet. My labor went on like this for an hour- which is "long" for me. I also experienced some pretty intense back labor and let me tell you, back labor is not a joke! My doula helped me ease the pain and my husband and I were able to turn the baby during a contraction so he was no longer posterior. (Thank you spinning babies!)<br />
<br />
At one point I became so exhausted I just couldn't go on. I have this certain look I apparently make, a look that my husband describes as the "it's time to push" look- although I rarely believe it's time because it hasn't been that long ;). With a few sips of my Labor Aid that I've made for laboring with the last two, I was able to push through the pain and exhaustion and continue. Seriously, that is some amazing stuff! Homeopathy also helped and since we knew how quick and intense my labors had been in the past, we were continually giving remedies that helped with my after-shock.<br />
<br />
I remember having my head on my husband's shoulder as I stood in our room, arms around him as I whispered that I was going to start pushing. He caught Sophie last time and was planning on catching this baby, but I needed him with me. The birth pool was all set but freezing cold because for some reason the hot water wouldn't turn on. I realized I would never get my water birth- again- and realized quickly that I had loved birthing Sophie standing up and that it felt good to stand this time too. I felt so connected to my husband, as we wrapped our arms around each other and he talked me through the pain. So there I stood, my doula behind me massaging my back, my sister and Lena looking on, gently encouraging me and my midwife ready to catch the baby. With three strong but slow pushes he was out. I scooped him up and pressed him to my chest. He was quiet and calm like all my babies have been until they realize they're out. Once he caught up with the intensity of what happened he started crying. Wasn't he just sleeping peacefully two hours ago? <br />
<br />
I crawled in bed with my little Marc Robert and snuggled and let him nurse as he started to coo and make baby noises, realizing he was out. He cried a little but was quickly comforted by nursing and hearing Dan and Lena's voices. Before I let him nurse, I laid him on my chest to see if what others had said was true- that a baby would find it's mother's breast and begin nursing on their own. He did it too! It was pretty cool.<br />
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Soon after I delivered the placenta my horrible throwing up everywhere and "shockiness" began. By now my husband's amazing at helping me through this and is such a strong and calming person, as I really am not "grounded or connected". He already had bone broth on the stove for me- that along with more Labor Aid and some herbal tinctures seem to be what helps me the most. I had a pretty rough recovery, but was so blessed to have Dan or Lena right by my side the whole time so that every time I threw up I could unlatch and hand the baby to one of them, knowing he was cozy and safe with them as well.<br />
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Recovery was rough the first week, mostly because he came so quickly, but Dan took off two weeks so that I could heal and bond with Marc. That time was so precious to me and I'm so blessed to have such selfless and loving husband.<br />
<br />
Lena was immediately drawn to her little brother, and he seemed to take a liking to her as well. Avila was a bit reserved but warmed up later that day. She and him are now best-buds. Sophie, oh Sophie- 18 months later and she is still smmmmoooooothering him with hugs and kisses until he panics. I like to describe her as gently intense ;)<br />
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Eighteen months later and we have loved every single minute having a little boy in our life. What a difference it has been raising a little boy already! He has 4 mommas and loves to walk around, chest sticking out, strutting his stuff and doing everything daddy does. He now sits down on our concrete steps to check his shoes before getting in the car because he saw daddy putting his shoes on on that step two months ago. It's so stinkin' cute it's ridiculous. He also has his own play tools now that look like daddy's. If he sees him or any other guy doing "guy things", he rushes to be a man. It's so programmed in him. Yet he's such a sweet daddy to the girls' dolls too and exclaimed, "Me daddy!" as his kissed one and rocked it last week. :::sigh::: I love him. We all love him. So thank you, Lord, for our sweet 18 month old Marc Robert!<br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05603488747114931264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-132570098937491505.post-75256190330794877672014-01-07T22:02:00.001-05:002014-01-07T22:03:27.684-05:00A little tidbit: Ideas to shape a generous childI sit here, seeing that I haven't written in quite some time and yet I'm about to give some parenting advice with a glass of wine in hand. Ironic, no?<br />
<br />
It's been one of <i>those</i> days. Oh, you know the days of which I speak… and yet here I am, hoping to share with you a little discovery I have made.<br />
<br />
Let me set the stage for you: "Hey mommy, can sister and I share my broken candy cane? I know you already said 'no' to candy for the day, but if I share it and take the smaller piece (it was a very tiny piece <3), I'll let sister have the bigger part". Sister replies: "Or I could take her bigger half and then we can both take another candy cane and break that, and then I'll have the bigger half of that also". <br />
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What the what?! I burst into tears.<br />
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I ran to the hubs and cried. He chuckled. <i>I felt like I was failing.</i> I agonized over this all day. I knew there was something we could do better as parents, but what? That night I lay in bed just torturing myself the way we mothers do. I prayed and begged God to show me a way to show our children generosity and caring for others. At 2 am I popped up in bed. Yes, popped! I scared the hubs and I still can't decide if his look towards me was terrified or utterly annoyed. Either way, I woke him up and explained my idea. I knew the Holy Spirit had nudged me and I was eager to listen.<br />
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Have you ever punished your child and thought any of these thoughts:<br />
<i>This isn't working!</i><br />
<i>They don't give a darn about this punishment and it's a waste of time.</i><br />
<i>I think I'm more upset about punishing them than they are about being punished.</i><br />
<i>Have I gone too far?</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
If you're anything like the hubs and I, you don't like to use physical punishment and yelling makes you miserable and is rarely effective. But what is the alternative? Love and give hugs? Sure! But, there must be a middle ground, in my humble opinion. They can't get off scott-free every time and need "training", although I hate that word. Anyone have a better word here??? <br />
<br />
I don't know if I'm right but here is what is finally working for us!<br />
<br />
I realized that my daughter needed a good lesson in caring about others' feelings and it was about time she got a lesson in the Golden Rule: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.<br />
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Now, every time there is a disagreement or whatever it may be, if it is not an action founded in love and charity, they pull a slip of paper from an envelope and do as it says. Yes, this does stand in place of "go to your room", "sit in a corner", "you have <u>blank</u> taken away", etc.<br />
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Here's what ours read:<br />
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<i><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><b>Draw a picture of you and <u>the person you hurt</u> and give it to them.</b></span></i><br />
<u><i><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><b><br /></b></span></i></u>
<i><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><b>Give a hug to <u>the person you hurt</u>.</b></span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><b><br /></b></span></i>
<i><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><b>Choose a chore to do.</b></span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><b><br /></b></span></i>
<i><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><b>Pick up three things out of place that would help me out.</b></span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><b><br /></b></span></i>
<i><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><b>Say a Hail Mary with <u>the person you hurt.</u></b></span></i><br />
<u><i><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><b><br /></b></span></i></u>
<i><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><b>Do something nice for <u>the person you hurt.</u> </b></span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><b>Make sure it's something you know they'd appreciate.</b></span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><b><br /></b></span></i>
<i><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><b>FREE PASS: Can I give you a hug?</b></span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><b><br /></b></span></i>
<i><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><b>FREE PASS: Draw a picture of how you feel.</b></span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><b><br /></b></span></i>
<i><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><b>FREE PASS: Have 5 minutes of quiet time (of your choice).</b></span></i><br />
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The idea behind this is to turn away from our inclination to defend ourselves and think of someone else. I like to have them choose the chore or things to pick up so they have a say. And I want them to have a say in their lessons on virtue so they feel respected and like they are partly in control. I think so much of the time the arguing with a 3, 4 or 5 year old would come from either side trying to be in control, instead of trying to see the other's point of view. The free passes are just that: they (I hope) let the child who was uncharitable realize that I know their feelings, however wrong or mean, are valid and very real to them. They don't have to explain them and they are free to walk away from this one and cool off. The pictures I get are sooo funny. It's hard not to laugh sometimes. But it is working. They are honest with me about their feelings and are very open when they talk to me about what happened. They are learning they can trust us and tell us anything. This alone is very important to us. Our daughters are realizing that they are listened to and that we try to understand them. <br />
And, yes, they are becoming more generous, loving individuals. <br />
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And so this wine I mentioned earlier…..I have a two year old. Enough said. :)<br />
<br />
Please feel free to share ideas you have or writing down other ideas for slips of paper to pull from.<br />
<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05603488747114931264noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-132570098937491505.post-8483639613672683422013-05-31T11:35:00.000-04:002013-05-31T11:36:16.710-04:00Keeping Dignity and Chasing Chastity<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse;"></span></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0px;">As young women, we all know what it’s like to have that feeling of worthlessness or being overly critical of ourselves, whether it be our bodies, our looks, our talents, our clothes- and the list goes on. We compare ourselves to others far too much and can get lost in finding our meaning and self-worth through how we think others view us. In reality, no one inspects us closer than ourselves, except God, our Loving Father.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">If you studied the Baltimore Catechism growing up, as Dan and I did, one of the first things you memorize is: That we are made in the image and likeness of God. That’s right. Look in a mirror. You are looking at someone God loved so much that He created you to be an outward expression of His love. Growing up, my mom had a mirror on the fridge. Under the mirror was the phrase: “The face of Christ”, meaning that when you looked at yourself in that mirror, you were looking at Christ. I always loved this little reminder. It helped me to act in a more Christ-like and loving way growing up.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">We need to respect ourselves. We need to realize we have self-worth. It’s not prideful to realize we are beautiful. In fact, it’s just the opposite. It is prideful and insulting to respond to someone who gives you a compliment with, “Oh no, not me”. You ARE beautiful. We need to shine and let others see Christ radiating in us.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">So what is dignity exactly? Webster defines it as self-worth and goes on to say “dignity” is the quality or state of being honored or esteemed or being of a high rank, office or position, such as a dignitary. I like this last word “dignitary” a lot. My husband is a Special Agent in the Secret Service and often protects foreign dignitaries that come in from other countries. They always act so pompous and important, and most have a complete disregard for those serving them. However, put into the context of us as individuals, God sees each and every one of us as being worthy of honor. He loves us and if we wrap our self-worth in Him, and in serving and loving Him by loving those He has put in our lives, He will reward us like we cannot even imagine.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Nobody’s perfect, I get it. But when we have fallen and sinned, we must walk confidentally, like Mary Magdelene, who, in St Luke’s gospel (chapter 7), enters the home of Simon the Pharisee and washes Jesus’ feet with her tears, dries them with her hair and kisses and anoints them with ointment. Her immense faith, believing she is loved and forgiven by her Savior, is astounding and she can challenge each one of us to believe we are forgiven and to walk in faith, confident that He loves us. God has given us honor and we must give it back to Him.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Now, let’s put this in the context of a relationship. Because of the sexual, instant gratification culture we sadly live in, it’s difficult to find role models we can exemplify and easier to get caught up in the material and physical. But before we can truly love another person, we must see the beauty and worth we possess.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Do you know any young ladies who gives themselves away to men freely, as if their sexuality means nothing to them? Some of you may have come across or heard someone say, “So and so is such a beautiful person. Why does she date guys like that? She deserves so much more.” It is sad so many women today don’t think they deserve anything. They think they’re lucky to just get a guy who “loves” them and wants to be with them. But why can’t we demand more? Why can’t we hold out for someone who will love and respect us like we do, in fact, deserve? Yes, we deserve love; we deserve respect and we should look and settle for nothing less than this! Our Creator saw fit to make us in His image and likeness. That’s a pretty big deal. We should be looking to date men who see our worth and want what’s best for us.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">John Paul II, in Love and Responsibility, speaks of the personalist principle. According to this principle, a person must not merely be a means to an end for another person. Meaning, we should never treat the people in our lives like instruments for achieving our own purpose. We are capable of our own self-determination. We are each unique individuals. Just as we should never treat another as an instrument for our own purpose, therefore violating their dignity, we should never let someone treat us like instruments. JP II also talks about the utilitarian principle: that is, humans tend to seek out relationships that are most useful to them. We seek things that maximize pleasure and comfort and avoid those things that cause pain and discomfort. Therefore, going along with this principle, we should pursue whatever brings us comfort, advantage and benefit and avoid what causes suffering, disadvantage and loss. Many people today approach relationships this way, and rate a person by how someone will help them achieve a certain goal or by how much fun they have with this person. Once this practice in choosing relationships is adopted, we begin to reduce people to objects for our own enjoyment.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Aristotle believed there were 3 kinds of friendships: friendship of utility (what can someone do for you or give you), pleasant friendship (how fun someone is to be with) and virtuous friendship. The first two forms of friendships are not long-withstanding and will dissolve over time as the thing that person has to offer you changes either on your end or theirs. In the third form of friendship, virtuous, however, the two friends are not merely united by self-interest but are united by a common goal. JP II says that the only way two human persons can avoid using each other is to relate in pursuit of a common goal. Put in the context of marriage, husband and wife must be subordinate to each other and to the good of their children. They must work as a team and discern together the common aim of their family and how to best make use of their time and resources. This latter form of friendship is what we should be looking for in any relationship. As you begin dating, take a look at who you’re dating and why. Do you two have each other’s best interests in mind? Do you want to help the other grow personally, so that you can later grow together as a couple? You must always have the other’s well-being in mind and be careful to make sure he is doing the same for you.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Early on in our relationship, Dan and I struggled a lot. We were best friends and liked, and dare I say, even loved each other. So, why was it a struggle? Well, neither of us truly realized our self-worth. No really. I was a 17 year old high-schooler worried about weight, hair and clothes. He seemed insecure as well, although being a guy I couldn’t really tell you why or details because men are not detail-oriented. :p As I made my way to Steubenville for college and left him behind, and while we still needed to grow up and mature, the distance was very difficult. I would mention another guy I talked to and he’d freak out. He’d say he was busy with a friend and I’d get upset. It all seems so petty now but in the moment it was real. We wanted to make sure the other loved us so much that when the other didn’t have time for the one wanting to talk, we became very unsettled. We placed our self-worth in how the other acted and responded instead of realizing that someone you love cannot always be there at your “beck and call”. And that’s ok. In fact, it’s good and healthy. We needed to support the other one’s friendships and independence they were trying to cultivate. We both needed to grow and stretch ourselves and take a good internal look at ourselves as individuals. This took a long time. We broke up. We got back together. We loved hanging out. As I entered my sophomore year of college, we received news that Dan would be deployed to Iraq for 10 months. It was the most difficult and challenging part of our relationship. We endured all the hardships of being apart, lost ourselves when we didn’t talk for weeks, found ourselves in our weakest moments, and relished every letter and every time we did get to talk. That deployment was one of the hardest things we’ve ever had to go through. We had family that didn’t get it and weren’t supportive at all. This lack of support never got in the way of us though. By this time, I was 20, Dan 22 and we had grown a lot as a couple. I remember going to a meeting before he came back from his deployment. Family and loved ones of the Marines coming home were told that the first few months back together would be difficult. It really wasn’t for us. We were stretched and refined in those moments apart. God used those moments to help us grow individually so that we could then grow as a couple. We had to realize that we were amazing people on our own, with God, first and foremost. Dan went through a deployment and saw a lot of heartache and pain. He was amazing! I had to go through 10 months of very little support, school, traveling and growing up a lot. I came to realize I could rely on God and that I was good and holy and perfect in His sight. When we were re-united we had to focus on building each other up and working together towards a common goal. For us, that was the talk of getting married and our engagement followed soon after.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Dan and I have been very blessed. We were each other’s first boy and girlfriend and, therefore, never had to go through the experience of dating anyone who didn’t agree with us on faith and morals. We’ve also been blessed enough to never have had to deal with regret from past relationships. That said, it was still difficult to remain pure, especially as the years went by and we grew closer, and especially after going through a deployment. After Iraq, Dan joined me in Steubenville to finish school. He had an apartment off campus and I had an apartment for 2 out of the 3 semesters he was there. Because of this we had no one to hold us accountable but ourselves. By the grace of God we remained chaste but I can’t stand here in front of you today saying it was easy. We studied together a lot and ate dinner together. We had many opportunities alone since we both had cars and could easily get away. As a couple we had evolved and grown closer together- mentally, emotionally, spiritually and physically. It was difficult to keep the physical in check because we didn’t have to monitor how close we were growing in the other areas. Grow closer emotionally? Sure. Grow closer spiritually? Awesome! But, grow closer physically? Ok, but be careful. Be on guard after not seeing each other for 10 months, and after dating for 4 years- yeah, that’ll be easy. But we did it. When one was weak, the other was strong. We knew if we went too far we’d end up regretting it later and we didn’t want to have regret. We strove to have a pure and holy relationship. We loved the other and recognized we were worthy of love and respect and we wanted to give our beloved the same respect.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">I think we sometimes think of the virtue of chastity as keeping us from expressing ourselves - we think, erroneously, that chastity restricts us from expressing love to our beloved. Don't go too far - you can't do that-STOP!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">We could try to look at it in a different way. Instead of holding us back, the practice of chastity gives us an opportunity to actively show love. In our relationship, when one of us was weak in the realm of sexuality, the other protected us from falling. Instead of seeing a moment of desire as a struggle to get what you want at the moment, a chaste couple sees that as a chance to protect the other from falling.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">For guys, the desire to protect our women is deeply seated in their nature. Guys walk on the outside when on a side walk to protect their girl from an errant car. Guys drive like crazy to get their wife in labor to the hospital. Once, in Iraq, Dan heard some incoming rockets. He found that when the rockets landed he had grabbed a female soldier and covered her with his body. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">he had no idea that he'd even thought to do that. It just happened.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Guys protect girls. It is against their nature to injure them, hurt them or let them come to harm. Chastity is nothing but an extension of this chivalry. Ignoring chastity could put your beloved in a compromising situation, that could cause heartbreak, emotional hurt, or worse.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">More than that, it puts your beloved down a path that leads away from Jesus and Heaven. In all of your relationships, remember we are our brothers and sisters keepers. We need to protect one another from falling. We need to guide each other to something greater, to somewhere greater.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">There's no greater love than to give your life for someone else. Two hours east of Buffalo, in Scio, NY, Dan assisted in the military funeral of a young Marine, Cpl. Dunham, who was posthumanously awarded the Medal of Honor for jumping on a grenade to save his fellow Marines. He was a hero.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">In chasing chastity, we can be heroes too. We can sacrifice our bodies and desires to protect our beloved. It's only by doing just that that we can find true love and honor in our relationships. If we chose not too, and let that grenade go off, everyone gets injured.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Chastity is responsible love - it says, "She is beautiful, she is mine, and come hell or high water, I can and will protect her!" Protect your beloved like a mother bear protects her cubs and expect nothing less from someone you’re dating.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">There's a battle going on for our souls. Fight back. One is alone, but two (you and your beloved) is an army. And with God on your side, you'll never lose. I’m not saying its going to be easy. You might get hurt along the way but hey, that means you fought for something. God doesn't expect you to win every time, </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">He just asks that you not give up. Keep fighting and God will not be outdone in generosity.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0px;">Our life stands as proof to that.</span></div>
</span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05603488747114931264noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-132570098937491505.post-1918515795293656672012-12-22T13:42:00.005-05:002012-12-22T13:46:12.770-05:00My Very Own Sugar ScrubMy sister-in-law made me a homemade sugar scrub last year that made my skin so smooth and, I have to admit, was tasty when it'd get on your lips. I ran out awhile ago and have been meaning to make my own for quite some time. Well, today I woke up after several days of no sleep between the baby on the inside and the baby on the outside and looked horrible! No really. The dark circles were unbelievable and I decided I was going to make a scrub for my face so I would feel rejuvenated. That turned into me wanting to add caffeine to the scrub for my dark circles. <br />
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Immediately after use I asked my husband what he thought and he said that although it didn't completely take the dark circles away, it absolutely helped lessen their appearance! So here it is, my very own caffeinated sugar scrub for all you tired momma's (or daddy's) out there. By the way, this scrub comes out dark so if you get strange looks from your husband, yes it does look like you smeared mud all over your face. Don't worry. He'll like rubbing your face afterwards. ;)<br />
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I'm assuming you could use coffee instead of tea, but we have a Keurig so I didn't have any coffee other than K-cups around the house. And, I happened to have an enormous amount of black tea that we never use because someone ~AHEM!~ always thinks she has time to make things like Kombucha when, in reality, she doesn't. I'm glad I finally found a use for all that tea in the cupboard so I could stop feeling guilty about it just sitting there for the next 5 years. Anywho, now on to this super easy, 5 minute recipe! <br />
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1 cup white sugar<br />
45 black tea bags/ almost 1 cup (you could use any tea but I wasn't about to use my Chamomille or holiday teas for my face :p)<br />
2 Tbls sea salt<br />
2 Tbls orange peel<br />
2 tsp lemon extract<br />
2 cups olive oil<br />
peppermint extract: I added this because this preggo couldn't stand the bland smell. Just add until you like the smell of it- you shouldn't need too much!<br />
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Now, I don't know about long-term effects of this scrub making a mother look more "with it" but I was honestly impressed with the immediate outcome. Also here are some little facts about black tea:<br />
Black tea is known to be good for you for so many things, like preventing heart disease, stroke and cancer. It has also been known to fight the aging process so why not try it in a facial scrub, right?! It also boosts the metabolism. I wonder if it would help make my face not look so puffy with this enormous baby growing inside me? Hmmmm...... One may never know.....<br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05603488747114931264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-132570098937491505.post-15919833401728085342012-10-05T15:18:00.001-04:002012-10-05T15:29:12.923-04:00YOU are a supermom! Wow, four months have passed since I last wrote... I guess it makes sense since things have been crazy around here. We're now five months pregnant, the summer flew by and we're homeschooling our oldest. Not sure what grade we're considering her to be in but that's the beauty of it all. I know, I know, some of you are probably thinking <i>Amanda doesn't have a plan and is cool not having her child's future laid out?! She doesn't know if her kid's in preschool or kindergarten?! That does NOT sound like her!</i> I completely agree. Honestly, I gave up. We started the year with high hopes and big expectations....that we're still mostly meeting. Preschool workbooks proved to be way too easy and she was done with five preschool books in one week. On to kindergarten, I thought. Well, if you knew my spirited little four year old you'd know that she cannot sit still- ever! She begs to do school. She's often seen doing it from 10 am until 6 pm by <i>her</i> choice- the Good Lord knows it's not mine! And yet I'm constantly pulling teeth and having this tug-of-war with her. I suppose it's because our ways of interacting peacefully do not include anything concerning "book" education. We'd much rather shop, bake, cook, read and chat together, but not about anything that has to do with 2+2 or stay in the lines when you color, please. Heavens, NO! And so my week has been filled with meltdowns galore (by me, mostly) and shoving pop tarts in the mouths of my younger two to keep them quiet, all the while telling the 4 year old that she can't have them because they have too much sugar to keep her focused. True, but hypocritical. And I've wondered how any mother with little ones actually gets any school accomplished amid changing diapers, feeding everyone, entertaining the little ones and keeping everyone sane and happy. And this doesn't even include being pregnant (meaning tired ALL the time and not having a working brain), a husband often out of town for work, dishes, laundry or a decent meal because we all know that's not happening in this home! I swear I'm not complaining- just laying it out there. I'm sure you all know what I'm talking about!<br />
I see posts on Pinterest containing weeks or months worth of organized lessons and print-outs and read blogs about homeschool families going on nature walks, catching a squirrel, coming home and skinning it for dinner all while spinning yarn from sheep they just sheared, nursing a baby simultaneously and teaching the 18 month old to read, while the other 6 kids are off studying pre-med and volunteering for the Peace Corps....at age 9. Yeah, that's not real life and yet I get sucked in every time and feel like I'm failing. I wonder how these women can do it all and still appear to be happy, put-together moms who are always cheerful and love <i>every bit</i> of motherhood. Then I realized we only put things on our Facebook statues or write posts in our blogs that make us look good. We only share with people how we want them to view us, but that's not how it is <i>every day</i>. Those moms don't show us that they actually have bad days where they want to crawl in a hole or wonder if keeping the baby monitor on and leaving the house with the receiver part would be an ok option, just to run to the corner store to get an iced tea and go to the bathroom in peace (I have never once done this and never will, by the way!). No, we share with everyone our highest points because they're either rare or a better day than most others, even if the others aren't all horrible.<br />
After sobbing and going on and on about how I can't do this, my husband has made me realize that I don't have to weave my own rugs or, even, cook everything from scratch, milling the flour myself. It's ok to buy some convenience foods for those "mommy's losing it days", and it's ok to close the books for the day or a week. And no, it wouldn't be easier putting her in school because I'd have to be involved (and would want to be), and I'd still have 3 hours of homework to do with my daughter every night, among other factors that I don't have do deal with keeping her home. It's not a piece of cake either way. He's made me realize that lowering my expectations isn't me failing but is more realistic for where we are right now. Being a parent is hard- period. There's no easy way out.<br />
So for all of you who have told me I'm "supermom" and can do it all....HA! Call my family this week and they'll tell you another side. On second thought, don't call them. I've been downright pitiful these past two weeks. The truth is we moms are in this together. Some have it harder in general or on a particular day, but we all have it hard. Life may look perfect on Facebook or blogs or Pinterest but if you peek through someone's window (don't though because that's stalking....) you might be surprised at how much their life look like yours. So, here's to all you moms who think you're failing, that your kids will be delinquents and belong in a zoo rather than in your home- you're not alone and it's ok to show your less-than-perfect side! And seriously, thank you to everyone who has just let me vent and flip out. Thank you for listening and thank you for not running away, slamming a door in my face telling me to get over it. You will be repaid greatly for loving me anyway. I mean, I'm not about to bake you homemade cookies because, let's be honest, they wouldn't survive an hour with me around, but God will repay you and I'll pitch in and buy you a coffee! ;)<br />
And I will end this by telling you that in the hour it has taken me to write this, I've rescued the baby from dive-bombing off the couch twice and heard a scream from the 4 year old, who apparently snuck out of bed to use the bathroom. The baby seized this opportunity to run to her side and throw her shoes in the not-flushed-yet toilet. Yeah......so if this is incoherent, well it's consistent with my mental capability: raw, real, tired and yet loving those little ones so much it doesn't seem possible!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05603488747114931264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-132570098937491505.post-21248902267181904872012-05-19T00:38:00.000-04:002012-05-19T00:40:41.799-04:00Soak Your OatsWe take the term "crunchy" pretty serious in this house. Meaning: we eat a lot of granola and granola-type snacks. <br />
<br />
However, I had heard quite a few years ago granola wasn't good for you because it blocked the absorption of vitamins. I ignored this for a long time because we think it's some pretty yummy stuff around here, but the more I used oats to make "healthy" snacks, the more I thought I was totally jipping us. I did some research, reading of few articles online and cracking open<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Nourishing-Traditions-Challenges-Politically-Dictocrats/dp/0967089735"> <span style="color: #e06666;">"<em>the</em> book</span></a>" that I thought I'd never open. The book that, when my mother gave it to me just before my husband and I got married, my thought was <em>Gee thanks, a dust collector. There's no way I'll ever use this!</em> You see, before I had a family I liked my convenient and crappy foods because they were so yummy. Cheese whiz, anyone?! ..........No?????? Now that book is becoming quite filled with highlighting, underlining and notes in the margins. I love this book and have found it invaluable.<br />
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So, now that I have been converted to the world of raw, whole, organic foods and a lifestyle of soaking grains, fermenting things and making as much as I can from scratch, I thought it'd be nice for someone to hear me say <em><strong>I honestly love it</strong></em>! I love knowing what goes in my kids' little tummies and knowing that no matter how many snacks they have in a day (because they're bottom-less pits and would rather snack all day than actually sit their cute wiggly bums down for an actual meal), it doesn't matter because the snacks I have on hand are really, truly good for them!<br />
<br />
But, back to soaking those oats. When I first read about phytic acid I wanted it OUT of my oats! Phytic acid is bound to phosphorus and if left as is will combine with calcium, magnesium, copper, iron, potassium and zinc in the intestinal tract, therefore blocking their absorption. Soaking grains such as oats allows enzymes to neutralize phytic acid and increases B vitamins. Dating back to ancient times up until recently, and by that I mean many of our grandmothers probably did this as well, it was common practice to soak your oats the night before because of the nutritional benefits.<br />
Now you may be thinking <em>but oats have actually helped my digestion.</em> At first unsoaked oats have a detoxifying effect but you will soon see that the more you consume them unsoaked, the more IBS symptomes, mineral deficiencies and allergies can be found.<br />
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Being a busy mom of 3, however, I was quickly annoyed at this thought because who ever has the idea that they're going to need oats on Thursday for the granola that's run out for the yogurt your kids love and soak and dry them out again the Monday before. ...Well, not me! And so, I would run out of soaked oats, refuse to make new granola until I had done the whole soaking and drying oats process (none of this a big deal, really, if you're prepared) and, therefore, have 2 crabby kids whining that they wanted "cranola" or their energy bites. So, here's a tip. When you get home from the store with your oats, pour them in a bowl with water. They will be ready in about 24 hrs. It's that simple, as long as you make sure you get them out of the water before they mold a week later. Not that I know this from experience, but it seems like it'd be gross. :p Then when you need them, all you have to do is reach in your pantry for oats packed with a punch!<br />
<br />
How to Soak your Oats:<br />
<em>Nourishing Traditions mentions you should buy them from a bag or container because they can go rancid in bulk bins. I realize it's cheaper this way so it's up to you! I know one of our local grocery stores seems to re-fill the bins quite often</em>. Put your oats in a big bowl with enough water to allow for them to expand. Then put a little apple cider vinegar or lemon juice in and stir. (Raw ACV is best if you're using ACV, but I don't always have the good stuff and it seems fine to me with regular). Leave for 7-24 hours. It helps if you sing "I'm gonna soak that phytic acid right outta my oats" to the tune of <em>I'm gonna wash that man right outta my hair</em> from South Pacific. I don't know why it helps, but it does. Or at least it makes it more fun!<br />
Note: This also works for steel-cut (Irish) oats, rye, barley and wheat.<br />
Note: Quinoa also has to be soaked, but I'm not sure if an acid is needed to help neutralize antinutriemts (p 454 of Nourishing Traditions). Anyone know if an acid is needed? I've found nothing on this.<br />
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When drying out the oats pour them through a mesh strainer a little at a time and rinse them under water so you rinse out the slimy grayish liquid. Ew! I haven't been able to rinse them until the water runs clear but I'm sure this is fine. I usually rinse until I get the vinegar smell out. Make sure you drain them before the next step so you get a lot of the moisture out. (Singing the song again makes this less mundane. Feel free to add a little dance too. ;) Lay them out thin on several cookie sheets, put your oven on the lowest setting and leave for hours. That's it! Then, use as you would normally. The only difference I've found is that they tend to be a be a bit chewier in recipes, but it doesn't seem to be a big deal and so far I'm the only one in my family who's noticed.<br />
Note: I haven't found anything in <em>Nourishing Traditions </em>about drying them out as the section focuses on soaking them for porridges, but I've read elsewhere it can be done in the way described above.<br />
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Here are two of our favorite recipes for oats (not including my granola recipe that I "wing" and is different each time so I can't give it to you). We are rarely without both of these in our house and when we do the kids get sick of bananas, apples and peanut butter really fast so I have to make more <em>for them</em>, of course!<br />
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<a href="http://mrsseamonster.blogspot.com/2010/10/playgroup-granola-bars-variation-2.html">Playgroup granola bars</a>: <br />
(I have added the gluten-free substitutions as well. You can get gluten-free oats if you need them.)<br />
2 cups rolled oats<br />
1/2 cup packed brown sugar<br />
1/2 cup wheat germ (We use an equal amount of ground flaxseed instead because of being gluten-free)<br />
3/4
teaspoon ground cinnamon<br />
1 cup whole wheat flour (or 1/3 cup each of potato starch, tapioca flour, sorghum flour and 1/2 tsp of xanthan gum)<br />
3/4 teaspoon salt<br />
1
cup of raisins, semi sweet chocolate chips, nuts (We use choclate chips and coconut)<br />
1/2 cup
honey<br />
1 egg, beaten<br />
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce<br />
2 teaspoons vanilla
extract<br />
<br />
Preheat oven to 350* and grease a 9x13 baking pan (any non-stick
spray works great).<br />
In a large bowl mix the oats, brown sugar, wheat germ/ flaxseed,
cinnamon, flour, salt, raisins, chocolate chips, and nuts.<br />
In a separate bowl
beat the egg and add to it the honey, applesauce, and vanilla. Mix.<br />
Add the
wet ingredients to the dry ingredients. Use a wooden spoon or your hands to mix
well. Pat mixture evenly into the prepared pan.<br />
Bake 30-35 minutes, until the
edges are golden brown. Cool for 5 minutes. Use a serrated knife to cut into
bars while it's still warm.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://smashedpeasandcarrots.blogspot.com/2011/08/no-bake-energy-bites-recipe.html">Energy Bites</a>:<br />
(Double the recipe right away!)<br />
1 cup oatmeal <br />
1/2 cup peanut butter<br />
1/3 cup honey <br />
1 cup coconut flakes <br />
1/2 cup ground flaxseed <br />
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips <br />
1 tsp vanilla <br />
Mix, Chill, Roll<br />
<br />
I hope you enjoy these recipes as much as we do!<br />
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Have fun soaking your oats and remember, the song helps ;) Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05603488747114931264noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-132570098937491505.post-39483328846467158752012-03-22T09:40:00.001-04:002012-03-22T09:42:21.141-04:00Going to the zooMy niece and nephews have been in town all week staying with my mother-in-law. My sister-in-law and I had the idea of taking them out for the day and we chose the zoo. In my attempt to be timely, however, I forgot several <em>very</em> important things like sunscreen and a hat for the baby (it was going to be over 80 degrees) and <em>a stroller</em>. Oh yes, 8 kids including 2 roaming toddlers with minds of their own and 2 babies and I had <em>no</em> stroller! The worst part was I took the jogging stroller <em>out</em> of my trunk before I left thinking I had the double stroller in there, but I didn't have the base that the seats clip in to and so it was useless! All we had was my sister-in-law's umbrella stroller that held the lunches. At least we had a moby wrap and ergo for the babies or we would've been done in!<br />
<br />
All in all it still turned out to be a great day! The kids were fantastic! It was a lot of fun hanging out with my older niece and nephew (ages 6 and 8), who were soaking up all the information they could. My sister-in-law and I wanted to make sure they were getting something out of it instead of just helping their crazy aunts with the babies. I loved seeing them love learning and telling me about all the different animals. Next time I'm just taking them!<br />
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Ruby Red later told me her favorite part was seeing the sea lions underground and her big cousin Timmy teaching her all about the snakes. It's adorable how she looks up to him and I'm glad they were able to spend some time together!<br />
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I wish I had a picture of them all but, alas, my camera battery was dead and I couldn't find the charger....:(<br />
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I was so tired afterwards that I dozed several times the rest of the afternoon. Even my kids....no.....even RUBY RED was exhausted!!!! I never thought I'd be saying that sentence! My older two went down for naps at 4. Ruby Red woke up at 8pm for some apples and peanut butter and went right back to bed. We didn't see Baby Blue until 4am, where she had some quality time with daddy and then snuggled with him in bed until 7:30.<br />
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I'm so glad we were able to pull it off. Next time, though, if I don't have a stroller it <em>would be</em> worth it to drive home to get it!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05603488747114931264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-132570098937491505.post-21136499349808318712012-03-19T13:56:00.001-04:002012-03-19T13:58:21.349-04:00New Hip HoldI've once again discovered that baby wearing is essential for a happy baby and half-sane mommy in this household. However, Sapphire Sweetie wasn't content with the usual hold in the Moby wrap and it wasn't comfortable for me anymore since she always wiggles around trying to see what's going on. After watching what seemed like a bazillion YouTube videos on different holds I have found one and wanted to share it! This hold has become indispensible and we both love it! It leaves me with all the comfort and mobility that I need while giving her comfort, freedom to look around and closeness to mommy. I highly recommend trying it!<br />
<br />
(Note: This hold is not origunally for the Moby wrap but I've found that it works perfectly with it!)<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="http://2.gvt0.com/vi/0KDw31gwx_4/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/0KDw31gwx_4&fs=1&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/0KDw31gwx_4&fs=1&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash"></embed></object></div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05603488747114931264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-132570098937491505.post-20575275156628669872012-03-15T15:51:00.000-04:002012-03-15T15:51:00.175-04:00What We've Been Up ToOur girls have been keeping us very busy. I can't believe that it's been over 3 months since I last wrote!<br />
<br />
Baby Sapphire is now 6 months old. 6 MONTHS!!!!!!!! This blows my mind! She's getting so big too. Her smile is absolutely infectious and she's always giggling at her big sisters. She's our first baby to ever roll over before they start crawling. I don't know why the other two wouldn't but they hated being on their tummies for even a second. We call her our little "koala" becuase she's always perched so cutely on my hip, and <em>only</em> my hip as she sees my husband and starts screaming. I honestly think she's saying, "Don't you <em>dare</em> try to take me from my mommy!" As heartbreaking as this can be, the hubs has realized this is only a phase and she, like the other 2, will find him waaay more fun than mommy once she's older. ....I'm not sure if I should be happy with that or not. ;)<br />
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Ruby Red and Baby Blue just got bunk beds. This has proven very cute and extremely frustrating for bed and naptimes. Just today I went in to see what Baby Blue was up to and couldn't find her.....<em>anywhere.</em> I looked in her bed, under her bed, and in the closet. Then I saw those cute blue eyes peering from under the covers of his sisters top bunk- that she had climbed u[ by herself. Uh yeah, I'm in trouble! Now, and I mean literally <em>right now</em>, she just came to me bare bottom (she's supposed to be sleeping) and told me, "I took diaper off". Well yes you did.....and now I have to leave this.....<br />
<br />
.....Ok, so now where was I.... ah yes, I've completely forgotten my string of thoughts....<br />
<br />
Ruby Red has been keeping busy learning her letters and numbers, reading (not by herself, yet), and is so excited to finally play outside again. She's so much bigger than she was last fall- I can now send her out back to play by herself and since we have a fenced in yard I'm thinking this is pretty awesome! I leave the doors hitched open so she can come and go as she pleases. This is a very exciting moment for me as it leaves me "time" to frantically do stuff around the house while the little girls sleep. Yesterday she told me she wanted to go swimming. After I convinced her she would freeze because it isn't that warm out yet, I went inside to cook dinner while I watched her out the kitchen window. I couldn't understand why our well pump was turning on since the well water is only for the outside and I wasn't using it.....but Ruby Red was... She dragged her water table out of winter storage, flipped it and proceeded to fill it. She looked so cute and utterly ridiculous standing there soaked and muddy with winter gloves on because, get this- she didn't want her hands to get wet and muddy.... Mmmm hmmmm, apparently you had great success with that! ;)<br />
<br />
We've been remodeling our kitchen and although it does NOT look like it at the moment, it will finally be DONE by Baby Blue's birthday in 3 days!!! It's been 3 months of having a torn apart house and I'm so excited to get it back together and get all these tools and dirt out of my house! Of course, it's "crunch" time and I think I've grown 20 new gray hairs this week alone, but it will be wonderful <em>next week</em>.<br />
<br />
I've been sewing in my, wait for it......spare time.... Honestly though, I've really gotten a lot done at midnight! I will have tutorials following with my lovely creations so stay tuned! I've also begun making a whole bunch of new things from <a href="http://pinterest.com/scrunch987/">pinterest</a>. I will be sure to have some reviews of the likes and dislikes in the upcoming weeks. <br />
<br />
For now that's it since I have to scramble to get the girls ready for Ruby Red's dance class. I will be on here more for sure as the hubs told me he misses reading my blog- that's the nicest thing he could have said, well about my blog anyway!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05603488747114931264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-132570098937491505.post-79270951078700080992012-02-09T13:39:00.000-05:002012-02-09T13:39:09.572-05:00Thanks for the guest post by Jo LevyIt’s easy to get complacent and be lazy about home safety. My husband and I like many of our neighbors never really thought much about it as we live in a low crime area. That is until recently when a rash of car break-ins in our neighborhood gave us a rude awakening! The police spoke at a recent meeting at our clubhouse and advised us that it is common for thieves to target low crime areas because people often do get lazy. We all think it would never happen to us so we stop locking our doors or leave items in our cars in plain sight, tempting would be burglars. It’s a shame that the break-ins had to happen, but it was a better wake up call for us than something worse. For our neighborhood meeting I put together a list of simple tips from <a href="http://www.homesecurity101.com/">homesecurity101</a> that I thought would be helpful for my family and our neighbors. It really is simple to protect your home and family you just have to remember to do it!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05603488747114931264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-132570098937491505.post-70607123129040733832012-02-02T10:01:00.000-05:002012-02-02T10:01:21.970-05:00Nine month novena for the election<a href="http://i652.photobucket.com/albums/uu244/ljanders0n/american-flag-wallpaper.jpg" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img height="125" src="http://ts1.mm.bing.net/images/thumbnail.aspx?q=1533314733956&id=f5a2e20deb6ffb08500595bc900160fc" width="200" /></a><span style="color: #20124d; font-size: large;">Tuesday, November 6th, 2012: Election Day.</span><br />
<br />
I sat with an aching heart and sick stomach as the new mandates for Obamacare came out last week. I prayed a rosary crying, wondering what our future would be like for us and our children and often have to remind myself to simply say "Jesus, I trust in You". I am confident that He's "got our back", but can't help but question, "At what cost? What suffering will we have to endure?" I pray He gives each and every American foresight and wisdom when voting in both the primaries and general election and I pray we always have courage to stand up and fight for our faith, knowing what magnificence lies ahead for those who are faithful.<br />
<br />
I'm not here to make a political speech or convince you of the right candidate. My family and will be fasting and praying this <a href="http://www.usccbpublishing.org/client/client_pdfs/prayerbefore.pdf">novena</a> the 1st Tuesday of every month, leading up to and ending on November 6th. We ask you to join us.<br />
<br />
Our Lady of Guadalupe, pray for us!!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05603488747114931264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-132570098937491505.post-72396499786568452412011-12-03T16:04:00.000-05:002011-12-03T16:04:53.392-05:00We'll Show You!This morning my sister and I stood armed and ready with the three girls, off to conquer price comparing and Christmas shopping. They were dressed, they were fed, their hair was actually done and now we were standing in front of the doors, two children in the stroller and one holding her aunt's hand. We first promised Ruby Red a smoothie, sort of as a "peace offering", bribing her to be good while in here, and so off we went. I could just see the panicked looks of the other customers at the cafe as we entered. I thought to myself, <em>You'll see. I'll make you WANT to have kids after you see how adept I am at juggling them. We'll show you how awesome this really is!</em> <br />
<br />
I was putting Baby Blue in the baby carrier on my back and swaying the stroller so Sapphire Sweetie would stay in her drousy, but blissful state. Ruby Red was up at the counter waiting for her pink smoothie. She came back with a cookie sample and without being asked split it in half and shared with her sister. I praised her and thought, <em>See?! And you people were so worried about me and my children being a disruption!</em><br />
<br />
Thought not even complete.....<br />
<br />
Ruby Red, with her light-hearted three-year-old enthusiasm, starts jumping in an excited shivery wiggle, trips over the stroller and her whole smoothie goes flyyyyyyying. It lands at my feet, getting mine and my sister's pants dirty, causing a big slippery mess and I can't even run and hide because the smoothie-covered stroller wheels would certainly give us away. SS starts screaming- she's hungry, of course! BB is flopped out of my carrier as I hadn't had time to properly clip her in. RR is so upset about her smoothie and crying because "No, I wasn't going to buy another one." <br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://media-cdn.pinterest.com/upload/197173289905367274_HqafXP0Z_c.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Pinned Image" border="0" id="pinCloseupImage" src="http://media-cdn.pinterest.com/upload/197173289905367274_HqafXP0Z_c.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">And we wouldn't change a thing...except for maybe that 14%!</td></tr>
</tbody></table> <div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">We finally got everything cleaned up with some juggling, shifting, nursing, shush-ing, rushing and mopping. I finally looked up and saw several staring at me in horror. At this point all I was doing was laughing. I mean, what else was I supposed to do- cry?! Thinking to myself about those stares, <em>You people are obviously way too dull to ever embark on such a journey, you over there with your darn non-fat, frothy latte, reading your paper like you have all the time in the world.</em></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">And so off we went, much to their relief, ready to finish what we had set out to accomplish.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Oh yes, and thank you to the trains and legos in the store for them to play with while mommy actually shopped!</div><br />
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</div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05603488747114931264noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-132570098937491505.post-10052723671355043062011-12-01T00:25:00.000-05:002011-12-01T00:25:14.319-05:00It's a Busy, Yet Wonderful LifeWow, it's been quite awhile since I've been on here to write. A lot has changed in two months....not only do we have a new little angel in our home (Sapphire Sweetie), but mommy has begun sewing again and that has taken up most of my free time. <br />
<br />
Remember my post a couple months ago where I said I was going to give sewing a try? Well, it has developed into a frequent past-time, and by that I mean making gifts and costumes in order to save money. ;)<br />
<br />
I'll give a quick re-cap of what we've been up to...<br />
<br />
Ruby Red started dance classes in September and is loving them. I have to admit, her eagerness and energy in her class often leave me anxious so I don't usually watch and just let the teachers work their magic, but I think it'll be good for her. She's learning how to interact with other kids and listen to other adults. She's my little "spitfire" so this, my husband and I believe, is essential! She's also becoming moe coordinated, which means less bumps and bruises....well, maybe.<br />
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We have also joined a Catholic homeschool group. Our girls are still very young but they're meeting great friends and we've met some amazing families!<br />
<br />
Baby Blue is our little monkey and climbing on everything! We cannot seem to keep her off the table, no matter how we position chairs or take them away. Even falling flat on her face doesn't seem to keep her from going back...this right now is my biggest challenge with the kiddos. She's finally starting to realize that time out isn't just a "big girl" thing and isn't as fun as it looks... Baby Blue has also started showing a lot of interest in potty-training, much to my dismay. I have to admit that I'm trying to discourage it at this time (mom fail!) but I just cannot commit to it with a very frequent nursing baby over here. I also don't want to discourage it so that she fears it in the future, so she often hangs out bare from the waist down, sitting on her little potty whenever she chooses. It's very cute, although kinda chilly! She has also been weaned from her binki this week! It was done unintentionally (and at a bad time since daddy left for a trip the day after....) but we couldn't find any of hers and thought "Why not take the plunge?!" So far so good, except for every night at 3 am. I have found that giving her a binki (yes, I eventually found one) with the tip cut off to try to discourage her keeps her somewhat calm and is only given at this ungodly hour of the night! It's very cute to hear her babbling in the car now- she and RR are now competing for who gets to talk the most. Needless to say, Christmas carols are helping mommy block out the competition when it gets to be very volumous ;).<br />
<br />
Sapphire Sweetie is already getting so big! She's now in 3 month clothes, is our "chubbiest" baby yet, smiles and talks all the time, loves to eat and loves her big sisters! The older two can often be found holding her and wiping the "pook" (puke) off her face, as Baby Blue declares. Our little girl is extremely intolerant of even the smallest amount of gluten, so our whole family is now gluten free. This took some getting used to but we've adjusted well.<em> A post to come in the future.</em><br />
<br />
The girls were all M&M's for halloween. Ruby Red was St Helena and Baby Blue was St Teresa of Avila for All Saints' Day. I sewed all their costumes myself!<br />
<br />
<br />
In November my niece turned 2 and I made her a homemade gift. I actually like how it turned out so much that I made it again for Baby Blue for Christmas! <em>A post on how-to will be showing up soon in my children's blog.</em><br />
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Dan and I hosted our 1st Thanksgiving this year, and all gluten-free (including yummy stuffing, pie crusts and dinner rolls)! It went off perfectly and even we were amazed at how smoothly it went. We even had time to relax! Below is a picture of our turkey!<br />
<br />
I am almost complete with my mom's birthday gift. My fingers, back and knees are so sore from having to pin the rest of it together on the floor tonight but it's turning out awesome and I can't wait to give it to her. <em>Pictures and details will follow after it's been given to her.</em><br />
<br />
My husband has been on the road (or rather, in the air) for his job a lot. In the past month he's been to Cannes, France; Hawaii; and is currently en route to Ethiopia....yes that's right, in Africa. We miss him more than words can say and are looking forward to having him home for more than a week!<br />
<br />
My sister has moved in with us while she pays off student loans. She has a job and is also our "nanny". Sometimes I wonder if she regrets living at the zoo but she humors the girls and plays <em>Ring Around the Rosie</em> and <em>Hide n' Seek</em> countless times a day. I don't know what I'd do without her with Dan traveling so much!<br />
<br />
Well, for now that's a pretty good summary. I'll try to write more often. I really do miss keeping track of what we've been up to, especially with our little girlies.<br />
<br />
For now, may God bless you this Advent and draw you closer to Him!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05603488747114931264noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-132570098937491505.post-61563040698663774622011-09-15T16:01:00.000-04:002011-09-15T16:01:18.011-04:00Little Sophie's Story<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC8KoW-0AAsvaZIStuPnQ6RmXPF8NKeLftlttL2kmvyCe8ZK1ONabVQKxXsw2DUG9KWa2giPCdxNFgmQgKws16WBOovTqzgZD4DGzzmMFzkWTMgb-70VbUhdt1_-Qb73b7mP_Gy2xort8/s1600/100_5351.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" rba="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC8KoW-0AAsvaZIStuPnQ6RmXPF8NKeLftlttL2kmvyCe8ZK1ONabVQKxXsw2DUG9KWa2giPCdxNFgmQgKws16WBOovTqzgZD4DGzzmMFzkWTMgb-70VbUhdt1_-Qb73b7mP_Gy2xort8/s320/100_5351.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">2 days old<br />
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>I was 37 weeks 5 days and it was a typical Tuesday. We had a fun weekend with the girls, venturing out to the Air Show where the Braxton-Hicks were quite strong. We joked of having the baby in the 2 hour car jam, but we never thought she'd actually be here soon. Our Sunday was normal as well: breakfast with my parents and dinner with his. When I woke up Tuesday morning I regretted that I had cancelled our apple picking field trip and thought maybe we'd head to the apple orchard an hour away but exhaustion got the better of me- thank goodness! The night before my husband asked me if I was ok with the house being so out-of-order. To be honest, I hadn't noticed it wasn't as tidy as usual but I took that as a sign that I should clean. (He wasn't being rude or anything, but I normally become extremely anxious with any mess so I think he was surprised and wanted to know if he should be cleaning). I vacuumed the whole house and listed 27 books on half.com during the day on Tuesday. I went through boxes of books and preschool things and cleaned out the house. I had no real movitavtion- I was simply trying to keep busy. My braxton hicks contractions were unusually dull. In fact, I was getting increasingly annoyed because they were so weak that the thought occurred to me that with contractions like these labor would never start, not even a month from now. So, after naptime, around 4:15 we headed out 30-40 minutes away from home to look for some red raspberry leaf tea in bulk. I wanted the bulk stuff so it was stronger. My intention was not to induce but to get some contractions helping me tone the uterus for labor, delivery and recovery later in the month. I had NO idea I'd have a baby that day. If I did, I would have never ever gone out, especially alone with two very active little girls. Our two stops were completely unsuccessful and I headed home annoyed that I didn't find the tea in bulk. I called my husband and told him I'd have dinner started when he got home. It was now 5:30ish and he was on his way home from work. I walked in the door and turned on the oven to make some biscuits and re-heat the enormous pot of homemade soup I made the day before. As I bent over to get a pot for the soup (it was 5:45) I felt a pop and then a gush. Never having my water break before my first thought was, "That was odd. I don't think I peed. No, I know I didn't. I'm still leaking. OH. MY. GOSH!" Realizing what just happened I had many discombobulated thoughts, "Oh God, I'm not ready! I wasn't expecting this for another few weeks. I don't want to push a person out of me today! ....I never washed those baby hats. Maybe I should call Dan....." I told Ruby Red, "Mommy's going to be having a baby today so I need you to take care of your sister until Daddy gets home". Her reply was, "Ok mommy. We'll just be jumping on the bed!" My reply, "Well, just don't bump your heads" as nonchalantly as if she told me they were going to read books or play with dolls. I really couldn't worry about what they were doing at that moment. I called Dan. I had just gotten off the phone with him about 10 minutes before so he was in complete disbelief when I called him back and told him to come lights and sirens home. He got home soon after and asked how I was doing. Well, except for this gross clear fluid running down my leg, I was fine. I assured him it'd be a much longer labor, a couple hours at least as I barely had cramping. I began to prepare myself mentally- something I've never been able to do before. I wandered the house wondering what to do. This was much too calm for labor. And then they started coming..... The contractions picked up and with every one came a gush of fluid. I decided to hang out in the bathroom so I didn't leak fluid everywhere. My mom arrived to feed the girls dinner and Dan had the pool filled and ready to go. Yay, I'd actually have time for a water-birth! Ruby Red would occasionally pop into the bathroom to rub my leg and tell me Sophie didn't mean to hurt me and assured me that I was ok. Baby Blue came in too, completely unaware of what was about to enter her world but loving a pool in the living room to splash in! The midwife was called and Dan stayed with me, helping me stay as calm and as relaxed as I could. I truly could not have done it without him! I had 3 contractions so bad I honestly didn't think I could go on. I remember my eyes welling up with tears and Dan telling me how great I was doing. I felt her drop downward quick and hard. I apparently gave him a look he recognized with the other two girls and told me we better get to the pool if I wanted a water birth. I agreed and then came the worst contraction of all. I stood up and Dan tried encouraging me to move but I couldn't. The pressure was so intense and all I could do was lean over him. He asked if I could sit back down. I couldn't. He was now kneeling on the bathroom floor and I had one hand on his shoulder, the other on the bathroom sink. He let me know she was crowning. Oh believe me, I know. I let out a yell as her head popped out. Her body followed soon after and Dan scrambled to find a towel in the bathroom to catch her. We rolled her over twice since the cord was wrapped around her body and her arm. (It's now 6:30- a 45 minute labor from start to finish!) I took her into my arms and we slowly headed to the bedroom where I placed her on my chest and instantly fell in love. I couldn't have imagined it any more wonderful. There was no rushing to get anywhere and I didn't even care that I never made it to the pool. It was just my husband and I, just as I always wanted. He's now become a pro a this baby catching and birthing thing! Our second unassisted birth complete! We sat together adoring our new little miracle. Our midwife arrived about 15 minutes later, I think. I gave birth to the placenta about an hour after she was born and Dan cut the cord after that. <br />
Right from the start our little girl nursed amazing, latching on perfectly as if she was a pro! She hasn't stopped eating since. She weighed 6 lbs 6 oz and was 19 3/4 in long. A beautiful, tiny and perfect size!<br />
The girls came in and were instantly enamoured with her. Ruby Red refused to touch her at first because she was "so cheesy" as she said. She was "cheesy" for sure and smelled so wonderful!<br />
The recovery was difficult at first as I couldn't keep any food down for the first 24 hours and the after-birth pains were almost worse than the labor itself. My sister-in-law joked that my body just had to get those contractions in there somehow, even if afterwards. It really seemed to be that way. Homeopathy has been crucial and has thankfully made everything much more tolerable.<br />
Ruby Red has been such a help! She holds her baby sister every time I need to get up and is so gentle and motherly. She had to check her out right away. "Mommy, can I see her bummy? .....Oh my goodness, she has the cutest and tiniest buns!" "Mommy, can I see her boobies?..... Oh they're so little....not like your big ones Mommy!" LOL Out of the mouths of babes.... <br />
Even Baby Blue has been amazing and gives "a-bee" (baby) kisses all day long! <br />
Little Sophie-girl is happy with whoever she's with. She instantly recognized daddy's and her sisters voices and is easily calmed by any of us, except, of course, when she's hungry! <br />
We are so grateful for this new blessing in our lives. Dan and I keep saying over and over again how incredible this all is. The third time around and we're still as in awe as if it was the first time. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJnVBdFzM5Pj61FckmU4MGmL85IN3gvGjGmQODU89e3UQ0GYNT4DpwAHYDHRU5FpqNpdfqwOL4nwxZFZcbiJ8SMIJtPyG6Yh5bBq3Kd8BGDQKAaOuw2EA0p82D5gAQAiSeBPTjPJbG5g4/s1600/100_5286.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" rba="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJnVBdFzM5Pj61FckmU4MGmL85IN3gvGjGmQODU89e3UQ0GYNT4DpwAHYDHRU5FpqNpdfqwOL4nwxZFZcbiJ8SMIJtPyG6Yh5bBq3Kd8BGDQKAaOuw2EA0p82D5gAQAiSeBPTjPJbG5g4/s320/100_5286.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mommy and Sophia's 1st picture together</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFcZA06RO8GMOQ-YCnXdiL_ORsUQ3t0k3OLzS6qALYH3TkNip1_zlQVCxQ1xJYdA8L6jXKusxIc-Svr-VTDoEVadOhVCK-S9mjOoeFZ6gGS2wjUYn82ICeazB4QjEuFQr4hdjJqx2_dg8/s1600/100_5288.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" rba="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFcZA06RO8GMOQ-YCnXdiL_ORsUQ3t0k3OLzS6qALYH3TkNip1_zlQVCxQ1xJYdA8L6jXKusxIc-Svr-VTDoEVadOhVCK-S9mjOoeFZ6gGS2wjUYn82ICeazB4QjEuFQr4hdjJqx2_dg8/s320/100_5288.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Daddy with his little princess</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpbyP88wNfEfOBwgbBRAh1FmslG6DeMzQE-cBTVeF-eopayxIOAQbVOMCr0DKWIXZUMqek8L2RdVBbF4X9vCtwQyPjTju0M3LN9FAy-yr5KLVv2YMOFa7YxND0QEf7CBz3LdIkWSAhY-g/s1600/100_5338.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" rba="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpbyP88wNfEfOBwgbBRAh1FmslG6DeMzQE-cBTVeF-eopayxIOAQbVOMCr0DKWIXZUMqek8L2RdVBbF4X9vCtwQyPjTju0M3LN9FAy-yr5KLVv2YMOFa7YxND0QEf7CBz3LdIkWSAhY-g/s320/100_5338.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ruby Red in love</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeAD-F9HR5mCGZLl0fbZPwUKkOUUMzjLuNGpB6_UPyBu-r-mfO24RQjnhjVfSZDlwKjRIORXiY_tXe7I8teqXz2lPhjgUoS7bv5S-10E3oNx_ljAxZ-dt2XZmXXvZ-V-BFWVpiv_4Icsc/s1600/100_5349.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" rba="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeAD-F9HR5mCGZLl0fbZPwUKkOUUMzjLuNGpB6_UPyBu-r-mfO24RQjnhjVfSZDlwKjRIORXiY_tXe7I8teqXz2lPhjgUoS7bv5S-10E3oNx_ljAxZ-dt2XZmXXvZ-V-BFWVpiv_4Icsc/s320/100_5349.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Proud big sister, Baby Blue!<br />
(She now walks around like she's "hot stuff" LOL)</td></tr>
</tbody></table> <span style="font-size: large;">Praise Him from whom all blessings flow!</span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05603488747114931264noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-132570098937491505.post-85268379525405370432011-09-13T14:23:00.000-04:002011-09-13T14:23:22.024-04:00A Shopping Experience Like No Other<a href="http://www.savingwellspendingless.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/WegmansBlackLogo.jpg" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img src="http://ts4.mm.bing.net/images/thumbnail.aspx?q=1219130494343&id=683a6b82e0bd6bae51699c3a8b169d12" /></a>Anyone that knows me knows that I am in love with Wegmans. Seriously it's almost hysterical how excited I get at even the thought of going there. Ruby Red has picked up on this by now and asks weekly when we're going again, knowing a trip is sure to be around the corner. I am proud of myself, though, because I don't go just to to buy stuff but simply use this as my almost exclusive grocery store. Many have argued with me telling me it's more expensive than the other local grocery store and I politely ignore them. <br />
<br />
This actually brings me to the point of this post: <br />
In an attempt to prove people wrong and prove to myself and my husband that I wasn't wasting money going there instead of the other grocery store, I decided to "painstakingly" compare prices for every item on my rather large bi-monthly shopping trip. Painstakingly here is in quotes because except for the <em>two</em> <em>separate stops</em> with two kids who wanted to be in and out of <em>one store</em> only, it was easy peasy. Why? Because Wegmans is awesome, that's why! Before we went I printed up a <a href="http://www.wegmans.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductListView?forwardto=ProductListView&langId=-1&storeId=10052&catalogId=10002&N=207">shopping list</a> on Wegmans website for the store location that we use- they listed every item on my list with prices by aisle, making it a quick in and out trip for a momma! So, with my printed Wegmans list in hand we first went to the other grocery store, going up and down every aisle and comparing the prices. I would only put in my cart what was cheaper than Wegmans- not even what was equal in price (there weren't many things equal in price anyway). Why would I want to give them the business when they are clearly not the superior grocer?! Am I crazy? Probably a little. I ended up with a very small shopping cart and spent only about $15. These items were on sale- if they hadn't been, none of them would have been cheaper! I'm not even kidding you! In fact, I found that overall, items ranged from $0.20-$3.00 more expensive per item! For the little amount of money I saved, I've resolved that except for the quick trips (since Wegmans is about 2-3 miles farther away) Wegmans is for us. And, except for some things at <a href="http://www.vitacost.com/?csrc=PPCYB-vitacost&mtp=ejVojyEVV|pcrid|433819795"><span style="color: blue;">VitaCost</span></a>, Wegmans usually has many health-food items for a pretty decent price! Also to mention, they have W-kids, which Ruby Red loves, so why wouldn't I go there?! <br />
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Now on to my Wegmans shopping experience. Oh yes, there's more.... Once Ruby Red is dropped off and happily playing, Baby Blue and I make our way down the aisles that the Wegmans shopping list has carefully organized for me so that we're not back-tracking our footsteps. My husband was amazed by the ease of the list when I used it again for a different trip. I would have him look at the list and he'd go off and get me a few things. He told me the list was incredible and that he'd be able to do all my shopping with no mistakes once baby comes saying it's "husband-proof" (his words, not mine). I mean, they do have cute little pictures and everything so it's really quite hard to mess up.<br />
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When my husband isn't with us I also ask for a carry-out. I get the kiddos buckled into the car and they load my groceries, and since they're not allowed to accept tips it's all very easy for the mom with kids in tow. At first I was really awkward about asking for this and only tried it after seeing two other moms ask for one. It really was quite wonderful. However, I have to point out that I only use this for big trips when my husband isn't there.<br />
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I know it may seem funny that I'm writing a whole post about my favorite grocery store, but I really really love this place and I didn't even mention the awesome cafe or bakery!<br />
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I don't know about other grocers, but if you don't have a Wegmans around you, you should check the websites of local stores to see if they print lists. It really does make it easier!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05603488747114931264noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-132570098937491505.post-73814064435558509042011-08-23T15:03:00.000-04:002011-08-23T15:03:42.845-04:00Getting Crafty <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit1ZZuA83xzKX0tz1U8-xax5NmWbHXrgDgVHUH4ciSwiK37wpQ5VUKl2QLzM3j6tzJ7m7Vpri7HXCqXj9J-JS9yeJwWeSb7Vh_0mxQ9jV_-ZIFtu4B2bP5kWLh7oQoLZxO6fAqeB4azpg/s1600/sewing+machine.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="284" qaa="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit1ZZuA83xzKX0tz1U8-xax5NmWbHXrgDgVHUH4ciSwiK37wpQ5VUKl2QLzM3j6tzJ7m7Vpri7HXCqXj9J-JS9yeJwWeSb7Vh_0mxQ9jV_-ZIFtu4B2bP5kWLh7oQoLZxO6fAqeB4azpg/s320/sewing+machine.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My sewing machine from the '60's<br />
</td></tr>
</tbody></table> A few weeks ago I decided to take a stab at making my own cloth wipes for the girls. We use so many and with another baby on the way, I thought I should probably start taking money-saving things like this more seriously. I referenced my sister-in-law's blog <a href="http://sewcuteseweasy.blogspot.com/2011/06/flannel-wipes.html"><span style="color: blue;">post</span></a> and instructions and off we went to the fabric store. Borrowing my mom's surger, it took about an hour to surge 80 wipes. Done!<br />
<br />
Even though it was so easy (I mean it was only 4 straight sides) it gave me enough of a boost to want to do more. I used to sew in middle and high school but the last thing I sewed was my graduation dress back in 2003. Now, I'm trying to be a frugal and practical stay-at-home momma and figured if I could get back into it, I could really save us some money. <br />
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Of course do I start with something easy? I'm not sure yet but I do know there are a lot of pieces and it's going to take some patience. Yet, my idea to make my own cloth pads for myself seems worth the effort. With a new baby on the way in 5 weeks, I know I'll be going through them. Granted I will use disposable for the 1st week or so, but my thought is that not only is it going to save me money since they last for years, but it's also healthier and, in reality, less disgusting going in the wash instead of a landfill where they will never decompose. Ew!<br />
<br />
After buying the fabric a little at a time using coupons, I finally have all the flannel and PUL material cut out. I also had the idea of cutting and surging my old pre-fold cloth diapers to use as the inserts. Now all I have to do is get this old 1969 sewing machine up and running. This morning I cleaned it from top to bottom- a very unpleasant task as it was covered with mice droppings since it's sat in my parents garage/barn for about 5-10 years. That done, we're off to see if it works! I'll keep you posted on my rather big, at this point anyway, project!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05603488747114931264noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-132570098937491505.post-29578976571844418772011-08-16T11:33:00.000-04:002011-08-16T11:33:27.761-04:00Creekside Meandor<div style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img height="240" src="http://www.erh.noaa.gov/nerfc/photos/Cayuga_creek.jpg" width="320" /></div>Before my husband left for a week-long trip we wanted to spend some fun quality time with the girls. We, however, did not want to stay at home but also didn't want to spend money. It was such a beautiful sunny day so we decided to take a walk to the park to go wading in the creek. It was so much fun! The girls hopped (carefully) right in to the little creek and babbling brook and off we went "exploring". We followed little minnows, crawfish, tadpoles and other schools of fish. We also climbed and hopped rocks, although this was a bit tricky since they were slippery. It was such a relaxing afternoon. We all got pretty dirty as we all slipped several times into muddy puddles but it was so worth it. The smiles on their faces and shrieks of joy coming from them as they splashed and ran after the schools of fish was priceless.<br />
This is how most of our summer has been spent- outside doing free family activites. We have enjoyed every single minute of our free-time together this summer! I hope you have taken advantage of the summer outside if weather has allowed for it!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05603488747114931264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-132570098937491505.post-64370079186948740202011-08-14T14:09:00.000-04:002011-08-14T14:09:13.598-04:00Baby-led weaning<br />
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://rubypines.files.wordpress.com/2010/03/breastfeeding.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://rubypines.files.wordpress.com/2010/03/breastfeeding.jpg" width="311" /></a></div><br />
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One thing I was excited about the most when I first learned I was expecting Ruby Red was breastfeeding. I couldn't wait! I read all I could to put to rest any questions that might arise from problems breastfeeding. I was confident and it was going to work. Working in a daycare setting full-time, and in the infant room to boot, I saw many mothers start out breastfeeding only to end that relationship around 3 months. It saddened me and I was determined that was not going to be me. <br />
<br />
Ruby Red latched on right away, within 10 minutes of being born, and I thought "this is pretty easy". Hours later I would take back those thoughts as she tried and tried to get a good latch and just couldn't. I didn't understand it. I had heard of babies screaming with the breast in the baby's mouth without the baby closing his mouth to latch on, but she was actually trying. So why was this so difficult?! I cried and became increasingly frustrated. This was supposed to be natural?! My mom was a great support as she had problems breastfeeding me in the beginning and had also coached many moms on how to breastfeed successfully as a neonatal and lactation nurse. She tried to put my mind at ease by telling me we'd get it. But that night I was desperate. I asked for a nurse who could help me- she was amazing and spent her entire night shift with Ruby Red and I until she pitifully latched on. When the pediatrician arrived the next day, we learned she was having trouble because she was tongue-tied. Great- the<em> only</em> thing I didn't research was whether to snip the frenuluum or not and how to help stretch it if I decided not to. After much thought I decided to leave it alone. I wanted to keep things as natural as I could and didn't want the pain of snipping the frenuluum to interfere with breastfeeding. We'd just have to work hard at getting this to work and I knew it would eventually stretch enough for her tongue to stick out to eat. I was right but it was a long process! By the time it became "natural" for us my let-downs took forever and were pitiful until she got going....which she barely ever did since she'd fall asleep from being exhausted trying. I began to drink Mother's Milk tea, take fenugreek and pump around the clock. This gave me enough milk to at least give her my breastmilk in a bottle. I was sad that I sometimes had to resort to the bottle, but she was getting the best nutrition and I had to do what was best for her. I was told she was "failure to thrive" by not only the pediatrician but also our homeopath, so I knew the bottle was sometimes necessary. (She wasn't gaining weight at all her 1st 3 months). She never ever nursed long enough to get the hind-milk containing the good fat she needed, so I would pump this into a bottle for her and she finally started gaining weight at 3 1/2 months. It would be a long and difficult journey. I spent many days topless and in the bathtub with her, but it wasn't because of a lack of bonding that she and I had a strained breastfeeding relationship. We made it 10 1/2 months before I decided to put her on raw milk and say we were done. I cried for 2 weeks straight and bottle-fed her in bedrooms at people's houses, embarrassed and not wanting anyone to know we were done. Thankfully I had a lot of affirmation from family who knew I wasn't a failure and had given it my all. Once on raw milk she became the content little baby I knew she could be and has been the healthiest, happiest, strongest little girl ever since.<br />
<br />
It was different with Baby Blue. Much different! She latched on and wanted only momma from the start. The first time my husband and I tried leaving her with grandparents and a bottle at 4 months, we were called home during the previews of a movie because she refused the bottle and was screaming. She continued to refuse the bottle until she was 8 months, and even then it took quite a bit of convincing but it was okay and my husband and I simply brought her along on our dates. I hoped to nurse her until she was at least 18 months, just like I had hoped with Ruby Red. It seemed like this would defintely happen this time and I was thrilled. But one morning in late January she saw her sister and her two friends with sippy cups and before I could stop her she was sucking away at her sister's sippy with newfound happiness on her face. I panicked and took it away from her as quick as I could and goodness was she mad at me! No way was she going to like that sippy this early! But it was too late. Whenever she found one laying around (which was often as I was watching my girlfriends two little girls two days a week), she jumped on the opportunity to snatch one. Yet she still loved nursing and so I was "okay" with it, although I tried to discourage it as much as I could. Mid-February she suddenly refused to nurse altogether and I cried. I wanted another 7 months nursing her. I knew I was expecting another baby by this time but I wasn't planning on weaning her until 16 months. (The thought of tandem nursing overwhelmed me as I would have 3 kids 3 and under. I know it can be done but the thought stressed me out.) My sister-in-law helped me to see that I wasn't a failure and that this was, in fact, baby-led weaning; it was in her time, not mine. Within 3 weeks she was totally weaned and on raw milk. I tried a few times after that to nurse and she would suckle but I knew she wasn't getting anything. After awhile that became painful and so I was finally ready to let go.<br />
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I don't know what the future holds for this new little baby but I'm hoping that the 1st year will, at the very least, go as smoothly as Baby Blue's. It's important to keep in mind that every mother and every baby is different. I've seen mom's nurse for years and others who weren't as committed. I firmly believe that breastmilk is <em>the absolute best</em> and a necessity for babies, the length of time just differs greatly between families. <br />
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Oh yes, one more thing- anyone who would argue that the use of a binki discourages breastfeeding I find to be wrong. I'm sorry I'm putting it out there so bluntly but I do. I don't think babies should be given anything but momma for the 1st few months, until breastfeeding is established. However, we used pacifiers for both our girls from 3-4 months on and only after they were<em> fully</em> done nursing and dozing off to sleep and in the car. I will argue with anyone who says this was why my girls weaned when they did. I know them- that was <em>not </em>the reason! They still woke up every couple of hours to breastfeed day and night and never wanted the binki if they could have mommy!<br />
<br />
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05603488747114931264noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-132570098937491505.post-5622995651621684682011-08-08T14:56:00.000-04:002011-08-08T14:56:16.005-04:00The Big Birthday DebateAbout a week ago my oldest turned 3! I cannot even believe it. We've come so far in 3 years and our lives have changed so much. We have been so incredibly blessed!<br />
<br />
As the time to start planning a birthday party for Ruby Red approached, my husband and I hemmed and hawed about whether or not to invite great aunts and uncles and my husband's co-workers. It may seem odd to even consider co-workers, but with husbands that travel as often, sporadic, and last-minute as ours do, we have become second families to each other and celebrate our children's birthdays and even holidays like Thanksgiving together. I was worried about how big the party would be but my husband and I settled on inviting everyone. It's an honor and a blessing to have such loving family and friends who want to be a part of your little kiddos lives and since we won't be with this group of friends forever or in this area for too much longer, it just felt right. We've resolved that these people really love us and our children and are so excited when asked to come to their parties, so we will do just that. The girls parties will be significantly smaller as we move away from family so we're going to appreciate it right now. <br />
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The only problem my husband and I had with the big party was all the gifts. Sure I could, and did last year, put a note in the invitations saying "no gifts necessary" but I've realized that if they don't want to they won't bring a gift, and if they want to they will anyway. In fact, I resolved that this time if someone asked me what she wanted or liked I would give very forthright answers. I hate it when I ask someone what they're child is interested in and the parents acts all humble saying "Oh you don't need to get her/him anything...." It drives me crazy! If I'm asking, I'm going to get the child something so please give me some direction. I don't find you modest. I find it down-right frustrating as I fumble through the kid's aisles wondering what the heck the child and parent will be ok with! I know I don't have to get "little Mary" something, but maybe I want to so please help me out unless you want to complain about the gift I did choose. (Obviousy this is a big pet-peeve of mine!)<br />
<br />
As her party approached we were both a little anxious as we didn't know what to expect with presents. We surely didn't invite anybody for the gifts but knew they would be there, looming over both of us like a big rain-cloud. I also wasn't sure how Ruby Red would react to gifts. Many parents that I am friends with have told stories of how their kids were out of control with the "gimmies" on their birthdays and how embarrassing it was....I've also witnessed it and been appalled. But those same parents complain about the volume of toys in their house and I'm left wondering how many they really have. I've actually wanted a few more toys for Ruby Red, who has since become bored with all the baby toys her sister is in to playing with. However, I also wanted it clear to Ruby Red that it's not about the gifts but about the people who love her and want to share her special day with her. Never getting new toys unless it's her birthday or Christmas, I was worried she would be on "gift-overload". <br />
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Ruby Red was a true gem and set the tone very nicely. In fact, I was so impressed with her graciousness with every gift, many times running up to whoever gave her the latest gift to thank them and give them a hug. I here have to take a moment to thank her grandparents as well. I have seen that children who get gifts all year long from grandmas and grandpas tend to be more bratty than others. No really. It's like they think they're entitled to be spoiled. I don't blame the children but the parents who don't nip this in the bud. My parents and in-laws have given an occastional unexpected gift here and there, but it's always been something thoughtful and small and often needed like an outfit or pair of shoes. When she does receive gifts she truly appreciates them because she's not looking for them. For anyone who knows Ruby Red, her 1st "love language" may be quality time but her 2nd is gift giving. Two tiny orange tic tacs as a reward for a good day send her through the roof with joy and a popcicle at grandma's is amazing! (For the record, even though we have popcicles at home, they're more for when a visitor comes so they're still a big deal to her....) It's not about how big it is, it's the thought behind that little gift and I hope she's learning that. Her grandparents have certainly helped in that department and I thank them for setting their priorities for our children by not being excessive, but rather loving and selfless in ways that extend beyond all the "stuff" and help her focus herself on her true prize of getting to Heaven.<br />
<br />
So, in summary, thank you to everyone who loves our girls so much. And thank you to Ruby Red. Mommy and daddy were both so proud of you. We hope you have a fun and lively 3rd year. I can't wait to see all the things you create, all the kisses you give the new baby, and all the time you spend playing with Baby Blue. You are a greater gift than we could have ever imagined!<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheMaoafuh8MZgbem5JOjNVXtYKW95Q00iNTvQ6TA7QNOu_CymaTSMVq7irDtDmmpdxic-LsydvIBOGuk-WiUA4pnH3cUFSW67_0xnn7AuyG8kwGLYahmSl6Q8fFXhpVMoIfZZEQkWata4/s1600/100_5133.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" naa="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheMaoafuh8MZgbem5JOjNVXtYKW95Q00iNTvQ6TA7QNOu_CymaTSMVq7irDtDmmpdxic-LsydvIBOGuk-WiUA4pnH3cUFSW67_0xnn7AuyG8kwGLYahmSl6Q8fFXhpVMoIfZZEQkWata4/s320/100_5133.JPG" width="270" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ruby Red thanking her Godmother<br />
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05603488747114931264noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-132570098937491505.post-32424599187302270782011-08-02T14:44:00.001-04:002011-08-03T13:15:27.000-04:00Our Road to Having a HomebirthPeople who know how crazy and fast my labor with Baby Blue was probably assume that the reason my husband and I are choosing a homebirth with this baby is that we don't want another baby born in the car. Although this made our decision a clear and easy one, it is not the main reason. <br />
<br />
Once I found out I was expecting our first child I looked into every option and was drawn to the idea of a homebirth. Unfortunately this was not received with support from people I worked with. As I began researching more I felt it was a safe option, but then I also knew several women who had homebirths previously and let's just say a few left me feeling less than confident in the saftey factor. In fact, I became down-right afraid of what labor and birth entailed because of their haunting stories of their homebirths, so my husband and I decided that a hospital birth was the best way for our first little one. The birth went as smoothly as can be expected in a hospital setting, as long as I stood firm- even kicking a nurse because she really needed to back off. In any event, I look back on that birth with great fondness and no regret. I remember her purple little body being laid on my chest and me thinking, "She is not my baby...she is ALL my husband....but she's so pretty and I love her". Thankfully I had the presence of mind to insist on breastfeeding right away and she seemed quite enthusiastic about the idea. They let me completely finish feeding her before I handed her to my husband and mother while I was stitched up. (Because she came so fast I had a 3rd, almost 4th degree tear... This was truly the worst part of it all.) The nurses were actually great this first time around in the hospital- very supportive, left us alone, let my daughter room in and never separated us. I had the greatest nurse (she reminded me of an old spirited southern nanny) who helped Ruby Red latch on and helped us breastfeed successfully. My OB/GYN was amazing as well and very open to whatever I wanted. I was very lucky.<br />
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The second time around I knew I couldn't listen to anyone else's stories of their births, whether in the hospital or at home, and had to go with my "gut"- and that was telling me to go with a homebirth. Yet my husband was skeptical, offering that he'd be OK with the decision to birth at home but not entirely comfortable with the idea. But I needed him to be more than OK- I needed him on-board 100% and knew that he wasn't. I have also learned that he comes around in his own time and so I prayed for wisdom, clarity and open-mindedness on both our parts. It became apparent that he wasn't going to be comfortable with a homebirth and I willingly accepted that. More than anything I needed us to be on the same page and I knew I could hold my own in a hospital setting so the thought didn't worry me in the least. I was somewhat criticized for letting how my husband felt affect my decision, but I knew it was the right thing to do. I prayed that through this birth my husband would see that there was a better way, but I also prayed for the safety of the baby and myself. I didn't want either of us to suffer to prove anything. God truly took care of this as our little Baby Blue couldn't wait any longer and arrived en route to the hospital, completely healthy and kicking away on my chest. She was a champ from the start and I again insisted on breastfeeding her before any "checks" be done on either one of us and the hospital obliged. This time I had an obnoxious nurse about my age who treated me like I was stupid and bossed me around, telling me I wasn't doing things right by having her sleep in bed with me and that I was nursing her too much. After putting that nurse in her place and being assigned a new one, our stay was lovely and relaxing and I had a lot of time to bond with her before we brought her home to meet Ruby Red. It really was a blessing in disguise since our Ruby Red broke a fever of 104 degrees the night I went into labor with Baby Blue. She lay on the couch listless and so sick and both her grandmothers did more to take care of her and give her the snuggles she needed than I would have been able to. I ached to be with her yet I needed to be with my new baby. God knew what He was doing and it really did work out the way it was supposed to.<br />
<br />
Immediately after the birth of Baby Blue I was less than willing to compromise the third time around and was pretty frank with my husband. He instantly agreed that we'd go for a homebirth this time and became informed so that he, too, would be confident in our decision. He has been nothing but supportive and fought for what I want on more than one occasion this pregnancy. It's amazing to see the transformation and when I suggest something that I think may be a point of stress for us to talk through, he has trusted me, researched and backed me on everything. We were originally hoping to go with an unassisted homebirth and he willingly said he'd give it a shot. After much prayer I'm the one who decided this wasn't right for now. My previous two births being so quick I had no time to control pushing to reduce tearing or change positions. I also went into shock both times and was pretty sick afterwards, as my body didn't have time to ease into labor...and then suddendly there was a person coming out of my body. My husband was a huge factor in my being OK after the birth of both girls, but I'm still apprehensive about the tearing. In talking to my midwife about how I wanted to have an unassisted birth she has been nothing but supportive and encouraging, reassuring us that she will stand back and basically let us still have that unassisted birth, while being there to make sure I'm OK after the baby is born. I feel like I'm getting the best of both worlds as eveyone who I want to support me is doing so.<br />
<br />
I am more than excited about the birth of this baby. My husband has been the most incredible support with my other two births and I couldn't do this without him. I'd like to call him my amazing "doula" but he really wouldn't like that... Yet he really does know how to keep me calm and focused, which is quite a task as my body goes from 0-1000 in minutes. It's similar to a sprint- most women experience going through a marathon where they can at least ease into it a little bit and process what's going on, but so far I have had time for neither. We have pictures of us, our sonogram picture and the Blessed Mother present during the birth and he reminds me to unite my pain to the Cross. It is a very unifying and holy experience and takes away most anxiety. It truly is beautiful for us and I cannot wait to experience it with him again....except for those last few minutes of course. But those are fleeting and behold the most precious gift of a new life that we have cooperated in bringing into this world.<br />
<br />
I have no regrets with our decisions in the past. They have helped shaped us both into true advocates for homebirth and fighting for what a woman wants and deserves during birth. Those experiences also give me a deep respect for each woman who decides to do it in her own way. One way is NOT better or more beautiful than the other. Each brings a little baby into the world and each shapes your character and hopefully brings you and your spouse closer together. True, one way is best for you and your spouse and I hope you follow your heart in your decision.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05603488747114931264noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-132570098937491505.post-49185027206051208572011-07-08T17:19:00.000-04:002011-07-08T17:19:59.385-04:00I eagerly await every moment spent with you<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Today was one of those days... You know the kind I'm talking about. The kids are miserable and nothing will help settle them down. Not even stopping everything you're doing to just sit and hold them helps. You give them Chamomilla 200c and an icy thing for them to chew on- both bringing no relief. Finally you resolve that even though the baby has been awake for only an hour, maybe laying her down would be best. Great! One child in a better mood. ...Now on to the other who's pining for attention, yet not wanting to do anything you suggest. And, as I'm racking my brain for what to do with her I'm also staring at 2 loads of unfolded laundry, the dirty cloth diapers are calling out my name, there's dog hair everywhere, the floor has spill spots everywhere and don't even get me started on the bathroom... Maybe it sounds like I'm losing it or exaggerating, but unfortunately I am not. I decide to make cleaning fun and include my daughter. It starts out great. We vacuum first, backwards I know, but I just had to get all that dog hair gone. And then, my mood turns from getting better to instantly worse as I see all the cobwebs and dust bunnies under furniture, in corners and all around the baseboards. If you don't know me, then believe me when I tell you this is a nightmare for me. The baby is now awake and I am in a foul mood- and at nobody but myself.</div>In desperation I decide we're leaving the house for the day. I cannot deal with this calmly and rationally in the mood I'm in and do not want to take it out on 2 adorably innocent little girls. <br />
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Best decision I've ever made!<br />
<br />
We headed downtown for what would become a most pleasant afternoon at the waterfront, with a picnic lunch, participating in free toddler activities that they have every Friday in the summer and then meeting up with our handsome man for some ice cream by the water. It was picture perfect. As we were walking with our girls my heart was all a-flutter and I couldn't help but think, "I feel like we're dating. I just love him." The girls completely enamored with seeing daddy during the workday, my mind began to wander and the thought came to me that whenever we're out either alone or as a family, I still get butterflies and go back to feeling like we're 17 again. As my husband walked towards his car, headed back to work, I watched him. I thanked God for him and that I get to see him every day. I couldn't wait until he got home that evening to spend more time together. Just seeing him and being out of the house put me in the best mood ever. <br />
Then I started to think again. Do I feel this way when I'm headed to Mass or am I this eager and in love when in front of the Blessed Sacrament? I should be. I don't dread going and often look forward to teaching my daughter about the Eucharist. But still, it's different. I don't think I often approach Mass or the Eucharist with such excitment, as if I am going to visit the Love of my life. Far too often I think that with the bustle of getting us all out of the house clean and happy I take our visits to Church for granted. This must change. Of course I'm going to have stressed out days where they don't want to cooperate, someone poops on the way out, there's still messy faces from breakfast and their hair hasn't been combed yet. I think my husband and I make a sincere effort to prepare for Mass but after seeing my husband today I realized that I have lately approached the Mass with more of a "Let's just get through this" and "I really hope the girls behave" attitude. I'm not saying we don't love Our Lord or enjoy going because I honestly think we both do. If we didn't, we simply wouldn't be going in the first place. I know faith is more than a feeling and I realize that feelings aren't the most important part but I do think they should be there. My whole self- body, mind, heart and soul- should long for the next time I will have Him in the Eucharist, as if one day is too long to go without Him. This is my challenge for the weeks ahead. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.catholictradition.org/Mary/virgin-eucharist.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="248" src="http://www.catholictradition.org/Mary/virgin-eucharist.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05603488747114931264noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-132570098937491505.post-17199174814735773372011-06-03T15:09:00.000-04:002011-06-03T15:09:31.950-04:00Motherly InstinctWhen I first found out I was pregnant with my oldest I knew there were going to be a lot of opinions and unwanted advice thrown at me. I also knew that it would be hard for me and my husband to sift through the information and figure out what was in the best interest of our children and what worked best for us. It was a long hard lesson and we made many "mistakes" along the way that have made us both more confident and better parents. Needless to say, this second time around we are the ones in control and refuse to be swayed by others.<br />
It is hardest when you're doing differently what your family is telling you how something should be done. Granted, this really hasn't happened too much as we've been blessed with support from both sides, but still I'm sure there are things that I have done as a mother that have left family rolling their eyes or disagreeing with me. We've learned that this is ok though because they mean well and give advice out of love (or at least I think). Maybe the advice they gave wasn't wrong when they went through this but it doesn't mean it's right for us. My husband and I struggled a lot in the beginning. As adults we had to realize that we were ADULTS. We are well-educated and continue to do research, not just on the internet but from many sources and weigh both the pros and cons with everything. I think except for breastfeeding we seriously sought out every option and considered it before figuring out what we would do...and we changed things as we saw one thing or another work or not work. I think it's important to admit when maybe it's time to try something else.lAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05603488747114931264noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-132570098937491505.post-91825776837430001602011-06-03T14:33:00.004-04:002011-06-03T15:27:28.424-04:00Adding a blog buttonYou know those little blog buttons you see on the side bars of people's blogs? Well I've been wanting one for sometime but the thought of figuring it all out completely overwhelmed me. After 2 full and frustrating days of googling instructions and trying to upload it with the picture showing, I have finally done it!<br />
<br />
Here are easy step by step instructions:<br />
Thank you to <a href="http://www.musingsofahousewife.com/2009/05/how-to-create-a-button-code.html"><span style="color: blue;">Musings of a Housewife</span></a> for her (finally!) easy-for-anyone-to-do instructions!<br />
<br />
<ul><li>First you'll want to create your button. </li>
</ul>Use either Picasa or Photobucket. <br />
For mine, I used Picasa to create it, but then uploaded it into Photobucket for the URL you will need. At least for me, this was the only way I got the button to show up without hyperlinks.<br />
Make sure that when you create it, it's a square. At the end, resize it to either 125x125 pixels or 150x150 pixels. Save it and upload. Like I said, I saved it on my computer in my pictures folder, then uploaded it to Photobucket.<br />
You can use different software and pay to get images, but I had an image already so didn't bother.<br />
<br />
<ul><li>For the button <em>only. </em>Replace the Web Page URL with the link to your blog. Make sure you keep the quotation marks! Replace the Image URL with the IMG code (for Photobucket). Delete the brackets [IMG] before and after the URL. Make sure you don't delete the quotation marks!</li>
</ul><<code class="xml keyword"><strong><span style="color: #006699;">a</span></strong></code> <code class="xml color1"><span style="color: grey;">href</span></code><code class="xml plain">=</code><code class="xml string"><span style="color: blue;">"Web Page URL"</span></code><code class="xml plain">><</code><code class="xml keyword"><strong><span style="color: #006699;">img</span></strong></code> <code class="xml color1"><span style="color: grey;">src</span></code><code class="xml plain">=</code><code class="xml string"><span style="color: blue;">"Image URL"</span></code><code class="xml plain">></</code><code class="xml keyword"><strong><span style="color: #006699;">a</span></strong></code><code class="xml plain">></code><br />
<br />
<ul><li>For the button <em>with</em> the drop box for the code (This allows others to snatch your code to put on their blog. This is an easy way for others to go to your blog, by simply clicking on your button in someone else's blog!)</li>
</ul>This is what mine looks like (replace all of my info with yours, using above instructions for blog and image URL): <br />
<br />
<a href="<a href="http://lifewellloved.blogspot.com/%22%3E%3Cimg">http://lifewellloved.blogspot.com/%22%3E%3Cimg</a> src="<a href="http://i1131.photobucket.com/albums/m555/created2bholy/myblogbutton.jpg">http://i1131.photobucket.com/albums/m555/created2bholy/myblogbutton.jpg</a>" border="0" /></a><p><textarea <br />
2 class="tiny" name="1" rows="3" cols="18"><br /><a href="<a href="http://lifewellloved.blogspot.com/%22%3E%3Cimg">http://lifewellloved.blogspot.com/%22%3E%3Cimg</a> <br />
3 src="<a href="http://i1131.photobucket.com/albums/m555/created2bholy/myblogbutton.jpg">http://i1131.photobucket.com/albums/m555/created2bholy/myblogbutton.jpg</a>" border="0" /></a></textarea></p><br />
<br />
Voila!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05603488747114931264noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-132570098937491505.post-18665731142944678972011-06-02T21:22:00.004-04:002011-06-03T15:04:00.841-04:00Thank you!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; height: 183px; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; width: 211px;"> <em> </em></div><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEik76bicrJE050UeW7m2YPuw8-G1Bx_8QT6w-6ghURjVzj8G4F-odhiSunpEs3H3yMmoE9lbdyaVZ3G3IugZVaM58SRfwp0k6JYlgbtILBbNytqs0qnLb2Z7IWUCula6bSAKVZw3FpVtK0/s1600/pay_it_forward.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="cssfloat: left; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEik76bicrJE050UeW7m2YPuw8-G1Bx_8QT6w-6ghURjVzj8G4F-odhiSunpEs3H3yMmoE9lbdyaVZ3G3IugZVaM58SRfwp0k6JYlgbtILBbNytqs0qnLb2Z7IWUCula6bSAKVZw3FpVtK0/s1600/pay_it_forward.jpg" /></a><br />
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><em> <span style="color: #0b5394;">I received my 1st blogging award yesterday from my sister-in-law! She began blogging a few months before me and after seeing how she and our other SIL blogged as a sort of journaling it sounded like a good idea. </span></em></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
<span style="color: #0b5394;">There are rules for me to follow in posting this so I'm going to jump right into it:</span></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black; font-family: Times; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #990000;">1) Tell who gave it to you. </span></span></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #990000; font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;">My sister-in-law, one of my closest friends and supports in motherhood. She and I grew up together. I love that our little girls will grow up together and I love that she and I are mommys together. It makes the tough times easier when you have someone who thinks the same way you do and is always encouraging- this is what she is for me. Check out her blog </span><a href="http://mychildisveryadvanced.blogspot.com/"><span style="font-size: small;">here</span></a><span style="font-size: small;">!</span></span></span></div><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black; font-family: Times; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #990000; font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: x-small; line-height: normal;"></span></span><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #990000;">2) Link back to their <a href="http://mychildisveryadvanced.blogspot.com/">blog</a>.</span></span></b><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #990000;"><br />
</span></span><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #990000;">3) Pass it on to five more bloggers. </span></span></b><br />
<ul><li style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #4c1130;"><a href="http://agiftuniverse.blogspot.com/">A Gift Universe</a></span></span></b></li>
<li style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;"><a href="http://guggiedaly.blogspot.com/">The Guggie Daily</a></span></span></b></li>
<li style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;"><a href="http://www.feelslikehomeblog.com/">Feels Like Home</a></span></span></b></li>
<li style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;"><a href="http://raisingolives.com/">Raising Olives</a></span></span></b></li>
<li style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong><a href="http://unschoolpreschool.com/"><span style="color: purple;">Unschool Preschool</span></a></strong></li>
</ul><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;"></div><strong><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #990000;">4) Name someone who has really affected you in some way. <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;">Well I always seem to mention my husband, so this time I'll choose my mom. She is my other rock and support. I trust my girls with her completely and know they're always in good hands when with her. On top of this, she one of my best friends and we often do things like "gym dates", and when time allows coffee and movie dates. She's fun to simply hang out with too- we both love to talk so the conversation is always flowing. (I think my husband and dad like it because all they have to do is listen...or maybe not...we might not notice if they're ignoring us, but I don't think they do ;) )</span></span></span></strong><br />
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="clear: both; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #990000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><i>If you've been awarded today, here's how to add it to your profile:</i></span></span></span></strong></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #990000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><i>Click on the picture and save it to your computer.</i></span></span></span></strong></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #990000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><i>Upload it onto your blog anywhere you'd like. </i></span></span></span></strong></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #990000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><i>Some people have separate pages for awards; others display them using a gadget on the side.</i></span></span></span></strong></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #990000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><i>Next, spread it to 5 other people!</i></span></span></span></strong></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #990000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><i>Let them know you've given it to them. :)</i></span></span></span></strong></div></div></div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05603488747114931264noreply@blogger.com1