30 Days of Thankfulness: Day 4

I'm thankful for my sight.
Without my eyes and my ability to see I would miss out on a whole lot in this world. I know it's easy to take something like your sight for granted.
I wouldn't be able to see the dimples on my son's cheeks when he smiles, or the mischievous twinkle in my daughter's eyes.

30 Days of Thankfulness: Day 3

I'm thankful for my son, Samuel Richard.
He's still such a tiny little man but he's brought so much joy in the past three months since he was born.
Much of my pregnancy with him was one worry after another, but he proved to be amazing and came out perfect. He was early to smile and just loves to be talked to and played with. He already has this deep belly laugh that can go on and on.
I thought Sophia was a happy baby but he proved me wrong. He is one of the sweetest babies I have ever met, even though everyone promised me I'd never get a baby as easy as my daughter.

30 Days of Thankfulness: Day 2

I am thankful for my daughter Sophia Grace.
She is my first born child.
The first time her heart began beating she made me something amazing, a mother. With her first breath she proved that miracles are real. Such a good baby that grew up into an amazing toddler. She's so beautiful and inquisitive, she makes life so much fun. It's amazing to see life through the eyes of someone so little, it makes every experience better.

Halloween 2011

Halloween with a 15 month old and a 3 month old is fun.

Carl, Sophia, and I dressed as pirates. Poor Sam was Tigger because they didn't make a baby pirate costume

I'm so proud of Sophia, she actually walked a lot during trick or treat. And yes I did give her some candy, after I went through and took out the ones she could have (hard candy or round candies or candies mommy loves). So onto the pictures!

 

Sophia's Halloween dress!

Sam's outfit (it says "I'm batty for mommy")

Oh mommy, stop taking my picture

Mom, there seems to be a cat on me...

Yar har, mateys!!!

T. I. Double Guh. Err

Pirate mommy

Pirate daddy

She was very tired at the end of trick or treat

My little Tigger.

30 Days of Thankfulness: Day 1

I'm thankful for my husband with out this man my life would be very different. He adds humor and joy to my day by barely trying. I'm lucky to have him.

October 15th

 

I know October is the official breast cancer awareness month. I do not wish to deter from that because it is something we need to be aware of. But October also holds another date I’m not sure many of you would recognize. During the month of October we discuss and raise awareness about breast cancer. Did you know that 1 in 8 women in the United States will develop invasive breast cancer over the course of her lifetime? Everyone knows about this and talks about it. But would you know that something that has a statistic of 1 in 4 is rarely if ever talked about? This is because it’s considered a taboo.

Taboo [tuh-boo, ta-] - proscribed by society as improper or unacceptable

Something that is taboo is something we don’t talk about, we’re afraid too for reasons of being uncomfortable or fear of judgment. Typically something that is “taboo” is something that isn’t commonplace. But is something that has a 1 in 4 statistic uncommon?  I certainly don’t think so.

1 in 4 women will experience pregnancy and infant loss. I’m sure you know more than 4 women. But when was the last time you sat with a bunch of people and discussed how life changing and heart breaking a miscarriage is? When was the last time you called a woman who lived through infant loss a survivor?

We don’t talk about this because women are created to make babies, carry them for 9 months and then deliver a healthy babe into the world to grow up. And for a woman to get pregnant and lose that baby just isn’t normal. Guess what it is, tragically, normal.

Pregnancy and infant loss ARE life changing and heart breaking and the women who come out the other end ARE survivors.

At the end of October 2009 I found out I was pregnant. My first pregnancy! I was so excited, Carl was so excited, and once I got the nerve to tell them my family was excited. The word miscarriage never, ever crossed my mind. I knew what the term meant but it was real in my life, I never discussed it or even thought about it because I thought it was really rare. Everyone I knew who got pregnant had those babies, so why would I be different? I lived in a blissful state of naivety for 4 days happy as a clam dreaming about my baby.

Unfortunately it all changed very fast. I began losing the baby. I at first found every excuse not to believe it but I instantly knew it wasn’t good. I only truly accepted this fate during a relatively traumatic incident during the a Halloween parade. I sat and cried for weeks about that baby. I worked in a daycare for God’s sake! It was cruel punishment to go to work each day to see babies and know I had lost mine.  

You might think it ends there but the effects linger. I got pregnant again shortly after. But once I knew I was pregnant I also was sure it wouldn’t hold. I spent my entire pregnancy with Sophia holding my breath and waiting for the other shoe to drop, there were times in the beginning when I honestly thought it had. October came again and I actually debated not going to the parade with my family. But I sucked it up and bundled up my newborn and went out. I spent the entire parade wanting to cry but wouldn’t because I didn’t want t ruin anyone else’s good time. And when I got pregnant with my son you would think having a successful pregnancy under my belt would make me comfortable again. Nope. I will never being able to view another pregnancy with the same rose colored glasses again. I will always wait for the other shoe to drop.

This is how I felt even though I had known for less than a week. Imagine how the women who managed to see their babies on ultrasound or the ones that actually got to find out the gender feel. And yet we’re expected not to talk about it because it makes people uncomfortable, sad, or whatever. THIS IS REAL. Not all babies who are conceived make it to be born.

This Saturday, October 15, is National Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Day. Do your part to make this less taboo and lighten the burden on the women affected.

Green Cleaning Ideas

Once again in my attempt to save money I've found some ideas I plan to use shortly.

A lot of the time "green" living can cross with "frugal" living if you know how to do it.

I cloth diaper so this whole thing came from me searching for a cloth diaper detergent I could make at home. On one of the message boards I frequent I found this blog (The Eco-Friendly Family) that has more than just diaper detergent! It includes detergent for regular clothes, an all purpose cleaner, and a glass cleaner.

I can't wait to try these out.

The Grocery Cart Challenge

I stay at home as I'm sure you've figure out. With everything the way it is it's hard to get by on two salaries sometimes, let a lone one.

 I'm always looking for new ideas and ways to help save money. Of course I try to be frugal but when it's a challenge it makes it more fun.

I found this blog called the Grocery Cart Challenge, written by a blogger named Gayle, who devised the "challenge" out of necessity. Her challenge? Feed a family of 6 on $60 a week.

If you're too lazy to go check it out yourself, though I highly recommend you do, I'll give you the basic run down.

1. Set a budget for food, she said in the beginning this budget involved other groceries as well (toothpaste, paper towels, shampoo, etc.) but now she has more of a budget to move those off of her food budget. 
2. Take stock of everything you already have.
3. Make a menu. This might include searching recipe sites like food.com or allrecipes.com 
4. Look and see what you already have for the recipe, make a list of everything you don't have

Next you go shopping (DUH). Some shopping suggestions.

• Try to go shopping alone - aka leave the kids at home, distractions tend to add to more crap in the cart
• Eat a nice sized meal before you go- remember shopping on an empty stomach encourages craving buys
• Learn your stores- Don't be afraid of the discount stores (for people in my area this would be Amelia's, Aldi, Dollar General, and Dollar Tree) these will help you keep to your budget. Go shopping at these places first and then whatever is left go to your large grocery store.
• If you're a two car family (which I'm not) take the smaller of the two for less gas consumption and even more $$$ saved.
• oh yeah STICK TO THE LIST straying from the list will definitely put you over budget. Just because something is a "great deal" doesn't mean you need it, if its not on the list don't add it. If, AFTER you check out, you have money left at the end of your budget go back and grab a few if you must. 

Don't feel bad if you go over budget, if you look at her site a lot of times her first week of the month shopping is over budget (like $80) but then following weeks are only like $40. It all evens out.

I've decided to aim for a $50 a week budget, we do have one on formula so his food cost wont be included until we start solids. Because out money day falls every other Thursday I'll be doing my planning on Wednesday and shopping on Thursday.

We get paid this Thursday so I'll be starting then! I'll make sure to update!

It has been almost 2 months

On Thursday Sam turned 8 weeks old. It seems crazy how fast this time has gone.

I'm still alive with my two beautiful children who are both doing just fine.

Sophia is almost 14 months old, wow. I can't imagine where that time went and now with two everything is just zipping by.

Some pictures because I love pictures:

Sam 8.8.11 (just shy of 2 weeks)

Sophia 8.8.11- silly girl!

Poor Sam 8.8.11

My babies 8.18.11 (Sam 3 weeks)

8.25.11 (Sam 4 weeks)

Sam 8.28.11 (1 month old!)

Sophia 9.1.11 (13 months old!)

Sam SMILES! 9.12.11 (6.5 weeks)

Sophia 9.12.11

Babies 9.14.11 (Sam almost 7 weeks)

Outfits for Daddy 9.18.11 (Sam 7 weeks)

9.24.11 (Sam 8 weeks)

Sam 9.24.11 (8weeks)

Sophia 9.24.11

I'm alive still

Sam is 6 weeks old and Sophia is 13.5 months old. My babies just keep growing.
I keep forgetting to blog... oops.

There really is not much new. Carl works 3pm-11pm so I'm alone with them in the evenings which I think I do pretty kick ass with even though I'm ALONE. Now when people interrupt the routine that is a totally different story.

I'm even brave enough to babysit my friends daughter who's three months younger than Sophia. That was actually really fun. The girls kept each other busy and it was fun to see Sophia playing with someone close to her age.

Carl and I are on the Atkins diet. I need to lose weight just because I actually NEED to. Carl is trying to get down to 175 or below so he can join the Army, yes that's what I said. I'm stalling out right now (god damn being female) but Carl is down to 191 (from 205) since August 15th.

We're thinking of doing another god forsaken move. Conditions here are awful (see people interrupting my night time routine) and I'm losing my mind. One day we'll live somewhere for more than a year... one day.