January Smiles

I can't believe January is over already! How did that happen?

Here's a quick 5 things that made me smile this January:

1. I finally started a blog!

2. My birthday's in January, so that always makes me smile.

3. It snowed! And we actually got to play in it for a few minutes before it was too cold!

What I Will Not Teach My Boys

I've always struggled with my body image. I grew up in a house where I was constantly told how heavy I was. I blame my mother, she blames her father. My grandfather bought my grandmother a new car when she lost 50 lbs. That's just a little back story on how important weight/size was in the family growing up.

My senior year I had slimmed down a bit, yet I still thought I was too big (and I was larger than most of my friends in the "in-crowd"). I wish I knew how small I was and felt better about myself then.

My senior year (2004) with my sister

My husband is much smaller than I am. While dating, my grandmother asked me many times "He's okay that you're so much bigger than he is"? and similar questions. This isn't because my she's against "fat" people, but because my grandfather has always treated her as though it's awful that she's "fat". When I answered "he's happy with me just as I am" she would say how nice that is and good for me for finding someone that's okay with my size.

We're going to skip ahead to more recent times. I gained quite a bit of weight- about 60 lbs after high school. I tried weight watchers and that worked well when I stuck with it. Mostly, I think I just need to exercise. I went from playing 2 sports in high school to being a bump on a log basically.

My sister and I in 2011

Citrus Lane January 2014

We've been a Citrus Lane subscriber for awhile. For $29/month, you will receive 4-5 full-size products that are specifically geared towards your child's age and gender. Some subscription boxes you get a bunch of samples, but not Citrus Lane. We've received some really awesome things in boxes: A skip-hop lunch bag, green toys, and Barefoot Books. There's months that have awesome boxes and months that are not so awesome.

 

Our January Box came today- a little later than normal because of the crazy winter weather everyone's been having.

10 Years

We're in the process of planning our 10 year High School reunion. I was on the Executive Board in High School, so I'm on the planning committee. At our first meeting we were discussing the idea of having people fill out little questionnaires about themselves now and giving superlatives for certain things: most educated, most children, came the farthest distance, etc.

Prom

First off, I can't believe it's already been 10 years. It seems like just yesterday we were wandering halls, avoiding papers, and going to prom. 

 My BFF, Amber is also on the planning committee. She said if she had to do a write-up of how the past 10 years have been,  she'd be pleased and proud of where she is right now.

Campbell's Dinner Sauces

I was sent free product from Crowdtap to have a dinner party! The opinions below are my own.

Campbell's Sauces are a new product that is perfect for anyone that wants an awesome dinner, but doesn't have the time to spend making a fancy dinner from scratch.

Tonight for dinner we invited a few friends over to hang out and try out a Slow Cooker Sauce.

I chose Sweet Korean BBQ

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For the Slow Cooker Sauces, you simply put your meat in the slow cooker, open the bag and pour the sauce over the top. The bag will tell you how long to cook it and will suggest how to serve it.

A #DisneySide Giveaway!

I'm sharing a little bit of my #DisneySide @Home Celebration with my readers! Giveaway starts NOW and ends on 2/15/14 at midnight!

You will win an iphone5 cover highlighting their Story app. Check it out here!

Free Women's Clothing from Twice

I received a completely free, new to me outfit today! Read on to find out how you can too!

Twice sells top of the line used clothing. Brands like Gap, J. Crew, Banana Republic, Prada, Ralph Lauren, and more at up to 90% off retail!

Babies R US Great Trade in Starts Tomorrow!

It's Back!!  When you trade in your baby equipment, you'll receive a coupon to save 25% off of your new items at Babies R Us!  This year,  when you do your trade-in, you'll receive a coupon booket with over $100 in savings!

Hershey's Spreads

I was recently sent a new product to test from Crowdtap- Hershey's Spreads!

I immediately wanted to dip it in strawberries like the label, but we didn't have any.... so snacks it was!

It spreads on soooo creamy, just like peanut butter. It's not the healthiest option, but everything in proportion. It really tastes like a slightly melted Hershey's Bar.
I can definitely see us buying more for an easy treat.

What is Crowdtap?!?

Crowdtap is an online community that connects consumers with brands, directly influencing new products and marketing ideas.  With Crowdtap, you can share feedback with popular or new brands, test products, and win prizes!

How does Crowdtap work?

- Just click here and sign up for a Crowdtap account with your Facebook account
- Answer a few polls, called QuickHits, to help brands target you by your interests
- Visit and participate with the brands and offers that interest you
- Earn points by completing QuickHits, Challenges, and Missions.

How to earn with Crowdtap:

Our DisneySide @Home Celebration Package Arrived!

About a month ago, I was sent an email from Mom Select inviting me to apply to host a DisneySide @Home Celebration. I thought there was no way I'd be selected, but sure enough, I received an email last week saying I was a host!

*I received free products in order to host the Disney Side @Home Celebration. The opinions expressed here are my own.*

We're expecting 10-14" of snow here today, so I was hoping our UPS man would get here early, as our neighborhood isn't the nicest for snow.

The hubby met the UPS man outside to get our box of goodies!

 

Earn with Swagbucks!

If you aren't using Swagbucks yet, you're really missing out!

I ♥LOVE♥ Swagbucks, it is one of the easiest (and therefore, my favorite) ways to earn money online.

Some of the ways you can earn Swagbucks:

Pasta Faces!

We actually did this after dinner last night because Charlie insisted (and the pasta was dry).

I took a piece of cardstock paper and drew a circle on it by tracing a bowl with a marker.

Dyeing Pasta!

Over the holidays I pulled out some pasta for Charlie to put on a pipecleaner. He colored them with markers, we looped the pipecleaner closed, and he put it on the tree.

Daddy and Charlie went to the store today. While there, Charlie informed Daddy that they needed to get pasta "to do craft", so... in the cart the pasta went.

While Charlie was napping today, I dyed the pasta for some crafts. If you'd like to do this- it's super cheap and crazy easy! Things that all moms look for!

 

You will need:

-vinegar or alcohol

-pasta (any shape will do)

-food coloring

-wax paper

-ziploc baggies

 

 

Much Needed Date Night!

Last night I went on a much needed date night! And no, it wasn't with the hubby, though that would be nice too. I got together with another mommy that I haven't seen in what seems like FOREVER. It's so nice to go out and talk about things (even if it just about the kids and the hubbies).

My Nursing Must-Haves

Everyone is different, but these are the things I can't imagine doing without:

• A super-awesome supportive hubby

 

He gets Owen in the middle of the night, gives him to me to feed, and returns him to bed when he's done. If I didn't have Tommy to help me and tell me I'm doing a good job, I would've quit the first week.

Beautiful Breastfeeding?

I wanted to breastfeed Charlie, but with his heart, it took too much energy. He was using more energy trying to eat than the calories he was putting in. So... a pump was brought into our room and I started to pump. The nurses were all impressed at the crazy amount I was pumping. It's really amazing what our bodies can do. My body knew that he needed lots of that good stuff filled with calories to help him grow. I immediately felt disconnected with him though. Even in the hospital, everyone else was feeding him my milk and all I was doing was pumping.

Disney Side @Home Celebration!

I was selected out of thousands to host a Disney Side @Home Celebration! I have no idea what all this entails, but I'm psyched! Who doesn't love Disney?!? I can't wait to see what the package will have in it!

I'll do an unboxing when I receive it in the next few weeks, so keep an eye out!

In the meantime, check out Disney Side Celebrations and let out your Disney Side!

Miracle #2

Owen, our surprise baby...

From the time I found out I was pregnant, something did not seem right. I told a couple friends and my sister, that's it. I had spotted prior to the positive pregnancy test, stopped spotting, then spotted again. That was a giant red-flag that something was wrong. I know some people will spot through their entire pregnancy, but I'll call it a mother's instinct- I just knew.

Miracle #1

Charlie, our honeymoon baby (who was 100% planned), was born April 27, 2011. My pregnancy was very normal and rather easy until early April. I was swollen and pretty much puffy all over. On April 26th we went to a regular 38 week appointment. The doctor told me my blood pressure was high, diagnosed me with pre-eclampsia and sent us to Labor & Delivery. We hung out in triage for a few hours while they pumped me with fluids and watched heart rates for mommy and baby. I thought I was going to be sent home until a nurse came in and informed us I was being admitted and that they'd induce in the morning. This was scary, scary to us because we didn't have a bag packed and certainly didn't plan on having a baby that day. I'll speed up- I was induced at about 8am, failed to progress and his heart-rate kept fluctuating, so he was born via c-section after 7pm. He was perfect.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The next day the hospital pediatrician came to visit. He said Charlie had a heart murmur and they needed to do an echo on him to find out more. After they had done the echo that pediatrician came back in and asked where my husband was. I told him he went to get lunch and he said he would wait for my husband to return before talking to me. My heart sank. If everything was okay, he would've just told me.

Hi!

I'm not sure what to write about for my first post. I'll just tell you a little about my messy family of miracles. I married my best friend, it's cliche, I know... but it's true. We were married on a Monday, but the date was 8.9.10 and we thought that was pretty cool. Next thing we knew, we were expecting our first baby 9 months after our wedding! Talk about your honeymoon baby :-) Charlie was born 4.27.11 and completely changed our world. Then... in January 2013 we got an unexpected surprise and found out Charlie was going to be a big brother! Owen arrived 10.29.13 and once again, our life has been turned upside-down, but we wouldn't have it any other way!