He is Special

We celebrate special days in our house. The kids really look forward to the privilages that go along with that day, but no matter what we manage to forget to celebrate on the exact date sometimes. It really doesn't matter - in fact when we forget I don't even tell the kids - I simply announce that "tomorrow is your special day!" and go with it. This month we were a day late for both of the kids so it all worked out.

We didn't do anything fancy today, but it was still special. Sam chose cereal for breakfast, pizza in his lunch, and waffles for dinner. Daddy even put strawberry sauce and powdered sugar on top! He's going to be talking about that meal for months! He asked to go to the library after school. I picked out a new dinosaur book for him to check out. We played outside for over an hour when we got home. Sledding, 'snowboarding', climbing the mountains of snow that surround our yard, and throwing snowballs - kinda the last hurrah before the rain comes and washes away all our snow (hopefully!)

After dinner Sam and Daddy played dinosaur and then we played two rounds of the board game "Camp" per Sam's request. We had a fun evening together as a family and for the first time those last two hours before bedtime flew by. He never asked to watch TV. He didn't ask for a treat after dinner. It was a special night! We read their devotional and their Jesus Storybook Bible in Julia's room as has become our tradition and as I finish this up he's curled up in my bed for a sleepover.

I pray that the reason behind our special days (to fill up their love tanks) was successful today - I know my heart is overflowing with love for both of them!

What do you do to give your children the individual attention they crave?

Mommy and Me Monday - Our Fall Vacation

I posted a few photographs from our trip up North back in the Fall, but not very many. Instead I was busy putting together a book with 200+ photos in it. Oh what FUN that was! I used a combination of cell phone and DSLR shots to tell the story of our four glorious days in and around Duluth. I make a living designing books for other people so it was a real treat to make one using my own photos! (the four arrow icon in the lower right will allow you to view the book full screen)

Up North by Carrie Pauly | Make Your Own Book

Did you make it all the way through to the end? If you did you'll know why this book is extra special to our family! I managed to get myself in a few photos thanks to PapaBear and Sam's willingness to take over camera duties every once in a while.

Today's Mommy and Me Monday selection is from our last night when we stayed in a camper cabin in one of our favorite parks - Jay Cooke. We had the park almost to ourselves - something you can't say in the summer months, but in late October? Q.U.I.E.T!

The first two nights we stayed at the Edgewater Hotel and Waterpark and stored our perishables in the mini fridge. On Wednesday when it was time to say goodbye to our suite and hello to nature, we had our hotdogs, beans, S'mores, granola, hot chocolate, and gorp all ready to go. It was chilly that night with a few raindrops, but we were snug and warm in our heated cabin after dinner!

We don't get to take very many vacations because we are tied to the park much of the time so we had high expectations for this trip - it didn't disappoint!

Head on over to Krystyn's blog for more Mommy and Me moments!

Hosted by Krystyn at Really, Are You Serious?
And because I love book design and photography...here are a 10 tips on how to make your next family vacation book the best it can be!

1) take detail shots as well as wide sweeping shots. This is key to telling your story. Example in our book - the pages about the waterpark and our night in the camper cabin.

2) use the information your camera stores to look up the time you did things if you want to include those details in your book (came in handy when we were up before sunrise to watch the ship come into the harbor)

3) Even though the scene might not be 'picture perfect' take the photo anyway! When you piece your book together it's more about telling the story than only having beautiful photographs. Photos that are darker than you'd want or aren't 'picture perfect' can be put in a storyboard layout rather than a large 5x7 or 8x10 spread. (for example: the pictures of our food at Perkins)

4) You don't need captions for every picture - summarize the activity either under the photo or better yet, write on top of a photo that has a 'blank space' for writing

5) Don't forget to take pictures of traveling...it isn't always about the destination, sometimes the story is in the journey to get there! (what did the kids do in the car to keep busy, did they fall asleep? Take a picture of the GPS or better yet the road map!)

6) If you are the one who usually takes the photos - change it up! Let your children take a few and don't be shy about asking a stranger to take some of your whole family! One trick I use is to walk up to a mom who's about to take a photo of her husband and kids and ask her if she'd like me to take the photo so she could be in it. Once you've returned their camera sometimes the mom will offer on her own to take one for your family or it's never been an issue if I ask her to take one of us. Be sure to tell them it's OK to snap away so you have a few to choose from!

7) Turn your camera from time to time. If you are prone to taking all vertical or all horizontal photos, you won't have as much flexibility when designing your book.

8) If you've followed the first 7 tips you should have lots to work with when it comes time to design your book...so DIVE IN! With digital bookmaking it's easy to change things around. Just start plugging photos in and before you know it you'll have a great first draft! Mix the close up shots with the story shots, add a few words when necessary and you are well on your way to having a beautiful book your family will treasure forever!

9) Chose a photo for the cover (and if you have the option, the back cover as well), include the date either on the cover or on the title page inside. I prefer scenery shots for covers - family photos can be enlarged inside, but my preference is for a beautiful landscape or a close up of something instead of people on the cover.

10) Spell check your book and have someone else read through it as well. I missed a mistake in our book because I knew what it was suppose to say and that's what my brain saw.

It goes without saying that you want to enjoy your vacation and not have to worry about documenting every last moment. BE in the moment as much as you can! I take a bunch of photos when we first arrive to get my detail shots and then I put my DSLR down. We spent two days at the waterpark, but I only took pictures on the first day and spread them out between both days in the book. I try not to ask my kids to look at the camera any more than I 'need' to. Documentary style is much more relaxed, but when my kids get in the mood to be in front of the camera and ask me to take their picture - I rarely turn them down!

Straw Bale Garden Plans for 2011

I'm not brave enough to start my own seeds...maybe some day...but for now my garden prep involves mapping out where and what I'm going to plant. This is my third year of straw bale gardening and I'm excited to expand it to include some foods grown specifically for BabyBear.

You can read all about our strawbale garden successes and failures by clicking on the tab under my blog header.

I'm very grateful for this blog and the things I've recorded here so I can look back at the things I've learned and not make the same mistakes twice. I started a garden notebook last year and used my blog archives to update my notes last week. I highly recommend this! It's wonderful to be able to look back at the different layouts I've used for planting, what grew well, what I shouldn't bother with, and to record plant dates and harvest dates. What a great resource to pass down to my kids some day!

Thanks to some pictures I took of the garden I'll even be able to purchase the exact same variety of watermelon and pumpkin this year and skip this type of cucumber. (tasty, but way too big!) Ideally I would write down this information in my notebook - something I'll make sure I do when I purchase this year's plants!

Are you planning a garden this year? Are you one of the brave souls who starts their seeds indoors? Do tell!

For the Love of Sam

One thing that I've learned over the 6+ years I've been a mom is that while we never really want our babies to grow up, there is something really special about witnessing them grow into themselves. The relationship changes and I think it only gets better! Take Sam for example. He didn't talk in sentences until he was two and a half. Now we can have long conversations about life and I'm loving it! Last night he was suppose to be in bed but we were having such a great talk I didn't even consider cutting it short and sending him to bed.

He soaks up knowledge like a sponge, doesn't forget a thing, and is learning SO much in school. In January he learned to read, in February he learned to count money, and this month he's starting adding and subtracting. He enjoys school (except for the parts where he has to sit too long) and is friends with everyone.


He's excited about the baby coming and is going to be such a great big brother! He also has a name picked out for her, but that one we're keeping to ourselves. Sorry!

This is our Julia

The girl with the curls and incredible the artistic ability.



The girl with a smile that is contagious as her giggle.


The girl who grew two inches this winter but still fits in my arms.


The girl who loves to make lists and likes to help mommy around the house.


The girl who wants to share a room with her baby sister and name her Lucy.

This is our Julia.

Wordless Wednesday - Mommy's little helper

23 Weeks

I had an appointment this afternoon with my OB. I saw a midwife for my first two pregnancies, but with the trouble I have it ends up being an OB who is consulted so often in the first half of pregnancy that I opted to just start with a doc. Don't get me wrong, I loved my midwives, but I've learned that the nurses are the ones that get you through much of the labor part anyway so I'm OK with seeing an OB.

I have my birth plan written out already and being that it's my third time, I have a pretty good idea what I want and don't want and have no problem speaking up for myself if necessary. We will be delivering at the same hospital our first two were born at, but there is an entire new birthing area now. I've heard from my SIL who is due in five short weeks that it's really nice. I'm looking forward to touring it sometime down the road and asking some of my questions.

News for this week: I'm feeling a bit better - that strange feeling from last week is still there, but it doesn't keep me from functioning so I can't complain. Babe's heart rate is in the 140's - she's a kicker which was very evident with the doppler on my belly this afternoon. I wouldn't want it any other way! I don't feel like there is much room left - my skin is stretching more and more every day, but I love that her kicks are becoming stronger and stronger. I'm up five pounds from my last visit a month ago so my weight gain is finally tapered off. I wasn't going to survive the five pounds a week like it was there for a while! So far I've gained 20 pounds but can still wear my regular clothes. Phew! Come on Spring! I am ready for my comfy capris! I'm still craving citrus and can easily eat 2-3 oranges a day. Yum!

Our list of names is very short. Very. But at least they are all names we agree on! If you hear of a girl name that catches your attention feel free to pass it on - we're not ones to pick a name before meeting the baby so we have lots of time for suggestions!

I'm started to get antsy about setting up the nursery - or at least removing my office things so it isn't so crowded with baby stuff and office stuff. I found some things in the basement that didn't sell at our garage sale that we'll be able to use - little toys, carseat pad, nursing bras, changing pads....and then there are the things that I was never able to part with after Julia - sleep sacks, breathable crib bumper, newborn clothes, video monitor, baby sling, blankets, hats, homemade bibs, cloth diapers. I also have a collection of summer clothes she'll be able to wear next summer. There won't be many things that both Julia and the baby will wear, but it sure will be fun to reuse the ones we can!

I'm trying my best to ignore the aches and pains and focus on the miracle of life growing inside of me. We are so excited to meet this little one and see what God has in store for our new family of FIVE!

Black and White Beauty

22 week update

I haven't been very good about writing updates each week, but something happened yesterday that I wanted to record. After I ate breakfast I all of a sudden felt sick to my stomach. Nothing new..I've been sick since November. This was different, yet familiar...strangely familiar. I was instantly reminded of my first pregnancies because of this "new" feeling. It's hard for me to describe, but it's a feeling/smell/taste wrapped into one. It's terrible and has me back in bed so I don't throw up too many times in one day and end up needing iv's. I haven't felt like this at all with this pregnancy, but it brings me right back to the rough days of my first two pregnancies. Weird. I know.

In other 22 week news...I'm finally not having nightmares when I sleep, I crave citrus, I'm trying to cut back on my pop consumption, I am still in my regular clothes (with a couple of new XL shirts and a Bella Band), I'm down to 1 Zofran a day and one reglan a day with my b6 and half a Unisom. I started doing yoga again, but can barely get through the warm up before I have to quit. My back has been bothering me because of sitting at my desk and working so much, but stretching breaks and going to the chiropractor has helped. I sleep better on my back, have been staying up until i:30 some nights, but still usually go to bed by 7:30.

No picture this week....it's only jammies and robe for me with as awful as I feel right now....hopefully by the weekend I'll be feeling better!

Sleepy Wrap Review & Tutorial

Thanks to the nice folks at CSNstores.com I've been given the opportunity to review the sleepy wrap. Since our little one isn't due until July I am sharing it with my sister in the meantime. Little Rosie was still hooked up to too many monitors to easily position her in the wrap, but she's headed home, hopefully early next week and can really give the wrap a workout. More on that in a minute....

I am an experienced sling user, but this was my first time with a wrap style baby carrier. It was intimidating at first to pull out that loooooong piece of fabric from the box. (Which by the way was shipped and on my doorstep within 72 hours of ordering. Thanks CSN Stores!!!!) Thankfully there's a wonderful instruction booklet (with photos!) that walks you through the steps. I was surprised by how many different ways you can hold your baby in the wrap as they grow! Bonus!

Once I arrived at the hospital I had Katie give it a try. There's a learning curve when it comes to how tight to pull the fabric, but the wrapping itself is easy peasy! Here's Katie in action.

1) line the logo up with your waist

2) bring the rest of the fabric around to your back and up over your shoulders (crossing them in the back)

3) pull the fabric tight UNDER the part with the logo

4) wrap around your back and bring around to tie a knot in the front.

Next it's time to put the baby in...

5) grab the edge of the crossed fabric that is closest to your body and pull it out. That's where you slip your baby in - bottom & back first from my sling experience....

6) pull the opposite piece of fabric around their back for added support

7) pull up the outside piece as the finishing touch.


Pros of the sleepy wrap: What makes this wrap so great is the stretchiness of the material. It has just the right amount of give so you can tuck your baby in and they feel like they are back in the womb.

Another bonus for people who have back trouble is the baby's weight is distributed evenly across both of your shoulders.


It comes with this handy little pouch for easy storage. I'll be able to keep it in my diaper bag and pull it out whenever I need it. It will stay clean and won't make a mess out of my diaper bag. **Tip** When first putting the wrap on it is LONG and will drag on the (germy) floor. To avoid this I pool the material on top of my diaper bag so nothing that touches my babe will be in contact with the floor. I've heard other moms who use wrap style carriers talk about tying the wrap on at home to avoid having to mess with it on the go. Another great option!

For a preemie like Rosie it is going to be very important that she is protected from curious people who can't help but reach out and touch newborns. (you know what I'm talking about right?) This is where the sleepy wrap will come in very handy for Katie. See how safe and cuddled in the 'baby' is in the super soft sleepy wrap? Nobody is going to mess with this new mamabear!

(Click here to see a couple of older infants in action.)

There's also the general babywearing pros of being hands free, calming baby, and bonding with your baby...and the bonus? The price for all these babywearing benefits is only $39.95! This is on the low end of babywearing items from my research.




The cons:

...the learning curve for how tight to make the wrap - thankfully this is something that won't be an issue after the first few times

...having a July baby I'm worried about the amount of fabric that is wrapped around me and the babe. BUT since we're often in the air conditioning, I have a feeling we'll be OK for the most part. We don't do long walks in the summer heat anyway.

....defect in the carrying bag. Mine arrived with a tiny hole in it. Bummer. If it had been in the wrap I would have used the CSN Store's easy return policy to get a new one, but since it was only in the bag I just put a few stitches in with needle and thread and it's as good as new.

Over all the Sleepy Wrap gets two thumbs up from me! Do YOU have any experience with this particular wrap? I'd love to hear from you! Feel free to share any tips you've picked up along the way! If it weren't for blogging about babywearing and learning from other blogging moms, I would have missed out on some of the sweetest babywearing snuggles! If you have any questions or something is unclear don't hesitate to ask - I'm happy to help!


Disclosure: I was given a $40 gift code to purchase this product from CSN Stores for the purposes of writing a review. The opinions expressed are entirely my own. No other compensation was made.

Simply Tuesday

Outside my window... mountains of snow on top of layers of ice.


I am thinking... that I really need to be better about doing yoga so my back doesn't hurt all the time.


I am thankful for... a doc who would call in a prescription for pink eye without having to see Julia first and that she's on the mend from Influenza A after five days of being lethargic. I'm also thankful to be 21 weeks and already have seen the good news that BabyBear's cyst is gone. You can read more about how we found out the gender here.


From the kitchen... oranges and grapefruit. Can't get enough fruit these days. Oh and fresh baked bread...or what's left of it. I'll be popping another loaf in the oven for lunch tomorrow. Yum!


I am wearing... black yoga pants, black thermal shirt, and my park* socks

*When we worked for the National Park Service we were given a clothing allowance to purchase uniform pieces. I always ordered extra socks because they are super comfy and last a long time. I've had this pair ten years!


I am creating... a 320 page blog book for a client in Colorado.


I am going... to the chiropractor tomorrow if I can get in. I only go every two weeks even though I could easily go once a week.

I am reading... The Power of Praying Parent and whatever book in the Bible I happen to open up each day.

I am hoping... that nobody else comes down with the flu.


I am hearing... Sam making gun/shooting noises from his room. It's his normal bedtime sound effect ritual. Boys!

Around the house... it's actually not all that messy! I cleaned a bunch on Saturday and it hasn't had time to clutter back up quite yet. The cat is yowling from the basement. Apparently she's in heat. I have Google to thank for the answer to her strange behavior lately.

One of my favorite things... the video I took of Julia singing the Whinnie the Pooh theme song tonight. I wish I could find it on You Tube where supposedly my phone uploaded it to so I could share it with you, but I didn't have any luck. She still sounds like she has a cold, but she's in tune and so sweet!

A few plans for the rest of the week: Chiropractor, work, grocery shopping, and renting skis over the weekend thanks to all this fresh new snow from the weekend storm. (grumble grumble)


Here is picture for thought I am sharing... This winter has been awful
as far as getting outside to play in the snow. This photo was taken two weekends ago on the ONLY day I could take the kids skiing. Sam went with Daddy early in the season once, but it's been too cold otherwise.

Julia was on real skis for the first time and did great!

For more Simple Woman's Daybook posts, click here.

How we found out what we're having

I'm 20 weeks today, but all I have for belly photos to share is this one from 15 weeks, 6 days.

OK, so now that I've got that out of the way it's time to share how we found out. I knew I wanted it to be special...something unique to our family....something I hadn't heard of before.....

Here's how we did it:

All four of us went to 19 week ultrasound appointment at 4pm on Friday afternoon, February 11th (incidentally, the same day in 2004 I told PapaBear we were pregnant with Sam) We arrived armed with a Christmas present that hadn't been played with yet and a couple of candy canes. I wanted to focus on the screen and what the tech said and not have the kids be bouncing off the walls.

Sam surprised us all by chatting with, Angie, our technician, through the whole thing. He could identify hands that waved and asked questions about what he was seeing. Julia was content to eat her candy cane and play with her new toy. When it was time to look everyone looked away, except Sam. He had an important job to do. He went to the desk with Angie who wrote out It's a ______. Sam brought the card over to the rest of us and read what it said. I couldn't have been prouder of my boy! He just learned to read in January and I thought this would be a fun way to include him and celebrate his big accomplishment. He did great!

Fast forward to Monday (Valentine's Day) when we invited family over for dinner. Due to schedule conflicts only PapaBear's parents were able to attend so we made some phone calls later that night. Nobody knew we decided to find out and had no clue that they were about to know the gender too so it was pretty fun for the kids to hand out their valentines that read:





























Our baby girl was so active that other than getting a glimpse of her four chambered heart, we didn't get to do all the measurements they want so I'm going back in on Friday for another look. I will ask them to look for one other thing while I'm there....I mentioned a prayer request on twitter this morning and it relates to something they saw in her brain. She has a choroid plexus cyst that I'm praying fervently is GONE by the time I go back in on Friday. This could be nothing more than a blocked duct, but it's also an indicator of Trisomy 18. I wish the doctor hadn't even mentioned that part since a cyst seen at this stage of brain development (18-20weeks) is typically gone soon after the 20 week mark and there were no other indicators for it, but it still worries me. I'm measuring a little under 20 weeks so by the time my ultrasound on Friday morning it could still be there and still be considered normal. Obviously our heart's desire is for it to be GONE and for her heart to be normal as well. Would you pray for that with us? We would be most grateful.

Heart Strings

As I slowly but surely have more days with less medication (learned the hard way yesterday that I can't go cold turkey. The result? Repeated vomiting all morning long) I am able to be in the moment with my kids more often. When the fog lifts there are some really really sweet moments to be had - especially related to this new life growing inside me. A couple recent examples:

Julia: Good night Mommy! Good night baby! Hope you sleep well. {kisses my belly}
Sam: {Julia is already asleep in her bed when Sam comes in} Good night Julia. Jesus loves you!
Julia: {in the bathtub saying a prayer} Thank you for my bath and the baby!
Sam: {Julia asleep in her bed, Sam touches her on the shoulder} God bless you!


Those are some good tugs on this mama's heart strings!

1.11.11

My niece, Rosie, was born on January 11th, nine weeks early. Today she is one month old, yet is still one month from her due date! Crazy! My sister was on hospital bedrest for 5 weeks and was such a trooper through it all. I am so proud of her and know she's going to be a great mom!

I finally got pictures of Rosie off my camera and loved this one the best. She was a tiny little thing at 3 pounds, 9 ounces, but so strong. She was off the vent the same day she was born! This photo was taken when she was less than 24 hours old.

Thank you to everyone who prayed for my Rosie!

A little update on her progress: She moved out of the NICU within days of birth and is growing and learning how to nurse in the special care nursery. I hope to get up to visit them next week and take more photos of this special little blessing.

The end is in sight

The mountains of snow in our park have been available for winter fun since mid November, but it's been so darn cold we're lucky if the kids get out once a week. Thankfully February is flying by and before we know it we'll be tapping Maple trees and pulling out puddle boots. I know we're suppose to make the most of every day, but this has been the worst.winter.ever and I am so glad the end is in sight!

"Wow"

I say it every day. Why? Because she wows me with her artistic ability on a daily basis, that's why. This winter will go down in Bear Family history as the one where Julia's artistic abilities emerged full force.

First it was crayons and coloring books.
Then it was coloring books and markers.
Then it was white paper with a combo of markers and crayons.
From there she's moved to cutting out her creations, like this one:

I consider myself a creative person, but this kid has more creative juices in her pinky than I do in my entire being. Love that. I even love Sponge Bob. Never thought I'd say that in this lifetime!

panic

there were so many titles I could have chosen for this post but just thinking about it made the knots in my stomach come racing back. I'd much rather forget the events of yesterday but I feel like the right thing to do is to get my thoughts written down so maybe I'll stop replaying those awful five minutes over and over again in my mind.

It probably wasn't even a five minute ordeal, but at the time it felt like five thousand minutes. Whatever the length of time....all I know is that Sam was gone and I couldn't find him. He's six I kept saying over and over again. HE KNOW NOT TO JUST WALK OFF. In the crowded Mall of America my son had vanished. My friend started looking for him while I raced to the nearest vendor to ask them to call security. Her phone didn't work. I raced to the next place and went straight to the front of the line to explain what had happened. The guy finished helping the person who was waiting for his change. It felt like a year passed when someone else stepped up to call security. I told them where i'd be and continued to search the area. All I wanted to do was to grab people by the arm and scream "my son is six. He's missing. He's wearing a navy and red striped shirt". HELP!!

I have never been so scared in.my.entire.life. I thought the worst since he's old enough to know to stay where I can see him. I begged God to bring him back. I thought i'd never see him again. He was NOWHERE to be found in the immediate area. There are so many crazy people in the world and in my mind half of them were at the mall. (If you are local and familiar with the amusement park, picture 45 minute waits for the bounce house pinnapple kind of busy) It was BUSY! And my baby was gone. I wanted them to drop the (non existant) gates so nobody could get away with my Sam.

And then I saw him with my friend who, bless her heart, would not let him let go of her hand even though he wanted to. I would have done the same thing J! I ran up to him sobbing, not caring that I was making a scene. He was back. Thank you Jesus he was back in my arms and wondering what all the fuss was about. "You are the wierest person ever" were his words I think....I let the insult slide and went back to find security who was finally made an appreance. I thanked them for coming and explained that he had walked off when he saw his friends come out of the bounce house. Turns out he was with another friend of mine the whole time.

He said he forgot to tell me where he was going. I pray that he never ever does that again! This mama might not survive another panic attach like that!


----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Besides the obvious, don't walk off without telling a grown up where you are going rule, what safety measures do you take when in crowded public places?????

One thing that I have done at the state fair is to tell the kids to find someone in a uniform or another mom and show them the card I put in their pockets with all my contact information on it. We're working on memorizing phone numbers but when put on the spot, I want them to have it written down just in case.

4 years ago today.

I started this blog on the eve of my 30th birthday. 1,684 posts later I've accomplished what I set out to do with blogging - Enjoy my family as much as possible and record as many memories as I can. The unexpected bonus along the way has been the friendships I've made with so many wonderful women. Thank you to everyone who takes the time to stop by BearCountry, for your comments, for your friendship, and for hanging in there with me when I take long breaks from writing.

Just for the fun of it....
When did YOU start blogging and how did you happen upon neck of the woods?

Gearing Up

We were done having kids. Or so we thought. We sold kid stuff at three different garage sales last year alone. Thankfully I don't consider us back at square one in the baby gear department.

We have a crib, we have size 2 fitted cloth diapers, we have a pack-n-play, I have my pouch sling and my Kozy Carrier, we have diaper bag, we have a video monitor, and we have a stroller. Not too bad if I don't say so myself, but it doesn't stop me from mentally making a list of the things we'll need (and a second list of the things I'd like) for when our third is born in early July.

I love lists and I love making plans so it's only natural for me to have already started both of these lists. I know we'll need at some point to look at modern bar stools for at the counter for BabyBear. Yes, I think things through that far. It's annoying sometimes - especially when packing for a trip. "BUT WE MIGHT NEED THAT!" makes it nearly impossible for me to pack light.....

I plan to hit the garage sales hard this year (when do I not?) and find a bouncy seat, bathtub, travel swing, clothing, glass bottles, a boppy, and a few infant toys. There are things on my wish list that I plan to order online as sales pop up in the next six months.

Amber teething necklace, wrap style baby carrier, cloth diapers for newborn/size 1, pacifiers, milk storage bags, and a food mill. I love that I can shop from the comfort of home and avoid spending money on gas. One of the places I plan to shop online is CSN Stores because they have just about everything anyway and often have free shipping deals. Score!

I've been given the opportunity to review an item from one of their stores and am excited to pick something out and share the entire shopping experience with you all. Because it isn't always just the product, it's the customer service along the way that can make or break whether I choose to shop with an online retailer again!

What baby item was at the top of your must have or even your wish list? Remember I have a new niece to help me try out any baby items before BabyBear arrives so you just might get a peak at little Rosie during the review post. :)

I couldn't resist

Julia and I made a pit stop at the grocery store today right after preschool. It was the worst time of day for us to be doing such an errand, but the alternative (pb&j for dinner) made it it worth it. As she fussed and moaned down the produce aisle I did my best to move quickly and get only what we really needed. I had compassion and empathy for her empty tummy so her whimpering didn't grate on me like it has the potential to do.

As I contemplated buying full sized oranges since they were out of the little sized Cuties we like best, I stood next to a boy (about Julia's age) who was completely unattended. (read: no adult within 25 feet).

He was taking oranges from the front of the row and tossing them to the back of the pile.

Over and over again.

I didn't say a thing. What wast he point? I didn't feel it was my place, but when he asked, "why is she crying?" I couldn't help but reply,

"She's sad because the oranges are getting wrecked?"

"Huh?"

"Well when you toss them around like they they won't be any good."

Cue - parental figure from the tomato aisle who calls the little twerp over to her.

I know I shouldn't have lied to the kid, but man, I couldn't resist!

What would YOU have done in that situation?