Life as We Know it...

Sophia Pip: A Review and a Giveaway

2010-04-25T01:13:00.000-06:00

Just a quick post to let you know that I'm running a fabulous giveaway on my other blog, just in time for Mother's Day. Go check it out, and enter to win a lovely set of custom Mama Tags from Sophia Pip. Click here: http://theclevermommy.blogspot.com/2010/04/sophia-pip-review-and-giveaway-just-in.html

Happy Easter!

2010-04-04T16:29:00.002-06:00

We moved again on Monday (hence the lack of posts recently). This time we're hoping to stay put for a while. We signed a year lease, so it'll be at least that long and hopefully longer. The rent is unbeatable, the location is perfect, and we have enough bedrooms to last us for a bit. I usually like to post photos of our new places, but our camera has some kind of spot on the inside of the lense so every photo I take has a large grey circle smack dab in the middle. I've got big plans for decorating this place anyway, so I'll post pics then.

We hope every one is enjoying this beautiful Easter Sunday. It's gorgeous here in Colorado, and hopefully we've seen the last of the snow for the season!

We also hope that you take a moment to remember the reason we celebrate today. He lives!

Hey, I put some new shoes on, and suddenly everything is right...

2010-03-13T17:05:00.001-07:00

These are no ordinary shoes. No, these shoes were purchased at Kohl's last night for a whopping $2.50. Yep! I got a $10 gift card in the mail because they were having a grand opening, and it was about to expire, so we stopped by last night to see what we could find. Noah has needed new shoes for a little while (he is wearing size SEVEN now!), but we hadn't had the money to get him a pair, so we looked through their shoe department. We didn't really find anything we liked at a reasonable price, so we were about to go check out some other departments, when I noticed an end cap display with some adorable shoes on it. They were on sale for $12.50, regularly $24.99. Using that $10 gift card, we got them for $2.50. I love when I get good deals like that! He digs the shoes, too :)

Pennies for Penny (and how you can help)

2010-03-12T15:55:00.001-07:00

Somewhere in San Diego there is an adorable little girl named Penelope. Penny has Stage 4 Neuroblastoma. In the two short weeks that Penny has been in the hospital she has undergone two surgeries, numerous tests and scans, blood transfusions, chemo and treatments. Just yesterday, they received word that Penny now has RSV.

This absolutely breaks my heart. I'm sitting here looking at my perfectly healthy little boy, and I can not fathom what that sweet little family is going through. They don't deserve what they're going through. They do, however, deserve our help. They are staging a media blitz today to promote awareness of Penny's situation. Penny does have insurance, but it only covers 60% of the bill and, as I'm sure you can imagine, treating cancer is NOT cheap. Next Friday, March 19th, they are holding a fundraiser auction to benefit Penny and her family. So, pass this along! If you have a blog, blog about it. Put Penny's badge in your sidebar. Add her widget (both badge and widget are below). Tweet about it. Make your Facebook status all about Penny. Send out a massive email to all of your family and friends. Just get the word out. And, if you can, donate. Penny's website is: http://pennies4penny.org

Julie, of Spice and All That's Nice is hosting a giveaway on her blog to benefit Penny. All you have to do to enter (the prize is an awesome Sentsy Candle Warmer worth $30) is post Penny's badge on your blog, write a post about her, and let Julie know by leaving her a comment here.

Good luck Penny, we're praying for you!

Grab Penny's badge:

<a href="http://www.pennies4penny.org" target="_blank"><img src="http://pennies4penny.org/wp-content/themes/thesis_16/custom/images/penybutton.png" border="0" alt="Pennies for Penny"></a>

Grab Penny's Widget:

In a Box

2010-03-07T12:47:00.000-07:00

I think we packed one too many things... He doesn't seem to mind, though!

Spring is Here!

2010-03-06T12:56:00.000-07:00

Unfortunately, I don't think it's here to stay (weather.com is predicting snow on Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday), but it is here today, and we're taking advantage of it. Noah and I have already made one trip to the park next door, and I think we'll go back later this afternoon, after his nap and snack. It's beautiful outside; sunny, clear skies, 53 degrees, and just lovely!

From the park, today

These are from earlier this morning. I just don't think there is much more adorable than a little one in their diaper (especially if it's Mommy-made!).

Word Explosion!

2010-03-02T14:54:00.000-07:00

I've heard it spoken of (and written of), but I didn't know just how dead on that phrase really is! Over the past few days Noah has added I don't know how many words to his vocabulary. It's amazing to watch this little person learn, and get excited when he knows that he can tell us EXACTLY what he means. Some of the words he's learned over the last couple of days are: cookie (cook-coh), seat, tree (he repeats this one over and over on our walks because there are so many trees around), food (foo), yeah, and sock. You can hear in his voice how proud of himself he is, and I'm sure you can tell by this post how proud Mommy is, too.

On a less than stellar, but kinda funny, note, I had to wash pen off of his skin for the first time a few days ago. He LOVES to color, and still eats crayons when given to him, so he gets a piece of paper and a pen in his highchair (away from any other surfaces). He's always been really good with it, and he even knows how to hold it correctly. I didn't teach him that, he just seemed to instinctively know how to hold a pen. Well, the other day he decided to see if it would write on his skin; of course it did, and he then got a lecture about writing on paper only.

This is from another day, but you can see how into his coloring he is.

When do kids outgrow eating their crayons??

The End (and the Beginning)

2010-03-02T10:45:00.001-07:00

I've had this "family" blog for a while now and, more and more, lately I've found myself gearing my posts toward the things that interest me, rather than what's going on in said family. There's something about putting into writing the way you think or feel about a certain subject, and it's been good for me. However, I believe the time has come to get the family blog back to its original intention, which was to keep our friends and family informed about what our family is up to, and to inundate them with pictures of Noah. So, I decided to start a new blog. One where I can write about things like the benefits of organic and whole foods, gentle parenting, ways to live frugally without sacrificing style, politics, and anything else that flits through my overactive brain. You can find it at http://mommysavvy.blogspot.com. I'll be moving a lot of the posts of which I was speaking to the new blog, and from here on out I'll be posting a lot more on those topics and more. I hope you'll come read and discuss with me! See ya there!

FYI

2010-02-26T16:50:00.003-07:00

Potato Salad made with light mayo (not a buy that was made on purpose) is not wonderful.

May I Have Your Attention, Please

2010-02-26T10:25:00.000-07:00

Ahem.

I, Krystal Bagley, having put off finding a primary physician for nearly three months, have finally settled on a doctor. AND he's holistic. AND he has experience with Adrenal Fatigue (something I'm currently dealing with, which is often brushed aside and/or misdiagnosed).

That is all.

(I was supposed to have done this immediately after my DVT, but I liked the DVT clinic so much, I just kept going there; plus I'm a fantastic procrastinator)

Getting in the Groove

2010-02-23T23:32:00.002-07:00

I've been working on some things for Primary over the last few days, in between bouts of apartment/house searching. I think I'm getting more comfortable with being the secretary, as far as knowing what my responsibilities are, and where my boundaries are (this is important, as I tend to get fairly ambitious). The Primary President asked me to come up with new signs for the classroom doors, because the class names have changed (they're now using the age that the children are currently, rather than the age that they will turn that year). Here's an example of what I came up with (click on the image to see it larger).

"I Know My Savior Lives" is the theme for Primary this year, so I thought it would be good to have that on the signs. I also came up with some really cute inserts for our binders, so I think I'm going to print those off, too. She didn't ask for them, but the ones we have now are looking pretty dated, so I don't think she'd mind.

I came up with some wrist wrappers for reminding the kids when they have the prayer/scripture/talk. That way (so long as they leave it on their wrist) their parents have a higher likelihood of seeing the reminder. Hopefully that works.

I'm also brainstorming for ideas for our bulletin board. You know, the one that each auxiliary has out in the hall, for a calendar, the spotlight child, birthdays, etc.? Does anyone have any experience doing that? Any ideas of what else to put up there? I've got some ideas, but I think I need more. As of this moment, there the board is completely blank, so I've got a lot of space to fill.

We have a LOT of inactive families in our ward (out of over 700 ward members, only about 40% are active), so I want to send out cards periodically to let the inactive kids know that we would love for them to come. With that many inactive families though, it could get spendy. I'm thinking maybe I'll do it once a month, or once every other month. Does anyone have any other ideas?

I'm realizing as I type this, that this is a rather boring post for anyone who is not a Primary Secretary. Oops! I'll end it with some cute photos of Noah. They're not new (I think they're from Christmas), but I was just able to get them onto the computer, so... here they are!

The Man Your Man Could Smell Like

2010-02-20T17:31:00.000-07:00

Watch this. Really, really do!

The Man Your Man Could Smell Like

Where Do You Fit in?

2010-02-20T16:12:00.001-07:00

I received an email from my dear friend Meghan a few days ago and, without going into details, my response included something about not fitting in with the women in our church. It was a small part of the conversation, but it got me thinking. I've never truly felt as though I fit in there. Why? Numerous reasons. Here are a few... and, please keep in mind, this is not me complaining; this is me thinking out loud. This does make a difference.

I am a vegetarian. This, for whatever reason, makes people uncomfortable. I can guarantee, however, that I am not planning to stage any kind of "meat intervention" and force tofu and wheatgrass down the throats of anyone who does not share my diet (heck, I don't even like wheatgrass, though I do like tofu). It doesn't bother me to see you eating a hamburger. I'm not going to throw red paint on your leather boots. It's simply the way I eat, and it really has nothing to do with anyone else.
I cloth diaper my son. When someone finds this out, one of three things happen. 1. They eye me like they just found out that I believe in the tooth fairy, and now feel quite sorry for my obviously delusional self. Because why would someone do that to themselves when there are disposable diapers readily available?? 2. They say something along the lines of, "Oh, I could never do that. It's just too gross." and look at me as though they are questioning whether I washed my hands the last time I washed diapers. 3. (and this has only happened a few times) They are genuinely interested, and ask me questions about them. Don't misunderstand; it's not that I wish everyone would pepper me with cloth diapering questions all the time, but a little open-mindedness, and a lack of looks of pity or disgust wouldn't be awful.
I don't decorate my home with painted wooden cutouts and vinyl lettering. It's just not me. I'm still trying to figure out how to hang a copy of the Family Proclamation and have it somewhat match my decor (any ideas??). I think those things are adorable, and I don't begrudge anyone who uses them in their home, but they just don't fit my style. So, I don't tend to go to homemaking when those sorts of things are being done.

Ok, that last one is on me. I should probably still go, and use said craft as a gift. I mentioned it because it's one more thing that makes me feel like I don't fit in.

BUT! Here's the funny part. I don't seem to fit in on the other side, either. You know, the side where vegetarianism and cloth diapering, etc. is common? Nope, don't fit in there either. Typically those who fit into that "mold" are not conservative, politically. I am. Very much so. I align my political views mostly with those of the Libertarian/Constitutionalist parties. I have a deep love and respect for our founding fathers, and would love to see our country go back to its roots in a lot of ways. I'm also pro-life, and I believe in God. Not only do I believe in God, but I am... gasp!... LDS.

Obviously there are exceptions to all rules. I am, myself, an exception. However, the exceptions are, by definition, few and far between for the most part.

So, where do I fit in? I've decided that it doesn't matter. I go to church to learn and worship with people who are there to do the same. How my home is decorated has no bearing on that. What is on my child's bottom has no bearing. What I go home and eat for lunch when church is over has no bearing.

I am who I am, and I'm lucky enough to have plenty of friends (in and outside of the church) who are just fine with who I am. They are those who may not agree with everything that I say or do, but who respect me enough to love me in spite of our disagreements. Or is it love me enough to respect me in spite of our disagreements? Either way, I extend them the same courtesy.

Yay for unconditional love!

Article: Doctors Vaccinate for Profit

2010-02-20T11:12:00.002-07:00

It's a pure coincidence that I'm posting this so soon after my recent Adventures in Autism post. I received a link to this article in my email this morning from Dr. Mayer Eisenstein's Home First newsletter (Oh, how I wish he were practicing out of Colorado!) and I wanted to share.

Doctors Vaccinate for Profit
Christina England
vactruth.com
1/25/2010

(vactruth.com) Years ago children were sent up chimneys or sold as servants to earn their parents extra money. Now they are being vaccinated by doctors, to boost their takings. Doctors, Governments and Pharma see our children as their property and are making thousands of pounds/dollars/euros out of them right under our noses. This, they call ‘Health Care’, I call it the legalization of child labour.

For years now we have been told that vaccines are good for us, that vaccines eradicate illness and that vaccines will save us from killer diseases. What we are not told is that the doctors and Governments telling us this are often linked to the drug companies who are manufacturing the vaccines that they promote and many are making thousands of pounds/dollars profit from vaccinating our children.

Let us begin at the bottom and start with the GP. In the UK every time a vaccine is given to us by our trusted GP they are paid. The British Medical Journal published an article GPs make deals with local NHS to vaccinate children against swine flu explaining how that every single child who is vaccinated with the H1N1 in the UK will earn the GP £5.25.

In Ireland the GP’s are paid five times this amount, for the seasonal flu shot. The article Irish Times – Irish GP’s paid five times UK rate for flu vaccine report that in Ireland a GP will earn a staggering €38.95 per vaccine, making vaccines a very lucrative business indeed.

As far back as 2002, GP’s were so keen to get their hands on this extra money that they were striking off their lists the children who had not had the MMR because if they (the GP’s ) did not meet the Government target rate of 90% immunization, they would not earn their £2865 vaccination bonus Daily Telegraph – Children without MMR jab struck off GP’s list reports tells the full story.

In another article The campaign for Gardasil Flawed it is reported that Merck actually seeks out and trains doctors to lecture for them on Gardasil, paying them $4,500 each time they lecture on the Gardasil vaccine. Doctors are making thousands of dollars doing this.

This is nothing new and is not just attributed to vaccines. Doctors have been doing this for years.
In the article Ex-Drug Sales Rep Tells All – ABC News one drugs representative spills the beans and tells a Congressional committee what really goes on. Speaking about Eli Lilly he told the committee:

“To sell their drugs, pharmaceutical companies hire former cheerleaders and ex-models to wine and dine doctors, exaggerate the drug’s benefits and underplay their side-effects”
Shahram Ahari, who spent two years selling Prozac and Zypraxa for Eli Lily, told a Senate Aging Committee chaired by Sen. Herb Kohl, D-Wisc., that his job involved ” rewarding physicians with gifts and attention for their allegiance to your product and company despite what may be ethically appropriate.”

Ahari claimed that drug companies like hiring former cheerleaders and ex-models, as well as former athletes and members of the military, many of whom have no background in science to wine and dine the doctors explaining the wonderful benefits of the drug they are employed to sell.

Higher up the you have leading figures in the medical profession who advise Governments on vaccine policies have strong links and alliances with the drugs companies helping them peddle their wares.

The article Children Risk Untested Flu Vaccines in Hyped Pandemic – Child Health Safety shows some very interesting links with the key figures who advise our Governments and drug companies.

Dr Salisbury the Medical Director for the Department of Health and a key figure in the JCV I who advises the UK Government on vaccine policies is shown to be linked by association with drug companies.

“Dr Salisbury is also linked by association to drug companies. Dr Salisbury as the Medical Secretary for the Department of Health is also a member of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation. The JCVI has the task of approving UK vaccines. Many JCVI members have declared interests in a variety of drug companies when discussing the flu pandemic [ "JCVI meeting on 13th February 2008]. These financial ties include vaccine manufacturers Merck, GlaxoSmithKline, Sanofi Pasteur and Novartis. The JCVI is reportedly involved in attempts to hide evidence that the MMR vaccine can cause brain inflammation and permanent brain damage. ["Vaccine E-Newsletter March 20, 2009 Vaccine Bullies & Fighting Back by Barbara Loe Fisher]”

Another Government figure found to be linked to drugs companies is Kathleen Sebelius The US Health and Human Services Secretary. She has been found to have strong links to Glaxo Smith Kline.

In early 2009 the US Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius told The Associated Press that she was urging school superintendents around the USA to spend the summer preparing for the possibility that schoolchildren could be first in line for swine flu vaccine in the fall, if the USA Government decided to go ahead with mass vaccinations:

“If you think about vaccinating kids, schools are the logical place,” She said. ["Kids May Get Swine Flu Shot First Lauran Neergaard June 16th 2009]
However, she did promise careful surveillance. Sebelius has strong alliances to drug companies. ["GlaxoSmithKline website] announced her appointment stating that she could work with them to save ‘World Health’ and get out of the ‘Healthcare mess’, if they (GSK) gave the Government the ‘right attention’”

So can we trust the doctors and the Governments to keep our children safe? Sadly it seems that many are not really putting the safety of their patients before their ever increasing pay packets. Their loyalty is to the drug companies and not their patients, so what is the truth about the vaccinations used today?

Fortunately for us, we have a strong and growing army of ‘real doctors‘, who are less interested in the ‘nice little earners’ are more interested in keeping the public informed and safe. They have a very different view of what vaccines are doing to our health and our immune systems.

Dr Viera Scheibner a well trusted doctor, Principle Research Scientist (Rtd) and now prominent public campaigner,is so sure of her facts she sent a letter to the Medical Observer, an Australian medical newspaper. This letter by Dr Viera Scheibner , was sent to and published in the Medical Observer, an Australian medical newspaper, in February 1999.

She challenged Simon Chapman who wrote an article challenging the anti- vaccination movement in Australia to ‘TAKE HIS OWN MEDICINE’.

She began by saying
“On February 19, 1999, the Medical Observer published an article by Simon Chapman, in which he issued a challenge to the anti-vaccination movement in Australia.

"My response to his provocative article is as follows:

"If vaccines are such a blessing I challenge Simon Chapman to appear on television and allow himself to be injected with all baby vaccines, adjusted to his body weight by a doctor of my choice and in my presence.

"The vaccines to be administered to Simon are as follows:
* DtaP: 3 doses within 4 months
* Hib (any conjugates): 3 doses within 4 months
* OPV or IPV: 3 doses within 4 months
* Hep B: 3 doses within 1 month of each other.
The time of the first dose represents month 0.
There isn’t a better way to demonstrate to us that vaccines are safe and effective than by Simon taking his own medicine.”

Seems fair enough to me but as expected her letter was never answered.

Dr Scheibner has always had very strong views on vaccination and has been quoted making the following statements:

"Vaccination procedures are a highly politically motivated non-science, whose practitioners are only interested in injecting multitudes of vaccines without much interest or care as to their effects. Data collection on reactions to vaccines is only paid lip service, and the obvious ineffectiveness of vaccines to prevent diseases is glossed over. The fact that natural infectious diseases have beneficial effect on the maturation and development of the immune system is ignored or deliberately suppressed. Consequently, parents of small children and any potential recipients of vaccines and any orthodox medications should be wary of any member of the medical establishment (which is little more than a highly politicised business system) extolling the non-existent virtues of vaccination.”–Viera Scheibner

“I did not find it difficult to conclude that there is no evidence whatsoever that vaccines or any kind are effective in preventing the infectious diseases they are supposed to prevent. Further, adverse effects are amply documented and are far more significant to public health than any adverse effects of infectious diseases. Immunizations not only did not prevent any infectious diseases, they caused more suffering and more deaths than has any other human activity in the entire history of medical intervention. It will be decades before the mopping-up after the disasters caused by childhood vaccination will be completed.”—Dr. Viera Scheibner, PhD

She is not the only doctor to hold such strong views. Dr Harold Buttram M.D holds similar views. He has said:

"Safety studies on vaccinations are limited to short time periods only: several days to several weeks. There are NO (NONE) long term (months or years) safety studies on any vaccination or immunization. For this reason, there are valid grounds for suspecting that many delayed-type vaccine reactions may be taking place unrecognized at to their true nature.Dr Buttram MD
“As reported in a letter to the New England Journal of Medicine in 1984, tests of T-lymphocyte subpopulations were done on 11 healthy adults before-and-after routine tetanus booster immunizations. Tests showed a significant though temporary drop in T-helper lymphocytes (a class of white blood cells which helps govern the immune system) in all of the subjects. Special concern rests in the fact that in 4 of the subjects the T-helper cells fell to levels found in active AIDS patients. (2) If this was the result of a single vaccine in healthy adults, it is sobering to think of the consequences of the multiple vaccines (twenty-one at last count) routinely given to infants with their immature systems during the first six months of life. However, we can only speculate as to the consequences, as this test has never been repeated. Dr Buttram MD

The list of doctors and professionals stating that vaccines are dangerous is growing. Dr Sherri Tenpenny says in a short article Defending the Right to Poison:

“I have a little person in my office who had 10 rounds of antibiotics and 17 vaccines by 20 months of age. Yes, now autistic. That should be assault with deadly weapons and the doctor should be in jail. Instead, the parents were kicked out of their pediatrician’s practice for refusing more vaccines and wanting to get their child well. With these annoying, non-compliant parents out of the way, that doctor can continue to do what vaccinators do: Inject toxic substances into children, ruining their health and the lives of the child’s family members”
Dr Mayer Eisenstein Homefirst Medical Services treats thousands of never- vaccinated children. The Homefirst Medical Services director has said on many occasions that he is not aware of any cases of autism in unvaccinated children.

Dr Eisenstein said that the Homefirst Medical Services has taken care of about 30,000 to 35,000 unvaccinated children over the years and he does not remember a single case of autism in children who never received vaccines.

For over 30 years Dr. Eisenstein has been fighting the good fight against vaccinations and struggling to legitimize alternative therapies. In recent years the evidence about the fantastic healing properties of Vitamin D has captured his attention along with that of other meaningful supplements which promote better health naturally. On his live radio show, he dispenses his wisdom and knowledge while his ever more popular Webinars continue to bring on great guests to tackle the most controversial health issues of the day.

Recently in a disgusted interview he said:

“Now They Want to Inject Our Children with 2 Doses of H1N1 Vaccine!!! Not My Children!! …How pathetic! Tested on 474 children, and they want to give it to millions of children! Since the public overwhelmingly is rejecting this ineffective and dangerous vaccine the government needed to come up with a plan so as not to be accused of pork spending for a “pork vaccine”. Now I know what the Obama administration is planning to do with the millions of unused Swine Flu vaccines that they purchased. They will give 2 doses to our children and if that does not work they will give 3 doses. Just Say No!”— Mayer Eisenstein MD, JD, MPH

Another real doctor is Dr Andrew Moulden who has said for years that vaccinations cause MASS Ischemia: Cellular Injury and the ischemic Penumbra – the progression of hypoxia in the Brain – Cores” neural tracts from the inside out. He says that this creates a series of disconnections to the brain’s wiring – locally and or systemically (autism) to progressively (dementia) and intermittently (Multiple sclerosis, CIDP, ADEM)..and more..including autistic enterocolitis and bowel disorders.

He explains everything on his website http://brainguardmd.com/ BrainGuard and shows fascinating videos that prove his theories.

Dr Mark Geier is another real doctor who is more interested in the welfare of children and the right to information than lining his own pocket. He has been fighting against mercury in vaccinations for years. For his beliefs the Governments and Big Pharma have trashed his reputation and even taken him to court but like many other professionals speaking on these issues, he battles on, speaking recently at a Mercury Free Vaccine Rally out side the CDC building in front of hundreds of parents with autistic children.

He believes that it is the Mercury in the vaccines that causes Autism and has advocated for many years to rid all vaccinations of Mercury.

The real doctors are the ones who turn their back on dirty dealings and who remember their Hippocratic Oath. This is an old oath historically taken by doctors swearing to ethically practice medicine. It is widely believed to have been written by Hippocrates the father of western medicine, in Ionic Greek (late 5th century BC), or by one of his students, and is usually included in the Hippocratic Corpus. The phrase “first do no harm” said in Latin as Primum non nocere is often, incorrectly, attributed to the oath. Although mostly of historical and traditional value, the oath is considered a rite of passage for practitioners of medicine in some countries, although nowadays the modernized version of the text varies among the countries.

The Hippocratic Oath (orkos) is one of the most widely known of Greek medical texts. It requires a new physician to swear upon a number of healing gods that he will uphold a number of professional ethical standards.

The Oath says nothing about having links to drugs companies and lining ones pockets at the possible expense of the patient and it says nothing about injecting patients with doses of lethal cocktails of poisons and hoping for the best.

The real doctors are the ones that are not afraid to stand up and fight for the the rights of their patient. The real doctors ‘first do no harm’ and do not put money before the safety of our children.

Is There Anything More Beautiful...

2010-02-16T23:10:00.000-07:00

...than watching your child sleeping peacefully? I'm inclined to believe that there isn't.

Low Carb, Gluten-free Pizza

2010-02-16T18:41:00.000-07:00

Our family has been "Slow Carb" for a little while now. Mostly for me (yes, I admit to being a fatty fat fat right now), but Dug has lost around 15lbs too, and it's just a healthy way to eat, so it's good for Noah, too.

Slow carb just means limiting your carb intake to those carbs that are used slowly by your body (beans, whole grains, veggies, etc.) as opposed to those that are burned up super quickly (white flour, sugar, starchy foods, etc.). We also eat a lot of protein (free range, hormone/antibiotic free meat for Dug; eggs, quorn, and soy on occasion for me), and healthy fats (olive oil, avocado, cheeses, etc.).

Anyway, I'm always on the lookout for new recipes to keep our diet interesting. I came across this recipe the other day, and got around to trying it today. It was everything I was hoping for! Delicious, satisfying, melty pizza on a gluten free, low carb crust. Awesome. Give it a try if you're doing the gluten free thing, the low/slow carb thing, or if you're looking for a way to sneak some vegetables in your kids' diet. Yum!

You Won't Believe it's Cauliflower Pizza Crust

1 cup cooked, riced cauliflower
1 egg
1 cup mozzarella cheese
1 tsp oregano
2 tsp parsley
pizza or alfredo sauce
toppings (make sure meats are cooked)
mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 450 degrees Farenheit.

Spray a cookie sheet with non-stick spray.

In a medium bowl, combine cauliflower, egg and mozzarella. Press evenly on the pan. Sprinkle evenly with oregano and parsley.Bake at 450 degrees for 12-15 minutes (15-20 minutes if you double the recipe).

Remove the pan from the oven. To the crust, add sauce, then toppings and cheese.

Place under a broiler (grill for the Europeans) at high heat just until cheese is melted.

Recipe from cleochatra.blogspot.com

No Evidence of Any Link...

2010-02-13T13:26:00.001-07:00

It's a very touchy subject. People on both sides tend to be quite passionate about their opinions. I'm no exception. Ironically, however, when I'm placed on the spot I can never seem to remember any of the kajillion facts and studies that prove my point. It's maddening!

The issue? It's one I've touched on before. Vaccinations.

I was catching up on some of the blogs that I follow this morning and I found a page on Adventures in Autism that I hadn't noticed before. I don't know how I missed it, but somehow I did. And I now have my go-to link for those times when the subject comes up, and my normally very active brain suddenly decides to pretend that it's sleeping. The link is as follows:

http://adventuresinautism.blogspot.com/2007/06/no-evidence-of-any-link.html

She has an extensive list of studies as well as a link to another site with even more. I'd recommend reading through it to any one who has children, regardless of your stand on this issue. Knowledge is power, right? The more you know, the better your decision making abilities. You might decide that, for you, the risk of disease is more frightening than the risk of autism, or an immune disorder. That's what's so awesome about living in the USA. You get to make those important decisions.

Personally, I think vaccines have their place. They are life saving in countries where diseases are rampant. Thank goodness that they can help in situations like that.

I don't believe, however, that they are necessary for Noah. Completely anecdotal, but more common than you'd probably think... Last year there was an outbreak of whooping cough in the elementary schools in the area we were living. The schools, by law, had to call all of the parents of unvaccinated children, so they could keep them home. They did not have to call the other parents. So, the unvaccinated children stayed home for a while, and guess what? It kept spreading among the other students who were supposedly protected. Oh, and are you wondering where the illness originated? It was a child who had just received the Pertussis (whooping cough) vaccine. He passed it on to his sister, and it continued on from there. Interesting, no?

Back in the Saddle Again...

2010-02-12T13:01:00.005-07:00

I know, I know... It's been two months since I last posted. I promise I'm not a slacker; I have a good reason! It's been quite a couple of months. I'm not going into detail (if you're my Facebook friend, you already know, though I haven't been on there at all lately, either... updates there coming soon!), but suffice it to say that I had a pretty big health scare, and it kind of threw me for a loop. I'm doing much better now, things are being managed, and I'm working my way through it... day by day. There's actually a second reason, as well. Our laptop pooped out on us in Nov. or Dec., I can't remember now, and I'm not sure it's salvageable. This sucks for multiple reasons, the biggest being that almost all of Noah's photos from birth on up are on that laptop. Does anyone know how to pull files off of a computer that won't even boot up? So, anyway, I've had to get online using our PS3, and it doesn't allow you to do anything but read on both blogger and facebook. No posts, no comments, no nothing. We've now got our old desktop set up, so I'm back!

Here are some other updates from our family:

I was called to be the ward Primary Secretary. This is a great calling for me, but I haven't been able to really delve in yet, because of the previously mentioned health scare, so I'm hoping to get going really soon. I've already got plans to make sashes for the "Reverent Children", and I've got a revised and much more functional conducting sheet made up, which I'm excited about. *Side note... Margot (if you read this), do you remember the reverence children in our primary in Oceanside? Did they choose a girl and a boy, or was it one from senior, one from junior? I can't remember.

Dug was called into Scouts again, but I think they may be getting ready to move him elsewhere because his work schedule conflicts with pretty much everything that the scouts do. We'll see!

Noah is saying a few words. His current vocabulary consists of: Mama, Cheese (his favorite food), uh-oh, color (though it sounds like, "Coh"; he LOVES coloring), up, shoe, and I think there's one or two more that I'm not remembering. His non-verbal vocabulary, on the other hand, is HUGE. It's so fun to watch him learn!

Dug is doing really well at his job. He truly likes it there. This is a big fat blessing, and confirmation (for me, at least) that we were supposed to move here.

Our current lease is up at the end of next month, and we're looking for a new place closer to Dug's job. It's not a fun process, and slightly nerve wracking, trying to make it all work. We'd like to stay in our next place for a while. Neither of us want to move again anytime soon.

I think that's about all that's newsworthy here. Hope everything is going well with all of you and yours! I'm off to go catch up on all of your blogs!

Here are a few photos, for good measure (click them to make them bigger):

The above photo, was taken immediately after I gave him his first haircut. Can you tell a difference?

Christmas Miracles and Trials of Faith

2009-12-06T12:58:00.000-07:00

Things are tough for us, financially, right now. We moved here because Dug found a good full time job, something that he was unsuccessful in finding in St. George, even after a year of looking. We're so grateful for that job, and the fact that we were able to move to this gorgeous area. We knew it would be a little tight for a while, until he got a raise, and I got my diaper business going again. Well, this month just happened to be more than a little tight. This week, it came down to either paying our tithing or getting groceries.

We debated this. We thought about perhaps getting groceries now and paying our tithing out of his next check, but the next check wasn't going to afford much extra either and that probably wouldn't have worked. So, we put our faith to the test and paid our tithing this morning at church. We figured we could ask the Bishop if we could get some help from the Bishop's Storehouse (the church's foodbank, for my non-member friends) so that we could eat this week. We'd already pretty much given up on having any kind of presents for Christmas this year, and we were trying to concentrate on the spiritual aspect of the holiday (as evidenced by my last post). This isn't a bad thing obviously but, as a parent, I want to be able to give my child a wonderful Christmas, even if it's only a few little things. He's young enough that he wouldn't have known the difference, but we would have. Still, the situation wasn't going to change, so we were trying our best to make it a good Christmas, even without presents. When church was over, we met with the Bishop, explained our situation, and what happened next still has me choked up. When we asked if we could go to the Bishop's Storehouse, this wonderful, kind man pulled an envelope out of his breast pocket and said that he would do us one better. He then handed us $300 in gift cards to Wal-Mart. Apparently the ward Christmas Fund was being passed out to families in need, and he thought we qualified as just that. I'm sure you can imagine the tears that started flowing down my cheeks at that moment. So, not only we will be able to eat this week, we will be able to go out and get a Christmas tree tomorrow. We will be able to get Noah a coat for this winter wonderland that's going on outside right now. We'll be able to put a few presents under our tree. And, we will never forget the lesson that we learned today. The Lord will provide when you do what He's asked of you. It was tough handing over that envelope this morning with $68 in it. We did it, though. And we left a few hours later with more than we could have ever imagined.

Keeping the Spirit of Christ in Christmas

2009-12-02T13:19:00.001-07:00

I love Christmas. Everything about it. I love Christmas carols, hot apple cider, the smell of pine and cinnamon, Christmas lights, the feeling of anticipation and, most importantly, the celebration of the birth of our Savior. I've been thinking lately of how Dug and I can instill in our children a reverence and respect and love for the real reason we celebrate on December 25th. Growing up, my parents would read us the Christmas story from the Gospel of Luke and sometimes from the Book of Mormon before any presents were opened. We would gather around my Dad, as he read about Mary and Joseph making their trek to Bethlehem. Many years my mom would let us help her bake a birthday cake for Jesus. I think those things helped us remember what exactly we were celebrating. It wasn't the fact that there were piles of gifts under the tree. It was the fact that the Savior gave us the greatest gift of all. One thing I'd like to do when Noah is older is to adopt a family in need and leave Christmas on their doorstep, anonymously, on Christmas Eve. I asked people on Facebook to tell me how they keep Christ in the forefront of their minds during the Christmas season, and some of their replies were as follows:

Listening to mostly gospel centered Christmas music
Making, instead of buying, gifts
Concentrating on giving rather than getting
Giving your children only three gifts, because Christ only received three gifts (which is a great teaching tool, I think)
Have a simple meal on Christmas Eve, instead of the spread, and donate what you would have spent on that big meal to a humanitarian organization. During your simple meal, discuss as a family about the way that Jesus lived.

I'll keep adding to this list, as things come to me, or as people suggest things to me. It seems to me that this year, with the current state of the economy, is the perfect time to scale down your Christmas celebrations and really focus on what's important. Don't you think?

Tricks

2009-12-01T11:59:00.003-07:00

Dug gets immense pleasure and amusement out of teaching Noah "tricks". These can vary from burping, to taking off his socks with his teeth, to dancing. Here's another one that he taught him:

He tried to get a third one in there, like Daddy, but it wouldn't fit.

Happy Thanksgiving!

2009-11-26T18:04:00.003-07:00

It may have just been the three of us (two, if you're counting those of us who actually eat enough to be counted), but I know how to make a spread. We'll have left overs for weeks, but it's ok. It was yummy.

This was the first time we've ever cooked the turkey, as previous years have always been at my parents' home. I don't eat it, but Dug informed me that we did a fantastic job.

We also had delicious homemade cinnamon rolls for breakfast (the cinnabon clone recipe; if you've never tried it, do... they're unbelievable!) while we watched the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, and we'll be eating some delicious homemade pumpkin pie in a bit, once all of this food digests somewhat.

Hope all of you had a wonderful day full of family, food, and thanks!

Grown-Up Thanksgiving

2009-11-25T11:53:00.003-07:00

In an attempt to forget about the fact that this is the first Thanksgiving that I will not be with my family (my first grown-up Thanksgiving, if you will), I have tried to keep busy this week. I made the pie crust ahead of time and it's now waiting in the freezer to be filled with pumpkin. I made the cornbread for the stuffing. We cleaned the bedroom (thoroughly). I've sewed, cleaned and cleaned again, cooked, baked, played with Noah, and I still have not forgotten. This makes me more than a little sad. Don't get me wrong; I love my husband and my son more than anything, and it would be awful to be away from them on Thanksgiving, so I'm very grateful that we will be together. However, I am thirty years old, and I have not missed even one thanksgiving with my parents and my siblings until now. I think this has kind of thrown me for a loop. So, I've decided to concentrate on creating new traditions for my little family. There's not all that much I can do with Noah yet, as far as crafts or activities like that, but I figure we can start with a few small things this year, and change them or add to them as needed through the years. I was thinking about bundling us all up and going for a drive to see Christmas lights tomorrow night. So, what Thanksgiving traditions do you have with your family? Maybe I'll steal your ideas :)

Birthday Boy!

2009-11-22T13:57:00.006-07:00

I can't believe that my little baby, the one for whom I labored 34 hours, the one who survived in spite of two very dangerous conditions that worked against him in the womb and during extensive labor and an emergency c-section, is one year old today. How did that happen? It seems like yesterday that I was waiting in the recovery room with Dug for them to bring him to me. It seems like yesterday that I kissed his soft blond hair for the first time. I can't fathom how a year has passed between then and now. And, yet, my baby has somehow turned into a little boy. A running, giggling, curly haired snuggle monster of a little boy. And, I can't imagine life without him.

We celebrated this afternoon with german chocolate cake, and vanilla ice cream. I made him a cupcake along with the cake for him to mash up on his highchair tray. Last night when we bought his present, we also had a package of wrapping paper in the cart, but somehow it didn't make it home with us, so I had to wrap his presents in some black tissue paper that we had in the junk drawer. Not very festive, but does the job, I suppose. We sang "Happy Birthday" with the help of Grandma on speaker phone, and let him dig in.

*None of these videos have been edited as of yet, so they may be a bit long.
You may want to utilize the FF button.

He didn't make nearly the mess that I expected. He did enjoy the cake (especially the coconut frosting), but lost interest pretty quickly. His presents, on the counter nearby, were too big a distraction, I think. So, we got him down, cleaned him up, and let him open them.

Grandpa and Grandma Bagley sent him the softest sweat suit, tee, socks, and a board book. We got him a set of wooden building blocks, and a DVD of all of the classic Sesame Street songs. Grandma and Grandpa Nelson's present is on its way, so we're excited to see what that is.

He lined these all up like this himself. Smarty.

Sometime soon when I have more time going I'm going to inundate you with pictures of Noah's first year. Yay!

Happy Birthday, Bug! We love you so very very much!

Mommy Made

2009-11-20T16:59:00.007-07:00

Noah needs more winter jammies, and we're stretched pretty thin financially right now, especially with his first birthday, Thanksgiving, and Christmas here. I do, however, have lots of cute fabric, and a sewing machine. So, I gave it a whirl. It was my first time making jammies, and I did it sans pattern, so the collar came out a bit funky, so that will take some practice, but all in all, they came out pretty well, and they fit him! I love these owls. Next up: helicopters :)

You'll have to pardon the grouchy face. We're teething (two molars on either side... not so fun), and not in a very photo-happy mood right now.

Yesterday I made him a hoodie out of super soft bamboo fleece. I'm still planning on appliqueing something to the front, but I haven't found what I want yet. Please ignore the crappy photography.

Also, Grandma and Grandpa Bagley's package came yesterday, and Noah is DYING to open it up. Don't worry though; much to his dismay, he will be waiting to open it until Sunday when there is cake and ice cream and singing.

I'll take this!

Stop Feeling Those Tatas?

2009-11-18T15:55:00.004-07:00

Normally, I try to stay away from politics in general on this blog because I have family and friends of all different beliefs, and this is a place for me to keep them updated on our family, not to debate our political views. However, today, something has me perplexed enough that I felt the need to write about it.

I hope by now you've heard about the new recommendations regarding breast cancer screening by the US Preventive Services Task Force? Just in case you have not, let me review:

1. Regular mammograms are not recommended until you turn 50, instead of the previous recommendation of 40. Once you hit age 75, it is not recommended.

2. Regular mammograms should be performed bienially instead of the long recommended annually.

3. Self examinations are discouraged.

Now, before I express my dismay at these new recommendations, let me remind you that this is the same task force which expressed concern only 6 months ago because they noticed a slight decline in mammograms occuring in women aged 40 and over.

So, how is it that they have gone from that point of view to this in only 6 months? Could it have anything to do with the new health care plan that is being pushed so hard right now? Could it be because this new health care plan will insure so many more people that were not insured before (WITHOUT the addition of more doctors mind you), that the doctors would not be able to keep up with them all?

Well, recommending that you wait until you are 50 certainly would solve that, would it not? And, let's elliminate all of those pesky lumps that are found via self examination as well. That will cut down on patients, too. I understand that the amount of breast cancer that is detected in women 40-49 is significantly less than that of women 50 and above. Does that mean that the women who DO develop it while they are in their 40s are not as important? Because there are fewer of them? Can I please see them say that to a woman who detected, treated, and is now in remission from breast cancer in her 40s? I have a feeling that woman would not appreciate the sentiment. Have they not thought that perhaps women who get into the habit of going for routine mammograms in their 40s will be more likely to continue getting them in their 50s when the chance of developing the cancer is higher?

Now, I keep hearing that this is an independent task force, but they are, indeed, appointed by the US Government; the administration to be specific, and are considered a part of the US Health Department. You're telling me that the administration has no pull there? I just hope that they realize how ridiculous this is before the breast cancer death rates are raised at an incline much steeper than the decline in mammograms that they noticed 6 months ago. Or perhaps an even scarier thought is that they already know how ridiculous this is, and it doesn't matter.

Stepping off of my soap box now. Will be back with happy photos of Noah soon.

Wise Words...

2009-11-18T15:02:00.002-07:00

"The democracy will cease to exist when you take away from those who are willing to work and give to those who would not."

"The spirit of resistance to government is so valuable on certain occasions that I wish it to be always kept alive."

"I would rather be exposed to the inconveniences attending too much liberty than to those attending too small a degree of it."

"A society that will trade a little liberty for a little order will lose both, and deserve neither."

--all spoken by Thomas Jefferson

and, one from my dear friend, Henry...

"That government is best which governs the least, because its people discipline themselves." --Henry David Thoreau

Snow Day!

2009-11-15T16:27:00.004-07:00

We didn't make it to church today. Want to know why? Have a look!

You can see Dug's attempts to brush the snow off on the back window. It was at this point (after we were all dressed and ready to go) that he decided that church was not happening today.

Despite the churchlessness of our day, we've had some fun in the snow. We have icicles on the trees out front, which is something I don't remember ever seeing before. Look closely... can you see them?

This was the first time Noah has really been able to get out in the snow, and he thought it was pretty spiffy.

Oh, and just in case anyone was wondering what happens to a nearly one year old (1 week away!) after a long day, and refusing to take a second nap, wonder no more!

Yum!

2009-11-15T11:03:00.004-07:00

You know those tastes that are intrinsically linked in your consciousness to the Holidays? As soon as you taste (or smell) them, you are transported to a land of turkey, Christmas trees, twinkling lights, and Charlie Brown. A few of those, for me (and probably for most of you), are pumpkin pie, eggnog, homemade stuffing, my Grandma's pecan tarts, and Starbucks' Peppermint Mocha (please, no flack for the caffeine; we all have our vices). Seemingly unrelated, I won a set of silicone cupcake holders in a sweepstakes and I've been dying to try them out. Since I received them in the mail last week, they've served as playthings for Noah, and that's about it. So, I decided yesterday to try them out, using a new recipe. I started my recipe search by looking for a really good apple spice cake. I planned to bake the cupcakes, poke holes in them, pour some caramel sauce on each one, and top them with cinnamon cream cheese frosting. Unfortunately my attempt at making homemade caramel sauce ended with the smell of burned caramel permeating the house and no sauce. So, having been craving a Starbucks Peppermint Mocha for a while with no way to get to a Starbucks to get one, I started looking for a mocha cupcake recipe, and planned to top it with peppermint cream cheese frosting. Oh goodness, was that ever a good idea! They are the best thing I've eaten in a long time, and they do not in any way fit into my diet. Bonus! They blend the flavors of my favorite holiday latte perfectly. Yum!

Here's the recipe:

Mocha Cupcakes (this makes 12, but you could easily double it)

2 eggs
1/2 C. cold brewed coffee (or postum, or other coffee replacement)
1/2 C. oil (I used butter and they came out just fine)
3 tsp. apple cider vinegar
1 1/2 C. flour
1 C. sugar
1/3 c. cocoa
1/2 tsp. salt

Pre-heat oven to 350. Combine wet ingredients in a medium mixing bowl, and then add the dry ingredients, blending well. Line muffin tins with baking cups or grease the tins. Fill cups 3/4 full and bake for 20-25 minutes or until a knife or toothpick inserted in the middle of one of the cupcakes comes out clean. Frost with peppermint cream cheese frosting.

Peppermint Cream Cheese Frosting

4 oz. cream cheese
1 1/2 C. powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp. peppermint extract (NOT peppermint oil. If you only have oil on hand, use a couple drops, mix, taste, and see if it needs any more. Peppermint oil is far more concentrated than extract)

Mix all ingredients together until light and fluffy. If you need more liquid, add a very little amount of milk.

Incidentally, I LOVE the silicone baking cups! They are amazing. The cupcake literally just falls out into your hand when you tip it upside down. Fantastic!

Back in the Swing of Things...

2009-11-13T15:48:00.002-07:00

It feels so good to make something for my own child. I think he'll be adorable in this one, no?

Being slightly out of practice, I attached the snaps on the wrong side of the soaker (this just means that cotton will be against his skin instead of bamboo... not so horrible), but all in all my hands went right into their normal diaper making mode, and it came together pretty quickly. Yay!

Just Another Noah Post

2009-11-13T10:19:00.005-07:00

Nothing too spectacular to talk about, but this morning Noah decided that he wanted to wear only his diaper and his shoes. Since we had no where to go, and it's nice and toasty in our apartment (without the heat on- something that will benefit us greatly as it gets colder this winter), I let him play in his outfit of choice until it was naptime. He's a pretty funny kid.

Speaking of diapers, we got a nice table for me to sew on from FreeCycle (LOVE!) the other day, so I'm hoping to set it up soon and get some new ones made for the Bug. Before we moved I was so busy making diapers for customers, I didn't have time to make any for him. Well, I have several prints that I'm DYING to make for him, and some super sweet colored bamboo to use for the inside, so... here's hoping I can get a few knocked out for him soon.

New Digs

2009-11-12T17:12:00.005-07:00

We've (I've) been busy sprucing up our new apartment. We'll only be here until April, but I like where ever we are to feel like home. We're on a tight budget, so check out what I've done so far with some of our old decor, a few photos printed at Wal-mart, and 3 glass vases found at our local antique mall (which is massive, by the way) for $1 each. These are set over the two sections of our sectional.

Next up: digging through all of my fabric and making some slip covers to go over our current throw pillows to coordinate. Once that's done, I'll post pictures of the whole set up. Have I mentioned that there is a Hobby Lobby down the street that has the best selection of adorable fabric I've ever seen?? At reasonable prices, too! I have a feeling there will be quite a few projects upcoming. Yay!

Who Needs Finger Paints When You Have S'ghettios?

2009-11-07T13:22:00.004-07:00

Noah had spaghettios for lunch. He loves his spaghettios, and I'd wager to say half of why he loves them so much is because I allow him to play with the sauce for a while after the pasta is all eaten up. Today, he had his beloved baby goldfish crackers along with the spaghettios, and that seemed to make him pretty happy, but it could have been the fact that whenever I give him his goldfish crackers, I sing a song. Ten points to anyone who can name the tune that I sing this to, just based on the lyrics...

"Goldfishies! Goldfishies!
I like to eat my goldfishies; I like to eat my fish.
I like to eat my goldfishies; I like to eat them when I wish!"

Fall Festival... or Not...

2009-11-03T13:30:00.006-07:00

We had a plan for Saturday. We were going to drive up to a Fall Festival, about 20 minutes north of Colorado Springs, where they had a pumpkin patch, hay rides, a petting zoo, and many other autumn type activities. I envisioned adorable pictures of Noah in the pumpkin patch, petting the animals, riding the hay, etc. So, Saturday morning, we piled into the car, and started on our way. We got about half way there when I realized that we didn't bring the camera. This, obviously, rendered the outing pointless. I'm sure there is more than one person reading this who just said, "huh?", so let me explain. Noah, being nearly one, probably would have had fun, but would he have remembered it past that afternoon? Probably not. So, since there would be no fun photographic evidence of our trip, I decided that it was not worth the $10 to get in. Dug didn't care either way, so we turned around. Instead, we headed south to Manitou Springs (somewhere we'd been meaning to go anyway) and played tourists for a few hours, walking up and down their main street, looking in little shops, and smelling yummy food, the taste of which we promised our selves we would come back for some time in the future. There was an adorable Christmas shop that is open year round, that I'll definitely be going back to before the Holidays are over.

All this is to say, here are some pictures of Noah... and his store bought pumpkin (that's my artwork on its face)... in our living room.

And, one picture of him eating mommy's homemade chili. Surprisingly, he loves it!

Also, contrary to what these photos may lead you to believe, we do dress him. Occasionally.

As the Snow Melts from the Trees...

2009-10-26T13:19:00.002-06:00

Snow, Snow, Snow, Snow... Snow!

2009-10-25T17:01:00.006-06:00

We're in the middle of our fourth snow fall since we got here. It's not extremely heavy right now, but it's coming down pretty steadily, and Noah is in love with it. He took to sticking his tongue out, trying to catch the snow flakes, without us even showing him how (although I could not get him to do it while I had the camera out). His happy personality makes me marvel daily at how we ended up with such a cool kid. Just remind me of this on those days when he's driving me up the proverbial wall.

Cute Clowns and Feetie Pajamas

2009-10-25T13:16:00.003-06:00

I didn't know there was such a thing as a cute clown, either. However, I think you'll agree, as evidenced by the following photos, that there is in deed such a thing.

And, as a bonus... first feetie jammies! So warm and soft and cozy. He loves them! Also, as a side note, these particular feetie jammies are a size 3T. Yes, my 11 month old baby boy is wearing size 3T jammies. In all honesty, he could have worn the 2T, but they were all out of the cute ones, and heaven forbid I buy him ugly jammies that fit him. I'd much rather he have cute ones that are a bit too long. They'll last longer. At least that's the excuse that I use.

Making Up for Lost Time

2009-10-21T16:44:00.004-06:00

I realize that it's been quite some time (nearly two months, actually) since I last posted anything. It's been a busy two months, and that's really my only excuse. I'm still not going to post much today, but I hope this, along with a bunch of up to date photos of Noah will make up for the lack of words.

Since my last post, we have moved. We are now settling into a nice little apartment in Colorado Springs, and we love it. It's gorgeous here. There are more trees than I remember seeing anywhere in my life. It's snowed three times since we've been here. It's snowing again today, and watching it come down and cover the trees is just beautiful.

Noah is getting so big! He'll be 11 months tomorrow, which means his first birthday is coming up next month. How did that happen?? He's a happy, extremely active toddler now and, while I thoroughly enjoy every stage that he enters, I'm left wondering where my baby went.

Another Walking Video, and Noah's 1st Chocolate Chip Cookie

2009-09-03T08:55:00.003-06:00

This is from early this week. He's pretty much walking everywhere now, and is starting to run short distances (yes, that is just a scary as it sounds). Anyone know where the slow down button is located on a 9 month old little monster?

Yesterday, we let Noah have his first chocolate chip cookie. I think he may have liked it... what do you think?

A Big Milestone

2009-08-17T23:17:00.004-06:00

These two videos speak for themselves. We're pretty proud parents right now, as you can probably imagine!

How to Love a Porcupine... Krystal's Method

2009-08-15T12:43:00.003-06:00

I was thinking about the "turn the other cheek" advice that Christ gives. While thinking about this, I wondered what He would suggest to someone who has turned their cheek so many times they are now getting whip lash. What do you think?

Here's what I came up with.

I think He would tell that person to turn their cheek again. However, I don't think that by saying that He means sticking said cheek out for the other person to once again slap. I think it means that yes, you should turn that cheek- meaning you should not slap back- but you should probably also take actions to remove your cheek from their vicinity. That way, even if they are still swinging away, you don't get slapped again.

There is a person in my life that has metaphorically slapped me numerous times. This person doesn't realize what they're doing. They're pretty good at convincing their self that they are the victim... always. It's not just me that they find issue(s) with. It's the same story with most people in this person's life. Which is sad. Which is why I have always turned the other cheek. Obviously they have a problem. You don't fight a sick person, right?

But does that mean that I should lay down and let them continually beat on me? No.

So, here is what I am doing this time. Rather than let this person continue in their one sided fight until they get bored and move on to the next person and then pretend like everything is fine, I'm going to remove myself. I send this person all the love in the world. I wish them the very best in everything they do. I hope that they can find healing and joy. I hope that one day they won't feel the need to find offense when none was intended, that they won't constantly think the worst of people, that they won't depend on others for their own personal happiness, that they will find peace. Until that point I am removing myself from their reach. They can swing away, but their hand will not touch my cheek. My own life is great. It's wonderful, in fact. I have a fabulous husband, a wonderful son, great parents, fantastic in-laws, awesome friends, a fun business that I enjoy, and life is pretty sweet. Maybe one day, when this person is better, we can be in each other's lives again. Until then, they will be in my prayers.

Dear Mosquitos...

2009-08-06T14:40:00.002-06:00

While I am flattered that you find me so appealing, I am going to have to ask that you leave me alone now. The constant hovering (I am tempted to call it stalking, but I don't want to go too far) is getting to be more than a little annoying. If this continues, I am going to be forced to take the matter to my good friend, Mr. Orkin, or one of his associates.

Respectfully,

Krystal

Vegas, Kansas City, and a Few Points Somewhere in Between

2009-08-05T09:47:00.013-06:00

Blurry photo (didn't want to disturb the real photographer with my flash) of Melissa just a few moments after becoming Mrs. Shane McCrae... yay!

At the reception, held at Genovese in Lawrence, KS.Dinner at Dug's friends, Andy and Greisy's house... he made the biggest mess you've ever seen
Grandma and Grandpa's house Deanna Rose Petting Zoo Dug's childhood neighborhood pool

How Noah-bug feels about car rides
On the flight back home

Auntie Kira's houseSwimming at Grandma Sandy's house

One of Those Days

2009-07-26T22:34:00.002-06:00

Ever have one of those days when it seems that every time you turn around you're dealt another blow?

That was my day today.

Excuse me while I go bury my face in a bowl of chocolate peanut-butter ice cream.

Frightening Thoughts...

2009-07-25T14:45:00.003-06:00

This was posted at http://campaignforliberty.com and it opens up some pretty scary thoughts. I love some things about the Canadian Health System. I really do. Their pre-natal/maternity care is awesome, for one. However, I don't think those things are enough to make up for its inherent downfalls. I also don't think those things are enough to make me want the same care here.

Over at the American Spectator, Matthew Vadum reminds us about the reality of Canadian care. Particularly powerful is the video featuring Shona Holmes, a Canadian with a brain tumor who was told to get to the back of the line to wait for an appointment with a specialist. Vadum writes:

Patients United Now, which is a project of Americans for Prosperity Foundation, is now running an effective TV ad opposing President Obama's socialist healthcare scheme.

It features patient Shona Holmes of Waterdown, Ontario, Canada. As her brain tumor grew, Holmes was told by Canada's dysfunctional government-run healthcare system that she would have to wait for six months to see a specialist. "In six months I would have died," Holmes says in the spot. The Mayo Clinic where Holmes received successful treatment tells her story at its website. Mayo is also fiercely critical of ObamaCare.

Holmes is not the first Canadian to reject what amounted to a death sentence from her own nation's health care system and to come to America for treatment. Indeed, the U.S. long has acted as a medical safety valve for Canadians. But if the Obama administration succeeds in destroying the American health care system, what nation will act as a safety valve for us?

Doug Bandow, American Conservative Defense Alliance

Making it Easier to Understand...

2009-07-23T16:59:00.001-06:00

If We Ever Renew Our Vows...

2009-07-23T15:09:00.001-06:00

This is how we're doing it! How seriously cool is this? It brought tears to my eyes, too. That's because I am a big baby.

4th of July, Continued...

2009-07-09T13:40:00.008-06:00

My laptop died on me before I had a chance to upload the rest of the pics, so here they are...

And, this was not from the 4th, but I think it's adorable.

Happy Independence Day!

2009-07-05T14:56:00.005-06:00

It was the Noah-bug's first Fourth of July, and he had so much fun! We took him out to St. George with Uncle Kevin, Auntie Nikkie, his three cousins, Auntie Haley, Uncle Robbie, Uncle Kenny, and Grandpa. There was a fair type thing going on, with live music, food, rides for the kids, etc. It was a beautiful day, and not too hot in the shade, which is where we set up shop. We had a picnic dinner, and the kids played ball and frisbee. The fireworks started about ten, and Noah thought they were amazing. He loved them, and stared wide-eyed and slack-jawed for a bit before smiling, and trying to touch the bright colors exploding in the sky above us.

Complete and Total Adoration

2009-07-05T11:11:00.003-06:00

I think Noah loves his Uncle Robbie... what do you think?

Something Every Mother (every woman for that matter) NEEDS to Watch

2009-07-03T09:13:00.001-06:00

One More (I think the last one)...

2009-07-02T13:40:00.006-06:00

I realized that it's been a little while since I've posted photos of Noah. He's changing so fast, it's insane. We're going on 8 teeth now, and he's pulling up and walking around the room any chance he gets. I have a feeling his first steps aren't too far off, though he could surprise me. He turned 7 months on the 22nd of last month, and is wearing between 12 and 18 month clothing depending on the brand. Most of the 18 month clothes are to accommodate his fluffy cloth diaper butt. His hair is getting longer and is starting to curl... so cute! He's eating solids really well now, though we still don't rely on them for the bulk of his diet. His most recent love is avocados. A boy after his mommy's heart!

Third Post of the Day!

2009-07-02T11:30:00.003-06:00

I guess this is what happens when you pull both of your quadriceps and can't move very well!

Look what I got in the mail today!

There are 3 yards of gorgeousness there. The problem is I have no idea what to do with it right now. So... any ideas??

Enter to Win a Free Family Photo Session (in St. George)

2009-07-02T11:14:00.002-06:00

Check out our friend Heather's blog, and enter to win a free photo session (you know I've entered!)

Simply Fabulous Photography

Is Chickenpox a Necessary Childhood Illness, or a Scary Dangerous Disease?

2009-07-02T09:30:00.005-06:00

A friend posted this on facebook. Vaccinations are always such a controversial subject. People tend to get very passionate about which ever side they happen to be on. I usually have a hard time explaining things when asked about my beliefs; my mind goes blank as to how to convey what I'm thinking. I would NOT be an excellent debater. This article, however, illustrates perfectly why I feel the way I do about vaccines. It's a bit long, but worth the read if that sort of thing interests you.

Why the Chickenpox Vaccine is Nuts!
http://www.compassionatesouls.com/chickenpox.html

When I was a child, chickenpox was universally understood to be a generally benign disease in otherwise healthy children. Every spring, chickenpox would wash through the younger grades at my elementary school, and initiate a new group of kids. Most of us remember the disease for its horrendous itching and the occasional scar, but I don't remember any of us fearing it. I grew up accepting Chickenpox as a fact of life, and a normal passage of childhood -- like skinning your knees.
According to the Merck Manual, Chickenpox is a highly contagious infection caused by the varicella-zoster virus. There is a 10 to 21 day incubation period. In children over the age of 10 the very first symptoms are headache, fever and malaise. Younger children usually DON'T have these symptoms. But in adults, the symptoms are generally worse. That is why it is important to contract this disease before the age of 10, since infection with the varicella-zoster virus is believed to create a lifetime immunity to chickenpox. Nursing babies often aren't susceptible to chickenpox -- if their mother had the illness as a child, she will pass antibodies, through the placenta in pregnancy and additional ones via her milk which confer a high degree immunity. About 24-36 hours after the first symptoms begin, the characteristic rash appears. The Merck manual then states, "Children usually recover from chickenpox without problems. However, the infection may be severe or even fatal in adults and especially in people with an impaired immune system."
My college textbook, Microbiology, by Davis, Dulbecco et al, describes the varicella-zoster virus as being part of a large family of viruses, known as the "Herpesviruses." This family includes the well-known herpes simplex viruses which cause fever blisters, Epstein-Barr virus (causes mononucleosis) and cytomegalovirus. One of the main characteristics of this family of viruses is their ability after primary infection to insert their viral DNA into a person's DNA and remain there in a latent form indefinitely. In the case of chickenpox, this is thought to explain how a person who had chickenpox as a child, can then develop shingles as an adult, in response to certain environmental stresses which may cause the virus DNA to un-insert itself from the host DNA and start replicating itself.
Sometime around 1995 a vaccine for chickenpox became available. It is a live-virus vaccine. Typically live-virus vaccines are made by growing the wild -type virus in ways that alter its ability to cause the disease. In essence it is similar to the natural virus, and capable of reproducing once inside the body, but is supposed to be less likely to actually cause the disease itself. However just because the symptoms are reduced does not necessarily mean that it is not causing harm inside the body. Their are many examples of infections that can silently damage organs, and not be discovered until many years later.
The normal route of entry of chickenpox into a child's body is through the mouth and nose-- usually inhaling particles that an infected person has coughed. This means that the virus will come in contact with the mucous membranes and trigger the beginnings of an immune response. After this initial "alert" of the immune system, the virus travels to the lymphatic system, where additional body defenses are mustered. Finally, after the body has had adequate time to gear up, the virus gains access to the blood stream and major organs. But by this time, the immune system is mounting a full response (thanks to its being alerted early by the mucous membranes and lymphatic system) and will usually protect the major organs from damage from this virus.
Now compare this scenario to what happens when one's first exposure to the virus is from a vaccine: The mucous membranes are bypassed. The lymphatic system is bypassed. The live virus gains immediate access to the bloodstream and major organs -- a situation that millions of years of evolutionary wisdom seems to have tried to avoid!
No one really knows what the long term ramifications of exposure to this virus in this unorthodox way are. Since it is so new, there is no long term data available. In fact there is no data to even suggest that after ten years, immunity from this vaccine is sufficient to prevent the disease -- possibly leaving people vulnerable to getting chickenpox as adults when the risks of this illness are much greater!
There is no evidence that when little girls who have received the chickenpox vaccine grow up and become mothers, they will be able to pass sufficient antibodies on to their babies to protect them from chickenpox in infancy -- which can also be dangerous in the very young. And like all vaccines currently on the market, there is no requirement that manufacturers study recipients of vaccines to identify possible long-term ill-effects from these biological agents. In fact to my knowledge, no vaccine manufacturer ever records data on the health of vaccinee's longer then 90 days -- and even following them that long is rare! But that does make it easy for them to dismiss epidemiological data that seems to suggest vaccines may play a role in the increase in a variety of autoimmune diseases, asthma and brain disorders.
What we do know as a result of vaccination for measles, another previously common childhood infection--also thought to be much less serious if contracted between the ages of 3-9, is that for many, the vaccine does not confer lifelong immunity, it merely POSTPONES one's susceptibility. Prior to widespread measles vaccination, epidemics in college-aged people were unheard of -- today (or a least prior to requiring re-immunization of college freshman) college students have become more common victims, and face a greater potential for complications then children.
When I first heard press reports about the new chickenpox vaccine, I remember thinking to myself, "That's crazy -- how in the world will they sell a new vaccine with unknown long term dangers to the public -- nobody's scared of chickenpox." But very soon my question was answered. While reading a popular parenting magazine one day, I noticed a slick multi-page advertising insert that compared the cost of this vaccine to lost wages of the working parent who must miss a week of work to care for their sick child. It was a shock to see the health of our children so shamelessly traded for the materialism of our culture.
At that point, having studied a bit more about the history of vaccination, and the evolution of public perception about specific illnesses once a vaccine is introduced, I remember commenting to a friend, "Just wait -- in twenty or thirty years when childhood cases of chickenpox become rare due to the use of this vaccine -- everyone will be talking about what a DANGEROUS disease chickenpox was!" As it turns out, I was wrong -- it didn't take twenty or thirty years, it happened almost as soon as the vaccine was released. Pharmaceutical company spun articles and news reports began appearing that emphasized that chickenpox is not a benign disease. First they said that there were about ten deaths a year due chickenpox. A year later I saw an article that claimed there were a hundred deaths a year due to chickenpox. Next came a heart-rending article, splashed all-over the newspapers complete with color pictures and all of some poor child who had a "normal" case of chickenpox and then developed some serious heart complication. The child's doctor was quoted as saying, "Chickenpox is NOT harmless!"
I'm sure sales of the vaccine increased after that story came out -- funny how in the previous fifty years (prior to introduction of the vaccine) the media never had a story like that to run!
What the media never seem to mention in all these alarmist articles is that most of the children who die from chickenpox were already immunocompromised -- many are suffering from cancer or leukemia. Also nobody even thinks to question what other lifestyle choices these families are making that may place their child at greater risk -- Is the child exposed to cigarette smoke? Does the child consume a lot of sweets, hydrogenated fats, refined carbohydrates and/or animal protein (in other words the typical American diet) which may be depressing his immune system?
In addition, most people are unfamiliar with the fact that there are numerous accounts by parents whose children developed neurological or immune problems shortly after a vaccination but could not get their doctor to even consider that the vaccine was responsible and couldn't get their doctor to report it as a vaccine adverse event to the government agencies that keep track of such data. No wonder the CDC bean-counters are so quick to claim that the dangers of the natural diseases are a greater risk to children then the dangers of the vaccinations!
Already many states are considering adding chickenpox to the list of immunizations required for entry into school. This is indefensible! Why should any parent be forced into presenting their healthy child for administration of a biological agent with still-to-be-determined long-term risks (but which are most certainly there!) in order to possibly prolong the lives of a very few already sick children (who might be less likely to get chickenpox if there were fewer active cases in the community.)
Furthermore, what will be the risk to these children's babies? The vaccine which takes a series of three shots to provide immunity cannot possibly protect a newborn from the illness, and it would be pretty naive to believe that a mother who had only received the vaccine, but never actually contracted the disease and developed full immunity would actually be able to pass on sufficient immunities to her newborn.
Maybe some parents believe that they can't keep their children from eating a junky diet, and thus they need this and other vaccines to protect them from possibly becoming quite ill, because their immune system--compromised by a poor diet, might not be able to adequately protect their child from serious harm from common diseases. But in a free country, does that mean that families who DO take personal responsibility for their health, and do eat healthy whole-foods plant-based diets low in processed foods and trans-fatty acids MUST forfeit their right to an undamaged immune system simply because the masses, persuaded by drug manufacturers choose to put their faith in science over nature?
Recently, an older relative had an outbreak of shingles. This was the first time this had ever happened to her, and the outbreak occurred near her eye -- which was especially a concern. Her opthamologist commented to her that he had seen an unusually large number of cases of shingles this year. That got me wondering about something. While this relative had just been through a particularly stressful period just prior to this outbreak, which most probably was a factor in HER getting the shingles, but why was the doctor seeing an unusually large number of cases all of a sudden?
I got out my old microbiology textbook and read the following: "Contact with chickenpox is said to provoke attacks of shingles in partially immune individuals." I wonder....now that the use of the chickenpox vaccine is becoming more widespread, could it be provoking cases of shingles in the older people whose own immunity may be waning?
The vaccine IS a live virus. Studies have documented that for a period of time after vaccination with a live virus vaccine, a person will "shed" some of that virus from their body, which may infect others. Most often, when a child comes down with chickenpox, that child stays home and is not out exposing the community for most of the time that they are infectious, but after a vaccination? Who keeps their children at home and away from older people for a couple of weeks while they may be shedding virus after being vaccinated? How is shingles provoked from shed vaccine different then shingles provoked from the wild chickenpox virus? We don't know. What about children who miss getting chickenpox in childhood because they were vaccinated...what happens when their immunity starts to wane..(which it always does with vaccines -- that's why you have to keep getting booster shots!) .will they be even more susceptible to provocation shingles?
Finally one last point I'd like to make. Since varicella-zoster is a herpesvirus which as I said earlier are known for their ability to hide in the DNA of our cells and then perhaps in response to specific environmental events eject themselves from our DNA (and sometimes this is not done with precision -- in fact scientific journals have indisputably proved that occasionally some of our own cells DNA can still be attached -- this is called "translocation of genes" in the journals) and begin reproducing our DNA inside new virus particles....well what are the implications of using an altered form of chickenpox virus (the vaccine) using an evolutionary brand new route of primary exposure (via the bloodstream) and then repeating this "experiment" millions of times (as we are in the process of doing) in widely disseminated geographical areas?
I fear that we are facilitating and speeding up the evolution of a multitude of simple life forms -- primarily viruses. Unfortunately more complex life forms (such as huans) cannot possibly even come close to evolving in a complementary way in order to survive assault by so many novel infectious agents.
Until someone can come up with data to adequately dispel all of my concerns I'd rather bet my family's health, and the health of our species on the wisdom of millions of years of evolutionary history rather then humankind's usually naive and misguided manipulations of nature. Unfortunately, the use of live vaccines by some, creates risk for us all -- I call it exposure to second-hand vaccination -- but at least second-hand vaccination doesn't bypass the normal engagement of our immune system.

Our Little Daredevil

2009-06-28T23:46:00.002-06:00

Fabric Obsession... and a Whine

2009-06-24T00:56:00.007-06:00

I'm addicted to fabric. Seriously addicted. I want every lovely pattern that I see, and I want yards of it. This is so I can make something out if it, and still have some left over to look at on my fabric shelves (yes, plural). I have one complaint, however. I can find hundreds upon hundreds of beautiful woven prints, and close to none in knit. Why is this? Did someone decide one day that knit fabric can not be beautiful? I can find lots and lots of cute knits, and pretty knits, but none that match the loveliness of my favorite wovens. If I could find a manufacturer that produced knits of this kind I would be in heaven. Any suggestions?

Here are a few of my current faves (woven, of course... but can't you just see some of these on one of my diapers?? I need knits!!):

Before I Know it He'll be 27

2009-06-19T20:18:00.003-06:00

This is seriously going too fast. Here's Noah's latest accomplishment. He's now cruising along the couch, as well...

Open for Business!

2009-06-12T23:53:00.001-06:00

Check it out! http://bohochicbaby.com

It's just my soft opening. The store isn't fully stocked, the home page isn't perfect, but it's open, and there is merchandise to sell. So exciting!

Musings on a Monday Morning...

2009-06-08T09:29:00.004-06:00

I made my first attempt at serging on Friday (see pics at bottom of post). It didn't come out too bad for my first try! Next on my list of experiments is adapting my pattern to be a bit trimmer in the crotch, and hiding the snaps so they don't touch baby's skin. I'm also going to work on my own three step rise, rather than using the across the top snap design that I've been doing. I don't like how the fold over snaps (for smaller babies) are cutting into Noah's tummy (since he obviously doesn't use the smaller rise). I've ordered some ribbon with my logo on it to wrap around the diapers before I send them, for a cute presentation. That's fun. Here's the logo that I put on the ribbon:

Sweet, huh?

In other news... Dug's sister Melissa is getting married on August 1st, in Kansas City, so we'll be flying out there for that. Hmmm... Flying with an 8 month old... anyone have any advice or tips to make that go smoothly? And, if you're a cloth diapering mama, any tips on making CDing while traveling as easy as possible? Or am I being silly and we just need to buy some sposies for the trip? I saw that Huggies just started selling some "natural" sposies that are a bit cheaper than 7th gen or Tushies... has anyone tried them? Oooh, how about tips for the 1.5 hour drive to Vegas, where we'll be flying from? Maybe I'll try to coincide his nap with the drive...

Well, I'm off to go sew! I'm really pushing to have enough stock to open my store on July 1st, so wish me lots of luck!

Who Needs Toys...

2009-06-06T17:56:00.003-06:00

...when you can be this entertained by a baby food lid??

Getting Started...

2009-06-05T11:37:00.004-06:00

There are so many things involved in getting a business off the ground, it's kind of overwhelming! I'm registering my business name and getting my business license today. That's kind of exciting. It's definitely starting to feel real. One of the benefits of starting this business is that Noah's diaper stash has grown considerably, and for loads cheaper than if I'd bought them all from the companies that I usually shop. Here's the latest of my creations.

I Promise I'll...

2009-06-02T16:50:00.003-06:00

...blog about something real soon, but this is what has been occupying all of my extra time lately (what little there is), and I'm pretty proud of them, so... here's the latest! I think the model is pretty cute, too...

I So Need a Baby Girl

2009-05-31T12:29:00.004-06:00

New Ventures...

2009-05-28T00:08:00.003-06:00

I don't know if everyone is aware of this, but I use cloth diapers for Noah. I love them. I'm addicted to them (um, have you seen the new Goodmamas?? Sigh.). I'm not the only one. So, I'm starting my own cloth diaper business. At the moment, I have the website and domain name purchased (http://bohochicbaby.com, if you're interested, but you'll see nothing but my banner and message saying 'come back soon'), I have my snap press, I just ordered a brand spanking new fancy schmancy sewing machine (I lucked out and got a FABULOUS deal), I have a ton of fabric, and I'm practicing on Noah. I made my first one today. I used the RRP as a basis for my pattern and tweaked it a bit. I styled the snap settings after the popular fitted diapers that are already out there, but in the design that I'm working on they'll be different. The inner is organic bamboo velour (yummy), the core is bamboo fleece, and the outer is a cotton print. I made two snap in soakers out of the bamboo velour and cotton. It is a beautiful diaper, albeit imperfect. For my first try, I think it came out pretty great! So, here's Noah modeling his first mommy-made diaper!

Back of the diaper (those are the snaps for the snap in soakers that you can see)

Front

And... He's Off!

2009-05-24T11:46:00.003-06:00

Ok, well, it's not exactly crawling, but he has figured out how to move forward (as opposed to the backward scooting he's been doing for a while now). So cute! So, here's Noah trying to get Daddy's pizza:

6 Months and Some Teeth!

2009-05-22T18:01:00.004-06:00

I can hardly believe it, but Noah is six months old today! It seems like it was just a short time ago that I was in the hospital, snuggling with him in that not so comfortable hospital bed, and now here we are... six months later. To celebrate his half birthday, Noah decided to grow some teeth. Well, he's been working on them for a while, but one of them finally broke through last night (at the expense of his mom and dad's sleep), and the second one broke through today. Go, Noah! Click on the photos to see the teefies in all their glory :) As a bonus, I've uploaded a video of mommy trying to get him to show his teeth... it wasn't happenin'!

Uh Oh, He's Mobile... Part 2!

2009-05-13T23:00:00.003-06:00

I think Noah will be crawling any minute now... Wish us luck!

Happy Mother's Day!

2009-05-09T23:43:00.004-06:00

It's my first real Mother's Day. I celebrated by making my mom something special. It was fun, and I'm really happy with how it came out. I got the idea from here.

Hope all you moms out there have a wonderful day! You deserve it!

Uh Oh... He's Mobile.

2009-05-02T16:27:00.003-06:00

New Hair + No More Glasses= Happy Mommy

2009-04-30T18:53:00.003-06:00

So, I'm sure all of you moms out there will know what I mean when I say I've felt a bit frumpy since Noah was born. Baby weight, not having highlighted my hair in 15+ months, etc. Well, our tax refund help remedy some of that yesterday, and I already feel about 200% better. I found a new hairdresser (the reason I've waited this long to do my hair since he was born, is that my old hairdresser (whom I love) moved to Provo) and, luckily, she is WONDERFUL. I will definitely be going back to her. She gave me my highlights, and cut off 7 plus inches. It looks WAY better, and it will be so much easier to deal with. I also got contacts again, after about 2 years in glasses. I liked my glasses ok, but I prefer contacts much much more. Lastly, I gave myself a home pedicure, courtesy of the ped-egg, Burt's Bee's Coconut Foot Creme, and a new coat of toe nail polish in a bright, springy, hot pink shade. Now, I just need to crack down on my diet and exercise, and I'll be well on my way back to... well, me.

Here's the hair (please excuse the gross mirror)

The Cousins

2009-04-26T10:00:00.003-06:00

My brother, Kevin, and his wife Nikki left yesterday with their three kids after a two week visit. I think Noah enjoyed having little kids around, and I think he'll enjoy having them around again when they move here in June. Here are some pics from before they left.

Daddy's Oh So Funny!

2009-04-26T09:06:00.002-06:00

Thank Goodness for Sophie

2009-04-24T18:58:00.004-06:00

Noah has an adorable rubber giraffe, named Sophie. Grandma bought her for him for Christmas, and Mommy was so excited because it's something that she'd been wanting to buy for him, but couldn't justify the cost at the time. Can I tell you something? I can justify the cost now. I can justify the cost of buying 2, even. Sophie is the only break I've had today from rescuing Noah from being on his belly. You see, he's rolling now, but he can't roll back. So, he gets stuck on his belly, which he doesn't like. I say again, thank goodness for Sophie!

I Knew This Was a Good Purchase!

2009-04-24T10:09:00.004-06:00

In other news from Noah-land... He got his first pair of sunglasses the other day. So funny!

He also got his first band tees, so I'll have to post pics of those when he wears them. Daddy was pretty stoked to find both the Rolling Stones, and Run D.M.C. tees at Target, and they had them in his size (12 months, if you can believe that).

He is now rolling over pretty consistently from back to belly. He hasn't figured out belly to back yet, though. He's also creeping (I think that's what it's called?) backwards. I set him down on his back yesterday, with some toys, walked out of the room for a minute, came back and he was on his tummy, about 4 feet from where I left him. He's also gotten himself stuck half way under the couch, which was amusing. I think we're going to be baby proofing very soon!

Small Things...

2009-04-24T00:07:00.002-06:00

Sometimes it's the small things in life that can totally make your day. I just looked out my back door, and this sight just completely made me stop, slow down, and smile. It's so peaceful here and, though I don't always think about it, I'm very grateful for it.

To Whom it May Concern...

2009-04-23T14:01:00.003-06:00

A while back I was questioned about why I do certain things that I do. Not questioned, actually, more like belittled for it. On my blog. By someone who knows very little about me. This person paid no attention to the fact that the blog post on which they commented had to do with exactly that, and went ahead and basically made it very clear that they thought I was a whack job who made decisions based on the desire to be different, and not because I had thoroughly researched, and prayed, and contemplated like an intelligent person would. This person actually stated in their comment, something to the affect of, "Sometimes you just have to ask yourself what's best for your child, and not what's best for you." I'm sure you can imagine my reaction to that. I have since deleted their comment, for two reasons; a. I do not want that sort of negativity on my blog, and b. this is a person who is known by a lot of others who read my blog, and I didn't want those people to think less of them because of a poorly thought out comment.

Anyway, my point in bringing this up, is thus; one of the things about which said person took issue was vaccinations. I don't do them. In my life I have had plenty of personal experiences which have always caused me to worry about them and, as I've gotten older, and educated myself about both sides, I have come to the conclusion that they are not worth the risk they inherently bring with them. This is my personal opinion. I completely understand those who think otherwise; that is their personal opinion. Here is a very well written article by a very well known person (I always like when people who are in the public eye are willing to speak out, even when what they are saying goes against the social norms), that exemplifies why I feel the way I do. I hope this at least will help this particular person, if they are reading, to perhaps realize that not everything is black and white. Some things are subject to personal opinion. And thinking one way does not make you a bad person (or parent). However, closing your self off to the idea that someone may know something you don't, or that you may not be right about everything is probably not such a great idea.

Noah's First Summer Outing

2009-04-21T23:02:00.011-06:00

Yep; an outing. In 90 plus degree weather. Brave, huh? We went with my mom, sister, brother and sister in law, and their three kids to the home of Jacob Hamblin today. I've been there a few times, and it's always interesting to hear the stories of the families who lived there. Even more fun though, was the time spent outside of the home on the grass with our own family. Here are some pics of the day. Noah loves being outside!

Waking up from his nap, shortly before leaving

With Daddy, immediately after the tour of the Jacob Hamblin home

Uncle Kenny, Grandma, Auntie Nikki, Uncle Kevin, Auntie Haley
Playing with Auntie Haley (that's cousin Maddy in the background)

Cousin Johnny. He's oh so serious.

Cousin Riley

With Mommy

Auntie Haley

With Grandma and Auntie Nikki

Desperate to be Mobile

2009-04-18T08:50:00.003-06:00

Noah so wants to be able to get around on his own. Last night he was trying extra hard. What I missed getting on camera (I was fumbling to get the memory card back into the camera) was Noah pushing his self up with his arms, and then trying to get his butt in the air as well. It wasn't working so well, so he gave up and started trying to propel his self forward.

It Wasn't a Fluke!

2009-04-17T19:35:00.003-06:00

He can still do it, and here's proof! Yay!

Satisfaction!

2009-04-17T19:33:00.003-06:00

Ever get that rush of getting something you want, something you really really want, and get it at a really good price? That rush is why I'm currently in love with babysteals.com. Seriously. Check it out!

Guess Who's Sitting??

2009-04-16T15:11:00.002-06:00

PSA for Parents of Children in Diapers

2009-04-16T09:46:00.003-06:00

I recently found something that was pretty exciting to me. Most of you probably know that we use cloth diapers. Well, did you know that diapers.com sells cloth diapers in addition to the regular disposables? I didn't either. They do; they sell bumGenius, Fuzzy Buns, and more. So, I had a coupon for $10 off my first purchase that I found online, and they offer free shipping on anything over $49, so I ordered 3 bumGenius one size pocket diapers (which are $17.95 each no matter where you go), for approx. $43 shipped. Sweet! That's not the exciting part though. Now that I have an account with them, I have my own referral code (just like the one I used to save me $10) to give out. That means that I can save people $10 on their first order, and I get a $5 credit for that purchase. It gets better. Now, every time that person makes another purchase, I get another $1 credit. I purchased another 3 BGOS diapers the other day for $33 shipped using $20 in credits. I checked this morning and there's another $5 credit on my account. Awesome.

If you're interested in doing it, here's my referral code; just enter it in at checkout.

KRYS8893

Then you'll have your own snazzy referral code, and can pass it along, too. Yay!

Daily Giggle

2009-04-15T23:09:00.002-06:00

These were too funny not to share... And, for those who may be concerned that we spend our time scaring our son, and taking pictures of it, the second photo was taken within a few seconds of the first. Oh, the many expressions of Noah!

If a Man Die, Shall He Live Again?

2009-04-12T17:42:00.002-06:00

Rather than sharing my own inadequate thoughts on this Easter Sunday (which were many), I wanted to share the First Presidency's Easter Message. It's worth reading, and then reading again...

At this Easter season of hope and renewal we testify of the glorious reality of the atonement and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. The empty tomb brought comforting assurance and provided the answer to the question of Job, “If a man die, shall he live again?” (Job 14:14).
Because of the Savior’s resurrection we will overcome death and become the beneficiaries of His mercy and grace. In a world of trouble and uncertainty, His peace fills our hearts and eases our minds. Jesus is in very deed “the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6).

We give our sure witness that Jesus is the Christ. Though He was crucified, He rose triumphant from the tomb to our everlasting blessing and benefit. To each member of the human family He stands as our Advocate, our Savior, and our Friend.

And,on a lighter note, here is Noah's first Easter outfit. Auntie Kira got him the shirt, and I got the rest. He's extra adorable, I think!

Auntie Kira Came to Visit!

2009-04-11T12:04:00.004-06:00

My best friend, Kira, came to visit us from Las Vegas yesterday, and Noah fell in love. Having not seen him since he was 2 weeks old, I think she may have as well...

Best. Purchase. Ever.

2009-04-11T08:49:00.003-06:00

Ok, well, maybe that's a slight exaggeration, but Noah really loves his new exersaucer (purchased at Kid to Kid for way cheap, which I love), and Mommy foresees being able to get a little bit more done without having to wait for his naps to come around. Yay!

Bath Time + Links = Fun!

2009-04-02T21:05:00.001-06:00

Yay for Handy Dads!

2009-04-02T15:23:00.002-06:00

So, last week sometime we bought a beautiful cabinet for the kitchen. It was on craigslist, and they previous owners had painted it a light green color, so I spent hours one day painting it white. I was very happy with how it came out. The weather, on the other hand, decided it needed a few tweaks. Namely, a split across the middle, and lots of red dirt on top of the nice new white paint. The weather accomplished this by sending the strongest winds the Hurricane valley has seen since they decided to call it the Hurricane Valley (not usually an apt name, but very fitting that night). I got up in the morning to find it on the ground, split in two, and covered in red dirt. I was crushed, to say the least.

Yesterday my dad and my uncle came over to check it out, and figured a way to fix it. Dad came over again today and finished it. Now, it just needs a good washing and probably a fresh coat of paint (this red dirt stains every thing it comes in contact with) and it will be good as new. Yay!

The Sisterhood Award

2009-04-02T09:14:00.003-06:00

It took me a few days, but I finally got a chance to post this. Thank you to Veronica for giving me the award! It made me smile; I hope to be able to make it out to one of the play dates soon so we can meet in real life!

So, here's the deal:

The Sisterhood Award

The nitty gritty:

1. Put the logo on your blog or post.

2. Nominate 5-10 blogs which show great Attitude and/or Gratitude!

3. Be sure to link to your nominees within your post.

4. Let them know that they have received this award by commenting on their blog.

5. Share the love; link to this post and to the person from whom you received your award.

I hereby nominate the following awesome ladies:

1. Joy, for being an inspiration to all of the kids in her class (and to me!)

2. Margot, for making me smile with each blog that she posts (yes, I read them all).

3. Sarah, for being who she is, without fail, regardless of what others think. I happen to think you're lovely :)

4. Jill, for being the kind of mom I hope to be as Noah grows older and as we add other little people to our family. I miss having you for my visiting teacher!
5. Lori, for being the bravest woman I know.

Pass it on!

Noah ♥'s Daddy

2009-04-01T22:47:00.003-06:00

Just a cute show of Noah's love for his Daddy :)

Know anyone looking for some cloth diapers?

2009-03-27T17:35:00.004-06:00

I bought these for Noah a little while ago and tried one out. He leaked, but I thought I'd wait until he got a bit bigger and try again, thinking that he just didn't fill them out enough yet. Well, I pulled them out again yesterday, and tried that same diaper, and it still didn't fit right. In order to get it snug enough around the legs, I have to make it really tight around his middle. He's just not the right shape. So, I'm selling them. They are one size pocket diapers, and I'm including the inserts that I bought for them. They'll fit from 9lbs to 35 lbs (so long as your baby isn't super chubby like mine lol), by using the adjustable snap settings. I have 12, paid $132 for them at Cloth Diaper Wholesale a few months ago, and I'm asking $100 for them now. Only the one got used, and only two times for a few hours each time. I'll even ship them for free (within the US) if they don't live here. Let me know if you know anyone!

The diaper that I tried on Noah isn't in the picture because it was in the wash when I took it. It's one with the light blue snaps.

Fantastic Beatles Song + Adam Levine = Happy Krystal

2009-03-26T19:13:00.000-06:00

More Noah Squeals and Babbles

2009-03-26T09:42:00.003-06:00

He's been very talkative this morning...

Sweet Baby Babbling

2009-03-26T00:22:00.003-06:00

Noah is talking so much lately, I finally caught some of it on camera. This is pretty mild for him; I guess he was pretty relaxed, but it's still cute. I actually got some while he was in the bath, which was quite a bit more amusing since he was splashing and getting really excited, but I don't know how to blur out his little guy, and I really don't want to show it off to the world, so here is Noah after his bath. :)

Getting in Touch with My Inner Crafty-Person

2009-03-25T23:40:00.003-06:00

Have you ever made something, and had it turn out exactly how you wanted it to? Can I tell you what a wonderful feeling that is? I wanted something in my new living room that reflected where I came from. Oceanside. So I printed out a bunch of pictures, and this is the result... I am in love.

Click on the image to see it in all its glory

More of the House...

2009-03-24T20:57:00.005-06:00

I worked on the bathroom a bit today, and thought I'd share. I'm pretty happy with it so far. I painted one wall in the same color that I used in the living room, but I'm still going to paint the white wall; probably a creamy warm white, as opposed to the sterile hospital white that is there now. I'm also getting three prints to hang over the cabinet. I think I'm doing that tomorrow... It's funny... even though this is by far the smallest house we've lived in yet, I already love it more than the others.

These are the prints I'm hanging over the cabinet; they're by Cyndi Schick. I love them!

Noah Fluff

2009-03-21T20:07:00.006-06:00

I got some new diapers for Noah in the mail the other day, and they're so cute on him, I had to share. They're Happy Heinys that I got for a really good price from a website that is going out of business. He got ones with pirate ships, the jolly roger, a hawaiian print, and two solid colors. I usually get BumGenius for him, because they work so well, but these were such a good deal I couldn't pass it up. Hopefully they'll work!

New House + Cheap Rent = A Little Extra Money With Which to Decorate... Yay!

2009-03-21T18:59:00.004-06:00

We moved into a new little (and I stress 'little') place about a week ago, and since the rent is so cheap we could afford for me to get a few things to change up the look we've had pretty much since we got married. I was in love with the deep earthy tones and that's what our house was decorated with for nearly three years. I still like it, but I really wanted something fresh and light because this house is so little, and aside from that, I just really wanted a change. I used some of my reds and oranges in the kitchen. Red is an appetizing color, after all.

So, here's what I've done so far. There are things that are still coming sometime in the future that I haven't had either time or money or both to do quite yet; it'll be my own little on going project.

The Living Room:

We painted the walls a really pretty sand color, and the trim white. When we got the place, the walls were dirty white, and the trim was a really ugly poop brown (there really is no other word for it).

The kitchen:

I'll be painting the rest of the cabinets white, the walls a buttercreamy beige, and putting new knobs on all of the drawers and cabinets.

Cannibal Baby

2009-03-06T19:00:00.002-07:00