Happy Mother's Day!!

I know I am early, but later today we are all heading down to Wilmington to see my in-laws and spend the weekend there, so I won't be around a computer for a few days. So,



I hope you all have nice, relaxing weekends! I know I am going to be by the pool letting Grandma and Grandpa do whatever they want with Little Dude. In fact, I think I will be napping by the pools. There is an indoor one in case of rain, so my plan is fool proof. Awesome-nap time here I come!!

Life as a Penguin

I am officially a Penguin.

My neighbor has been jokingly referring to me as a penguin because I am very short, round and starting to waddle. Well, apparently he is not the only one to think that my cuteness is indeed similar to a penguin because yesterday I went shopping, and as I was checking out the old lady said to me "I knew I saw a penguin waddle!" At this point she was laughing. It took me a second becasue I am slow, so I was like, "what?" And then she said, "honey, I can spot a pregnant waddle from a mile away, but I couldn't be certain until I saw your belly puffed out! You've got to be due soon!"

So, I am a Penguin (I'm going to say a cute one at that) and in 7 days I will be entering my 8th month of pregnancy. Now I am off to waddle after my toddler, who instead of being a penguin like me is getting more to the speed of cheetah.

Like the bad guys in scary movies, no matter how fast or far he runs, my slow waddle will eventually catch up to him....I think.....wish me luck.

DOESN'T Work for me Wednesday!

Well, this is a special edition of Works for me Wednesday! Things that DID NOT WORK for me. Since my blog is mostly themed to our family and parents with young children, I will keep my list organized that way.

1. Small diaper bags or bags without lots of pockets-I have found it is so much easier to just have a nice big bag with lots of pockets so I know exactly where stuff is. Next week I will give you advice on how to keep the diaper bag light and organized.

2. Target brand diapers-they all leaked. EVERY TIME

3. Going to the grocery store without a meal plan list, sticking to the list, and carrying emergency snack for when Little Dude starts to scream in protest at being in the cart. I'm a really bad impulse buyer if I don't have my list and plan out meals before I go.

3. Trying to sleep when the baby slept-I actually found that I felt much more relaxed and focused on my job as a parent if I took that time to sip some nice coffee and read a book in quiet; or got a quick catch up on dishes and cleaning. For me that was tons more calming than lying in bed trying not to think of all the stuff I was behind in and never falling asleep anyway.

4. Spanking my child. When I was little, my parents spanked A LOT, so for me it doesn't work to spank AT ALL. We use other ways to discipline and they have all been working well for us. We follow a lot of "reality discipline" as suggested by Dr. Kevin Leman-he writes AWESOME parenting advice books.

5. Worrying about Little Dude getting some outfit dirty-if I wouldn't want the outfit covered in mud, and it isn't for church, then I don't buy it.

6. The Clip and Go cup holders-they don't work very well for anything other than bottled water or drinks with twist off lids because they tilt and jiggle A LOT. But, since I usually carry a bottle of water anyway, they were a cheap way to add a cup holder to my Peg Perego stroller.

7. Gerber transition sippy cups-they worked great since they can be bottles or sippy cups; however, once Little Dude realized that he could hit the cup on the table to the the stopper out, it was a pain to keep the stopper in. It falls right out as soon as the cups are dropped or smacked on a table.

8. Playtex, my first sipster cups-I had the worst time getting these open to wash after they got slimy from food, and half the time the long handles would end up hitting my hand as I twisted the lid off and HURT!

9. Skipping nap time. Yes, Bill and I did this one time thinking Little Dude would sleep like a rock at bed time-instead we had a crying baby til 2 or 3 am because he was SO TIRED yet COULDN'T sleep. Yes, the better nap the kid has during the day, the better he/she will sleep.

10. Wearing shoes while pregnant-I like flip flops, slide right in and go, and when I am inside I am barefoot. Just much more comfy. Besides, it makes me chuckle to be "barefoot and pregnant".

Well that is a short list of parenting things that just Dont Work For Me! Check out Rocks in my Dryer for other great things to AVOID!

Go Vote, NC!

Everyone in North Carolina, don't forget to vote in the primaries today! I am always excited to vote and take it very seriously before making a decision on who I like best. I am very conservative and Catholic, so the vast majority of the time I am in the Republican side of issues. This election, I am voting for Fred Smith for Governor, Eric Smith for School Superintendent, and McCain for president. Though honestly, I really wanted Fred Thompson to still be in the runnings. He was my favorite pic for president, but really since all the power lies in Congress, there is only so much change (or lack of change) a president can get away with.

For a few things (like gay marriage) I am on the "left", and that is only because the very Republican, "right" side of me feels the strict interpretation of the Constitution calls for separation of church and state, therefore in my views, it is a churches choice to marry or not marry whom they choose, just as it is the government's choice to marry or not marry whom they choose, the difference being one is viewed as being religious as well as legal and the other only being legal. So really, I don't even see the argument against allowing court unions for gays.

Anyway, that is me, I hope I didn't offend anyone and these area just my current views and a few of my choices. I hope you all have fun voting! Remember girls, we got the right to vote in 1920-we should use it!!*Thanks to Karen for catching my mistyped date for the 19th ammendment, I was giving us an extra 100 years! Whoops!*

My belly

Well, I am not quite at 7 months, but I thought this picture was such a cute shot of my belly I wanted to go ahead and share it, even though I am about to sneeze in the picture. I have never been photogenic. Anyways, in a week when I am officially 7 months I'll post another shot. (Perhaps my eyes will be open?) You can also see my new haircut-nothing drastic, just tons shorter and much easier for me to manage-I love it! I got my hair done by Tina at Salon 321 in Clayton. She was just fabulous, helping me find a cut that made my frizzy waves suddenly look like curl. Awesome.



I am actually hoping to get Bill to go get professional family pictures done with me-I want some really good ones of my belly and of Little Dude hugging/kissing my belly. I LOVE it when Little Dude says "baby" and kisses my tummy; I must find a way to capture it on film! So, if I can get professional ones done soon I will try to figure out a way to share them as well.

Also, this past Saturday was my brother in law John's 26th birthday! Yay! We had a really fun time getting together with friends and throwing him a party. Little Dude was the life of the party with his signature "dance moves".

Tummy Time

I'm a huge advocate of getting moms to let their babies play on their tummies when awake, simply because I have learned from my early childhood classes that though SLEEPING on the back is VERY important in cutting the risk of SIDS, spending time on their tummies when awake is terribly important for muscle, spine, head, and brain development. When babies don't get enough tummy time, their muscles remain weak, making it harder for them to transition to sitting up, crawling, and later walking.

Most of all, lack of tummy time can affect the development of the skull, which in turn affects the space in which the babies' brain is growing. Also, severe lack of tummy time can cause the head to develop with obvious deformities in shape, such has completely flat heads, heads that are off center due to weak neck muscles, and cause other areas of the head to protrude at odd angles. All can be fixed by having your baby wear a "helmet", which a doctor can tell you about or recommend, but really, if it is avoidable, we as parents might as well avoid it.

Well, let me just say I was a little excited to see that our local news had a short info segment about the importance of tummy time (thus prompting this blog entry). You can find the link HERE along with a video of the segment and the information the doctors have to share.

More Pictures!

My neighbor and I took our kids to Pullen Park a little while ago and it was SUPER fun! Pullen Park is great because not only is it a traditional park with swing sets, etc, but it has kiddie boats, a ride on train, carousel, paddle boats, and beautiful trails around a lake with tons of picnic areas. Tickets for one ride is only a dollar, so it was a great place to let the kids run off some energy! Here are some pictures from our fun day! Enjoy!