I've been MIA (& Won a couple awards!!)

I have been MIA. (Actually, I have been here reading and stalking all of your blogs... But, I have been fighting off this cold/flu/nasty viral infection and have been spending my extra time sleeping and taking medicine. I know, bad blogger!)

Let's get down to it. I've won a couple of awards!! (Not that I deserve them for leaving the blogging world high and dry......) Since I won some awards, some of you did too!!

Thanks, Holls!
Pass this award onto 5 bloggers you’ve recently discovered & think are fantastic.

Care @ Our Family Photoblog
Amy Renee @ Finding Everything Lovely
Kelsey @ The Seattle Smiths
Biscuit
Jenna @ Daily Loves and Laughs

State 7 things about yourself

1. I love to shop at Sephora

2. I love coffee

3. I laugh everytime Sweet Cheeks laughs

4. Pink is my favorite color

5. I wish I had somewhere to wear high heels to because I miss wearing them

6. I currently have white painted toe nails

7. Dior is my favorite brand of lipgloss!
 
______________________________________________
 
 

The rules for accepting the Sunshine Award are as follows:

1. Put the logo in my post or within my blog.

2. Pass the award onto 10 fellow bloggers.

3. Link the nominees within my post.

4. Let the nominees know they have received this award by leaving a comment on their blogs.

5. Share the love and link to the person who gave you the award!
 
Thanks, Abby's Mommy!!!!
 
1. The Crunchy Baby
2. Little Boy Green
3. Charmingly Chandler
4. Happily Ever after.... my way!
5. Mandalyn & The stinky cheese
6. Molly and Mommy
7. Journey from Iraq to the alter
8. Kurt & Amy
9. Kibble'n Dribble
 
..... & 10. all the rest of you!! I want to nominate everyone!

Hope you have a great week. Xoxo

Take care of yourself.

If I could go back in time and write a letter to myself at 17, I would say...

The best years of your life are yet to be lived. Don't spend so much time/energy/money trying to fit in during High School. Once you graduate, most of the people you were friends with will become memories. Very few stick around. But the ones who do, hold on to tightly. Those are the friends who count.

The prom dress is a GREAT choice. You will not regret it many years later when you look back at old pictures.

Learn to forgive. Life is too short to carry all that hurt around with you. It won't make you any less of a person to forgive and move on.

Change the oil in your car ever 3 months.

Wear sunscreen. Even if you don't "burn", and even if you are slightly embarassed to be seen putting it on. And don't go tanning.

Do not buy the 100 year old fixer-upper house. The housing market will crash and you'll lose all of they money you put into it.

Wear a bikini as much as you can. Soon you will have stretch marks covering half of your body and YOU  won't want to. (But, you won't regret the stretch marks either because they are the battle scars.)

Take care of yourself. Guard your heart. Nourish your spirit. Eat well. Exercise.

Yellow is not your best color. Neither is orange.

Listen to your elders.

Stay home on Halloween unless you are taking a child trick-or-treating.

Save as much money as you can and work hard.

He's not worth it. None of the "He's" will be worth it until you meet Mr B. In which case, he IS worth it.

DO NOT HIKE IN PLATFORM SHOES. Ever. Trust me on this one.

Appreciate your family more. You'll need them.

It is not ok to eat an entire carton of icecream or an entire box of oreos while pregnant. It is not easy to lose 54+ lbs. (Oh, and you'll tell everyone it's just water weight.....)

You will have a life that will end up more amazing than you can imagine right now. Happily ever after is right around the corner, just sit back and enjoy the ride. Stop searching and let it happen.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

Giveaway winner!

Here are your random numbers:



9


Timestamp: 2010-02-14 16:56:55 UTC


Congratulations, The Chandlers! You are the winner!!

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY.

I get to come home to you.

Mr B signed a contract an agreement wants to be my Valentine every year "so long as we both shall live".

So, Mr B this one is for you.


The love of my life.


The father of my child.


The most amazing man I have ever met.


I'm so lucky that I get to come home to you.

Ordinary, no,

really don't think so

Just a precious few

Ever make it last

Get as lucky as

Me and you.

Happy Valentine's day to you and yours! (a little bit early)

Why do I blog?

I get asked this question sometimes, so here you go... Why I blog.

1. These are our memories.
By the time Sweet Cheeks is old enough to ask questions about what our lives were like "back then", I will have more than likely forgotten our day-to-day moments. I try to post things here for him to see later. I plan on printing this blog at some point in the future as an addition to Sweet Cheeks' baby book. My only regret is that I wish I would have started this while I was pregnant. This is partly an online journal, and partly.....

2. A way to socialize.
This is a way for me to meet other Mommies who have similar interests. It's a way to social network. I enjoy making new e-friends and sharing recipes, mishaps, humerous stories from the day. I like learning new tips, ideas, ways to save money and getting book recomendations from other bloggers.

3. It's entertaining.
Because, let's face it, you can only watch Dora and that big red chicken so many times in a day. :) (Yes, I let my kid watch cartoons. The horror!)




Why do you blog?

These are a few of my favorite things...

... for the bride (and her wedding!)

Valentine's Day giveaway! (aka: What do ipods and Twilight have in common?)

I was lucky enough to meet Biscuit in our High School drama class. Hopefully you have gotten a chance to meet her, too. She's a unique soul full of laughter and spunk!

Biscuit is offering one of my lucky followers a chance to win one of her iphone/ipod cases! (Im sure it will hold most cell phones/smart phones... or an mp3 player too! If you are not sure, just ask :)  )

AND I am also giving away a full sized Bath and Body works body cream in Twilight Woods.

Nothing says love quite like Ipods and Twilight.

I will be drawing a winner on SUNDAY!! (Valentines day!)

To enter:
1. You must follow the blog
2. Leave a comment with your email address & your worst first date experience.

Extra entries:
(Please note in comment if you did any of these.)
1. Follow Biscuit.
2. Go to her Etsy store and mention your favorite cover.
3. Blog about the giveaway and link back here.

Good luck!!!

P.s. If you would like a custom case made and have something in mind, e-mail Biscuit and she'll be happy to work with you!

McFatty Monday.

I confess! I am terrible at working out! I have not done it one time this week. I am going to keep making it a goal, though, so that I feel bad when I don't do it.

The good: I didn't gain any weight.

The bad: I didn't lose any weight. & I cheated more than I should have. I blame the snow! (again!)

The goals:
* Work out one time this week.
* Go walking with a friend at least once this week
* Eat healthy. (One cheat meal. That's it.)

How did you do this week?

Does anyone have a fabulous healthy recipe to share? (because that would be awesome!)

To join in on McFatty Monday, go HERE.

Sweet cheeks is the kind of baby who...

... smiles when smiled at.

... wakes up laughing.

... isn't too bashful to pee all over you.

... loves to snuggle.

... knows what he wants and goes after it. (For example, he decided one day he wanted to crawl. And he did.)

... goes to bed at night before the sun goes down.

... only cries when he's tired or something hurts.

... loves to eat veggies just as much as fruits.

... can't wait to splash in the bath water.

... screams "AHHHHH" as loud as he can until you yell back.

... can entertain himself for hours on the floor.

... thinks Mommy is a good singer. (Bless his heart!)

... looks just like Daddy.

... giggles non-stop while being tickled.

...'s favorite chew toy is a rubber dog toy. (I know! Judge! Judge! Judge!)

... already owns a baseball cap.

... loves to eat his feet.

... is very loved.

Be careful what you wish for....

... because it just might come true!

For most women pregnancy is 40 weeks long. For me, it was 41.5 weeks... but, hey, who's counting right? 41.5 weeks of cravings, heat flashes, swelling, nausea, weird dreams, and Coke flavored Icees. I knew I wanted to find out the sex of baby as soon as possible. My first thought after "Holy Bejesus, I AM pregnant!" was "Boy or girl? Oh, BOY for sure!" I had a feeling it would be a boy. Boy name? Easy! Boy nursery? Easy! Girl name? Uhhhh... Girl Nursery? Help please!

I love manicures, shopping, and stilletos just as much as the next person girl, but I always saw myself being a boy mom. I imagined a life filled with muddy kisses, Tonka trucks, and frogs. That is, until.............

My 19 week ultrasound. I was SO excited to find out the gender. So excited, in fact, that the first words out of mouth upon entering the exam room were "YES WE WANT TO KNOW THE GENDER. PLEASE TELL US TODAY". Mr B and I held hands as we watched our amazing little one move. When the ultrasound wand passed over that oh-so-important spot, we sat still. We watched. We waited. IT'S A GIRL!

What? A girl! We were having a girl! WOO-HOO! Pink. Lace. Ruffle butt pants. Ok, I could do this. I could be a girl mom. Wait.... I wanted to make sure. I asked how sure the ultrasound tech was. 95%. Those are really good odds. Girl!

I spent the next 12 or so weeks preparing a princess wonderland nursery. Butterflies, pink, daisies... white lace. We filled the room with pink toys, and pink dresses. A baby girl can never have too much pink! I made it my goal to have the nursery completely ready before our 3D ultrasound at 31 weeks. The only thing I had left to do was put her precious 3D picture in the frame on the nightstand... and then wait. Wait for the day our little Carly would join us.

I made a joke in the car on the way to the 3D ultrasound that "It would be really funny if we end up having a boy" Because you know, we had everything finished... and my shower was SIX days away... and I apparently like having heart attacks. Those 12 words would come back to bite me when we did, in fact, find out I was a card carrying member of Team Blue. I had always wanted a boy, so this was good. Right?

No better way to find out than in a room with an ultrasound tech, my husband, my grandma, and a webcam with our out-of-town relatives watching. What do you say? What do you do? I laughed. Out loud. It was either cry, or laugh and I chose to laugh.

I would be lying if I said I never cried but now, in this moment, I can't imagine being "Mom" to anyone other than my beautiful blue eyed boy.

So, be careful what you wish for because it just might come true! & When it does, it just might be nothing short of perfect. I can't wait for muddy kisses from the sweet boy who stole my heart on July 22, 2009. Being a boy mom really is as amazing as I imagined.

I have a surprise for you!

I know I told you we would have a giveaway when the blog reaches 60 followers. And we will!

But.........

We are also going to have a VALENTINES DAY GIVEAWAY!

I will give you more details next week.


(What's that? You want a hint?......... Meet Biscuit.)

XOXOXO

These are a few of my favorite things...

... for bringing home baby.

Fisher-Price Ocean Wonders Soothe and Glow Seahorse.

 

Cradle

Receiving blankets/ Swaddle blankets

Playtex Ventaire bottles (6oz)

Onesies!!

Footed sleeper with snaps.

Soft, plush baby blanket. (To cover the stroller/carseat)

Let's have a GIVEAWAY!

When I reach 60 followers... we will have an awesome giveaway.


Who's excited??

Wishful Wednesday..... Grammy performance.

'I wish' .... I could have stolen Pink's spotlight last night at the Grammy's!

(Ok, I admit, I did not watch the Grammy's this year. I picked Pink because she made all the headlines!)

To join in on Wishful Wednesday, go HERE!

McFatty Monday. 3.

Well, here we are at McFatty Monday. I guess let's jump right in.

The good: I lost 2 lbs.

The bad: I did not work out. At all. I had a cold. It was snowing. Sweet cheeks wanted to play. Excuses!

New goals:
** Work out AT LEAST once. (Start small, ok?)
** Eat healthy meals with the exception of 1 cheat meal.
** Go for a walk with Sweet cheeks once.
** Meet up with a friend to go walk to mall at least once.

To join in, go HERE.

Not me Monday!

I did not "pretend" to do my taxes this week on Turbotax.com just to find out what my return would be, and then hit "Cancel" right before it asked for my credit card information. (& I am beyond thrilled that our return is higher than I expected!)

I did not get SUPER excited when Sweet Cheeks got his 2 (top) front teeth! (Finally! They have been trying to come in for WEEKS now and I couldn't be happier they finally broke through the skin!! )

I was not shocked and upset to find out that the jewler who re-sized my wedding rings also cracked the center stone. I also did not get defensive when she told me that *I* cracked it prior to coming in. (Humph! I originally had a 5.4 carat red tourmaline as the center stone in my engagement ring... but, now I am looking for something to replace it with. Something pretty. That sparkles.)

I have not had a nasty cold for the past 5 days..

I did not tear up watching "The Duggar's special delivery" last night. (Made me SO Thankful to have a healthy, "big" baby.) I also did not force ask Mr B to watch it with me.

I did not use excuses such as "Its snowing!" and "I have a cold!" to avoid working out this week. I would never use excuses to avoid doing something I don't want to do. Nope, Not me!!

To join in, go HERE.