Waking up from Blogger Hibernation

So I have blogged all year. Opps. I guess I got bored since no one really reads it anyway but I have to tell myself that this blog isn't for readers its for Gretchen. I also think I don't write because I can't add pictures since Gretchen lost my camera. Literally lost it in 5 seconds. Great new, its tax season and Uncle Sam owes me a huge check and I will be buying a new camera soon.

The last time I blogged was before Christmas. A few things have happened since them. The biggest thing is that Brian and I have 50/50 custody of his kids now. Now we have them Thursday evening til Sunday morning. If you live in my world them this is a great thing but with many challenges. The great thing is that Brian and his ex communicate more about the kids. No more of Brian's mom being the messenger or Brian and I not know anything that is going on. The challenging parts have been that the whole family has had to get used to this. The most important people are the kids in the matter. Sometimes Hayley gets homesick for her mom still but now its mostly when she gets in trouble. Gretchen loves having her big bro and sis her but on Thursdays she is being over stimulated with them being in the house that she now stays up later on Thursday nights. On Fridays we get up early to get them ready for school and I pick them up in the afternoon. Even though Gretchen could stay in bed on Fridays she wants to get up with them. Then she cries that she can't go to school with them.

Gretchen is now 18 1/2 months old. She can say short sentences but usually only a few people knows what she is saying. I can say that she is definately going through some terrible twos already. She is a sweet baby but she wants to be so independent at times and only wants what she wants. Other then that she is terrific. She loves to dance, sing (humm), and share. At the grocery store she talks to everyone and tries to give away our groceries to other customers. She also loves to clean. This child loves to help with laundry. She will help put the clothes in the dryer and then "help" fold. She is such a Ham.

Ready for my Christmas Spirit to Kick In!

Its December 5th and my Christmas spirit hasn't yet kicked in. No, I'm not a Scrooge by no means. Just 5 days into the month and I've already been to one Christmas gathering and one Christmas parade, Hayley's school program Thursday, and who knows what else. I've almost always done my Christmas shopping early so that job is pretty much done. However, I keep wanting to delay all the other things. Decorate for Christmas, hmmmmm not yet. Had my Christmas cards made and ready to mail, hmmm negative. Started baking yummy goodies, hmmm not exactly. Brian and my brother-in-law think I am just horrible for not decorating yet and keep saying, "You're supposed to put up the tree right after Thanksgiving."

This week at school I have a presentation and 7 assignments due. The week after are exams but I'm not too worried about them. My focus is this week. If I can just get through this week then I can breathe. I have to set my priorities. Decorations or school. I just feel that if I stop to decorate then that is time away from working on all these projects. I probably shouldn't be typing this blog. I should be doing homework.

By next Saturday I will be illuminating with Christmas spirit. Brian and I will go get a live tree, haul out the decorations, perhaps buy some new decor, and make my home a coozy Christmas retreat. And of course I need to take Gretchen to see Santa. We are also taking Gretchen to Hollywild Zoo to see the lights and the animals. She is going to love it.

Very Late Thanksgiving Blog

Thanksgiving has came and gone. What a wonderful Thanksgiving it was? My family gathered for breakfast and then later we joined Brian's family and went out to eat. I can honestly say that my family's was so much better. It was almost picture perfect. My mom, oldest sister Kasey, and me all in the kitchen cooking. Making biscuits, and waffles, cooking bacon, eggs, and sausage, the works. Twenty-one people at the house, kids running around laughing and playing, and great conversation. A true holiday gathering. Afterwards we went home; Gretchen took a nap while the kids watched movies. Then around 4 pm Brian's family all traveled to Shelby to go out to eat. Not very festive, not picture perfect, no conversation what so ever. You see, the restaurant was crowded and wasn't able to put the tables together for us. Therefore the kids ate that the table with Brian and I, his parents at another table, and his sister and her husband at a separate table. Why don't they just stay at home and cook? I have absolutely no clue. Its almost fun just to go with the flow to see how things end up so that in the end I get to complain or gossip later with Brian. However, despite my Thanksgiving not being perfect I was very grateful. I'm grateful to be with a wonderful man who has given me a wonderful daughter and has allowed me to be a part of this other children's lives making us a family. I'm grateful for all my other family; for all the love and support through the years. And mostly I'm grateful to God who has blessed me so much.

Oh You Got to Stand For Something (or at least try)

Brian's family is a little slack when it comes to Holiday planning. This is something that I am not used too. I mean, my family figures out holiday plans months in advance. We usually plan Thanksgiving around September. Its just easier since there are so many of us now. Each sister has both our own family obligations as well as family obligations with the other sides of our families. This year we are getting together for a brunch on Thanksgiving. As I was saying Brian's family are total slackers waiting til the last minute to make plans. Last year instead of making dinner they decided to all go out to eat. This was all but fine with me. I love breaking traditions a little. However, Brian's mom didn't want to bother getting Brian's kids from his ex-wife. "No, its just too much trouble to get them." You have to understand that his mom is the messenger and peace keeper between him and his ex. I was confused, hurt, felt bad for Hayley and Jacob. My parents wouldn't do this to their grand kids and my grandparents never did this to me. A few months ago I stated to Brian that if they weren't invited this year then Gretchen and I wouldn't be going either. Yes, here I am Kari Crawford standing up for what I think is right and just. So, Brian's mom share with me the plans for Thanksgiving the other day. We will be going out to eat again. "Are we getting Hayley and Jacob?" I ask. "No,blah blah blah something.I got upset. When I got to speak with Brian privately I told him that Gretchen and I wouldn't be going and go into my rant about how wrong it is to not include them. Another idea that came to mind was to go behind her back and call his ex myself and arrange to pick them up and bring them myself. Oh, how great this was going to be for me to stand up for something and make a statement. However, by the next day Brian had already talked to his mom about this and got the matter all straightened out. Now they will be joining us for Thanksgiving. I was shocked how easy this was to fix, though I am a little bit disappointed that I didn't get to boycott the dinner to make a statement.

Potty Training Fun

So we have started to potty training Gretchen. For me this is getting in the habit of putting her on the potty often. So far everything is going good. She pees in the potty almost everytime I sit her on it. I'm not really in any hurry to potty train but Brian insisted that we start. I really want to start in the spring when she can wear little summer dresses so it will be easier. The funniest part is that I had to get the potty seat to go over the big toilet. The little potty that sat on the floor was being used by Gretchen as a hiding place for toys. Now if I can get here to go #2.

Fall is here Finally!

Isn't fall a great season? Time for hot chocolate, sweater wearing, candle burning, baking, and pumpkin searching.

Taking Gretchen to a pumpkin patch is something I had been looking forward to for a while. Last Halloween she was only 2 1/2 months old so the only thing she was interested in was eating and sleeping. My sister Kasey, Brian, and I took the kids to the Pumpkin Center which is about a mile from my grandparents house in Green Hill where my dad grew up. My dad actually worked there growing up. When Gretchen got out of the van we just let her go wild. She walked everywhere looking and climbing on the pumpkins. She loved it. We got so tickled when she would try to pick some of this huge pumpkins up. I really try to enjoy these moments because I know that sooner then later she won't care anymore about going pumpkin picking.

We gave Gretchen her first haircut the other day. Actually a bang cut. They were getting so bad and always in her face. The only other option was to put a bow in her hair all the time. I know my mom is going to have a hiss fit when she finds out we cut it. Just the other day she said "You will not cute her hair. You will take her to a professional." OK mom, but I'm not going to waste my time, gas, and money to take her to a professional just to do a 5 second bang cut. Brian and I did just fine with me holding her and Brian cutting.

School is going good so far. For a while there I was feeling overwhelmed and over loaded. I talked to my online teachers about the deadlines and they said as long as I have an assignment completed by the end of the semester I would be good. That reassured me a lot. I don't worry so much if I don't get everything done by Friday night anymore. But one thing I have found its that FACEBOOK is my biggest enemy. I am evidently a nosey person and would constantly be on there. So to fit my addiction I deleted a bunch of people. This wasn't out of meanness or anything. I just needed to get the distraction away from me. I still have a facebook but now it only has my immediate family, a few long distance friends, and friends that I talk to on a weekly basis. I'm on there a lot less and am getting stuff done again.

Exciting news! I am hosting a GERBER GENERATION CELEBRATION. Have you ever heard of HouseParty? Its a company that you register with and then you have the opportunity to host parties for difference companies. I had registered for other parties but wasn't selected so you can imagine how shocked and excited I was to get picked for this party. So, I invite friends that are expecting babies, or have babies up to preschool age. Gerber sends some party decor and free products for me to give the guest. I am so excited about this. To me it will be more like a huge play date for the kids.


The week of Halloween was full of events and parties. Halloween party at my house with The Munchkin Society (playgroup), Trunk or Treat at my moms church, Trick or Treat on Main Street Friday, a fall carnival at Brian's moms church and Gretchen went to a Halloween party with her Auntie Vivian. By Sunday she was exhausted. It was so much fun though dressing her up all week. She was a witch a few times and a little rock star the other times.

Everyday Gretchen get more verbal, more independent, more stubborn, and more of a daredevil. I am reading a book by Dr. Harvey Karp called The Happiest Toddler on the Block. His description of a toddler is so right on its crazy. He describes toddlers as cavemen or Neanderthals, primitive and uncivilized. I love that she is curious, I encourage it. I mostly just wish that she had a fear of heights. I let her climb but the biggest problem is the high chair and shopping carts. She can wiggle out of the buckle and will stand up. She doesn't realize that there is a thing called gravity and if she falls she won't float around in the air. She just knows that if she falls mommy will always catch her.

Thanksgiving and Christmas is coming soon so its time to plan, shop, and bake. I can't wait to see Gretchen on Christmas this year. A Christmas tree will be going up but I have a feeling that the ornaments will all be at the top of the tree out of reach of little curious hands.

What a Great Week

This has really been a great week for my family and I. In a lot of ways it was a typical week but at the same time fun and interesting. One great thing is that Gretchen has went all week without her paci at home! That's My Girl! She is still using the paci at Nana's (my mom's) when she is there a couple times a week. But hey, its progress. You have to start somewhere, right?

Then there was the typical stuff like doing homework and going to class and to work. Went for my weekly library run and found some great books on saving money and check out Disney's Earth and a PBS special called "Is Wal-Mart Good For America." Both were really good and education. I loved the penguins. I think that people should walk like them and be able to slide on our bellies. And we got our Netflick movies Eurika Season 2 and Invictus. Brian didn't like the idea first of watching Eurika but now he looks forward to getting another in the mail. I am my father's child. Sci-Fi runs in these veins.

Brian and I took the jet ski out. Brian worked on it and got it running. I was sort of scared to take it out. Brian said that we might be in the middle of the lake and the thing just die on us. Are you serious? I'm not getting strained in the middle of the lake and have to push the jet ski back to the van. We were actually able to do a little good for the environment when we stopped to walk around a little island in the middle of the lake. There was a bag of trash that some people had left that some animals had gotten into. Trash was everywhere. Of course we couldn't pick it all up but we could pick up the cans and crush them and put them in the little compartment on the jet ski. 49 cans we picked up and recycled from this one bag of trash.



On the domestic side of me I am in the middle of making an apron. On Tuesdays between my classes I go to my moms and we have a domestic lesson. First it was going to just be a sewing lesson but she is going to help me bake, sew, can , and what ever else I want her to teach me. Also I made apple cupcakes. In the family fun magazine I saw cupcakes made to look like apples. I figured I would try it out. The problem was is that I didn't realize that it took so much red food coloring to make icing red. I had used all the red and the icing was pink. I thought if I added a little Burgundy that it would darken it a little. Instead we have a purplish pink icing. Oh well, lesson learned. To make the stem you take a Tootsie roll mini and roll it a bit to make it a little longer and then take a green airhead and make a leaf. Viola! A purple apple.

One of the coolest things that happened was when Brian and his mom went to Goodwill Friday night he found a Dyson vacuum cleaner for only $6. He brought that bad boy home and got it running and now I have a super cleaner vacuum. This thing picks up so much more then my old cleaner did. I was kind of embarrassed when he vacuumed for the first time and I saw all that it had gotten up.

Saturday was crazy. I went into work early, then hopped over for a quick haircut, then hoped over to the Firefighters Challenge to Volunteer with my Education Class at the bouncy house and then get ready for party, party, home, Gretchen took a nap while cleaned house, Brian took his kids to play putt putt, they came home, we watched The Diary of a wimpy kid, and I feel asleep on the coach.

The only bad thing that happened was Gretchen getting a hold of my camera. Just when I actually had important pictures I wanted to share with everyone. Before I could chase her down to get it it was gone. I have looked everywhere. Under everything, in every bag, box, crack, and black hole. I'm not so much devastated on losing the camera but about losing the pictures on the camera. So for the next few months til Christmas I will be resorting on a disposable.

Here are some really neat websites to check out...
www.PETAKids.com
www.Teachkind.org
parentngpink.com
familyliteracyandyou.blogspot.com
iheartcoupondeals.com
lgreenss.blogspot.com
frugalmom.net
theideabox.com

Talking About Reunions

Every year on the first Saturday in October at my Granny's house we have a John Flack Family Reunion. Usually around 100 people come. Most are family and then some are friends of the family that might as well be family. We haven't always don't a reunion every year. Several years ago people got tired of only getting together at funerals. My Granny came from a large family. She was the 11 child out of 12. Now only 5 are still living.

The Reunion is great. Lots of cousins getting together, kids running around, food, storytelling, picture taking, and banjo picking.

Brian mentioned the other day that one of his old school Mt.Vernon is going to do an All-Class Reunion. I believe Mt. Vernon used to be a High School as well as Elementary and Middle School. I would love for my Middle School to do a small reunion. Mostly I want to see the teachers. Of course I still run into some of them every now and then. Gretchen and I ran in to Mr.Terry my old P.E and Math teacher in Lowe's one day and Gretchen wouldn't let go of his finger. I see my 6th grade teacher Ms.Pellitier every Tuesday night at the college because she is one of my teachers for my Creative Activities class.

Most of the people I went to Middle School with I also went to High School with. Next year will be my 10 year Class Reunion. I wish they did reunions differently. When you are in HS you don't just associate with people your in class. You become friends with people in upper and lower grades. Instead I think we should invite classes from a few years before us and a few years after us. And I think its a great idea to invite some of the teachers that taught us. Of course if our principle Dr. Casebolt came he would have to go into a speech and then read "Oh the places you will Go" by Dr. Sues and then resite Someone has To by Shel Silverstein. Two things we heard a million times between Freshman and Senior year.

The thing that sucks about Reunions is that some people can't or won't come. A friend of mind recently had a 40th HS reunion and said that people that had never came to the reunions before finally came. I said " well, when you are younger and starting a family its harder to get away sometime." He said "No. What it is is that by the time you get to be my age you don't care anymore about impressing people, you're really just happy to still be alive." At my mom's HS reunion a clique rented out a separate room and and it was by invitation only for you to get in. I just pray my class doesn't do that.

Paci Withdraw

Saturday of this week I decided to start weening Gretchen off the paci. The first day she did very well. We did the cool turkey approach and she did fine. I thought "Wow, my daughter is awesome and adjust to things perfectly." Then Sunday came and I was eating my words. Every time I laid her down for a nap she screamed and screamed til I couldn't take it anymore and out go get her up. My sweet little girl turned in to totally different child. I thought the devil had possessed her. I thought that since she had gotten up early and hadn't had a nap that she would go right off to sleep at bedtime. Nope. OK, on to plan #2. Plan 2 was to do what the dentist suggested. Take some scissors or nail clippers and cut a small hole on one side of the paci. So, I did that and gave it to her and she went right off to sleep. So, in a week or so I will cut another hole on the other side of the paci and keep cutting until eventually there will be no paci. The idea is to make the paci undesirable. I want to do what the dentist recommends and have her weened off of it by the time she is 18 months.

In this process of weening her off the paci I start to think about all the other goals I have for her for the next year. Its kind of neat that as parents we have the control to when our childs transitions to the next stage in something mostly because we as the parent have to either give them the tools to succeed or take something away to help them grow. One thing is to get her used to a bed so I can get rid of the crib. We have a bunk bed set up already and she can climb on and off of it but right now she thinks its a game. She would be up and down in and out of the bed all night if I let her sleep in it now. I also what to get rid of the high chair and have her either sit at a little table or in a boost at the table. I haven't decided about when I'm going to start potty training. We already have a potty seat and sometimes I sit her on it when I am using the bathroom. I also use the Pull-Up's already but this is mostly because they stay up better now that she is mobile. My biggest road block is Brian. He would probably keep her in a crib and high chair forever if he could. However, as I have said before I am claustrophobic and don't like clutter. Therefore, just like many other times I will have to sneak her high chair and crib out if the house when she is finished using them.

Also, lets talk about the Birthday Party thing. When I was pregnant Brian and I had a discussion about birthday parties. He told me a story about being invited to a party and then being the only one that showed up at the party. Then and there I made a promise that Gretchen would go to all parties that she was invited to unless there was a legitimate reason why she couldn't go. The reason is is that parents spend a lot of time and money to do a party. This month Gretchen has a party every weekend. One is at Bubba's FunPark and I am not too excited about it it cause I will have to crawl in the tunnels on my knees with Grethcen. This will be like going to McDonald's or KidzPlay with her. Its all I can do at times to keep up. She thinks she is a big kid. At KidzPlay the other day she was playing in the baby section and figured out where the exit was and escaped. But taking her down all the big slides was fun for both of us.

Different food habits

When cohabitating with someone you learn to compromise with certain things. For Brian and I our biggest compromise is the food factor. I actually compromise more then he does. One of the biggest problems is SALT. Brian puts salt on everything. I don't know how many times we have ordered a pizza and Brian has pre-salted it before I get my slice to eat. This also happens when we order a Chef Salad from the Grill to share. I'm not a big salt fan. I do salt foods but definately not everything nor do I salt it to the point where I feel I am drawning in an ocean of salt. I tell Brian don't to salt it until the food is on his own plate. At this point I think he does it on purpose to annoy me.

The other compromise is choosing a restuarant to eat at. Both of us like Chinese but picking a Chinese Restaurant turns into an arguement. I like Dragon Palace and he likes the Chinese place at Wal-Mart. I don't even bother knowing the name of it. Most times we end up at the one at Wal-Mart or we end up picking a different place. I think its just Brian's family in general. They all like crappy restaurants. I actually have told Brian that he is to never take me back to Ryan's again. It is a waste of money to pay $10 for a drink and buffet when all I will end up eating is Macaroni and Cheese.

The biggest compromise is when Brian goes on a diet. Pretty much when he is on a diet I am on a diet. This is actually fine with me considering the amount of crap we end up eating when he is off a diet. Of course I don't have to be one a diet too but I try to be encouraging and limit the junk food so it doesn't tempt him. Now in my house we have tons of veggies and fruit, veggie burgers for me, Diet Mt. Dew for him, Sugar Free Lemonade, oatmeal, granola, greek yogurt, and other healthy foods. I love chocolate and my rule is that no man is going to come between me and my chocolate. So of course I keep a jar of Nutella. I really hope Brian sticks with his diet this time. I really want us to be a good example for Gretchen so she will eat healthy too.

I got to cuddle with my baby

This morning was the first time in many many months that I had to get up with Gretchen. I think around 3 am she started crying in her crib. Its been so long I woke straight up in a panic thinking something was wrong. I though she had fallen out of the crib. She is a climber and I know it is just a matter of time when she will attempt to climb out of her crib. So this morning I though she has fallen out and hurt herself. I get up and I am a litte disoriented and end up turning every light between our room and her room on. When I get to her room she was crying because she had dropped her paci outside of the crib and needed it. So I grab the paci and cuddle Gretchen to calm her down. She was wet so I went ahead and changed her. Then we went to the living room and cuddled on the couch and went back to sleep. This was a rare moment for me. She hasn't let me hold her and go to sleep with her since she was like 3 months. Once I transitioned her from sleeping in the bassinet in our room to the crib in her room that was it. She was a big girl and didn't need mommy to rock her. So last night for about 2 hours I took the time to cuddle with my baby girl. Its different cuddling with a 1 year old compared to a new born. Grethcen is 10 1/2 inches longer then she was a year ago and doesn't curl up in a little ball with her knees in her chest anymore. And of course she is a lot heavier. When she was born she was 7 lbs 2 oz. At her one year check up on her birthday exactly a year later she weighted 21 lbs and 4 oz. After a while she woke up and wanted back in her bed. Well, I enjoyed it while it lasted.

Getting into my new routine

I started back to school with a full load. So far so good. I have 3 online classes and 3 classes on campus. I'm only on campus 2 days a week so I can't really complain. The biggest thing was finding time around chasing Gretchen to do my homework. The best solution to this is to do it when she is asleep. I get up early and work and I work while she is taking naps. I am working on my Early Childhood Education. My goal is to do a program through Western Carolina and do my Birth-Kindergarten. It will take me a year before I will be ready for the WNC program. I really want to get into this program cause it will be better with Gretchen. I can take all my classes either online or at Isothermal and not have to travel. This is probably take me about 2 1/2 year to complete. I'm so excited about my classes. Two classes we do alot of craft and make books. I get to get creative. This will be fun.

Now that school has started I am ready for Fall. Not exactly looking forward to winter but Fall is great. Cooler days and chilly nights. Golden fall colors and time to pull out warm clothes. Season for soups and hearty foods. The thing is about the south is that its still going to be warm doing the day for a few more months but at least the nights will be cooler.

This is also the time of year for me to go through all of Gretchen's clothes and pull out what she has outgrown and what is going out of season. Trying to take an inventory of what she has and doesn't have for colder weather. Luckily she has gotten some great hand me downs play clothes from Kaylee. I really don't have room for anymore clothes but she still needs some more church clothes.

On of my projects is to make or buy Gretchen an outfit to wear to her Big Brother's football games on Saturday's. He plays for the Rutherfordton Raiders. So I need a black and white outfit. Shouldn't be hard to find. I think it will be so cute for here to go to a game in her brother's team colors.

Lots going on!

First let me apologize for any grammar errors in my blog. I try to read back over it to catch mistakes that spellcheck won't but I miss sometimes.

A lot has been going on in the last few days. First there was Gretchen's Birthday party. The plan was to have water balloons and kiddie pools for the kids. Right when the party started at 4 pm it started raining. Of course, I plan a party and it rains. I'm not surprised. I had taken sidewalk chalk and wrote "Happy Birthday Gretchen" on the pavement just to have to rain wash it away. Guest started to arrive (around 40 people) and get settled and I was popping party games out of my head as fast as I could to keep the kids entertained. Luckily after a round of musical chair, Simon says, and dance freeze the rain let up. It was still sprinkling but we let the kids start the fun with the water activities. Let me just say, they had a ball. There was probably about 16 kids there and I don't know one that didn't have a good time. Gretchen played in the kiddie pool and then got covered in wet cut grass. Too cute! After that we ate hot dogs and cake. Gretchen destroyed her cake and had it all over her. We had some great friends and family at the party. My sister Kasey took pictures and they turned out great.I couldn't have asked for a better party. After presents and party clean up Gretchen was so tired. On the way home she didn't make a sound. She slept good that night though. Can't wait to plan next years party. I want to do something different every year.

Sunday and Monday passed and then Gretchen's actual birthday got her on Tuesday. We first celebrated with a trip to the doctor for her shots. OK, I've already heard that I am the worst mother for having her get her shots on her birthday. Well, all I can say is keep your opinion to your self please. Its over and done. After a good nap Brian and I took Gretchen out for a late lunch. I think it will be a great tradition to always take her out on her birthday. Tuesday was also my niece Mackenzie's birthday so we went to my sister where we celebrated Gretchen's, Mackenzie, and my nephew Patrick who had turned 8 that Sunday. Annie bought all a little cake of their own. Gretchen is such a lucky girl to get so many cakes. We sang three separate birthday songs and by the time we sang to Patrick, Gretchen started singing too her baby talk version of Happy Birthday.

Wednesday, we traveled to Asheville to take Gretchen to her first dentist appointment. I know what you might be thinking. You're taking your 1 year old to the dentist? Brian even made fun or me and asked if I was going to take her to get a mammogram. I'm not crazy just precautious. First of all Gretchen is 1 and has 12 teeth already. As I see it she is going to be having these teeth for the next several years and they need to stay healthy. If she only had 4 teeth I probably wouldn't have taken her yet. I took her to Smile Starters and so far I was pleased with them. We were in and out in 45 minutes. The dental hygienist went over somethings that I already know but some I didn't. Gretchen was already weened from a bottle to a sippy cup for a few months now, great, and I had been brushing her teeth since her first tooth came in, great. I didn't know that I need to be flossing her teeth. Since I like to ease my daughter into new routines I figured I would start flossing only a few times a week and get her used to it. She squirms so much not I don't know if I can do it everyday. They also talked to me about fluoride and gave me ideas on what I should to insure she is getting fluoride. Nursery water is probably going to be my best resort to this since we are on well water. We talked about when they would want her off her pacifier. The pediatrician said 2 years and the dentist said 18 months. I know that I have to do this but I'm dreading it. She just looks too cute with a pacy in her mouth. While there they did a fluoride treatment and put a varnish on her teeth. She squirmed a lot but I'm hoping she will get used to it.

School for me also starts this week so I have been running to the bookstore to get my books and materials. Already have 3 online assignments due today. Already have the papers wrote just have to type and send it.

I'm super excited today because I get to go pick up Gretchen's pictures from Beautiful You Photography. They are too cute.

Talk to Everyone Later!

Letter to my Daughter on Her 1st Birthday

Girl, you are 1 year old today. Life with you as sure been an adventure..

6 weeks of morning sickness (week 6-12 of pregnancy)
20 weeks of you kicking my insides
uncountable weeks of you using my bladder as a trampoline
1 road trip out west at 5 months preggo
26 pounds gained
12 hours of labor
45 minutes of pushing
1 epsiotomy
1 week of you having jaundice
3 trips to the hospital for you to have your belirubin count taken due to jaundice
2 weeks of me having back pain and nausea due to my hormones from being pregnant
1 trip to Niagara Falls
7 weeks of breast feeding (plus my hair falling out after I stopped breast feeding)
3 months of getting up every two hours at night with you
1 Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years,Valentines, and Easter
uncountable bottles make and diapers changed
a mountain of baby clothes
learning to roll over, push up, sit up, crawl, stand up, walk, and talk
1 birthday party
and 12 teeth later here we are.

Having you in my life as been such a blessing and I wouldn't trade this year for nothing in the world. You are walking now and getting into everything. You can say "Momma", "Dada", "dog", "stop", "that", "wiggle",and sometime "Nana". You love to stand on your head and dance. You love the Wiggles. You are a totally foodie. You have such a great personality and always smile. In the morning when you wake up and I go get you out of your crib you just smile and giggle. You have a blue fleece blanket that you love and think that when you get out of the crib it has to come too. You think you are a big girl and you try to keep up with the big kids. You have learned to climb on stuff now and think it is funny to try to roll off of it. You sure do keep me on my toes for sure. You love to swing and swim and to be outside.

I love you my Gretchen Paige (aka Bugsy or Monkey)

Love,

Momma

Busy Day Today! Gretchen's 1st Birthday Party! And to announce the Giveway Winner.

Today is my daughter 1st birthday party. Hopefully everything will go as planned. We are suppose to have water games and kiddie pool but here is a 60% chance of rain. If this occurs the party must still go on and it will moved inside.

As far as the party prep goes we have a few major things to do still. 1) Get Gretchen a birthday present. We have been racking our brain out on this one. What do you get a 1 year old that already has enough? More stuff I guess? 2)Balloons Balloons and more party favors 3) decorate 4) cook.

Yesterday my mom and I made and decorated cakes and cupcakes. Everything turned out pretty good. Probably made too many cupcakes. Oh well. Update later on the party.

Now to announce the winner of the 2 in 1 Harness Buddy. And the winner is......


the auther of the blog LivingoutLoud! I had two people become follower/leave comments on my blog this week. One was my big sister Kasey so by default she wouldn't be qualified to win. However, I am glad that LivingOutLoad won. She became a follower, left a comment, and emailed me with some great blogging advice. So Ms. LivingOutLoud, email me your address at crawfordkari@rocketmail.com and I will mail you your HarnessBuddy.

Thanks again!

Giveaway Scout

Just learned about Giveaway Scout, www.giveawayscout.com. A fellow blogger helped me out and gave me this pointer. I went to the site to add my blog and it simply ask that I write a few sentences about them. I am absolutely so excited about this site and hopefully it will help lure readers into my blog. I have my first giveaway up right now. I am starting to get tons of other giveaway ideas for the future. So, go to www.giveawayscout.com and check it out.

My First Giveaway! Enter Enter Enter

For a while now I have been saying to myself how Gretchen needs a leash. She is a go go go girl and wants to explore everything. I had seem kids before with harnesses on but never really paid much mind to it since it wasn't my child having to keep up with. I had been debating where or not to try one until I saw a little girl at the grocery store with one on. I asked the parents what they thought about it. They said that they loved it and their daughter always wanted to wear it.

So I bought this 2 in 1 Harness Buddy from Goldbug. Actually I bought 2. One for Gretchen and one as my 1st Giveaway.

To Enter:

1)Simply Become a follower on my blog. For my friends who don't know what this is when you get to my page click on the Follow button and simply follow the directions.

2) If you are already a follower you can enter by leaving a comment about what you think of kid leashes or any critics about the site.

Entries must be in by Friday August 13 at 11:59 p.m.

I will announce the winner Saturday morning her on My MOMoirs.

Enter Enter Enter.

Giselle Bundchen

It you haven't read or heard about this on television or the Internet supermodel Giselle Bundchen made a statement that women should be force to breastfeed their children. WHAT? Excuse me?

I'm not against Giselle. I mean, she's pretty and I wish I was tall and had great hair like her but maybe she should keep somethings to herself. I breastfeed for 7 weeks and I commend anyone out there who breastfeed, even if it was just for a day. Breastfeeding has its pros and cons. Pro its cheaper, con its time consuming. Pro, it claims that it will help you lose your baby weight faster, no con to that. Some research claim beastfeed babies have higher IQ's and the antibodies will help them from getting sick. However, this isn't going to guarantee your child will be a genius ( and let me just say being a genius has its problems as well) or change its DNA to avoid any inherited disease like cancer.

Why can't mothers just be supportive of each other. Instead we think that we are experts in parenting, even with only one child, and have the right to tell people how to raise their children.

I get these ridiculous images in my head of what would happen if breastfeeding was a law. I image it would be a lot like Prohibition. Women would be making formula in their basements to sell to people. Women would be selling and buying breast milk from each other at ridiculous prices. It would be a hard thing to control. Can you image reading in a newspaper women getting arrested for feeding their babies formula? As my mom said, there are far too many more important issues that need to be addressed in this world other then breastfeeding.

I think that if you feel strongly about a cause then advocate for it. Instead what Giselle has done is make everyone feel that she is ridiculous and uneducated. She could easily be a spokeswoman and share information about breastfeeding. Perhaps even suggest to those women that produce enough milk to feed multiple babies to freeze and donate some of their milk.

If I could go back...

Being a new parent and having your first baby is a big learning experience. By your second, third, or 19th (like the Duggar's) you know what works, what doesn't, your parenting style, and whatnots. If Brian and I have another child (if we win the lottery that is) I would do just one thing differently. I regret not trying to use cloth diapers. I don't know if it was a fear of mine to use them but I should have tried. I could have easily traded most of my diapers that I got at our babyshower and bought cloth diapers or had just told people that I wanted to use cloth diapers. I still would have used disposable diapers when we were out in town to illiminate having to carry around poopy diaper though. Think about how many diapers I am putting in our landfills everyday. I really need a pop on the hand "No More" ,"Don't do that again." My question is now , can I start using cloth diapers now even though she is a year old?

Quicky Blog

Here is a quick one while I am multi-taskiing this morning.

For all of you that don't know I am starting back to school this fall. (Cheers! Applause! HIP HIP HOORAY!) Hopefully now that I am older and a mother I can settle down and finish a degree.

I was totally shocked yesterday when I realized that I was signed up for 6 classes totalling 19 credit hours. When I pre-registered I signed up for 4 classes and was on the waiting list for 2 more. I really didn't think I was going to get into the other classes but now that I did I was almost in a panic. Two classes are mostly doing crafts and puppets. So hopefully that will be easy. But I also need these classes and who knows wheren they will be offered again, right? So in a few weeks I will be a FULL FULL time student. Here we go.

Also, I have got my IDEA for my first contest. I need to go to the store and get it first though. But I'm totally excited about it. Can't wait! Contest soon!