Medicine Taking Made Easy With Sabi

Disclosure: I got this product as part of an advertorial.

Sometimes, taking medicine can a be a pain.  It's not necessarily the medicine itself that is always a pain to take, but the process.  Have you tried pouring out one pill from a bottle with a big opening and half the bottle of pills ends up pouring out?  Or maybe, you have one a vitamin that looks like it was made for a horse to swallow instead of a human?  Well, Sabi has four products that are guaranteed to make medicine taking a little bit easier or at least they did for me.

SHAKE

SHAKE is a flip-top pill bottle or box that dispenses only one pill at a time.  I love this because as I mentioned above, I hate trying to shake out one pill and ending up with half the bottle in my hand.  Then, you have to pour them back into bottle and I kind have this thing about contamination.  Usually when I'm taking medicine it's after a meal.  So, while my hands are clean in terms of germs, I don't want the oils or residue from whatever I have eaten to rub off on the other pills that I then have to pour back into the bottle.

CARAFE

The CARAFE water cup has two compartments.  The top compartment is a pill box to hold your medicine and the bottom is a 124 milliliter cup to hold your water.  I like the that blue stopper fits really snug in the top of the pill box as well.  I also like that for those medicines that I have to wake up and take late at  night, I can add a few ice cubes in the cup part with a small amount of water and then when I wake up I don't have to go tip toeing through the apartment to get water. 

 It's all right there on the night stand. I can take my meds, lay down and go right back to sleep. Also, this cups handles falls well as JJ and Moo have already knocked it on the floor quite a few times.  It doesn't have any cracks or anything it.  So, that's another plus.

CHOP

So, a while back, I had to split a pill in half to give to Moo.  Let me tell you, the method I used kind of dangerous.  I used a seraded kitchen knife.  I had tried breaking the pill in half in my hand but one side was always bigger than the other and I didn't want to overdose or take a dose that was too small.

But I ended up cutting myself using the knife.  The whole situation was just very irritating to say the least.  Anyways, with the CHOP, I don't have to worry about any of that.  Next time I can just insert the pill on the platform, close the lip and the let the CHOP do all the work.  No, uneven dosage amounts or cut fingers.  This is also great for those of us who take those giant vitamins and supplements that are honestly too large to swallow whole.

I like that the CHOP is easy to use.  You don't have to apply too much pressure.  And best off all is that it's the perfect size that I can take on the go!  

Crush

So, remember that pill I mentioned earlier that I struggled with chopping in half for Moo?  Well, she's five hasn't quite mastered the art of swallowing pills just yet.  This has been both a good and bad thing.  In the past, I've usually wrapped the pill halves in plastic wrap and worked it with a hammer or a mug to make into a powder form.  Then, I just put it in a spoonful of yogurt and down the hatch it goes.

Whelp, with CRUSH, no need to waste my plastic wrap or pull out the hammer.  With a few quick twists of the top (it doubles as a pill box by the way), I can crush her pills easily.  Now this tool will come in handy also for large pills that you feel uncomfortable swallowing whole.  I'm thinking of getting one of these for my aunt and baby sister for Christmas this year because neither of them can swallow pills either.  Their gag reflexes are too sensitive and make pill taking for them a real struggle!

I definitely enjoyed trying out all of these products.  The CHOP and CRUSH are favorite about of all them simply because they were the most useful.  If you're interested in purchasing any of these, those would the two that get the highest recommendation from me.

Be sure to follow Sabi on Facebook and Twitter to stay up to date on new products, sales and more.  You can also check out their blog here.

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

Thankful Thursday

Pinterest

Happy Thankful Thursday!  We've been invaded by the sickies this week.  I'm talking runny noses, stuffy noses, sore throats, massive headaches, coughs, etc.  Y'all this mommy is running on fumes pretty much.  I have been getting zero sleep these past few days.  It sucks when both kids are sick and then you get sick too.

But like the quote above says, I'm thankful and happy to still be here with those I love!  I'm also thankful that we still co-sleep because if I get up every time JJ woke up due to his cold these few days, I would feel like I walked a thousand miles.  Having him in right here in the bed with me has been so much easier.

We did get out the house this past weekend and went Uptown to enjoy the "Fun Place" as Moo has so fondly renamed the ImagOn.  The kids had a blast and even made a new friend.  JJ got his first library card!  Moo already had hers and I had been meaning to get him one but just never quite could remember.  I'm thankful we were able to spend time together as a family, the Mr included.

I'm thankful that my internet struggle with Time Warner hasn't been that bad this week.  I feel like sometimes we are the only ones have issues with our internet going out so much.  And it's very frustrating because I'll be about to hit the publish button on a post and what do you know, the wifi is down.  And it'll stay down for hours.

JJ is continuing to do his signs!  Yay, for that.  We checked out some sign language videos designed specifically for toddlers his age group.  I think that the more he sees other children signing the better and more comfortable he will with it.  Also, I feel like he's attempting to actually talk more now.  The words come out as gibberish, but it's still progress.

One last thing before I go, stop my writing blog today!  Kristin from Musings of Me tagged me in the Writing Process Blog Tour tag and I'm sharing more info about my novel, Forever Branded, and what my writing process is like.  Check out my post here.

What are you thankful for this week?

6 Pull-Ups® Big Kid App Features That Make Potty Training Easier

Disclosure: I participated in a campaign on behalf of Mom Central Consulting (#MC) for Pull-Ups®.  I received product samples to facilitate my review and a promotional item as a thank you for participating.

It's been a month and some change since JJ and I decided to get serious about this potty training business.  I have to admit that potty training JJ has been a very different experience than when I potty trained Moo.  For starters, there was his dislike for actually sitting on the toilet.  Also, he is my most stubborn child by far.  When he makes up his mind not to do something, it can be quite the challenge to convince him to do otherwise.  

But thankfully, in addition to the Big Kid Academy resources that can be found via the Pull-Ups® website, they also have a super cool Big Kid App that is available for free for both iPhone and Android smart phones in the app stores.  Using this app has helped me to help my stubborn little man get more comfortable with potty training and make some progress on this potty training journey.  I would definitely recommend that any parent that has or is getting ready to start the potty training journey with their child download this app and check the 5 features listed below.

5 Cool Pull-Up® Big Kid App Features I Love

Multiple Account Creation- The first featured that I love about the Big Kid app is that you can create multiple accounts.  Having the option to create multiple potty training account for each child is perfect, especially if you're a mom with multiples.

You can personalize each account with your child's name/nickname and choose from a selection of pre-made aviators or upload up a picture from your phone.  Parents now have potty training resources and tools right at the touch of finger no matter where they are.

Videos & Songs- One thing I've come to learn about JJ is that he enjoys learning through songs and visuals.  The Big Kid app has an awesome selection of videos and songs like Bye-Bye to Diapers, Potty Dance, and more that I have been playing for him to really help him get pumped about making this transition.  I can play these songs and videos in the car, at home, in the store, at the playground or wherever.  When our children see other children pumped about doing something, then they're more likely to want to follow suit.

These songs and videos have really helped to make using the bathroom more fun.  And I'm not going to lie, parents once you listen to these different songs over and over with your child for a few times, you start to get into them too.  Yes, I have gotten my dance on to the Potty Dance song.  I'm not afraid to be silly with my kids.  Seeing me excited about using the bathroom has helped to make JJ more at eased about it.  We've conquered our fear of sitting on the potty.

Big Kid Timer- Having conquered his fear of actually sitting on the potty, I then started using the timer feature to help make sure we're going to the potty regularly.  The timer has made potty training for us easier in that it's a reminder when I've gotten busy and forgotten to ask if  he has to go to stop and ask him.  You can set your time for as long or short of a time period as you want.  You'll get a pop notification when it times to ask your little if he or she has to go potty.

And just a tip, even if JJ says no, we still go and sit.  I can guarantee you that almost 50% of the time when they say no, they really mean yes.  Usually they're too engrossed in their playing to want to stop and go use the bathroom.  So, I started off setting the timer at 45 minutes.  Therefore, every 45 minutes I was checking if he had to go.  But since then I've learned that during certain parts of the day he goes longer in between having to use the bathroom.

We prefer Sully

What's even cooler about this feature is that you or your child can choose between using the James P. Sullivan or Mike Wazowski Monsters University themes.  Fingers crossed that they add Boo and some Disney Princess ones by the time I have number three.

Potty Rewards- In addition to using our printable chart, I am to track JJ's potty training victories and reward him whether we're in the house or on the go.  With the Potty Rewards features, your child can unlock fun games featuring some of their favorite Disney characters by doing things to stars.  So, if your child enjoy virtual games this is another tool that you can use to motivate him or her to use the potty.

Pull-Ups® Big Kid 3D Celebration- Each pack of Pull-Ups training pants comes with a special marker inside that you will need to keep to activate this feature.  But I love it because it's another fun way to celebrate major potty training accomplishments.  Your child can choose Mickey Mouse, Buzz Lighting, Minnie Mouse or Princess Rapunzel to help them celebrate.  Of course, JJ is nuts for Mickey and that's who he's chosen each time we've celebrated.

Your special marker should look like this

Tips & Articles- I know some might expect me to be a little bit of a pro at potty training since I've done it before, but each child is different.  Therefore it helps to have tips and articles that I can access quickly for help or for a refresher course.  This journey has been and can be frustrating for both parents and children.  And what was frustrating for me was the fact that some things I did with Moo didn't work with JJ.

So, I did consult the tips and advice from this feature to get some new ideas like keeping a few toys that he likes in the bathroom to keep him occupied while he's sitting on the potty.  They recommended books too, but after fishing out one book from the toilet, I decided to scrap that and just stick to toys.  Toys I can bleach, but paper books I have to throw away.

More Updates

So, we have officially ditched diapers.  We've been enjoying the Lighting McQueen Pull-Ups® Learning Designs ® training pants that were sent to us.  I love that they have a special design that fades when wet.  No more having to unfasten diapers to check.

And we're so close to him doing his first poop in the potty.  I have to make sure I catch him when he first starts showing signs of having to go because let me tell y'all, it's hard and messy to put a child on a potty while they're still trying to poo.

Lastly, our biggest success hands down has been the fact that he is no longer afraid of the potty or the toilet.  This potty training journey would be even more challenging if he was.

Don't forget that you can check out Big Kid Academy and more the Pull-Ups® website.  Also, be sure to follow them on Facebook and Twitter for more tips and resources as well!

Thankful Thursday

Happy Thankful Thursday!  And Happy First Day of Spring!  Yep, I woke up singing Little Bill today.  I'm super excited at the hope of warmer weather finally being on the way.  But I'm a little bit sad as well because it's grilling season and y'all already know the story about our missing grill.  

Nevertheless, I am thankful that Spring is indeed here.   What I am most thankful for this week is the progress that JJ has made with his speech therapy.  So, last week I mentioned that he wasn't repeating the sign language I had been teaching him.  And on Monday, during one of his weekly sessions, we couldn't get him to repeat them either.  Fast forward to later on that night and the Mr has decided to take the day and and treat everyone to their favorite snack.

Well, it dawned on me that maybe, I could use the snacks as an incentive to get him to do the signs.  And what do you know, he did them all!  He came to me for another Twizzler and I told him he had to do his signs first.  So, he signed out the words hungry and more!  Talk about a proud mommy moment.  I was over the moon and wanted to cry, but I showered him with kisses and gave him the Twizzlers instead.

The fact that I didn't have to show him the signs first for him to know which ones to use, let me know that he's paying attention and that he's learning.  There was some concern that his comprehension skills weren't as sharp, but his therapist has since reassessed and determined that he's actually probably smarter than what he can communicate.  Of course, I've always thought that because he can follow simple directions, knows how to operate things like the remote and is a great problem solver.

I've been looking into investing in a membership to ABC.com because a few moms with children who have autism have claimed to have seen excellent results in less than a year using it.  At this point, his therapist and caseworker agree me that anything is worth a try to finally push him over the edge to speak.  We know that he's capable of learning and learning quickly, but now we need him to work harder at practicing  his verbal skills.

And can you guys believe that my little man is going to be 3 in less than two months?!  Y'all know how emotional birthdays make me.  I'm not sure what we're going to do but I'm sure it'll involve games, cake and maybe Mickey Mouse.  I'm also thankful that I finally purchased a custom domain for my author website and blog.  Now, I'm just waiting for it port over.  

It hasn't been quite 24 hours, but I feel like this process is taking way longer than it did when I changed my url for YUMMommy.  I was able to use my new url within a few hours.  So, if it's not up and working by tonight, I'll call customer service and see what the hold up is because I entered everything correctly.  Y'all keep your fingers crossed and send up prayer that it starts working!

What are you giving thanks for this week?

Fresh Express 30-Day Salad Swap

Disclosure:  This post is sponsored by the Moms Meet program, May Media Group LLC, who received this product directly from the manufacturer.  As a Moms Meet blogger, I agreed to sample this product and post my honest opinion. All opinions expressed are 100% my own and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of May Media Group LLC or the manufacturer of this product!

Let's face it, eating healthy is really a struggle for some of us and our families.  The biggest reason I've heard for this is that eating healthy requires sacrificing great taste.  The next biggest reason was cost.  A lot of us are under the influence that it costs a fortune to eat better.  So, when I was asked if I wanted to join in the Fresh Express 30-Day Salad Swap, I said yes.  I agreed for the following reasons:

1: I was already familiar with the Fresh Express brand.  They are my go-to for ready made salad blends.

2:  They have great quality.  All of their salads come washed, rinsed, dried and packaged in their patented "Keep-Crisp®" breathable bags and are preservative free.
3:  Fresh Express offers an awesome selection of different salad mixes and recently released a variety of ready-to-eat salad kits.  They even have a USDA-Certified Organic line!

4: Depending on the salad and retailer Fresh Express salads will run you between $2-4 per bag, which is a steal compared to $5 per person at a restaurant for full-size salads.  (You can score a $0.55 off coupon for a limited time here.)

Using the Salad Swap app and website, I have been able to check out all of the different salads I can create and swap out regular meals for.  Let me tell y'all, the possibilities are endless.  We are on Day 20 and haven't gotten tired of salad yet!  We've been alternating between swapping a regular lunch or dinner meal for one of the salad creations.  So, if we had a Caesar salad on Monday for lunch and Tuesday, we had my favorite, taco salads for dinner.  Check out the recipe below.

Ingredients

1 bag of Fresh Express Premium Romaine salad mix

1 bag of tortilla chips (fat free or organic if possible)

1 bag of Mexican (or soy) cheese blend

1 jar of salsa

1 pack of ground turkey

Instructions

1- Brown turkey in a pan using medium to medium-high heat.

2- While turkey is browning, preheat oven to 300 degrees.

3- When turkey is almost completely browned, heat tortilla chips in the oven for 2-5 minutes.  Drain turkey and return to pan with the heat off.

4- Arrange 15-20 tortilla chips to cover the bottom of each plate.  Top with a handful of roughly chopped Fresh Express salad mix (I just used my hands and broke apart the lettuce a little bit).  Next sprinkle on a 1/3 cup of ground turkey.  Finish off with 1/4 cup of shredded cheese and 1 1/2 tablespoons of salsa.

There you have it, a yummy meal under 600 calories.  This meal was a total of  roughly $18 with taxes (salad $2.99, cheese $2.50, salsa $2, ground turkey $7, and tortilla chips $2) to make and we had leftovers that will be used for lunch.  So, that's a little of over $2 per person each day!  Much cheaper than eating out.

I challenge all of you to take the Fresh Express 30-Day Salad Swap.  Get the coupon mention aboved, download the app (or sign-up on the website), and start eating healthier today!  Don't forget to follow Fresh Express on Pinterest and Facebook for more inspiration, savings and more!

Thankful Thursday

Happy Thankful Thursday y'all!  I woke up tired, but in a good mood today.  I'm still on a high from seeing my finished book cover.  Thanks again Christina!  And I woke up to find two packages waiting for me.  They were books!

In case, y'all don't know by now, I LOVE books.  I know, I know, I'm such a nerd, but I don't care.  There's just something about getting sucked into a new book.  And while I like ebooks, I prefer the feel of a physical book and the act of actually turning the pages.  So, I'm thankful for my new books.

JJ is still doing well with his speech therapy.  We haven't heard him say any new words this past week, but he's starting to understand the signs.  Now the key is get him to use them on a consistent basis and to get him to a point where he will say words when prompted.  Right now, he blurts out words at random with the exception of "No."  Despite being a standstill, I'm thankful nevertheless because he isn't regressing again.

I'm thankful for the progress that I've been making on Forever Branded in terms of writing it.  I have a notebook where I've been jotting down all of my chapter ideas.  I'm also grateful that I've been connecting with other writers.  It's nice to have others who understand the issues and stress that come with writing a book.

My neighbors were unusually quiet earlier this week.  Maybe, that 24/7 partying and being turned up to the max is starting to get old for them.  Although, we're getting ready to chuck up the deuces to this place, I still appreciated that quiet time without any loud laughter, blasting music, etc.

I'm just thankful that life is good at the moment.  I haven't won the lottery or anything, but I'm grateful that I'm still alive and so are the people that I love most.   That in and of itself is enough for me.

What are you giving thanks for this week?

It Takes A Dream

I've been in love with books my entire life.  I kid you not.  My mom started teaching me how to read at an early age.  I read my first book by myself when I was 3.  I remember starting preschool and asking if I could read a book for storytime once.  Our classroom had two teachers- Mrs. O and Ms. H (who happened to be my mother's older sister).  

Mrs. O taught for sure when I asked to read Snow White (it was my favorite book at time) that I was just going to give a narration of the pictures.  My aunt told her, that I could in fact read and so I did my first storytime while they laid out snacks.  I remember just feeling so happy and over-the-moon proud of myself.  All the other kids were in awe that K could read.  They wanted to learn to.

My love affair with books inspired me to want to become a writer.  The only problem was I hated the actual action of writing.  If I could have spoken into a mic and had my stories written for me, I'm sure I would have been the youngest writer in the world.  But that kind of technology wasn't out back then.  I hated writing because I felt like I wasn't good at it.

My actual handwriting was sloppy and often times unreadable.  And I was bad speller.  Sure, I could read, but that was because I knew how to sound out words and once you sound out the same words enough times, you just recognize them when you them.  My mom finally put her foot down and started making me practice writing on the weekends until I was in the second grade.

That's when my want turned into a dream.  I became separable from my notebook and my pen.  True story.  My family was always asking me when my novel was coming out because all I ever did was write.  And if I wasn't writing, I was reading.  And I wasn't really reading books for my age group either.  I think that I read my first James Patterson book at 12 or 13.  And by the time I was 14, I had learned so much about sex from reading explicit books from authors like Zane.

My mom had had the sex the talk with me, but reading about it in graphic detail was different.  I started discovering iconic authors and books like Toni Morrison, Walter Dean Myers and Jane Eyre (my all time favorite book) or the Great Gatsby.  I was just in awe of the talent and the ability for a book to suck me in emotionally and help me escape from reality for a while.

My dream continued to grow and I started taking a creative writing class in high school.  I took honors and AP English classes because we got to write more beyond the essays on Shakespeare and share original pieces.  In college, even though I was a fashion major, I took two creative writing classes.  I started this blog and got the opportunity to co-author a great book on surviving motherhood with some pretty awesome ladies.  I felt like I was on top of the moon.  I felt like a legit writer.

And then, I realized that I wanted to write that novel that I'd always dreamed of writing and Forever Branded was born.  It's been a slow and sometimes frustration process, but I wouldn't change it for the world.  I recently enlisted the help of my favorite go-to person for things related to visual and graphic designing, Christina of Being Mrs Jones and fellow author, for some help with my book cover and I have to say she really delivered (cover reveal coming soon on my author blog)!

Seeing that book cover just made everything feel so official and real.  My dreams are coming fruition and it feels amazing.  This journey has taught me that all things are possible, but it takes a dream first, then having the faith to believe in that dream and keeping yourself surrounded by others who believe in you and your dream!  So, whatever your dream, I urge you to go for it.  Don't throw in the towel.  

I've wanted to write a novel since I was in the second grade and I'm just now accomplishing my dream at 28.  It took a while, but if you want something bad enough, you keep pushing to make it happen.  You climb the ladder and take steps to make your moment a reality.  So give in to dreaming and then dare yourself to chase those dreams!

What is/was your biggest dream?

Dude, Where's My Grill?

Happy Monday folks!  Hope that everyone had a lovely weekend and that you remembered to change the time on your clocks.  Hopefully, nobody was late for work this morning.  So, speaking of the weekends, ours was pretty good until Sunday night.  What happened?

Well, after a few days of rainy and chilly weather, Sunday turned out to be a really beautiful day.  The temperature here got up to the low 70s and the Mr was off.  So, he decided since we hadn't been to the park in what seemed like ages, that it would be nice to go and enjoy some family time.  What could be better than some family time outside?

The kids were excited.  We loaded up and headed to the park.  We mention something about the weather starting to warm up.  And y'all know what warm weather means... grilling season!!!  Yes, we love to grill in this house. Spring, Summer, Winter or Fall, we are grilling out.  We haven't been able to really grill out much in the last couple of months because the Mr has been working like crazy and once again we had this insane rainy/storm season and then the snow storms.  Curse you, Polar Vortex! (Maybe, not really since I like snow.)

But anyways, Moo has taken to wanting to learn how to grill.  I already told you guys, she's going to be a chef when she grows up.  I'm sure of it because loves anything that has to do with food.  And I had started letting her be my assistant when I grill.  It's a great bonding time for the two of us and gives JJ and the Mr bonding time while they're in the house.  So, needless to say, I start mentioning how we can pull out the grill this week.

We stay at the park until it's black dark outside.  Like the street lights are on, the temperature has dropped and everything.   On the way back home, we stop and get something eat because after playing and chasing two really energetic kids around the playground neither of us wants to cook.  Everyone is happy.  The car is full of bubbly chatter as we pull into our parking space.

Then, the Mr asks, "Did somebody steal our grill?"  I'm all like, "No, it's on right there on the porch."  Of course, it's dark out and our porch has vertical spindles that are close together in between the railing.  So, at night you really have to be on the porch to see what's on it.  Plus, we didn't leave the light on because we weren't expecting to stay at the park until it got dark.

He gets out the car and goes on the porch to see if the grill is there.  "We have been got," he says when he comes back to the car to help with the kids.  I'm still in denial because the grill has been sitting on the porch since we moved here.  "Maybe, you moved it to the back porch," I say hopefully.  He goes to look.  Guess what?  No, grill.

We have been got folks.  Somebody has straight up walked up on our porch and stolen our grill. That grill wasn't even a year old.  I was too pissed (and I'm still kind of pissed) because here I am making plans to grill some turkey burgers, but I don't even have a dang grill to grill them on now!  The Mr is actually taking this missing grill situation better than I am, but I seriously wanted to call the cops and have them dust for prints and the whole nine.

I didn't though.  I know they have more important cases to attend to and chances are whoever took the grill didn't leave behind any prints.  The bright side of all this is that they just took grill.  We do have an alarm system and keep the sign the company gave us on the front lawn.  So, that probably discouraged them from trying to break-in and that I am grateful about.  I just wish that people would stop stealing and just doing bad stuff in general.

Of course, our grill being stolen has put Moo on edge because she knows stealing is bad and now she's a little apprehensive.  You know they make criminals and bad guys in kid movies so scary.  I kind of wish the Mr had just waited and said something about it in private.  And I wished I hadn't have gotten so upset about it in front of the kids because more than anything I think my emotions transferred to her a little bit.  I hate it that she doesn't feel completely safe.  She asked me if they were coming back to steal anything else and I told her no.  I think that calmed her down a little bit.

So, no grilling out this week y'all.  Another comfort in all of this is that we're getting ready to move and I have already started packing.  To say that I am going to be overjoyed when we are free of this apartment and neighborhood is an understatement!

Have you ever had anything stolen from your front porch or yard?

Thankful Thursday

"Hold fast to dreams,

For if dreams die

Life is a broken-winged bird,

That cannot fly."

-Langston Hughes

Happy Thankful Thursday folks.  I am definitely thankful for being able to hold fast to my dreams!  It's only March, but I feel like I've seen so many people talking about how they've thrown in the towel on a dream or a goal they had coming into the 2014.  It's sad when you see someone who's giving up, especially when you know that they can make if they just keep trying.

We all go through difficult seasons in our lives.  We all have those moments where nothing ever goes right.  Something is always happening.  Maybe, you finally get out the house on time to make it church and get there only to discover the service time has been changed or whatever.  But does that mean you should give up on trying to make it to church?  No!  

I feel the same way about our dreams.  I mentioned last week, how I pretty much started over from scratch with my novel.  Sure, I had a moment during my writer's craziness where I wanted to say, "Screw trying to write this book."  I was so frustrated that I was having such a hard time doing something I've always loved- writing and creating.  Nothing was going right and the thoughts had stopped flowing.

Once my panic subsided, I gave myself a mental pep talk.  I wasn't throwing in the towel.  Quitters never prosper and y'all know I'm all about prospering in every aspect of my life this year.  I refuse to be a 'broken-winged bird' walking around here moping when I could be soaring in the clouds with the others.  In that moment of putting my foot down towards myself, I knew inspiration was going to come and it did.  The book is coming a long again and that's what I've been working on during my spare time and when the internet is on the skitz.

I'm thankful that I'm able to encourage my children to pursue their dreams.  I'm thankful that as a mom, I am able to let my children be who they are.  For example, Moo is a free spirit and adventurer by nature.  I have no doubts that I picked the right name for her now.  And I do a good job at letting her be free and chase age appropriate adventures.  Now that doesn't mean I let her do what she wants 24/7 because I am still the parent.  I'm here for guidance and discipline and to set the right examples.  I do that, but I don't stifle her or break her spirit.

I'm thankful that every week I can see small improvements with JJ.  Just looking back on where we started with this speech therapy journey and what we have achieved now gives me so much hope and excitement.  I'm thankful for all of the resources that are out there for us to take advantage of.  I'm thankful that he's being such a champ through all of this.

I'm thankful for awesome friends who check in and see how I'm doing because we're too far away to talk in person and catch up face to face.  I'm very thankful that my missing packages finally started to trickle in.  I have two more that I'm waiting.  I tell y'all that snow storm really set things back and some areas are still getting snow and extreme cold temps.  I'm thankful that our snow didn't stick yesterday.

It's too soon to be snowed in again.  I'm ready for some warmer weather for sure.  C'mon Spring!

What are giving thanks for this week?

Still Kicking

Happy Wednesday!  I know I've been missing around these parts since last Thursday, but rest assured we're still kicking. And yesterday as well as Monday, I had a really cool post on National Reading Month that I wanted to post,  but my internet was acting a straight fool!  I'm telling y'all, Time Warner is lucky that they are getting any of my money because our internet spends more time being down than up it seems.  The sad part about all of this is that we actually upgraded to a faster and stronger connection package.  I'm just confused...

"Mama, I wanna to be on YouTube!"  I kid y'all not, these were the words that were spoken to me two weeks ago by my five year old Moo.  She knows that I vlog now and watch vlogs on YouTube and she's insisting that she gets in on the action by being in one of my videos.  "I can help you," she told me while trying to con me with a smile.  I'm sorry to burst her hopes of becoming a YouTube sensation but for now the Mr and I have made a decision to not put the kids in my videos.

It took him a while to get comfortable with their pictures being up on the blog and Facebook.  He's very private.  And for me, I'm very protective of my children.  YouTube commentators are the worst.  They will talk trash for no reason and I don't play that about my children.  Say the wrong thing in regards to my children and forget having to worry about my husband coming for you, I hold my own!!  And yes, I'm still working on not being so quick to let people's ignorance when it comes to my children get me so fired up, but in the words of Steve Harvey, "He [Jesus] ain't through with me yet."  I'm still a work in progress in that area.

JJ has really been extra affectionate lately.  I told y'all that he was going through a stage where he was acting like he was too cool for kisses and hugs let alone to held.  However, he's singing a different tune now.  And I must say that I'm loving it!  If you're a parent then you know that getting affection from your children is better than EVERYTHING!!  I think now that maybe it was just from him being overwhelmed with therapy and he had to cope somehow.

Source

I'm just glad that he no longer runs the other way when I ask for a hug or a kiss.  And he voluntarily climbs into my lap and we snuggle for hours.  It's the best feeling.  Moo joins in too. I can't tell y'all how much those moments make my heart swell.  Theses moments also help me to cope with my baby fever.  Like, I know I have a lot on my plate already, but I've been thinking about babies ever since before Thanksgiving when we had that pregnancy scare.

I know we set a date for when I would come off my birth control and we start trying for number 3, but honestly, I don't know if I can wait that long. Well, I can obviously, but I don't know if I want to.  However, this isn't a decision that is just up to me to make.  I know I could probably convince the Mr to get on board, but I don't feel like I wouldn't be doing the right thing for JJ.  He needs my undivided attention right now while continue to navigate through this therapy and get him to where he needs to be.

I would feel awful not being able to give him my all because I'm tired and on bed rest or running to OBGYN appointments.  So, I guess we're waiting until at least the end of this year and going from there.  And while I'm on the subject doctors and medical stuff, y'all I woke early this morning and noticed my eye was sore.

I was intending to get some water and go back to bed but when I looked in the bathroom mirror and saw that my left was swollen halfway shut, I about had a fit!  I haven't had a stye in years.  I'm talking about since I was 10.  I spend most of the morning with it covered up so that I wouldn't touch it and make it worst.  Moo told that I looked like pirate.   Way to help the situation.  Thankfully though it's gone down, but every time I bend down to pick up something this thing hurts something awful.

So, send up prayers and keep your fingers crossed that it doesn't get worst or spread to the other eye!  I have two vlogs I need to film and I don't want to be looking like a one-eyed Jane doing it either.

How would you feel about putting your children in your vlog videos?  Any advice on coping with baby fever?