Sunshine and Summertime

Hello all!

I know I've been absent for going on 5 months now. Well, I just stopped putting the effort into blogging as I started prioritizing tasks to do while C takes his nap(s). But maybe it's the (finally) fresh air blowing through the neighborhood, the sunshine, and seeking plants in my garden peek and shove their way to the surface to meet that sun that is giving me the itch for new beginnings. Maybe it's an after-effect of Easter and the resurrection of Christ and the new life and beginnings he offered to us all by His death.

I have been on a find different types of cloth diapers to try out kick these past few months. I'm so loyal to Mother-Ease and yet with the onset of C's terrible diaper rashes that we endured for 4 months until we figured out the problem and could therefore find a solution (hundreds of dollars later...after seeing the only pediatric dermatologist near us...an hour one way)....I started searching for softer options. Now that it's warm again, it's time for my diapers, covers, and wipes to dry on the line with the rest of the laundry. And my Mother-Ease get so crunchy and hard, even when I pull them off the line damp and throw them through the dryer for 10 minutes. One solution to that was buying Cotton Babies Stay Dry Liners, which are microfleece and also help wick moisture away from C's skin...always helpful in preventing diaper rashes. Those have been amazing, but CDing obsessed mama that I am, I bought some other kinds:

I got a new and improved Best Bottoms cover - it now has elastic in the front, preventing my tummy sleeper from getting a leaky diaper while napping and sleeping at night.

I tried SoftBums - these diapers have the softest covers ever, and the softest pod inserts ever as well!!!! R was even rubbing the cover on his face one day because they are so soft. Although they are velcro (Aplix) - and I'm usually opposed to velcro because it seems the velcro goes bad so quickly compared to snaps, and doesn't seem to fit as well - they haven't leaked yet and we haven't had any issues with rashes. The company is also a Minnesota company, so I am proud, and love, supporting a local business to where we live. Check them out!

I am also obviously getting into gardening, that's what our huge backyard is for (asides from the 20 trees we also just planted around the property). I am planting close to 28 tomato plants. Because I am CRAZY!!! And I want to get into canning, and save the ~$3 I spend on a 28 oz. can of Muir Glen diced tomatoes (Muir Glen is the best tasting canned tomatoes I have yet encountered, they are also gluten free, and organic). Next year's ambitions include an even larger garden (double it maybe...it's only 25'x15' currently) and try my hand at growing corn because grocery store corn is so blah, and bad for you because Monsanto is seriously the devil and flagship company that started work on GMO's - I'd know, my sister worked in the department that worked on GM corn.

Garage sale season is here, and it could not have come at a better time! C is quickly passing through all the clothing we had to barely last us through the winter. The first year seems to pass by in the slow (read: exhausted) blink of an eye. I wish that there was a pre-parenting course to help parents-to-be learn how to nourish their marriage relationship with a little one in the house, how to night wean your baby, how to deal best with total and utter exhaustion, and how to best expel your anger, frustration, and worries over every.little.thing (such as: falling head first down the stairs, refusing to eat anything unless it's what mama and daddy eat, not sleeping through the night, waking up too early, not napping, getting into everything, temper tantrums, I think you get the picture ;) .

Parenting is no easy task. And I get a little frustrated by the parents who like to make it seem as if it is by the Face.book statuses, and the "perfect" photos that they post online, etc. Where are the "I just lost my temper with the child and screamed at him and then he cried" statuses, or the "Why does my child always throw his/her food all over the kitchen, and then it gets on my clothes and ruins it?" or even better "My nipples are literally bleeding because my baby keeps biting while nursing"...where are these statuses....why do we live in a world where we have to put on a mask continually, and pretend that all is perfect?? My life is NOT perfect. I do not have the perfect marriage, I am not a perfect mother/daughter/sister/friend/wife/neighbor. I sure wish I could be, but that's downright impossible.

We just night weaned C this past weekend; R got up with him when he would wake up, and put him back to sleep, for 5 nights and he is now sleeping through the night!!!! Only tiny downside is he now gets up at 5:30 every morning, hopefully this is just a phase. But he now gets a solid 10 hours of sleep, and I get a solid 7 1/2!! The positive outcomes of this for the both of us have been amazing: I have more attention to give each day, my patience fuse has more of a break and more time to recharge every night, and C seems happier overall! I wish we had done this months ago; once we decided to go ahead with this plan 3 months ago, we had to wait for a good weekend to do it (i.e. a weekend where neither R or I had anything going on, so I could play with C all day while R caught up on sleep).

I am also becoming a quiltaholic. I made one for C for Christmas, his birthday (it's currently still at the longarm quilter), and am making one for his wall that has each letter of the alphabet and an animal or insect that corresponds to each letter on a block. I am so excited to be able to give my son, and potential future children as well, quilts lovingly made by his mama that he can keep for the rest of his life, and possibly pass on to his children as well. I love the precision and accuracy that goes into quilting, although I get a little too caught up in those aspects sometimes - I think I can't completely escape the chemist-that-I-used-to-be in me ;)

I know there's a million other things I could ramble on about now, but I'm going to go have some quiet, reflective time before C wakes up and we go back into being loud, throwing things, pointing out everything we know, crawling on the cats, and everything that encompasses life at home with a toddler :)

Our Very, Merry Christmas

Mod Snowflake Flurries Christmas Card

Shop Shutterfly for unique, personalized Christmas photo cards.

View the entire collection of cards.

Now That I'm 'Grown-Up,' I ought to be polite...

...And send Christmas cards.

I never thought I would be suckered into sending a Christmas card out. I never felt like I was old enough, nor could I find the perfect card to send out that would not only convey my feelings about this joyous holiday season, but also reflect my sense of style.

But that has all changed with Shutterfly! (A cute baby also helps...what proud mama doesn't want to show off their babes' cute mug?) Speaking of mugs, my mother's birthday falls about a week and a half before Christmas, and this year my sister and I decided to put a picture of our kids on a mug for her - my nieces are, of course, working up the charm with their tongues sticking out, looking like hooligans, and C...well, he's just smilin'. Thanks to Shutterfly, we can give this priceless gift to our mom this year; a keepsake she can keep forever.

I have been having the time of my life (okay, Christmas season) looking at all of Shutterfly's holiday cards, but I think I have fallen in love with their Christmas photo cards... why you may be thinking? Well, isn't it obvious from my paragraph above that I am excited to share (read: show off) C's strawberry-blonde hair, blue eyes, two deep dimples, and an oh-so-kissable grin.

Now, before I get carried away showing off my favorite cards I have found so far, did I mention that Shutterfly is having a promotion for bloggers: you can receive 50 free Christmas cards!!

And, onto my favorites:

Now, I usually lean toward the traditional side when I choose my Christmas cards...I like the reds and greens because they POP out at you, and using a black-and-white photo...

But Shutterfly has such a huge selection, it was hard to decide, and after spending close to an hour looking at all the options, I surprised by my leanings towards the bright, rainbow, and colorful cards...maybe Christmas just has me in a bright and cheerful mood!!

My first pick is a colorful card filled with reds and greens, and 3, count it T-H-R-E-E, spaces to show off the kiddo. And since C is a guy, and red and green aren't exactly gender colors, this card is the way to go for us...especially with all the snowflakes on it; we live way up north and love us lots of snow:

[Mod Snowflake Flurries Christmas Card]

My second pick is a photo card with just one picture, but bright and bold letters spelling out 'Merry' tumbling down along the side. I like the way that the photo is the main thing to look at, there's not too much color or detail to detract from said photo, but I love the bright, bold primary colors used; especially since I am making a quilt for C for Christmas made with primary colors, this would be sure to make memories for our family:

[Merry Rainbow Christmas 5x7 folded card]

The last of my favorites sold me on being able to have three photos on a Christmas card, but I really enjoy the space on the front to write a quick excerpt about our year, especially one that is printed, so I won't be spending a lot of time writing out individual messages - as a new, young mom, I really don't have time for that, as sad/pathetic as that may seem. So this card seems perfect for the proud, new mama with little (read: no) time for personalized messages, but who DID have time to create a personalized Christmas card for all those she cares about:

[What a Year Christmas Card]

I have used Shutterfly in the past for all my photo needs, and they have never once let me down. In fact, I also plan on using their photo calendars to make a beautiful calendar for my husband to use at work, to write down dates, or just seeing a photo of us through the years, or of our son. I am so excited to get cracking said calendar that perhaps I should stop blogging, and start getting creative in a photo format, not a writing format ;)

So, there you have it folks, I am officially 'old.' I am so excited to start receiving Christmas cards in the mail, and although I thought it an old tradition, now I think it is a going to be a new tradition for my family, and I hope to share our joy, peace, and love for this Christmas season with all our loved ones and friends.

And certainly last, but not least, dear readers: I should not forget to mention the thank you cards that will need to be written once Christmas day has passed and we have visited our respective families. Shutterfly has a wonderful assortment of thank you cards to suit every taste and personality.

Happy Shopping!

CapitalismAmerica

Lately, I have had capitalism on the brain...okay, well more than lately. I feel (more than slightly) irked while walking through our neighborhood grocery store and thinking about the prices of products and what is available. Then reading articles in the news about how in approximately 50 years, because the world population will be 9 billion, there will be a world food shortage crisis. Now, I honestly do not believe that there will be a shortage because of population. I believe it is because we are a society of convenience, born of capitalism.

How many of us out there prefer to buy a frozen pizza, or other frozen meal, instead of making it from scratch? Now, yes, I suppose you could argue that it was not due to convenience but rather time restrictions. Sure, go ahead. But really people? I prefer my homemade pizzas, and (asides from proof time) it takes 30 minutes to make a pizza - less if you don't shred your own mozzarella yourself (I only buy the blocks because it's cheaper, and frugality is a good quality to practice/behold). Or, how many of buy pre-made baby food instead of making our own? Yes, I do realize that you may be a working parent and therefore your time is precious, but what is 10 minutes compared to spending ~$1/jar of baby food, and that's not even the organic stuff (don't get me started...)

I digress, back to capitalism. I have had this topic on my mind as I visit my local butcher shop. Oddly enough, it's prices are better than even Wal-Mart...and it's a local business (I love, love, love local businesses...please, please give me more).

What happened to gardening, even? I realize the trend that is living in cities, suburbs, and exurbs and that land may be in short supply...but what about using window boxes, or putting pots in front of windows? Surely that could save money, help with the impending food crisis, or just save you a couple bucks or more.

I keep thinking that if I turned my whole backyard (.5 acres) into a giant garden, I would have enough produce to supply the houses on my street. And just think, if they all pitched in with the planting, weeding, watering, and harvesting....you would be taking a part in your produce. You would inherently know what sort of chemicals are, or are not, being sprayed on your fruits and veggies.

I eventually want chickens. My husband and I have a compost bucket under our sink and an ever-growing compost pile out in the yard...that will make great fertilizer and soil once we get our garden up and running next spring. And the chicken can eat some of the compost and help the whole process along as well. And all the while, I will know how my chickens are treated, what they've been eating, and have delicious eggs. Plus, they make delightful pets for children!

I dream of finding enough friends/acquaintances so that I could have my own dairy cow and make my own yogurt, cheeses, butter, milk, etc. But I do realize that is just a dream, but perhaps one day I shall find a willing farmer...hmm...

Capitalism. It has efficiently killed off local businesses. What happened to visiting the butcher, baker, farmer, etc etc. every week for our needs?? Instead, we shop at Wal-Mart, Target, [insert "local" (if you look up your local grocery store, it is, generally, owned by a large, national corporation / food distributor) grocery store here].

I have never forgotten, nor do I think I ever shall forget, a passage I read in a book about a girl who went on a medical missions trip in Uganda. She went to one of the (few) restaurants and ordered a chicken entrée for dinner...it took her a few minutes to understand why the kitchen boy was chasing after a chicken in the streets; he had to catch it for her meal. Or that milk used to come straight from the cow; not from the dairy section of the grocery store, in a plastic - or sometimes glass - bottle.

Sure, you can call me liberal. However, if there is ever a world food shortage, I know that, God willing, I will have plenty of produce that I grew in my garden and ate fresh/frozen/canned, meat from the local butcher, eggs from my chickens, and hopefully dairy from a local farmer. And I will be more than willing to share my garden's bounty. I believe God calls us - okay, I know he calls us - to share with the less fortunate. And that is my ultimate goal: I want to share what I have with others, I want to be a servant to those in need, I want to bring a smile to the face of a small child / mother / father / grandmother / grandfather...I think you get the picture. I want my actions to bring joy, hope, love, peace, and less worry.

And I honestly believe capitalism does not help this situation...

Per our local pastor's homily yesterday morning at Mass, when he was talking about our local church's budget and mentioning more than 50% of the members give between $0-100 per year, and even less give between $100-200...where is our call for "time and talent" people?? When Fr. Joe asked how many of us go and buy a drink each day (or even just once weekly) from Caribou coffee, or have a bottle of a some good beer, or put money towards going to sporting events or putting our child in a sport... I was really struck by how selfish we all are. $4 for a nice frappuccino...yes, it is a nice occasional treat, I agree. But what happened to making your own coffee/tea at home? Even better, sharing that coffee/tea time with a friend/spouse/significant other, in the comfort of one another's home? Not having to worry about seating space at the coffee shop, or what the kids/pets/etc. are getting themselves into...

I guess I am just frustrated with the way our society, and government, behaves and functions today. I miss those simpler times. I miss them because they create a community; it's not a wonder why so many new mothers, or newcomers to a new town, have so much trouble meeting, and making, new friends. We are creating a society of isolation - no man is an island! I find it sad when I get excited about going to the grocery store because my first conversation with an adult all day would be with the service clerk - that is, if I don't choose the self-checkout because Collin is having a meltdown in the store...

I want to create change

a positive change

Tippy Top

Well, apparently my iPod is unable to let me post on here...and, I haven't tried it before tonight, no. Am I lazy? Partially. But honestly,

Time sure flies.

I mean, sometimes I think Einstein had a point when he came up with his theories on relativity and the time continuum. It feels as if everything is happening so fast, these day especially.

So I apologize for my long departure from blogging. I got caught up in Collin, and finding more furniture for our home, making friends, and a getting a new kitten in an attempt to satiate my ever-growing feelings of sadness and dismay that my little boy is growing up so quickly,

and my increasing desire for another child.

Already.

Uhh...am I slightly crazy?

(I thought that was already obvious to anyone who reads

my helter-skelter posts (you're welcome U2))

So, yes. My new kitten. My newest baby. A girl. Now I'm not being overrun by testosterone anymore - shh...don't remind me she's fixed. She's still got the parts!

Tonight while doing some "6 Deep Creepin'" (you're welcome John Legend...yeah, music quotations in my blog kind of tonight...yes, please) on Facebook, I came across a blog written by a new friend (another Laura...I think God has decided that for me, being friends with Lauras is a good thing) and she had an interesting article about the expectation of today's mothers.

It is interesting to think of the bar that we, as a society on the whole, have set for mothers. So many are looked down upon for choosing the low road and staying at home, instead of continuing in their career. I distinctly remember my husband coming home from work one night and mentioning his co-workers were surprised that I had chosen to be a SAHM because I am a chemist (please note the use of am, not was) and they consider that to be a "profession," not just a career, apparently. Which is, to be quite honest, somewhat flattering that others acknowledge the strains of acquiring of chemistry degree, but also irksome that women who have pursued said degree (or that of a similar nature) are expected to stay in the work force.

And a clean home! Spotless. Ha. Right. And yet I still valiantly try - I think it's that idealism that if my home is clean, it means the rest of my life is under control.

So, so not true.

At all. Really!

I remember as a girl promising myself to never become like my mother and clean/pick up before company comes over, and I find myself doing it now, over and over again. Epic fail, self, epic fail.

Pardon the random ramblings of this post, my train of thought keeps getting interrupted by my new kitten, Mahl, attacking the laptop, or the plant, or my toes, or goodness knows what else.

Anyways...where was I?

(Mahl has curled up under the crook of my arm,

insert "Awwww" here)

While I am quipping songs this evening, I propose that I make an impromptu parody of "There ain't no rest for the wicked" (for those of you who do not know, God had a wonderful sense of humor the day I was conceived, and blessed me with the ability to make impromptu parodies - they usually even rhyme...just ask me to sing some... e.g. one of the Alleluia's our church will sing occasionally (I forget which Mass it comes from) I have changed to "Collin Collin Collin Beeeeaaaarrryyyyy, rinse and repeat....or "Come to the Water" (Laura Tepen, I hope you remember my (improved???) rendition)) to "There ain't no rest for a mother" because let's face it people...the wicked (usually) end up in jail, and I'm not sure what actually occurs there, but I'm guessing they don't do much while in their cells...so I think they rest a lot. Me, ha, sometimes I dream of being wicked so I can go to jail and get some rest from the mayhem.

I have a very organized mind. I constantly make To-Do lists; if you don't believe, come look in the top drawer in my kitchen where I keep my pens and a pad of paper. In college, I even approximated time to each task. I also had 6 highlighters : 5 meant the day of the week, and I would highlight the due date of an assignment, and use the typical yellow highlight when I had completed said task. I would start from the most-immediately due and work my way out. Now, I am also a huge procrastinator...I believe I would have failed out of college were it not for my Type A, almost OCD, need for organization in my little corner of the world.

But control? How much control do we really have? I am so often reminded of God's control in our lives (I am not trying to say we do not have free will because, oh boy, do we ever). And I love the control He does have in our lives. "Let Go and Let God." How true.

Okay, people who actually read my blog (yes, Courtney, I saw your email that you miss it :), I have so many topics on my mind...I just think I need to stop here for the evening - especially in light of the fact that I just tried to spell "stop" as "spot" ...dyslexia does run in the family, or are my fingers going faster than my synapses??

But I am back, and please, dear readers, if you know me in real life, please harass me - you can harass me about anything and everything, honestly - but please harass me about keeping up with this blog. I sincerely believe it reduces the amount of time I spend tossing and turning my head on my pillow each evening, and gives me a port for my thoughts as I go through my newest existence as a mother, and always as a daughter (of my parents, and of God), sister, wife, aunt, friend, and frenemy (sorry had to use that ridiculous word to remind myself that I am getting older (and thus "uncooler" with every passing day - and that is a-okay by me).

I would say Adieu, but in light of my love for German,

Gute Nacht!

Counting Backwards From Ten

Hello,

My name is Laura, and I cannot physically, emotionally, mentally, or spiritually deal with my son's new schedule of waking up every 2 hours. I think I am starting to go little bit loony - I cried tonight over the fact that my seams did not match up perfectly for my purse I am making, I do not understand the directions on gusseting, I feel like a complete failure as a mother because my son gets up so often, cries for over half an hour every night when we struggle to get him into bed (so much for the "No Cry Method"...thanks a lot Dr. Sears!) and the same happens when I struggle to get him down for his daily 40 minutes naps...why struggle for 30 minutes, and feel as if I am torturing my child, if only for a 40 minute break?, my husband complained about the way I broil steaks tonight...I could go on. Yes, this is a pity party. No, you are not invited. And no, for God's sake, do not criticize me. Oh yeah, did I mention that when my son was a mere 2 weeks old he would sleep for 9 hours straight at night. And yes, I do realize this means he's ready for solid foods, but how does one accomplish this when he screams every time I get him in/near his highchair?

It's during times like these that I,

sometimes,

wish I could just walk away,

just leave,

and never come back.

sometimes.

I am also oh-so-very tempted to take a sewing shears and stab my husband's computer monitor. And then stab his game. And for being a smart ass, I think I want to stab him as well.

Mirror Image

I wish you could stay this little forever

I love you, little babe.