My daughter has astigmatism.  I was surprised to first hear that she may need glasses after a routine eye check at school.  She had passed her Kindergarten test with no real concerns.  But come 1st grade, all of a sudden there was definitely concerns.  We knew she would need glasses.  She was nervous about the idea of being seen in glasses, so to calm her worries, I decided that I would make myself an eye appointment and we could do this whole thing together.  Having never worn glasses, I knew I was in desperate need for an eye exam and I knew I probably would need my very first pair.  I was actually glad when I received a prescription (though a small one) because it meant that The Big One wouldn't be by herself in that venture.  But when I went to choose frames out for myself, I was told that my insurance would not cover glasses for me, but only for my children.

     I went a year without glasses waiting for the funds to cover a pair.  Then I did finally get a pair from online and it lasted a month or so before my children destroyed them.  They used to like to play with such things, and so I waited a bit longer and got another pair, but accidentally ordered them with a strong tint which I thought to be transitions that would clear up indoors.  No luck, I really only use them while driving.

     So I went another whole year without glasses.  I think my eyes are probably worse now.  But I am happy to say that I have new glasses again and they are the best I have owned.  I don't have to keep reshaping the ear pieces or adjusting the nose bits.  It's just a comfortable and stylish pair.  Though they are made of plastic, I have no worries about them breaking anytime soon.  They feel VERY strong.

     These glasses are from Firmoo.  I had heard about Firmoo in the past.  My sister owns a few pair and she had only good things to say about them.  After seeing them in person, I had to agree that they were awesome.  So I checked out their online eyeglasses store and saw how easy it was to navigate.  Right away I was able to choose to see only women's frames and from there I was able to choose to see only the style frame that I knew I would look good in, which is rectangle.  There were lots of great options for my favorite frame style.  So I decided to use the Virtual Try-On feature on the site.  It showed me what I would look like in the frame that I chose.

     What I love about the Firmoo online store is not only that it is super easy to find the look you are going for, but that you can tell if the glasses will fit you before even opening the individual frame's page.  You get a page full of choices and each choice comes with everything you need to decide if you even want to look at the pair up close.  You can see the measurements in the upper left and the price in the lower right.  You can also see whether they are eligible for single, bifocal or progressive lenses on the bottom along with their average overall rating among customers who have purchased them.  And if you happen to have other questions or needs, they have a great help section with the most frequently asked questions.

     I opted to get a pair of unisex full frame acetate glasses.  It came in the mail after a minimal wait (about a week and a half) and came with a drawstring case, a hard case, a repair kit and quite possibly the best lens cleaning cloth ever.  I love that the screwdriver from the repair kit is a key chain, that is a great little feature for someone like me.  The hard case is very sturdy and about the size of my billfold wallet.  I am glad to have the soft case as well and I think I will use it for my sunglasses to keep them safe in the van.

     These glasses will only set you back $39 plus S&H, which is crazy when you consider that I would have had to pay $80 for JUST the frames at my local eye wear store for the very cheapest they have.  That doesn't include the lenses themselves or shipping.  It also doesn't include a hard case or repair kit.  But Firmoo is amazing in that they have a program where you can get your first pair absolutely free.  Because they are giving away free eyeglasses, they do ask for S&H which is a good deal at just $6.95!  That is an insane deal!
     Have you ever used Firmoo?  Are you going to now?  You can't beat $6.95 for a new set of prescription eye wear :)

Except for the product(s) given to me for the purpose of reviewing, I received no compensation for this post. All opinions are 100% my own.

 

     Streaker washed her own hair yesterday.  It's a milestone for her, she always has me wash it IF she lets anyone wash it at all.  Last year, we went months with her refusing to let anyone wash it.  I did manage to wash it during that time, but nowhere near as often as it should have been, and I had to threaten to get it done.  Loss of toys, among other things finally spurred her to begrudgingly tolerate it enough to get it done with.

     In fact, only one of the girls lets me wash their hair without a fight, and only if she has a washcloth to cover her eyes while I do it.  It is terrible the way they are so scared of it.  I don't remember ever being scared, probably because back then tear-free MEANT tear-free.  I remember actually rubbing the shampoo onto my eyeball when I was a kid to test the promise on the bottle.  Stupid move for sure, but it didn't hurt at all.  However, I remember a few years ago, I got some "tear-free" shampoo in my eyes, and it wasn't pleasant.  It's no wonder the girls don't want their hair washed.

     Thank goodness for the Kair Bath Visor!  It's a silicone visor with an air cushioned headband that is super soft and contours to any head shape.  It guarantees that there are no leaks down the face while you are washing your kids' hair.

     Streaker loved it from the moment she saw it.  She likes to wear it even out of the shower, but she asked immediately if she could take one to test it out.  So we started the shower and she got in.  She was all smiles when I checked on her a few minutes later and she was very eager to wash her hair (!!!!!)  I was stoked, anything to get her excited about washing her hair is a miracle.  So I gave her some shampoo and helped her collect all of her hair into the top and she began washing.

     At this point, it did slide down her face a few times, I think she had gotten some soap between her head and the visor when she adjusted it.  After we rinsed her off, we tried flipping the visor upside down, like a normal visor would be worn and it seemed to help with that issue because the water from the shower stopped pooling behind the shield.

     Next time we will make sure not to put her under the water until it is time to rinse if she is wearing the visor.  That way, the water will stay behind the shield part and not pool and get too heavy.  But it worked very well considering that it was so slippery from her readjusting it.  It did just as it promised and kept the water out of her face.  (Don't mind the water streaming down her face in that last pic, that was because she stepped under the shower head... silly girl).
     We are in love :)  She washes her own hair now, does a good job without fear of painful eyes, and will rinse without washcloths or crying.  It is amazing.  Look, she's smiling!  That is definitely a success in my book.
     I am very grateful to have the Kair Bath Visor and I do recommend it to any parent with fussy kids, especially those with an actual tub and no sprayer.  This is a lifesaver for sure.  And it comes in blue and green too!

     Do you use any tricks or special products to make your bath time go more smoothly?


Except for the product(s) given to me for the purpose of reviewing, I received no compensation for this post. All opinions are 100% my own.

 

     So, my kids find potty humor funny.  I'm not sure why, they aren't exposed to it at home.  I usually frown at such things and I have not ever really been known to laugh at it.  It just doesn't strike me as funny I guess so much as just... gross.  However, I do enjoy their infectious laughter when they are calling each other "Poopyhead" or "Fartface".  They mean nothing by it and even the person being called "Butthead" is laughing hysterically.  They seem to laugh most at potty humor than they do most anything else.
     At some point you have to decide to just join them.  And while you won't be hearing me call anyone "Booger Licker" anytime soon, I did find a very funny book that the girls love and actually opt to read.  And any book that makes my kids read is welcomed in this house!  Especially when it is funny and educational, even for us adults.

     Introducing Poopendous by author Artie Bennett!  He is the very same Artie who wrote The Butt Book, his spin on Suess's The Tooth Book and The Foot Book.  Poopendous is his follow-up of The Butt Book, is full of awesome illustrations and silly verses, and it's all about poo!  You learn all about the different names and uses for poop, as well as lots of other facts on the subject.  Did you know wombats poop in cubes?  It's true, Google it!
     The girls love the book.  Punk says the author does a pretty good job and her favorite part is when the lady stepped in doggy doo.  She thought that was pretty funny.  Streaker loved the way it read and also liked the part with the lady the best.  And baby Bee, well... she just liked the poop :)

     When The Big One started reading it, she was joined by not one, but two of her sisters who came to listen.  Just hearing all the different words for poop sent them running to see what she had.  It kept their attention and they loved looking at the pictures and discussing what was happening.  Illustrator Mike Moran did a wonderful job.

     Wanna hear some trivia on the subject?  Thought you did :)
      Courtesy of Artiebennett.com:
     • Young, elephants, koalas, pandas, and hippos eat the feces of their mothers or other animals in the herd to obtain the bacteria required to properly digest vegetation found on the savanna and in the jungle. When they are born, their intestines do not contain these bacteria (they are completely sterile). Without them, they would be unable to obtain any nutritional value from plants.
   • Traditional Chinese medicine uses poop from flying squirrels to treat a variety of ailments, from snakebites to menstrual cramps. It's believed to promote blood circulation, thus relieving pain, and is served as a beverage, like tea.
   • British composer Jon Hering has premiered a new work entitled "Number Two." It was "written" by birds, which placed the notes by pooping on a piece of paper with musical scale lines that was positioned under their perch.

     I definitely recommend Poopendous for any parent.  It's entertaining as well as educational, we love it :)

What's your favorite kids' book?
  
Except for the product(s) given to me for the purpose of reviewing, I received no compensation for this post. All opinions are 100% my own.

     I had heard that boys make you "gain weight everywhere".  I was worried.  But towards the end of my pregnancy, I was baffled to find that I had gained the least amount of weight of all my pregnancies, yet I fit into almost nothing!  It wasn't fun.  I felt huge, my legs were so big!  But the scale actually got me into trouble with the doctor I was seeing.  He told me that I had absolutely not gained enough weight that previous week.  In fact, according to the scales, I had LOST 4 lbs... in a week!

      What the heck!?  How do I gain 6 lbs one week and lose 4 lbs the next?  And still look fat?  It turns out that it was all just water retention and now I hardly recognize my legs, they look like chicken legs compared to what they were.  That water retention didn't last, but it sure made fitting into my clothes super hard at the time.  I am so glad I had a few pieces of clothing that didn't care what size I was.

      One of those items was this awesome purple chain belted dress from PinkBlush Maternity.  I wore it til the very last week of my pregnancy and could wear it now and look just as great without the belly.  Well, you know, if I didn't have that strange expression on my face I could.  I wore it to church and I wore it for every day things too.  I adore the color!  PinkBlush has other things in this color too, like this purple cowl neck top:

     And they also have lots of other maxi dresses.  I personally love the maxi dresses.  I also love a good spring or summer dress, which PinkBlush has a good stock of.  Their stock is always updated and kept fresh.  Check out this fun dress:

     Isn't it cute?  You know what I love about everything on PinkBlush?  There are no cheesy shirts with tacky sayings or anything that you can't wear a year down the road.  All of them will look great even after pregnancy.  None of them scream maternity, yet all clearly were intended for maternity.  It's awesome, clothes you don't have to pack up or donate a few months after purchase.  They become a permanent part of your wardrobe and you can wear them a few years from now should you ever be pregnant again.  Isn't that what every girl wants in a maternity outfit?
     Pink Blush has shirts and maternity pants too, everything you could want in your closet :)
     Now, a belt did originally come with this dress.  To be honest, I fell asleep in it the day I got it and one of the tassels broke off.  It is a super easy fix and I shouldn't have slept in the dress.  I blame myself, but I like the dress just as well without it.

     Overall, I love the dress and would definitely visit them again if I ever needed anything else maternity.

     Where did you get your favorite maternity piece?

Except for the product(s) given to me for the purpose of reviewing, I received no compensation for this post. All opinions are 100% my own.

Here he is, folks!

     Our first, last, and only boy :)  Lil Man's been around for a little while already, and he is definitely making his fair share of trouble.  From a weeks-long and irritating pre-labor, to a very quick (and painfully slow) delivery, to all that came after.  I haven't had a chance to breathe, let alone do anything remotely fun.
     It all started just a few days after my baby shower, hosted by my awesome Uncle-in-law.  I started feeling REALLY crampy.  What I felt were in fact contractions, but a trip to the hospital (after stopping at Walmart for some last minute things, of course), turned up no good news.  We found that those contractions wouldn't stay or even amount to anything.  Though they still hurt a LOT, so we stayed overnight in the area due to a big blizzard and not wanting to travel home.
     One week later, I was back.  My stomach had felt contracted for hours, all overnight and I hadn't felt all that much movement from the little guy.  I was a touch worried, especially over the movement part since he is always such a big kicker.  But again, all turned out fine.
     Finally, one more week later, after a whole day of full on viral illness and contractions, I went to bed and things got real.  Every ten minutes and staying, I dreaded the coming of the contractions and I knew things had to be progressing this time.  After a couple hours at 10 minutes apart, I woke my husband up and within minutes of standing and walking, I was at 3 minutes apart and 40 minutes from the hospital.  We went with emergency flashers as quickly as we could and got there at just 1-2 minutes apart.  Within an hour, I was so ready to push and was instructed not to.  That didn't stop me from pushing fully as sometimes you just can't help it, but man was it slow and hard since my water had broken an hour earlier and I was pushing dry.  Longest pushing of any of the kids.  In the next half hour, there was no stopping him.  He HURT like the Dicken's!  And the woman there to assist the delivery pushed him back in!  She wouldn't let me out of the burning ring of Hell that is crowning and I kinda wanted to hit her.  But he did eventually make his entrance and he was the largest of all the babies at almost 8 1/2 pounds, and only an hour and a half after getting there *smile*.

     Since then, it has been thrush, mastitis, thrush again, mastitis again, virus and full on colic-type behavior.  And that is just HIM and I.  We've also dealt with 3 bouts of this nasty virus since Christmas, resulting in 3 ear infections, pneumonia, and pink eye.  Mostly Baby Bee because she is missing a tear duct and can not handle congestion well, it causes other ailments.  And the virus... you don't want to know what that looks like.  Let's just say that Spring and open windows can not come soon enough.
     At last, we are at the tail end of Lil Man's virus and things have FINALLY settled down enough for me to breathe.  We are in the best rhythm we have been in in months!  The kids have had the last 2 days off of school, and with their help, the house is in good working order after all the chaos.  I am so happy to be able to get back to things.  I have missed my routine (if you can call it that).

 

So this year has got to be a record breaker for stuffed animal Christmas presents.  The girls were in stuffie heaven with stuffed animals of all shapes, sizes, and species.  Some made noises and some were puppets, some were for sitting on and some were just for cuddles.  Some were life like and some were VERY not.  Some even had their own scents.
     In fact, the girls got so many things that Christmas recovery took longer than I had hoped and my house is just now back to normal.  So it is time to get back to what I love doing, which is finding awesome new ideas and sharing them with you.  Sometimes I come across something so insanely cute and functional that it gets me super excited.  Usually I don't have the money or means of checking it out, but I was very, very fortunate to be able to add a new unique, fun toy... errr, furniture piece to my home this Christmas and I love it so much, I have to tell you about it!
     It's called the Cuddle On Inn, which has to be one of the cutest product names I have come across.  Check it out:

     It's a stuffed animal hotel!  It's a really cute hotel to boot!  The goal is to get kids excited about putting their "guests" away for the night after a long day of playing.  What parent doesn't want their kids to get excited about cleaning?

     The big one laughed and giggled the entire time she filled it up.  She had fun choosing what size animal should go in what window and she had fun squeezing them in, especially when there were already lots of animals in the big cavity area.  She even had fun rooming animals together and choosing who would be neighbors and who would be climbing the building like King Kong (see the panda?).  And the big one is 8, so this isn't something just for younger kids.

     This is what it looks like in the corner of the girls' room.  Please excuse the uncovered floor, we are remodeling some areas.

     I had been debating for a long time about making one of those "zoos" or "pounds" that have been floating around Pinterest.  But honestly, it takes a lot of space and it wasn't too appealing to the eye, though the idea was cute.  I am so happy I came across the Cuddle On Inn.  First of all... it's adorable, just seriously stinking cute.  Secondly, you wouldn't believe how many stuffed animals we got to fit behind it where they are hidden from sight entirely.  I knew it would hold quite a lot and it held even more than I thought it would.  And thirdly, the set up was way easy.  You just put the letter markings so that they match up and screw them together!

     You will need a short screwdriver to attach it to the wall because it's darn hard to fit a screw gun in there.  You can just go ahead and trust me on that one ;)  But attachment to the wall is easy too, especially if you mark the spots with marker and pre-drill before doing the actual attaching.
     And just to put this out there, the inventor of the Cuddle On Inn has got to be one of the nicest people I have ever worked with.  You will definitely NOT be unsatisfied with the customer service you get if you order a hotel from him.  He was super professional and did everything he could to help me out, even making sure my girls got it for Christmas.  In fact, the girls love it so much that they are planning to send him a thank you card :)

     And just to make playing with the Inn a little extra fun, there is a fun story on the site to introduce kids to the Cuddle On Inn before it comes so they know all about the hotel before they get to use it.
     After a holiday full of tons of stuffies, my house looks no worse for the wear.  And since it doesn't have a babyish look to it, it will grow with the girls and we will love our Inn for years to come.  I most definitely recommend this to any parent with a bunch of stuffies they want to control.  The kids will love it, use it, and be happy to use it.

Check out the Cuddle On Inn on Twitter and Facebook.

Except for the product(s) given to me for the purpose of reviewing, I received no compensation for this post. All opinions are 100% my own.

     So to continue with the theme of setting goals for the coming year, I thought I would share with you a book that I recently had the opportunity to check out.  It's called More Than A Bucket List by Toni Birdsong.  It is a book all about dreams and goals and making time to make them a reality.  Here is the cover description:

Fun ideas of things to do, places to see, and ways to make a difference!

Everyone dreams about places to see, people to meet, and things to do in their lifetime. But too often we lose sight of those dreams and get buried in everyday busyness and demands. More Than a Bucket List will inspire you to seize and act on a range of dreams—anything from visiting the Holy Land, donating your time at a soup kitchen, learning to climb a tree, or helping a child learn to read. The book also includes ideas to make lasting memories as you marvel at a new sight, laugh like crazy with an old friend, or change a life.

The compilation of bucket list items is divided thematically and blended with Scripture and personal stories. Pages at the back allow you to write your own bucket list items. Are you ready to finish this life well and start checking off items from your bucket list?

      From reading the description of the book I figured that it would make a good present for my kids, kind of like a list of ideas to do together.  After getting the book, I wouldn't say that were necessarily true.  It really is geared more toward adults, unless of course you like your kids pestering you to take a trip to Santa Claus, Arizona or to take them to India so they can try some Monkey Toes.  I certainly don't.
     At first glance, I noticed  lot of ideas that definitely didn't fit my budget and never would.  I honestly had a hard time picking the book back up to take a deeper look because I was fairly disappointed.  But when I did pick it back up, I was glad I did.  I must have happened to land on all the Adventure pages on my first look-through because after looking at it more closely I saw that most of the ideas inside were free.  They were ideas on how to take advantage of every day situations and moments and turn them into something you could remember and be proud to look back on.  Some examples of this are:
     Bury a time capsule.
     Fix what breaks rather than buy a new one.
     Register to be a bone marrow donor.
     Make a pie from scratch.
     Simplify.  Give away all that stuff.
     But then there are also many ideas on things that you could do for that yearly or once in a lifetime trip, such as:
     Take a camel trek in Morocco
     Raft the Grand Canyon
     (Watch other people) run with the bulls in Pamplona.
     Drive a Nascar track.
     Stay in an ice hotel.
     Climb the steps of the Mayan ruins.
     Throughout the book are plenty of bible verses for inspiration, stories for encouragement, and miscellaneous study findings or tidbits to make you stop and think.  For instance, did you know that numerous studies have shown the benefits of gratitude?  'Some even revealed that people who kept weekly gratitude journals had less aggression, reported fewer physical ailments, and were more optimistic about life compared to people who recorded neutral events and daily hassles.'  That makes ME stop and think.
     Although a lot of pages in this book are nothing more than just pages to make me envy those who can afford the adventures listed on them, I am actually very glad to have this book.  I will take what I can from it and do what I can to make this next year one of seizing opportunities and getting my life on track.

Except for the product(s) given to me for the purpose of reviewing, I received no compensation for this post. All opinions are 100% my own.

     When looking into the new year, it's always a good idea to set some goals on how you would like this new year to be different.  Usually people wish to lose weight or read X amount of books, step out of their shell a little or maybe learn to do something new.  Maybe your plans are bigger, maybe you would like to go to college, start a family, or finally buy that forever home.  Or maybe you wanna go small and just vow to cut down on soda or set up a paper organizing system and actually stick to it.
     One of my goals for the new year is to spend more time being actively involved with my kids.  Now, I am a stay-at-home mom, so my kids and I spend all day together.  Sometimes by the end of the day, I am so frustrated or just downright angry that the idea of sitting together for a bedtime story or a movie makes me wanna crawl under a rock!  This is where I need to be proactive.  One of my goals is to just get over myself and however I am feeling and just read the book, watch the movie, put on that puppet play or play that game... just do things WITH my kids, not just for my kids.

     Kelly Kits is a subscription service that delivers a craft to your door once a month.  It supplies everything you need.  If you need a pencil, they will send one even if they are pretty sure you have one already.  November's Kelly Kit was all about Mosaics.  In the kit, we received 4 pieces of black cardstock, a glue stick (thank you!) and a pencil, along with a bunch of double sided paper squares.  Our project was to take these squares and choose 4 colors to work with and create a masterpiece.  There were more guidelines than just that, including video through the Kelly Kits members section of the site, but that was the basic idea.
     The Big One had trouble with her sisters constantly wrecking her mosaic and got frustrated with it.  She will try again soon with The Punk who was next door at Nanny's.  The Streaker decided that she was going to copy mine, which was a very simple design... because apparently, though I rock the photoshop, I am no good at pixelated imagery.  Who knew?  So we both filled only half the space on the card and did a diagonal design.  Mine is made of single rows of various colors while her colors are in every which pattern in four coordinating colors.  We will later laminate them all and and use them as coasters :)

     What I loved most about the Kelly Kit was that it gave lots of information on mosaics themselves, or as The Big One can't stop calling them, "Mosaks".  Want in on some of that info?  Sure you do:

• A mosaic is a picture or a pattern produced by arranging small colored pieces of material such as stone, tile, glass, shell, etc.
•  The oldest known examples of mosaics are pebble floors found in the Anatolian region of Turkey dating from circa 700 B.C.
• Mosaic artwork has always adorned public spaces in cities and churches. Mosaic artists are often commissioned to create a meaningful or symbolic artwork that the community can admire and enjoy. A mosaic could be on a wall or a floor. Does your city have a public mosaic artwork? Because these public works of art are made of such durable hard materials, they can last for centuries!
• Visit the AMP Gallery at www.americanmosaics.org for a look at some inspiring modern day mosaic artwork.

     And although I truly stink at mosaic work, I do fully appreciate the skill and talent involved in making them.  Check out this mosaic done on the front steps at the local library that was unveiled last month:

     It was fun watching it all happen from the sketching of the design to the finished piece.  What a beauty!
     Kelly Kits offers a free Kelly Kit to anyone who wished to try it out, just pay shipping of $2.49.  But if you wish to continue receiving them after the first month, kits are $9.99 plus shipping per month.  Just become a fan on their Facebook page to receive your free kit code, then go to their site to claim it, easy peasy.
     What's your favorite kind of art? 

Except for the product(s) given to me for the purpose of reviewing, I received no compensation for this post. All opinions are 100% my own.

     Tonight, we unwrapped the book Father Bear Comes Home.  It's about Little Bear and his friends and the imaginary adventures they have when Little Bear's father is away and when he comes back home.  The friends imagine whales and mermaids and even try to cure hiccups.

     For our activity from the Sproutkin Sproutcard, we had The Big One draw her perfect world.  She drew who would be in it and what the weather would be like.  She decided that Little Bear's imaginary world was pretty great and so she drew herself on a boat, spending some alone time with a whale chasing close behind her and a shark hanging out in the water nearby.  The weather is slightly cloudy, but still nice and warm.

     The Big One was having one of those days today where she just needed some time alone and her sisters were too much for her.  It was a nice escape for her to be able to create a place of solitude for herself even if she couldn't physically be there.
     Does your child enjoy their alone time?

Except for the product(s) given to me for the purpose of reviewing, I received no compensation for this post. All opinions are 100% my own.

     Last night, we had the pleasure of opening Zak's Alligator from our Sproutkit.  It's about a boy who receives an alligator keychain from his uncle.  When he puts the keychain into water, the alligator comes to life and grows bigger and bigger.  They go around town exploring and getting into lots of trouble and having lots of fun together.

     For this book, we asked Streaker what talking pet she would want, what she would do with it and what it's name would be.  Then we had her draw a picture of it.  She chose a unicorn for her pet and named it Sally.  She decided that the best thing to do with a unicorn was of course to ride it.

     She also was not allowed to see the pictures in the book until after she drew her own illustration for it.  Her alligator bore a remarkable resemblance to Sally, but we will forgive her for that ;)

     What animal would your child choose to be their talking pet?

Except for the product(s) given to me for the purpose of reviewing, I received no compensation for this post. All opinions are 100% my own.