Friday, October 29, 2010

This Moment...

 
 
"{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see."

Pre-Giveaway Party!

This AMAZING company Collegien is giving me the opportunity to review a pair of their slipper socks * These things are REALLY cool *

AND!

Here is the cool part... They are going to let me give a pair away!

Since this a new blog of mine, I thought I would have a Pre-Giveaway Party!

Soo.... Here is how it goes... Anyone who would like an extra 2 entries into the Collegien Slipper Socks giveaway, follow me on GFC and leave me two comments below, one with your name and eamil address, and one with a cheery thought for the day!

And look out for the review! It's coming soon!

Mama :-)

Thursday, October 28, 2010

After Surgary

So we are finally home and relaxing from our surgery vacation. That was one of the most terrifying things I have had to do as a parent. Doernbecher was amazing, and treated us all so sweetly.

We got to the hospital and where admitted at exactly 9:19, eleven minutes early. Went upstairs to surgery, and waited. And waited. And waited. I lost it completely and cried and cried when a family came out from the surgery prep area, and they where all bawling. The mom was talking to her friends ( Yes I am a snoop ) about how her daughter is not OK with this, and that she is old enough to know what is going on and is freaking out. I looked at Kaydon and felt this pull that I am sure only mothers feel, I would protect this baby with every fiber of my being. And I realized that part of protecting him is making sure that the surgery was done. When we where finally called back into to surgery prep area by our very sweet nurses assistant who assured us all that they do this daily, and everything will be fine. They took his temperature, blood pressure, and weighed him ((*YAY* He is up over 7 pounds! He is still a skinny minny and in preemie diapers though. I wish I had some cloth's to put on him. But I can't find any :-(... )) Gave him the cutest baby gown with blue lions and it said "Lions and Tigers and Bears Oh My!" all over it. ( Yeah I am a bitch. We took it home ) Then we waited. And waited some more. Finally the nurse came to talk to us about the procedure and asked if we had any concerns. Hell YES! I told her that I understand Doernbecher is a teaching hospital, one of the best. BUT I do not want some half wit student working on my baby, and then I expressed my concerns with the anesthetic, and his eating afterward (( We worked DAMNED hard to get him to 7 pounds! )). She could not really answer any of my questions. That made me pretty mad. But when the surgeon came in to talk to us, he made me feel a bit better. He had to explain everything about ten times because all I was hearing was "Danger Will Robinson, danger!". Then the anesthesiologist came in, and I told him what happened to my Mom's partner. He said that is a freak accident, and that Kaydon will be monitored the entire time by him, and then afterwards he will be monitored by a nurse for an hour or so before being sent upstairs to be monitored over night.

And that's exactly what happened. They let me walk him to the OR doors. Kiss him, tell him that I love him always. Then they sent me back into the pre-op area to wait. About an hour into it I told Kacey I had to leave. I can't handle this and I have to get out of the hospital for five minutes. I called my Mommy to give her and update, and came back up. While I was gone the surgeon had come in to tell Kacey how it went, and give us pictures of the inside of Kaydon's stomach ( Yes, those are going in the baby book.) and let us know that someone will be right out to take us back to Kaydon. Yeah, that didn't happen. Ten minutes later I could hear him SCREAMING through the doors. Well I marched my 5' nothing red-head ass to the nurses station and said "My son's surgery is over, I can hear him screaming. I need to go see him NOW!". Now I am normally SO mild mannered. But I was ready to brawl if she told me no. She is lucky she did not. Lol.

So by the time she took Kacey and I back to see him, Kaydon had already calmed down. He did not look like my sweet baby. His face was very swollen ndahe looked like the was in pain. When I was given the go ahead to pick him up, just moving him the slightest bit, he would scream and scream. I felt so bad, so I just laid my head next to his and whispered in his ear that I loved him and everything would be ok. The nurse had to give him a little bit of morphine before she sent us up to the 9th floor where we would be staying over night.

So a little back story, Kacey had a teratoma tumor when he was born and had to spend a lot of time at Doernbecher having surgery and being monitored. And then as soon as he got sent home, he got an infection and had to go straight back. Well while we where in the post-op area, Kacey started freaking out and had to leave. Later he explained to me that he got this eary feeling like he was looking at himself and just could not handle it.

Finally when we got upstairs, they hooked up my baby to the monitoring machines, and we settled in for the night. It was very un-eventful. He was never put on oxygen, they did need to put a little a couple inches away from his face because his oxygen saturation was a little low. But we got to go home bright and early in the morning.

We are struggling a little at home, he is still in pain and the Tylenol is not cutting it. He does NOT want to be put down. So I have been holding him since we got home yesterday. And when I do pass him off, he wakes up and whines until I can pick him up again. Ahh.. There is nothing like a Mama's love! He has not been nursing very well, so my boobies are VERY full of milk. They are used to supplying two babies. And now, they are supporting one. And he won't eat enough! Lol.

Well I have to go change some diapers, and feed some babies.

Mama

Monday, October 25, 2010

Pooch~Pourri Giveaway!

Pooch-Pourri Pet Accident Odor Eliminator Deodorizer

So I entered a contest over at The Running Girl, hoping to win the Poo-Pourri. But Yay! Instead I won the Pooch-Pourri.

But...
I don't have a dog! 
I want a puppy! Actually I do not want a puppy. My cat needs a puppy.

Anyways... I want to give this away to a lucky reader! 


-Mandatory-

Follow me publicly on Google Friend Connect!
Then leave me a comment. Could be anything. Just comment.
Don't forget to leave your email address!

-Extra-

Follow me on Twitter - 1 extra
Follow my new blog Cloth Twins - 1 extra
Tell a friend about this giveaway *They HAVE to enter, and leave your name or email*

*** Contest ends November 10th at 11:59 PM ***
I will "draw" a winner using an online randomizer. The winner will have 48 hours to respond. If they do not, I will pick another winner
Good luck!

Finally 15 minutes!

My goodness... Finally both of the babes are sleeping, my son is distracted with legos, the girls are at school, and Nana and Kacey are at work. QUICK! 15 minutes to shower! And I am choosing to blog?!

WHATS WRONG WITH ME!?

A shower seems like TOO much work right now. I should load the dish-washer. And finish carving the pumpkins. And what else? The list goes on. But DAMNIT. I need these 15 minutes to myself.

I think Kacey is a little annoyed with me. He tried SO hard to... Well... Bed me ;-) last night. And I was entirely TOO tired. I fell asleep in the middle of trying. How awful is that! I would be furious if he did that to me! But I am the one with the boobs. So I am the one that wakes up with the twins at night.

On another note, pray for us tomorow. Kaydon goes in for his surgery at 9:30 tomorow morning. I have been a wreck for two weeks now. How are they going to put my precious baby to sleep, slice him open and him still be ok?! I know he will be, Doernbecher at OHSU is an amazing facility, that is pediatric only. So they only focus on the babes. Plus the hospital has an AMAZING view of portland. Not that an amazing view will ensure our son's health. But it's still nice?

Ok... See. 15 minutes. Up.

Mama

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Freaking out man.

Kaydons surgery is less than a week away. I am really dredding this. My head was completely numb with worry when we went to doernbecher for his consult. Until that fat nurse said that I would get to walk him to the surgery room and have to "give him up" at the operating room doors. I dont care if she would have said it differently, I still would have felt the same. Awful. No one wants to hand their baby over to someone who is going to cut them open! I think I am going to have to make Kacey be the one to hand him over. I won't be able to do that. Not without having a meltdown.
So they are going to slice him open. I am not ok with it. I keep trying to tell myself that I am ok with it. I am ok. See. Does NOT work. I am more ok with the slicing part. And less ok with the general anesthesia part. My mom's partner had a minor surgery and due to the anesthesia he stopped breathing for a few minutes, and is now forever brain damaged. So I might be jaded. But this happened to a 250 pound man. And they are going to put my 5 pound baby under. SO not ok.
On a different note, the Dr. said that the reason he has been sluggish to gain weight and eat is because of his hernia. So he will be a little slow to eat after the surgery for a couple days, but then his weight should sky rocket and he will catch up with brother pretty quick.

I BURNED MY THUMB! So it hurts to press the space bar, and after twenty years of typing, I has gotten so used to using my right hand for the space key that it is VERY hard to use the lef thand.

Mama

Monday, October 18, 2010

Cloth Diapering: Day 3

Well a couple day's ago I decided to start cloth diapering my twins. Strike that. I decided to cloth diaper my twins before they where born, but up until now they have not been big enough!

Well it is making my little Aaron VERY angry. I think he liked it up until he tinkled in it. Then he started screaming like CRAZY! Other than the cranky baby thing, this has been SO much nicer than disposables!

PLUS!

I am being a lot nicer to the enviroment! Ahh.. Miss Mother Nature! I appreciate your 80 degree day's in the middle of October!

I wish I could find my card reader so I could post a picture! Aaron looks like he is swimming in the diaper.
Too cute. Oh, and I may think it's easy because they have not poo'd in them yet. They have been waiting to go in the disp. at night. Lovely. Not sure how to deal with that. But I will when the time comes.

Mama

Ebeanstalk.com



Ahh... Tis the season for tracking down that perfect gift for that special kid.
A lot harder than you think. I have been trying and trying to find a gift for my son that has it all.
Educational and something that will actually entertain him.

Good luck, right?!

Well I came across Ebeanstalk  And their site has it all laid out PERFECTLY! Very easy to navigate.

Great for those grandparents who don't know what to get for what age group *Hint Hint Gma!*

Here is what they have to say:

 "
Have you ever been looking for perfect baby toys, but had to search through millions of kids for older toys before finding one that' appropriate?  Or vice verse?  Ebeanstalk knows how frustrating that can be and have designed their website to make your shopping as easy as possible.  Not only do they provide the best baby and kids toys, but you can also search specifically for toys for 2 year olds or toys for 3 year olds.  Are you looking for the best toys for 4 year olds?  Not a problem!  At ebeanstalk you can find toys for kids as old as 12! 
"

For once a website is actually simplified for shopping for kids.

For Example..

My son is 5. I clicked Toys for 5 year old boys and it came up with 23 pages of toys for 5 year old boys. BUT here is a cool part. I get to narrow those down, I chose Pretend Play Toys and that narrowed it down to 6 pages of pretty cool toys.

Clicking through the site right now, it would be nice if we could narrow it down by getting rid of certain toys. Maybe an option for non-violent, or to pull up specifically sports related play.

So back to my gift picking adventure! I clicked on Dragons and Reptiles and yeah it is a pretty cool toy. Looks like something my son would enjoy.

So here are the reasons I do not like buying things online. The product descriptions, well, they suck. Usually it is this toy measures such and such and weighs this and is this color. Well I know that by looking at the picture!

Ebeanstalk does something pretty cool. Along with a real description of the toy, mentioning what the toy actually does, they sneak in there how this toy helps your child developmentally! 

Moving on to check out, it is pretty standered. I can chose the quantity of the item, what kind of shipping, etc.

Right now they have a promo, if you spend 50$ you get free shipping. Great deal if you are getting some holiday shopping done early.

Overall I would give this website a 9/10. It is missing some things, but I couldn't ask for better toy recommendations for age groups, and the fact that they have the developmental segment on each toy kinda blows me away.

Mama

Thursday, October 14, 2010

Thank you!

I just want to say Yay!
And Thanks!
To the WONDERFUL girls over at


I won there Rock'n Learn giveaway! 
My son is going to LOVE this.

Mama 

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

Blog Hop!


Living Out Loud is hosting a  PR-friendly blog hop!

Check it out... There is a pretty cool incentive!
PR Friendly Blog Hop

Mama

Monday, October 11, 2010

TrueCare Review

So I was VERY excited when I received a free six month trial of TrueCare. FINALLY! A way to monitor my bonus babies online activity without feeling, well... like a foreign undercover spy on a covert mission impossible.

I signed up as quick as possible. That was easy enough, enter a user name, password, kids email and facebook info, the TaDa! You are set up. There are several other things that you can do.

Here is what they say their service provides

"Identify potential dangers
Open a dialog with your children about their online safety
Know what is going on in social networks and how to watch for trouble
Moniter you child's social networking pages 24/7
Identify patterns of inappropriate or troublesome postings
Locate registered sex offenders
Keep up to date on the latest statistics, articles, and reference materials
See who your child's "friends" are
And, most importantly, develop a relationship with your child based on mutual trust, caring, and
understanding..."

Now there are several things I thought of while reading through there website after setting up.

I know how to identify potential dangers, I have had several conversations with my bonus babes about their online safety, I am social network savvy, and am friends on all their sites. Finally I know where the sex offenders are because I already have that bookmarked!

So in conclusion, I do not recomend this for any who also has a profile on any website that is linked to their childs.

I do recomend, seriously, sitting down with yur babies and asking about their day. Simple as that to open a dialog about their lifes. They may not respond at first, but they will eventually.

Mama

Sunday, October 10, 2010

Well It's not friday...

But this was too cute to resist... I think I might have to do this on Fridays!

I stole this from Sew Many Mamas and think it is wonderful! Something I will start doing.




"{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see."

Weekly *GIVEAWAY* Round-up!

 is giving away a cashmere and wool necklace and a Live What You Love poster!
Ends TODAY!

is giving away three sets of cupcake and cupid cards made by Moon Beam Wishes
Ends October 12

Is giving away some Young Living's Purification Essential Oil
Ends October 13th

is giving away a handmade princess dress
Ends October 15th

Leslie Loves Vegies
is giving away a Friends of Mel Bracelet
Ends October 24th

Go YAY
is giving away a Lawry's "What's Your Flavor" kit
Ends October 29th

Is There A Bathroom On This Ship
is giving away a Daily Guideposts 2011 Devotional 35th Anniversary Edition
Ends October 15

Miskabelle
is is giving away a handmade black zipper-rose statement necklace
Ends October 13th

Knot By Gramma
is giving away two keychain eyeballs
Ends October 15th

Melinda Joy
is giving away a Sak bag!
Ends October 15th


Mommy's Sweet Things
is giving away two emergency compact kits from My Tag Alongs
Ends October 20th

Dragon Fly Kisses Jewelry
is giving away a beautiful tear drop and ribbon breast awarness necklace
Ends October 16th

barkatt-barbro
is giving away a pair of heavy machine boots
Ends TODAY!

Belle De Couture
is giving away a necklace of your choice from Eco Bling Couture
Ends October 12th

Jaebumfangirl
is giving away a Coach cosmetic case and keyring
Ends October 31st

Your Morning Cup
is giving away an apron
Ends October 12th


If you would like me to feature any of your giveaways in my Weekly *GIVEAWAY* Round-up
Email me with your giveaway

Dont forget to follow me on Google Friend Connect!

Mama

Saturday, October 9, 2010

What would you do with three days of found family time?

Wow... What a heavy question. I found this on a blog earlier and thought I would reply.

Would I want to not change anything and just go about my day as if it where every day and just be extra careful soaking up the moments?

Would I bring back loved ones that had past away and spend the days with them, being sure etha tthey where there last?

Would I want to smush all the happy moments in life into three days, or keep the negative there too?

It is such a heavy and hard question to answer. And what exactly does found family time mean? I am finding family time right now... I am sitting in our living room with my son Aaron in a Moby Wrap, my sister Katie hold Kaydon, and Chelsea my youngest sister. Just chatting. About our day, about life, about being complete bitches. I wouldnt trade this moment for anything. Well... Maybe just one drag off of a cigerette. Even a cheap one. Good GOD please?! Ok.. Craving over. It will always be that knawing sensation at the back of my head. I should have never started.

Back to family moments... I think that is what our memory is for. We store away the special moments, whether they are good or bad *Yes special moments are the bad ones too* they are there for us to remember. And when we go senial, it is just us trying to hold on to what was.

So... With my three days of found family time, I would do just what I am doing now. Maybe minus the computer and add my other son and some other family members. And I would just sit back and soak it up. I know that this wont last forever. But it is a wonderful thing while it lasts.

Mama

Call to Sponsors!

Ramblings and Reviews offers giveaways from etsy, home-based businesses, local businesses and corporate vendors. Every day this holiday season *beginning October 31st* Holiday Giveaways will have a new product featured, and five days after a giveaway will be held.

Depending on the social networking sites of the sponsor, contestants will be required to do one to several things to enter. First and foremost will be to visit your website *giving you more hits* and choose a product that they admire, or something that they learned about the sponsor. They can earn extra entries by following on Twitter, "liking" on Facebook, blogging about the giveaway and posting links to the sponsors website.

It would look something like this---

*Insert product review and pictures of product in use here*

And *Company name* has decided to let me give away *product* to one of my subscribers!! Cheers!

To enter you must visit *company name* website and comment below about a product other than the above described that you are interested in, or something you learned about *company name*.

***Make sure that you include your email address, and that you are a following this blog via GFC in your comment or you will be disqualified***

EXTRA ENTRIES!!!!

*-* Follow *company name* on Twitter include you handle in comment - 1
*-* "Like" *company name* on Facebook - 1
*-* Tweet about this giveaway! Leave URL to tweet in comment -Can be done once a day - 1
*-* Follow me on Twitter include your handle in comment - 1
*-* Leave a comment on why you would like to win this and how you would use it - 1
*-* Blog about this company/giveaway and leave a link back - 2

I do follow up on extra entries! You will be disqualified for fakes.  I will draw a winner with randomized number drawing website for drawing numbers. The winner will be notified by email and posted the next day and has 48 hours to respond before another drawing will be held.

Good luck!

------
If you’re looking to reach out to stay at home parents, and holiday fanatics then Holiday Giveaways is reaching your demographic. Let me help you promote your product to a wider audience. It’s win-win! You receive inexpensive advertising and my readers receive a free product. I’d love to work with you!

If you have any questions, or want to work with us email me.

lilsmurfette_03 [!at] yahoo.com

threebestbabiesreviews.blogspot.com

Jessica and Team

What a long day!

 My goodness!

 I have been searching and searching all day for sponsorship. I have most of the local businesses behind me, and now I am looking for unique online businesses that will donate there products in exchange for an AMAZING online review, links back to there websites and cool word of mouth advertising.

 Yay! So excited to be starting a new blog, and new giveaways. Nothing feels better than a fresh start!

Mama

Sony Pocket Reader Giveaway!

WOW!

Soo excited about this giveaway! 


Living on Love and Giveaways is giving away a Sony Pocket Reader!

All you have to do to enter is follow them via Google Friend Connect
then comment letting them know!

Good luck!




Thursday, October 7, 2010

Exhausted.

My twins wore my ass out today. And yet I can not seem to get to sleep!

I cried, literally. My ring still does not fit my fat fingers. How is it they are still swollen seven and a half weeks after having my babes?! So I took it out of our lockbox and decided to wear it around my neck. Made me feel a little better.

Well it looks like  I should have taken my cat nap while I still  could have. Babes are awake. Thank god they are mostly on the same schedule. Or I would NEVER sleep.

Maybe my thoughts will be more productive tomorow.

Loves and Kisses

Wednesday, October 6, 2010

The famous Boppy!

So I am sitting here, hands empty, actually able to type! Why is this a big deal you may ask? MY TWINFANTS ARE SLEEPING! Oh my gosh. Is it possible?! Both at the SAME TIME! I would take a picture, but the flash would wake them up making this post useless. The Boppy is amazing. They fit perfectly in it and feel like they are being held. Toss a blanket on them and a binky in the mouth and TA-DA! Off to dream land they go!

--- On a side note, what to infants dream about? My son who is 5 just started to tell me about his dreams and they are pretty off the wall. Huh...

Anyways... Anyone who has a baby should have one of these! The only downside is they are meant for a breastfeeding support pillow. I have never been able to use one as that. Its just awkward. My arm works just fine.

Ten Hoorays for the Boppy!

( Oh and I am talking about the original Boppy. Not the crazy new ones they have. )

Monday, October 4, 2010

Graco DuoGlider Stroller

Hate it. Enough said. There are good and bad though. If I had gotten the chance to try it first, I would have not bought one.



Holy crap thats a big picture. But so is the stroller. Lets start with the Pro's...

It fits both carseats on top
It has a large basket that will hold the BIGGEST of diaper bags
Cup holder
Key/wallet/odd enclosure
Fits in the back of a truck
Pretty good turn radius
Very easy to close
Cute patterns available

Ok... Here go the Con's

Very hard to push in a straight line.
Not built for short people to push ( I am 5' )
Shaky when pushing
Does not fit in the trunk of a Taurus, or a Cavalier
Hard to open
Front seat does not lean back far enough for an infant
Will only work properly with Graco carseats

Now there are a couple odd things too, the handle bar that is covered in foam is pretty standered. I dont know if my five year old was picking at it, or what happened. But it is starting to come apart. This has only been used for no more than 6 weeks!

After owning this stroller, I am going to look into getting some sort of compact double stroller.

If they make them.