Well its been quite some time since I've blogged, but I'm going to give it one more try.  The past couple years have been busy for my little family.  Lucy went to Kindergarten and is now in second grade! Nora who wasn't even born yet when I wrote my last post is in her last year of preschool.  My baby is going to Kindergarten! When did this happen?!

I spent 2016 working on myself. I wanted to remember what I was like before becoming a mom. I had lost myself. I wasn't happy.  I spent about a year after Nora was born battling post partum depression.  I got it under control pretty quickly, but I still wasn't myself.  I had gained more weight than I did while pregnant, I wasn't interested in fashion anymore, I didn't read, or watch my favorite TV shows.  While I didn't cry and get angry at the thought of spilled milk anymore, I still wasn't me.

2016, I made myself a priority, well as much as you can with two littles.  I lost fifty pounds, I got in touch with long lost friends, got out of the house at night, and got my love of fashion back.  I also started making new friends. The social part of me that was squashed when I became a stay at home mom has returned. I have made friends with people that I meet at coffee shops, bars, clothing boutiques, and at school.  It has been such a relief to have adult conversations with people who want to talk to me and not feel like they have to talk to me because they are family.

As for 2017, I want to continue working on me. Figuring out what I can do to make myself happy, because that is no one else's job except for mine.  Cheers to 2017!

Cool Kids Giveaway

Have you checked out The Cool Kids Blog yet? She has the best ideas and giveaways!
This week her giveaway is a towel from Tiffany Brown Designs.
The pictures make me want one so bad!

Check 'em out:







Go and checkout her blog, enter the contest here and like Tiffany Brown Designs on Facebook here

Good Luck!

Pinterest


Have you heard of it yet?
FINALLY! I AM A MEMBER!  I feel like I was FINALLY invited to the cool kid party.
I waited all week to get off the waiting list.
Yes, I was on a waiting list for a website.  So far its the best thing ever! Like I need something else to waste do with my naptime freedom. 
What is it you ask? A virtual pin board. Anything you find on the web that you like you can "pin it" and save it for a board. You can pin birthday presents, home decor ideas, recipes, kid ideas, quotes, anything you like.  Its amazing!  Click here to follow my boards.
If you want an invite send me your email in the comments section. I will send you out an invite promptly. The more people on pinterest the more fun it will be!  Tip I learned, write you email address like this - jane at email address dot com to avoid spammers.

The Voice, Already Over for Me?

Did anyone else watch The Voice Tuesday night?
Tim Mahoney was robbed!  I may be biased, as I live in Minnesota and saw him play all the time in college, but I really think he deserved to win over Casey (is that her name?).
She was good, but after re-listening to her audition song and her duet I don't think she knows who she is as an artist yet. She sounded like two different people. Maybe that's what they are looking for, someone to mold into what they want them to be. Not to mention her tight blue dress that made her look 27 and not 18. Is that the reason Adam picked her, sex appeal?  NBC did a great job showing her dad's reaction to her clothing choice.
Minneapolis had very high ratings for the show. I think I read the highest. I wonder if they will go down after this week?
Now on to my next complaint. Blake, picking Patrick over Tyler, really? Tyler was the much better singer and performer. There was some controversy over anti-gay remarks Shelton made on either Twitter or Facebook last week. Was that the reason or was it because Patrick and Blake are both country singers.  I read some articles this morning saying that country music artists don't go out of their genre and stick with their own.
All I know is that I am slowly losing interest in The Voice after last night. This coming from a girl who has stuck with Idol for 11 seasons.

6:15 am, My House

Does anyone else wake up to this?

Its not always food. Sometimes its puzzle pieces, shoes, or books, but its always something.

Mother's Day

Its hard now that I'm a mom. I want to do something special for my mom, but at the same time its my day too! This year we decided to have lunch as a family. Then at night, Paul, Lucy, and I will do something just the three of us. I think its a pretty good deal.

This year I'm getting my mom blush. Weird gift, yes. But she really wants a pinky blush. Last week at Sephora we looked at a few and I have decided on Tarte cheek stain, in Doll Face.  The description on Sephora's website is, sheer, soft pink shimmer/strawberries and cream scented. MMMMM maybe she'll smell like a Strawberry Shortcake doll (the latest obsession at our house).

I have Tarte Blush in Flush. I have to say its my go to blush. Perfect for giving that slight flushed look, but without looking too overdone for a play date at the park.

Today I came across Tina Fey's Prayer For Her Daughter today. I laughed, I cried, I loved:

First, Lord: No tattoos. May neither Chinese symbol for truth nor Winnie-the-Pooh holding the FSU logo stain her tender haunches.

May she be Beautiful but not Damaged, for it’s the Damage that draws the creepy soccer coach’s eye, not the Beauty.

When the Crystal Meth is offered, May she remember the parents who cut her grapes in half And stick with Beer.

Guide her, protect her
When crossing the street, stepping onto boats, swimming in the ocean, swimming in pools, walking near pools, standing on the subway platform, crossing 86th Street, stepping off of boats, using mall restrooms, getting on and off escalators, driving on country roads while arguing, leaning on large windows, walking in parking lots, riding Ferris wheels, roller-coasters, log flumes, or anything called “Hell Drop,” “Tower of Torture,” or “The Death Spiral Rock ‘N Zero G Roll featuring Aerosmith,” and standing on any kind of balcony ever, anywhere, at any age.

Lead her away from Acting but not all the way to Finance. Something where she can make her own hours but still feel intellectually fulfilled and get outside sometimes And not have to wear high heels.

What would that be, Lord? Architecture? Midwifery? Golf course design? I’m asking You, because if I knew, I’d be doing it, Youdammit.

May she play the Drums to the fiery rhythm of her Own Heart with the sinewy strength of her Own Arms, so she need Not Lie With Drummers.

Grant her a Rough Patch from twelve to seventeen. Let her draw horses and be interested in Barbies for much too long, For childhood is short – a Tiger Flower blooming Magenta for one day – And adulthood is long and dry-humping in cars will wait.

O Lord, break the Internet forever, That she may be spared the misspelled invective of her peers And the online marketing campaign for Rape Hostel V: Girls Just Wanna Get Stabbed.

And when she one day turns on me and calls me a Bitch in front of Hollister, Give me the strength, Lord, to yank her directly into a cab in front of her friends, For I will not have that Shit. I will not have it.

And should she choose to be a Mother one day, be my eyes, Lord, that I may see her, lying on a blanket on the floor at 4:50 A.M., all-at-once exhausted, bored, and in love with the little creature whose poop is leaking up its back.

“My mother did this for me once,” she will realize as she cleans feces off her baby’s neck. “My mother did this for me.” And the delayed gratitude will wash over her as it does each generation and she will make a Mental Note to call me. And she will forget. But I’ll know, because I peeped it with Your God eyes.

 

 

Happy Mother's Day to all the moms out there. To my mom - I love you, thanks for everything, you are the best!



A post on sun...that turned into a rant.

Finally there is SUN! I can't believe how much better seeing the sun makes you feel. Lucy and I were able to get outside and go to the playground with her friend Lily and then we took a walk to get Happy Meals at the *Fry House* as Lucy likes to call it. 
Yes McDonald's. I'm not ashamed that I let Lucy have chicken nuggets and fries sometimes.  Normally I don't like mass facebook quotes, but there is one in particular that makes me smile. Not enough to re-post, only to blog about.

"My curfew was the street lights. My parents called my name, not my cell... I played outside with friends, not online. If I didn't eat what my parents cooked, then I didn't eat. Sanitizer didn't exist, but you COULD get your mouth washed out with soap. I rode a bike without helmet, getting dirty was OK, and neighbors gave a damn as much as your parents did. Re-post if you drank water from a garden hose & survived!"

As much as I want my child to not get sick, not ruin her clothes, be safe, etc I cannot handle how overboard our society has gone. I feel that moderation is the key; whether its regarding food, social activities, or structured activities. Lucy needs time to be a kid. Eat non-organic food, play outside in the mud with friends. She doesn't need to be involved in a different activity every night of the week nor does she need to be kept in the bubble to ensure germs do not enter her nose, land and her hands, etc. 

I look at myself and think I turned out pretty great (thanks mom!). Although maybe if I wouldn't have drank straight from the garden hose I would have had better grades in college...or maybe it was the beer that I drank DURING college.