Today I Had Watermelon Yogurt.

And now I've seen everything. 

It didn't exactly sound good to me but I had to try it and see just how much like watermelon it tasted. 

Well, it was sweet and fruity, but that's as close to watermelon as it gets. 



The best part about it was how the empty carton entertained my baby for a good 10 minutes. 

Today I Figured Out Why I Can't Leave Comments On Some Friends' Posts.

This is not Blogger fixing the problem.  Blogger, you seriously have issues and need to get them worked out asap.
I read on one of the help pages that someone discovered if your comments setting is set to "embedded post" then that may be why some people can leave you comments.  That's the setting mine was on and I fixed it, just in case.  If your setting is on this one, you may want to change it to "Full Page" or "Pop Up Window."  If you do, let me know so I can come leave you a comment and see if that makes a difference.  And again, not a true fix, but a way to get around the problem. 

Blogger Fix-It Team, where are you when we need you???!?!?

Today I Stepped Out.

Again, participating in Steppin' Out Saturday with Harper's Happenings.

Today we went out with friends for dinner.  It was nice since we hadn't seen them for a year.  They thought our kids had grown a ton and we thought the same of their children.  **laugh**  Kids do that.  It was fun to catch up.  Before dinner, Tony helped my brother move and has had his face glued in a book.  I puttered around doing nothing super industrious and the girls helped me with that.  I even snuck in a nap!  Hope the rest of the holiday weekend is as low-key and fun.

(The only one that shows all of our outfits, minus my shoes)

(as you may have guessed, Ash didn't start out being very into the picture taking thing)

(i love my babies!!!!)

(Tony took the pics and did a good job, in my humble opinion)

(this one if so goofy and just makes me laugh every time I look at it, therefore, I included it so you can giggle too)

Today I Went To A 25 Cent Sale.

And it was cut-throat man!  People lined up waiting for the doors to open (this sale only happens on the last weekend of each month at a consignment store in Tacoma).  There were women and their kids with huge garbage bags and as soon as they were let in, everyone started cramming their bags as full and as fast as they could!  It was a zoo.  And a lot more fun once all the frantic people left or calmed down.  Everything was 25 cents.  Even the baby gear.  I wasn't there early enough to get anything besides clothes.  I wish I'd thought to take a picture of  the mountains upon mountains of stuff!  It was insane.  I had Britt in the Ergo most of the time.  I promised Ash chicken nuggets if she was good.  And she was!  She entertained herself in the stroller for the HOURS that we were there.  My kid is a freakin' angel!  To say that sorting through piles of clothes is hard work is an understatement.  I'm exhausted.  It was worth it though.  We got some cuuuuute stuff!  TOTALLY goin' again next month!  So grateful to my sister-in-law for inviting me to go with her!  Sorry for the lack of pic.  But like I said....tired. 

Today I Read About a Genderless Baby.

First off, if you haven't already, go to parentdish and read (and watch) about this Canadian couple who've decided to keep their baby's gender a secret so he/she can decide for himself/herself when he/she is older.  Then come back here and read my thoughts about it.  Then, please leave your thoughts as I am very interested to know my bloggy friends' opinions. 

(Storm with big bro, Jazz.  Source)

I take exception to that one individual, in the article, whose response was “This is a perfect example of why you should have a license to have children.”  Please. **voice dripping with scorn**  I don’t need someone else deciding whether I meet their standards of a perfect parent before I can have children! This world is full of entirely too many rules, licenses, and boss-faces.  Let people live their lives!

 I think that whenever you choose to do something that isn’t mainstream it is important to teach your children why you have made that choice and why you think it is right. If Storm’s parents feel so strongly about not letting the culture of our genders decide what color they wear and how long their hair is then they need to give their children the tools to deal with any negativity that comes their way. I agree with everything the doctor (sitting on the sofa in the video clip) said and I think that though this couples’ decision comes from wanting to protect their kids from hurt, those less than pleasant interchanges are just something that happen when you make different choices. My parents chose to home school their children. I dealt with a lot of rude kids growing up. Each interchange was a learning experience and my parents were always giving me feedback and ideas for how to answer and stand up for myself. I’m not sure that making Storm the “special one” who gets to keep his (I think Storm looks like a boy) gender a secret seems all that fair for the older two, who obviously have received some pessimistic input from others about their less than boyish behavior.


From a spiritual standpoint, I believe that male and female have always been and always will be. I believe we have differences for a divine purpose. I believe that with each gender comes certain roles, talents, pros and cons and we are to build upon what we are given and make it into something beautiful.  If you want an example, look at moms and dads.  Both are parents and both have equal responsibility to make sure their children are raised well, taught, loved, and cared for.  But children get different needs met from each of their parents.  Moms and Dads are different emotionally, mentally, and (obviously) physically.  They, for the most part, parent differently from each other.  That is as it should be.  We, as humans, love labels. We always have. It gives order and organization to our lives. There is absolutely nothing wrong with this. To be called a boy or a girl is a good thing. To be called an “it," not so much. I’m pretty sure all of my brothers have had their hair done up in barrettes, worn dresses and gotten their nails painted. Growing up, during games of make believe, I was always Huckleberry Finn, Peter from the Narnia Chronicles, Han Solo or a warrior. I had no interest in being a princess or any other character who couldn’t wield a sword, tote a gun or wear overalls. But none of us has ever felt stifled by our gender. I just can’t agree that being genderless equals more freedom. We are who we are for a reason. Let’s embrace that.


What do you think?

P.S.  Again, I tried to leave comments for friends who have word verification on their blogs and Blogger denied me.  **frustration!!**  Myrnie, Mrs. K., Just Bits and Pieces, I'm talkin' about you.  So just know that you got comment love from me - you just can't see it.  :)

P.P.S.  I have to tell you about what happened at music class today.  We were all standing in a circle with Britt on my left and Ash on my right.  We were stomping our feet, slapping our knees and singing, "5 in the middle and you can't jump Josie" or something like that.  I happened to look down and then had to do a double take.  There was a diaper at my feet!  A diaper that had been previously formed to a baby's body and from the shape of it, appeared as if there was an invisible child still sitting in it.  Hahaha!  It looked a lot like the diaper I'd put on Britt before leaving for class.  Lo and behold, it was that same diaper!  Britt was in a dress sans diaper cover.  One of the diaper tabs hadn't been put on properly (my bad) and Britt had danced/shimmied her way right out of it.  Needless to say, I whisked her over to a private corner and remedied the problem.  Haha!     

Today I Brushed My Babies' Teeth.

Ash has gotten to that point were she pretty willingly says, "ahhhhh" and "eeeeeeee" so we can get her teeth cleaned.  Britt is a completely different story. 

This is her "getting my teeth brushed and I don't like it" face.  Seriously, this is the exact same expression she has when we brush her teeth - her screaming and hollering the whole time.  **laugh** 

But this post isn't so much about the joys of brushing my daughters' teeth.  It's about fluoride and how confused I am about it.  We don't have it in our water here.  I've had some pediatricians and dentists tell me that I need to have my kids on fluoride tablets from 12 months on.  I've received prescriptions but never filled them.  I have two kinds of toothpaste for my kiddos; one with fluoride and one with out and we alternate. 

I've read that some studies show fluoride dramatically reduces cavities.  But I've also read that some studies show fluoride is a terrible poison and  that we shouldn't be using it.  My suspicions, base on what I've read, are that in a perfect world we would definitely not use fluoride, but with a culture that embraces sugars like ours - we have nothing else to combat tooth decay with.  Merely brushing and flossing isn't enough to fight candy, cakes, soda, yogurt, juice, bread, soup, and everything else that sugar has been put into.  Let me revise that - calcium and magnesium help too.  So the healthier we eat, the healthier our teeth. 

I, myself, use a fluoride toothpaste and fluoride mouth rinse now because my cavity history has been a long and dreadful one.  I wish that I could have had sealants put on when I first got my adult teeth.  I have no idea what the pros and cons of doing that are, but I'll have to look into it when my kids get to that point.  For now, I just want to figure out where fluoride fits in our lives.  We eat sugar - no doubt about it.  It seems that fluoride is the most help is in toothpaste and rinse.  The health risks are higher when it's ingested.  I've done some interesting reading at the Fluoride Action Network, WebMD, nofluoride.com, American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry, & Fluoride Dangers Blog.  To name a very few. 

Have you thought or read about this?  Do you have an opinion?  What do you think?  Am I overly worried? 

P.S.  For those of you who haven't received any comment love from me recently, it may be due to Blogger not allowing me to leave comments for those of you who have word verification on your blogs.  I have no idea why.  It is beyond frustrating.  I hope, hope, HOPE they get that bug worked out soon.  I'm dying to talk to you!

Today I Had a Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day.

Remember this book?  I loved it as a kid.

(you can get the book at your local library or here)

My winner of a day started with Tony getting me up to take him to the bus stop (this is routine) at 6:20 am.  I am NOT a morning person and will sleep until 9am sometimes (when the girls let me).  We were a bit late and I had to chase the bus down, which included tail-gating it until it pulled over, which embarrassed my husband, and made me feel like a fool afterwards. 

Then, when I got home, I decided to go back to bed instead of taking a much needed shower. 

At 8:20 we lost power.  My parents had the electricians come over to increase their power capacity (or something like that) and since we are in the "mother-in-law apartment" on the premises, that means we had no lights or air purifiers (white-noise makers) or internet either.  For 7 hours.  Not cool.  Really should have taken that shower when I had the chance.

Britt had a large volume tantrum morning and got put down for a nap early.  In her defense, those electricians kept scaring the living daylights out of her with their loud, frightening machines. 

I accidentally ate some pumpkin butter that had been opened and put on top of the fridge.  And it never occurred to me how gross that is until after I'd already eaten it and realized it should've been IN the fridge for the past week.  I was certain I was going to be sick.  All I had was a slight stomach ache.  Probably imagined.

Ash didn't get a nap.  Without the before-mentioned air purifier going, there is no hope of her falling asleep unless she's exhausted. 

She did insist on playing outside most of the day and I was a stress mess trying to keep her from tripping into the big hole the electricians has dug, getting run over by the many big trucks constantly coming and going, and following one guy in and out of the crawl space under my parents' house.  She is, as one electrician so aptly put it, "a wanderer."  **pulling my hair out**

We did have a break, now that I'm thinking about it.  The sun decided to finally show up and I began pulling up the arugula.  Arugula is a cold weather crop.  Pulling them all out was my physical act of faith that we will get warm weather (that stays) very soon.  I'm going to plant carrots this week. 

The girls and I ran to the post office and the library.  Britt is not a quiet library patron.  While Ash likes to get on the computer they have for little kids, Britt runs up and down the aisles, giggling and squealing.  One lady I passed said, "I had twins, I feel your pain."  I thought, "Pain?  Who said anything about pain?  I think my little running beasty-baby is hilarious!"  And, for the most part, I do.

When we got home the melt-downs commenced.  **sigh**  Wait.  Did I say hilarious?  Umm.......

The girls cried, screamed, and fought.  You'd be proud of how cool, calm, and collected I remained throughout.

Funny story:  In the middle of one of her tantrums, Ash realized her nose was running so she picked up the nearest object and mindlessly wiped her nose on the bottom of it.  The item?  A shoe.  I couldn't help it.  I bust a gut laughing at her.  She, of course, wasn't amused.

I decided to feed them dinner early, brush their teeth and send them to bed.  They were out before the clock said 7:30pm.  **cheer**

Ok, so I may have been exaggerating a bit.  It wasn't that bad of a day.  It had its moments.

Today I Received a Prize in the Mail.

Through my selling Facebook page-community-thing I've had some pretty fun interactions.  One night I stumbled upon a friend, who had gotten a bunch of craftswomen together, and she had a contest/giveaway game going on.  I got in on the action about halfway through the game and ended up winning a handmade skirt from Aubrey's Crafty Life!!!  Woohoo!  We received it today.  I promptly put it on Ash, who was thrilled of course.  This funny little girl looooves dresses and skirts.  She really doesn't care for pants at all (won't even leave them on for very long).  This was a big hit.  Thank you so much Aubrey!  You rock!  The fabric is delicious color and print!  Really makes me want to unbury my sewing machine and figure out how to really use it.  Someday.

Today I Saw Jane Eyre.

(source)

My poor husband came with me and I think it was the longest hour and a half of his life.  I admit,  I have never read Jane Eyre.  I bought a copy for myself over 10 years ago and I think I started it, but I don't remember ever finishing it.  I figure since I've watched so many versions of it, I know all there is to know.  Which even I recognize is a pretty silly way to think.  My favorite has always been the tv movie in which Samantha Morton plays Jane.  I'm not sure it isn't still. 

(source)

Mia Wasikowska plays a really good Jane too.  And Michael Fassbender is a much better looking Rochester than Ciaran Hinds.  But St. John Rivers in the new Jane Eyre is AWFUL!  Though, from what I've read about the book, his portrayal is more accurate.  The first 20-ish minutes of the movie was overly sad and depressing.  Like, really lame.  And the crazy wife is boring.  Sophie Reissner is sooooo much better - even scary!   They tried to switch things up by starting in the middle of the story, going to the beginning and then the end.  Good idea, but like I said, the beginning was such a disturbing damper.  I know it's supposed to be, but I also know that Jane took pleasure where she could (I think I got that from the book, correct me if I'm wrong).  Verdict:  I liked it (once it got past Jane's terrible childhood), but could totally have waited until it came out on Netflix. 

(source)

P.S.  I kept thinking, through the whole movie, "I've seen this girl before......"  Just figured it out!  Alice in Wonderland.  Hahaha!  I liked that one a lot.  Matter of fact, I think I'll go put that on my Netflix list again. 

Today I Pulled Weeds.

The poor arugula has never been weeded.  It grew really nicely anyways though.  Today was the first time I've weeded any garden in a very loooooong time.  I'd been avoiding it because when I was in my early teens my dad would make me weed and I hated it.  Yes, hated.


(my little helper.  not!  i couldn't even get her to pick up and hold the gloves for a picture.)

 I was pleasantly surprised that though weeding is hard on the knees, it's actually less of a chore and more of a calming, peaceful exercise.  It felt meditative.  I loved it.  And the girls enjoyed running around in the sun while I had some quiet time.  Lovely.


(my real helper is in the background, dutifully watering the beds.  britt is clapping her hands with an auntie, whom you obviously can't see in this pic)

 I thought about how I should do some inner weeding.  I thought about a little incident we had this morning.    I was a lot less than perfect mommy.  I haven't been sleeping well (remember, sore throat/coughing) and so am pretty tired, plus I never go to bed before midnight.  Tired and me don't work well together.  It doesn't help that I may be a bit hormonal at the moment.  It also is unfortunate that Britt is getting her fangs, causing her to be extremely grouchy.  And then Ash decided to be whiney.  All of these on top of a huge snafoo with PayPal this morning and we were late getting out the door to music class.  Ash was whining, lost her balance, bonked her head (not hard, I might add), and started crying.  Britt was already screeching.  I was at my wits end.  I shouted at both of them.  I hate yelling more than I hated pulling weeds as an adolescent.  I wish I could say I was immediately sorry and contrite.  I wasn't.  I rushed them brusquely out the door and didn't even say sorry until Britt was in her car seat.  Then I turned around to see to the look on Ash's face.  She was so sad and having shoe malfunctions AND she didn't even ask for help (she always asks for help when she can't make something work).  So obviously I was Scary Mommy.  I saw that trembling lip and looked at myself through her watery eyes and I did NOT like what I saw.  This is when I decided being late was worth saying sorry, helping her with her shoes, and showing her that I loved her and didn't mean to be a mean mother.  She is such a sweety and super quick to forgive and forget.  **thankful**


(wanting me to pick her up.  as per usual.)

 I need to work on patience.  I need to weed the vices of temper, crabbiness, and the habit of staying up late (doesn't help with the tired part) out of myself.  My children need me to do this too.  Starting today, I am going to put this weeding at the top of my daily to-do list.   Wish me luck!

Today I Have A Sore Throat.

I'm not sick.  I've got allergies.  Which causes sniffles.  Which causes drainage down the back of my throat (tmi?).  Hence, the sore throat.  It was hard to sleep last night with all the ticklish, scratchy, cough-inducing rawness going on back there.  I tried cough drops.  I tried lemon tea with honey.  The cough drops did zip-diddly-squat (that means nothing).  The tea was temporarily helpful.  Do you have any suggestions?  I'll spare you and refrain from posting a pick of my tonsils.  **chuckle**

Other than that, I've been busy with the auction I had going on Facebook, filling sugar scrub sample orders, chasing rascally girls, making waffles, cleaning occasionally, reading when I get a chance, laundry (of course), enjoying the sun (FINALLY!!!), and doing a bit of gardening (a very little bit).

Now, to explain the picture.  It has nothing to do with allergies.  I am participating in the Paper Mama's Photo Challenge this week.  It was taken in June of 2009.  Ash's first ever swim.  The theme of the challenge is Friends and this photo works for two reasons.  Ash and her daddy are great friends and Ash also considers water (and dirt, but we'll save that for another challenge) to be friend as well.  :)

(I know, it's so big that poor Tony has words on his face, but Ash's splashed, funny face is so cute and deserves to be shown in a bigger pic, right?  Right.)



Today I Bandaged Up Some Boo-boos.

I remember as a young single adult scoffing at the over use of Band-aids many parents indulged in.  I had taught and baby-sat many, many little kids and as I saw it, too many parents put bandages on their kids at every cry, whine and whimper - on owies that were often minuscule and imagined.  I vowed to never be such a silly softy.  My kids weren't going to use Band-aids as a crutch.  My kids weren't going to cry at every little hurt.  My kids were gonna be tough!  Band-aids just encourage kids to make stuff up!

HAHAHAHAHAHAAHAAHAHAAAAA!

Ok.  Whatev young, silly, clueless Jamie!  You didn't have kids and didn't know what you were talking about (no offense to my currently childless readers; I promise you will have a similar story to tell someday because I have many).   Poor Ash's little legs look terrible.  The kid loooooves being outside but she is always falling down.  Must take after her mother.  I remember, as a child, staring at my bruised, scab-covered, sticker bush scraped legs and thinking they were soooo ugly. 



Today Ash was running, excitedly, to go get in the car.  Well, she tripped, fell hard on her knees and then tipped forward and bumped her forehead too.  So sad!  Let's just say that after several episodes like this one, we are currently running low on Band-aids.  They are wonderful little creations - the colorful, characterized ones, anyway.  They are happy and bright.  And they distract the sobbing child while you clean their wounds.  They also make the hurt lessen by at least 85%, I swear!



*chuckle*  I had everything figured out.  I'll probably think the same thing about my current self 10 years in the future.  What about you?  What immature vows have you broken? 

Today I Was Amazed By Stop-Motion Animation Talent!

Honestly, I'm speechless. I have nothing interesting or witty to say about this. I think it's so creative and a delight to watch. Hope you do too!

Today I Was So Happy to See Blogger Working Again.

I don't remember it ever being quite so long before.  And my post about the carrot cake oatmeal was gone for a little while.  So weird. 
**confused**

Two things to talk about today.

1.  I am so happy to see the sun!  It was warm enough to leave our jackets on the hooks.  Ash isn't taking naps anymore. Booooo!  So, I got two buckets, filled one with water, threw in a sponge and showed her how to transfer water from one bucket to another with the sponge.  Kept her entertained for a half hour, at least.  My kind of toddler activity!  **laugh**

(yes, she did stick her head in the bucket. why do you ask?)

2.  Molly and I got our etsy shop up and running.  We have lots of ideas for fun things to sell, but for starts we're selling sugar body scrub.  I've given this as gifts before and then have had people ask for more.  We have, of course, tested our products on ourselves (and willing friends) and this stuff is goooood.  Plus, the ingredient list is all pronounceable and recognizable.  Two important "ables," if you ask me!  If you're looking for a really nice, natural body scrub please give ours a try. 

Hope everyone has good things planned for the weekend.  I'm gonna go hit the sales at Old Navy and Gymboree and then a birthday party.  Yay!

Today I Ate Carrot Cake Oatmeal.

OH. EM. GEE (as in goodness)!!!!!!

I'm an oatmeal lover.   Not that nasty stuff you get in a little brown packet (though in a pinch, it'll do).  I'm talkin' about the yumminess you get cooking oats, water (no milk for my girls, remember), and raisins on the stove top (or in the microwave on busy mornings).  The oatmeal I ate for breakfast today was sooooo delicious!!  Seriously, it's a recipe that takes everyday oatmeal up by several notches.  You can find the recipe directly under the photo (click on "source"). 

(source)

I did make some changes (of course).  No milk, obvs, so I just amped up the water amount.  I'm not a big fan of walnuts, so I used of the rest of my silvered almonds.  I opted for toasted coconut  because it's the only coconut I have on hand.  And I was a bit more heavy-handed with the brown sugar than the makers of this recipe advised.  :D  I used regular yogurt (only for myself) and it was like the frosting on the cake. 

If you like oatmeal and carrot cake, make this!  And if you have a delectible more-than-the-average-oatmeal recipe, send it to me por favor!

Today I Glued Buttons.

I have finally been attacking one pile after another the past couple weeks.  It's slow going.
In one stack of stuff I found some frames I had made over a year ago with some pieces of wood, ribbon, spray paint, photos, strong glue and a bunch of buttons.  During our last move, some of the buttons came loose.  We moved last October folks, and I am just now taking care of this?  **shaking my head**

~the yellow is off in this pic, but I like how the buttons "pop"~

~the back is ugly because I painted it a blue color I didn't like first, then when I painted the right color, I was too hasty and turned it over before it was fully dry and it stuck to the cardboard~

I love these things though.  I'm not the best at hanging groups of frames together though.  I think I may be a little be untalented in that area of spacial awareness, or something.  But aren't they so cute?  :D  My sister, Molly and I are going to try out having an etsy shop and I'm thinking of doing some of these for it to see if they take.  They're so whimsical and pretty!

Today I Stepped Out.

I've decided to, occasionally, add something new.  I don't usually blog on the weekends, but I really like Mandy's (over at Harper's Happenings) Steppin' Out Saturday.  I'm going to participate whenever the day allows.

And sorry, no way could I narrow it down to just a few pics.  So here are five.  **big grin**












Tony asked what I wanted for Mother's Day (he's not one to plan ahead for special occasions).  I said I wanted to have a truly spontaneous day.  Just go out and do whatever I felt like doing.  So we did.  We took a ferry, went to a farmers market, perused antique shops, bought mothers day presents for our moms, tried to visit his mom (she had gone boating....really??), ate Italian (I had the world's biggest pizza pocket and it was goooooooooooood), and then we came home.  Loved it.  We just stopped and went whenever and wherever my whim took us and it was fun!  The girls were angels (minus the last 15 minutes) and Tony bought my chocolate and was wonderfully patient during the shopping parts.  :D 



Happy Mother's Day to all of you Mommies out there!!!!

Today I Saw Thor.

It was a good movie.  Tony really wanted to go see it and since we haven't been to the theatre for many months, I agreed.  I really don't care to waste money on movies that I can see through Netflix.  I save the theatre for the big ones like Narnia, Harry Potter, Twilight, and Pirates.  But, this was surprisingly interesting (it didn't start out too impressive though).  And it was more exciting on the big screen.  I'd recommend it.  I liked it better than Star Trek and The Prince of Persia, but less than Pirates of the Caribbean and Avatar.  So, if you want to see a movie in theaters, go see Thor.  Or you can wait and get it when it comes out on dvd.  Either way, it's a nice, little adventure flick with plenty of fun action scenes and special effects (do they still call it that?).  It even has a teensy bit of romance and a few funnies thrown in.

(source)

Have you seen any good movies lately?

Today I Took Britt to Music Class.

Britt and I go to a KinderMusik type class on Thursdays.  It’s a lot of fun. 

(this isn't a pic of Britt at class, but I figured since she was the reason we go to music class, any picture of her is fitting.  Besides, it was taken today so I could get pics of the kiddos into the mail for grandparents - I'm so bad at keeping them in current photos!)

The teacher puts a lot of thought and effort into the activities and songs.  She has a huge assortment of props: musical instruments of every kind, stuffed animals, hula hoops, and even hobby horses.  And she has enough for a large group of children! 

(source)

Today we danced with streamers.  I was impressed with these streamers because they were colorful and fun and I could totally make them myself.  The handle was a canning jar ring and the streamers were flagging tape.  The teacher had tied strips of tape to the rings in purples, oranges, and yellows. 

(source)

So fun and pretty!  I'm going to have to make some for us to play with at home.  When I do, I'll post a how-to. 

(I got the bubbles out to encourage Ash to look up and smile - Britt didn't need any help in that area - and it worked, but then Britt got sober while Ash got excited.  **sigh**)

P.S.  Thank you for your sweet comments on yesterday's post.  Made me smile and warmed my heart.  Sounds like, for the most part, you all are ready for the same reasons I'm writing.  Sounds good! 

Today I'd Like to Know Why You Read My Blog.

I was thinking about my blog, while folding laundry, this evening and pondering about all the people that I've made bloggy friends with, how some posts elicit more responses than others and I started to wonder.....

Why do you read my blog?  I'm looking for totally honest answers here. 

Is it to see what I'm up to because you know me personally?

Do you like my adventures?  Semi-helpful hints?  Pictures?  Occasional crafts & recipes?

Do you read because you are a faithful comment backer?

Are you checking in because my kids are just so stinkin' cute?

I'm super curious and, let's be honest, some days I can't think of anything interesting or different that I did (like today) and it'd be nice to know what you all are most interested in. 

And because my girls seriously are the bees knees:









Pictures from February.  I seriously need to get some currents photos of the two of them together.

Today I No-Pooed My Hair.

I've read several different articles and blog posts about going shampoo-free and the idea really intrigued me. 
I'm rather bothered by the amount of chemicals in body products and this disturbia was compounded when I realized how sensitive Ash is to these things.  I got on to EWG's Skin Deep Cosmetics Database and really got a look at what was in our shampoo, conditioner, and body wash.  Yikes!
Some people have said that they went through a greasy, flaky stage while their scalps made too much oil (the shampoo conditions our heads so we HAVE to wash our hair more often).  The idea of running around looking like I don't have running water has been my biggest deterrent.  I don't want an oil slick-head nor an itchy scalp.  Yuck!  But as I read more, it appeared that it's not the same for everyone, and if you use baking soda and/or apple cider vinegar (or lemon juice) then you're less likely to have such a gross reaction. 
 

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Well, today I took the plunge.  I washed my hair with baking soda water.  It felt really good and I could hear my hair squeaking!  Really clean!  Next time I will be trying the apple cider vinegar water because from what I've read it helps smooth the hair down.  I'm feeling a bit frizzy today.  Though part of that may be because I have a hard time not turning the water to super hot.  Plus, I didn't use any silicones. 
 
I'll keep you all posted on how this experiment works.  I'm not going to write out a how-to at this point since I don't even know what truly works, though it appears that everyone is slightly different (no surprise).  If you'd like to read more detailed accounts of other womens' experience going shampoo-free, go here, here, and here. 
 

Today I Thought About the News and Our Future.

This post is going to be religious. I know that religion can be a touchy subject for some, so if that is you - please go ahead and skip today's thoughts. :)


Everywhere I look online, people are talking about Osama bin Laden's death. Facebook statuses are dedicated to it. The news is talking of nothing else. Many bloggers are posting on this event. There are so many different feelings being expressed on this one happening; some I agree with, some I don't. Mainly, I have felt glad that there is one less terrorist leader running free to hurt people. But I have also felt worry, because this guy had friends and many people ready to step in and fill his shoes. It sounds like our government expects a retaliation of some sort at some point. Reading that made me feel unsafe.

Then I read this article/talk by Elder Nelson. It speaks of hope, faith in our Heavenly Father, and the ability to look forward to the future while being of good cheer. He doesn't say everything is going to be all pretty unicorns and confetti. Actually, far from it. He says that we can expect tough times, but he quoted scripture where God promises to take care of those who follow Jesus Christ.  Now, I've done enough reading and lived enough years to know that I can trust the promises Heavenly Father makes. Reading this made me feel better and calmer. It soothed my worked up fears and worries and gave me some peace. I want to share that with you. Regardless of what church you go to, God has assured us that He will protect His own.

To quote Isaiah 49:25 - "But thus saith the Lord, Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken away, and the prey of the terrible shall be delivered: for I will contend with him that contendeth with thee, and I will save thy children." **sigh of relief** I don't know about you, but my greatest worries rotate around my children and this scripture slowed my anxiety and warmed my heart.  He will save my babies.  I will place all my thoughts, hopes, and doubts on this promise and look forward to the future with faith.

How have the recent events made you feel?

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