I waited for quite some time for this book. From his first appearance in the series, I loved Christian Notte. I was so excited to finally read his story. Sadly, though, I was disappointed.
(Stop here if you don't like hearing about what happens in a book before you read it.)
The basic premise is this: a friend drags Carolyn Connor to St. Lucia for a vacation while waiting for her divorce to finalize. She meets Marguerite, who senses that Carolyn is Christian's lifemate and volunteers his band to come play there so he can find her. This would have been an intriguing set-up, especially since immortals don't do well with sunny locations, except for one other plot device. Knowing that Carolyn is bothered by how young Christian seems to be, the family tells her that he's gay and gets her to be his pretend girlfriend as a cover.
I suppose even that wouldn't have bothered me too much if it hadn't lasted for about 50-60% of the book. Seriously. Carolyn stupidly believes he is gay for over half of the story. He in no way acts gay. He even kisses her a couple of times, which she somehow manages to dismiss. The plot device grew old fast. It is hard to feel a connection between characters when one of them is so seriously misinformed about the other. It is also hard to create chemistry, and these two seriously lacked it. I found myself disliking Carolyn because she was just so oblivious.
Now for the real spoilers.
The end of the book was the worst. In the last quarter of the story, Christian finally tells Carolyn he isn't gay. Her reaction? To paraphrase, "I can't believe he lied. Oh wait, he's hot. Let's just have sex." Then she finds out he's an immortal and flees back to her vacation villa. He comes over, tells her he's not a bad vampire, and she just accepts it. It almost reads like "I can't believe you're a vampire. Oh wait, you're hot. Let's just have sex."
THEN we learn that her friend Bethany, the one who brought her, was trying to get her to commit suicide so that Bethany could hook up with Carolyn's almost-ex after he inherited Carolyn's fortune. Wait, what? Where did this even come from? There were vague hints of this kind of thing, but it doesn't come up until maybe the last 2-3 pages. Carolyn puts Bethany on the phone with another friend, and then she and Christian just leave. That's it. The end. I literally flipped between pages a few times wondering if part of the ending had been lost, but the preview of her next book was there, so I'm guessing not.
From the awkward interactions between characters to the abrupt, unbelievable ending, I was extremely disappointed by this book. I typically love Lynsay Sands' work, so it makes me doubly sad to give a book of hers a poor review. Unless you really can't stand not reading every book in a series, I recommend giving this one a pass.
Friday, May 11, 2012
Wednesday, November 30, 2011
Have a Happy Merry Holidays Christmas
It has been a couple of months since I've posted. The business I'm starting, Eclectic Willow, has begun to have some success, so much of my time has been split between my family and work. But there is one issue that bothers me so much that I just had to post--the "Happy Holidays" vs. "Merry Christmas" debate.
When I was a kid, people said "Happy Holidays" all the time. It wasn't a big deal. No one I knew took it as a foul insult or assault on their religion. My understanding was always that "Merry Christmas" referred largely to Christmas day while "Happy Holidays" was used more generally to cover the time between Thanksgiving and New Year's. It was also used when one was not sure of another person's religion, since it could cover any holiday occurring during that time range. It was a way to say that you hoped that time of year was wonderful.
Now? Now you might as well say "Christmas is an invalid religion which you have no right to celebrate. Become Satanist. Become Atheist. Jump off a bridge. Bah Humbug, and I hope your life sucks." At least to some people. I've actually heard of a cashier who got told off for saying "Happy Holidays". In a similar vein, it annoys me when non-Christians get upset if someone says "Merry Christmas". They are just being nice.
To me, getting angry at someone for saying "Happy Holidays" OR "Merry Christmas" is basically like telling someone to shove it when they tell you to have a good day. These are polite, well-meant phrases of goodwill that no one has to say to you. Why are we making a habit of rejecting goodwill? Good. Will. Who cares if it doesn't follow your personal religion or creed? Does it really matter if your cashier at the grocery store celebrates the same way you do? They are wishing you happiness and joy.
Really, isn't there enough conflict in the world without getting all worked up about this? When you tell someone off for saying "Happy Holidays" or "Merry Christmas", aren't you defeating the entire purpose of this time of year?
Christians: Maybe you think everyone should be Christian and celebrate Christmas. That's cool. But what kind of example are you showing when you tell someone off who was just being nice? Your anger and your conflict turn more people away from Christ than will draw them to Him. WWJD is a good question here. I personally think He would say "Happy Holidays", bless them, and move on.
Non-Christians: Like it or not, Christianity is the major religion in much of the United States. You don't have to follow it. Your faith or lack thereof is your own personal matter. When someone says "Merry Christmas", 99% of the time they are not insulting you or your religious choice. They have probably just assumed that you are a member of the majority religion. Say "Merry Christmas" back and go on with your day. Even if you don't celebrate it, they clearly do, and your response is meant for them anyway. Acting like an asshat is only going to make Christians more hostile to those rude non-Christians.
It seems like politeness is hard to come by these days. As I mentioned above, no one has to wish you a good day, a good month, or a happy holiday season. They do this out of kindness. Other times of the year, we are lucky to get any kind of good wishes. So stop getting worked up about the form this kindness takes. This is a beautiful time of year, a time that should not be marred by endless arguments over which phrase of goodwill is more appropriate. Accept the blessing you are given. Go home, have some hot chocolate, and enjoy this merry season.
When I was a kid, people said "Happy Holidays" all the time. It wasn't a big deal. No one I knew took it as a foul insult or assault on their religion. My understanding was always that "Merry Christmas" referred largely to Christmas day while "Happy Holidays" was used more generally to cover the time between Thanksgiving and New Year's. It was also used when one was not sure of another person's religion, since it could cover any holiday occurring during that time range. It was a way to say that you hoped that time of year was wonderful.
Now? Now you might as well say "Christmas is an invalid religion which you have no right to celebrate. Become Satanist. Become Atheist. Jump off a bridge. Bah Humbug, and I hope your life sucks." At least to some people. I've actually heard of a cashier who got told off for saying "Happy Holidays". In a similar vein, it annoys me when non-Christians get upset if someone says "Merry Christmas". They are just being nice.
To me, getting angry at someone for saying "Happy Holidays" OR "Merry Christmas" is basically like telling someone to shove it when they tell you to have a good day. These are polite, well-meant phrases of goodwill that no one has to say to you. Why are we making a habit of rejecting goodwill? Good. Will. Who cares if it doesn't follow your personal religion or creed? Does it really matter if your cashier at the grocery store celebrates the same way you do? They are wishing you happiness and joy.
Really, isn't there enough conflict in the world without getting all worked up about this? When you tell someone off for saying "Happy Holidays" or "Merry Christmas", aren't you defeating the entire purpose of this time of year?
Christians: Maybe you think everyone should be Christian and celebrate Christmas. That's cool. But what kind of example are you showing when you tell someone off who was just being nice? Your anger and your conflict turn more people away from Christ than will draw them to Him. WWJD is a good question here. I personally think He would say "Happy Holidays", bless them, and move on.
Non-Christians: Like it or not, Christianity is the major religion in much of the United States. You don't have to follow it. Your faith or lack thereof is your own personal matter. When someone says "Merry Christmas", 99% of the time they are not insulting you or your religious choice. They have probably just assumed that you are a member of the majority religion. Say "Merry Christmas" back and go on with your day. Even if you don't celebrate it, they clearly do, and your response is meant for them anyway. Acting like an asshat is only going to make Christians more hostile to those rude non-Christians.
It seems like politeness is hard to come by these days. As I mentioned above, no one has to wish you a good day, a good month, or a happy holiday season. They do this out of kindness. Other times of the year, we are lucky to get any kind of good wishes. So stop getting worked up about the form this kindness takes. This is a beautiful time of year, a time that should not be marred by endless arguments over which phrase of goodwill is more appropriate. Accept the blessing you are given. Go home, have some hot chocolate, and enjoy this merry season.
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
Truth in Advertising
When it comes to advertising, words do not always mean what you think they do. Forgive me if I've ranted about this before, but linguistic manipulation is a pet peeve of mine. What got me upset this time? Here's the front of a coupon attached to a Babies'R'Us circular:
Note the words here-- ANY (capitalized and bold) one regular-priced baby item. This sounds great. Then you look at the back:
Just look at that long list of exclusions. Foremost? Excludes ALL (caplitalized and bold) toys. Did the people who made this coupon misunderstand the meaning of 'all'? You know, "the whole of (used in referring to quantity, extent, or duration): all the cake; all the way; all year."
Their first use of 'all' is clearly not correct. They don't mean everything, after all, only some of the things. Can I apply that to the same 'all' they put on the back? Can I pick what I want to exclude from their exclusion policy?
This happens a lot with 'free', too. Buy X and get Y free. Except Y isn't free--didn't I have to buy X to get it? Free: "costing nothing; provided without charge: free entertainment." If I pay you money, it isn't free. It may be a bonus or an extra but not free.
Maybe I should send advertisers a free* dictionary including ALL** of the English language.
*Requires purchase of one item from my Etsy shop.
**Some words may be excluded at my discretion. You won't know if they're the ones you need until you are searching through said dictionary. Sorry.
Their first use of 'all' is clearly not correct. They don't mean everything, after all, only some of the things. Can I apply that to the same 'all' they put on the back? Can I pick what I want to exclude from their exclusion policy?
This happens a lot with 'free', too. Buy X and get Y free. Except Y isn't free--didn't I have to buy X to get it? Free: "costing nothing; provided without charge: free entertainment." If I pay you money, it isn't free. It may be a bonus or an extra but not free.
Maybe I should send advertisers a free* dictionary including ALL** of the English language.
*Requires purchase of one item from my Etsy shop.
**Some words may be excluded at my discretion. You won't know if they're the ones you need until you are searching through said dictionary. Sorry.
Help for Teething Babies
Just a quick post to tell my parent friends out there about a great giveaway. If you have a teething baby, check out this Teething Bling pendant giveaway. In case you aren't familiar with the company, Teething Bling makes a variety of necklaces designed for babies to chew on. They are free of chemicals and toxins that might harm your child. You can find them here on Facebook.
Thursday, August 25, 2011
Little Pieces
There are some tasks that are just too big to be contemplated at once. Well, at least for me.
I'm the type of person who gets easily overwhelmed. I still remember when we moved into our current house. Instead of taking them to the proper room, the movers stacked most of our boxes in a big box mountain in a single room. We called it Mt. Boxmore. I hated that pile. Take one box off, and it still seemed like it hadn't been touched. It took a long time and a lot of help to get that pile unpacked. I still hadn't learned how to focus on the little pieces.
Oddly enough, though, I had unconsciously started my writing process in just that way. I don't know how most writers work, but I start a new file for each chapter. Only when I am finished do I combine that chapter into one file with all the rest. I didn't think about why I did this, but it makes so much sense to me now. If I tried to write everything in one big file, I would get too overwhelmed. I know I can finish a chapter. It is a small goal, an accomplishment I can feel good about during the greater process. It keeps my book from feeling like Mt. Boxmore.
I'm finally started to actively apply that to my life in other ways. I organized my pantry one shelf at a time. I set small goals that I know I can complete. It sounds SO very simple, but it isn't. When you are a perfectionist, it is a struggle to turn off the part of your brain that says you should be able to do everything at once (and do it well). But finally, I'm learning to celebrate the small steps.
Thank goodness for little pieces!
I'm the type of person who gets easily overwhelmed. I still remember when we moved into our current house. Instead of taking them to the proper room, the movers stacked most of our boxes in a big box mountain in a single room. We called it Mt. Boxmore. I hated that pile. Take one box off, and it still seemed like it hadn't been touched. It took a long time and a lot of help to get that pile unpacked. I still hadn't learned how to focus on the little pieces.
Oddly enough, though, I had unconsciously started my writing process in just that way. I don't know how most writers work, but I start a new file for each chapter. Only when I am finished do I combine that chapter into one file with all the rest. I didn't think about why I did this, but it makes so much sense to me now. If I tried to write everything in one big file, I would get too overwhelmed. I know I can finish a chapter. It is a small goal, an accomplishment I can feel good about during the greater process. It keeps my book from feeling like Mt. Boxmore.
I'm finally started to actively apply that to my life in other ways. I organized my pantry one shelf at a time. I set small goals that I know I can complete. It sounds SO very simple, but it isn't. When you are a perfectionist, it is a struggle to turn off the part of your brain that says you should be able to do everything at once (and do it well). But finally, I'm learning to celebrate the small steps.
Thank goodness for little pieces!
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
Friday, August 19, 2011
Babies, and Travel, and Fevers, Oh My!
What a week! It started off well. Monday, I had a babysitter for writing time and got to go take pictures with my friend Sarah. Tuesday, I left for my mom's house. My husband had a conference to go to, so the plan was to visit with my family, then meet him at the hotel on Thursday.
Well, Wednesday my daughter developed a high fever. 104.8! No walk-in clinic would see her, so I had to take her to the ER. An out of town visit to the ER with a 1 year old? No fun for anyone. I think Kira called the nurses "meanymeanymeany" quite a few times, as a matter of fact. Poor nurses. And after all the tests, the doctor could only say that she has a virus. Probably.
Yesterday, she did great. As long as she had her Motrin, she was playing and happy. The same this morning. So, I set out to meet my husband a couple of hours away. By the time I got to the hotel room, she had a fever again despite the Motrin. I gave her some Tylenol, and now she is resting in her playpen while I try not to panic.
As far as I can tell, traveling with a baby is a bit like playing roulette. There's just no telling what will happen. And we have a road trip coming up in a couple of weeks.
Eeep!
Well, Wednesday my daughter developed a high fever. 104.8! No walk-in clinic would see her, so I had to take her to the ER. An out of town visit to the ER with a 1 year old? No fun for anyone. I think Kira called the nurses "meanymeanymeany" quite a few times, as a matter of fact. Poor nurses. And after all the tests, the doctor could only say that she has a virus. Probably.
Yesterday, she did great. As long as she had her Motrin, she was playing and happy. The same this morning. So, I set out to meet my husband a couple of hours away. By the time I got to the hotel room, she had a fever again despite the Motrin. I gave her some Tylenol, and now she is resting in her playpen while I try not to panic.
As far as I can tell, traveling with a baby is a bit like playing roulette. There's just no telling what will happen. And we have a road trip coming up in a couple of weeks.
Eeep!
Monday, August 8, 2011
Vacation from Vacation!
We went on our first vacation with Kira a couple of weeks ago. Whew! Going on vacation with a one year-old is an experience. I'd planned to post from the beach, but I spent most of my time trying to keep the baby out of, well, everything. We stayed with my in-laws, who live near the beach, and Kira was more than happy to explore their house. It took me a week to recover from my vacation.
I thought I would start out this week with vacation highlights.
I took this shot at the Gulf Shores Zoo. Though it is a small zoo, I love the atmosphere. See that rail at the bottom? That's how close we were to the tiger. This is not my long-range lense! You can see the fence in the next picture, where Kira is looking at the tiger: 
I thought I would start out this week with vacation highlights.
I took this shot at the Gulf Shores Zoo. Though it is a small zoo, I love the atmosphere. See that rail at the bottom? That's how close we were to the tiger. This is not my long-range lense! You can see the fence in the next picture, where Kira is looking at the tiger: 
Kira didn't seem too sure of the beach. As long as her feet didn't touch the sand, she was okay. She enjoyed watching the waves and playing with her beach toys (so long as they weren't in sand).
We also went to Fort Morgan, a Civil War fort. I took lots of pictures, but these two were my favorites:
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Blogging Burnout
A few weeks ago, I joined a great site, voiceBoks. Now let me start out by saying that this is a great community, and no one there is in any way responsible for my burnout. The fault is entirely mine, and I highly recommend this site for women bloggers. But here's what happened.
At voiceBoks, there are lots of events that you can join, events designed to increase your GFC and Twitter followers, Facebook likes, etc. I made the mistake of trying to join too many at once. I wanted to be social and to participate, and I was excited. This was great, at first. I've found lots of wonderful blogs to read, and I'm still happy with the community. But after I found myself frantically trying to return follows one night before the event closed, I realized that my enthusiasm took me too far.
I've been meaning to post all week. I had a candlemaking post planned for Tuesday and birthday party pictures for Wordless Wednesday. Problem is, I've just lacked the motivation. I spent so much time networking and blogging that the thought of looking at blogs has been somewhat repulsive. I have avoided Blogger all week.
I guess the lesson here is not to try to take on too much at once. I have a lot of things going on. I'm trying to finish the book I'm writing (on the last chapter or so!), start a crafting business, and blog, and all of these things take a back seat to raising my daughter. I'll still participate at voiceBoks, but I think I need to slow it down. Burnout is not a useful thing.
Tell me, how do you avoid burnout?
At voiceBoks, there are lots of events that you can join, events designed to increase your GFC and Twitter followers, Facebook likes, etc. I made the mistake of trying to join too many at once. I wanted to be social and to participate, and I was excited. This was great, at first. I've found lots of wonderful blogs to read, and I'm still happy with the community. But after I found myself frantically trying to return follows one night before the event closed, I realized that my enthusiasm took me too far.
I've been meaning to post all week. I had a candlemaking post planned for Tuesday and birthday party pictures for Wordless Wednesday. Problem is, I've just lacked the motivation. I spent so much time networking and blogging that the thought of looking at blogs has been somewhat repulsive. I have avoided Blogger all week.
I guess the lesson here is not to try to take on too much at once. I have a lot of things going on. I'm trying to finish the book I'm writing (on the last chapter or so!), start a crafting business, and blog, and all of these things take a back seat to raising my daughter. I'll still participate at voiceBoks, but I think I need to slow it down. Burnout is not a useful thing.
Tell me, how do you avoid burnout?
Thursday, July 14, 2011
Happy Birthday, Kira!
Today is my daughter's first birthday. It is so hard to believe that it has been a year already! A year ago today, I was trying to figure out how to take care of a new life who already ruled my heart. Kira is the light of my life, and I am so lucky to have been blessed with her.
I love you, Kira! Thank you for being my wonderful daughter!
I love you, Kira! Thank you for being my wonderful daughter!
Wednesday, July 13, 2011
The Gerber Generation
A couple of days ago, I decided to buy Kira a Gerber Graduates cheese ravioli meal. My thinking was that it would be easy to cut into small pieces, and that was indeed the case. The only problem? I don't know what that stuff is made of, but it isn't food.
She made the worst face when she tried the first bite. Then, I got the "what is this? have you lost your mind!?" look. The look that says I am too crazy to even be babbled at. Wondering what could be wrong with cheese ravioli, I popped one into my mouth. Without another word, I went and got her something else to eat. How, Gerber, how can you go wrong with cheese ravioli?
You know how American cheese says "Processed Cheese Product" on the label? Honestly, I don't think this meal could even qualify for that. I couldn't even taste fake cheese flavoring. No wonder she didn't want to eat it.
My daughter will happily snatch up pieces of rice and chicken from the Mexican restaurant and curry at the Thai place. She loves to eat what we are eating, and that makes me happy. I thought the occassional Gerber meal would be good for lunch if I was super busy, but Kira will have none of it. And who could blame her?
I've seen children who will only eat chicken nuggets and fries at every restaurant. Sometimes, that's just a phase. But I have to wonder if sometimes that is caused by a generation of children raised on these Gerber Graduate meals. They are bland to the point of ridiculousness when few spices cause children any bother. How many children think that is what food is supposed to be?
I've decided that if I want a quick and easy lunch for Kira, I'll just make extra real ravioli next time we have it and put it in the freezer. Thawing might not be quite as fast, but it will be so, so much better. In more ways than one.
She made the worst face when she tried the first bite. Then, I got the "what is this? have you lost your mind!?" look. The look that says I am too crazy to even be babbled at. Wondering what could be wrong with cheese ravioli, I popped one into my mouth. Without another word, I went and got her something else to eat. How, Gerber, how can you go wrong with cheese ravioli?
You know how American cheese says "Processed Cheese Product" on the label? Honestly, I don't think this meal could even qualify for that. I couldn't even taste fake cheese flavoring. No wonder she didn't want to eat it.
My daughter will happily snatch up pieces of rice and chicken from the Mexican restaurant and curry at the Thai place. She loves to eat what we are eating, and that makes me happy. I thought the occassional Gerber meal would be good for lunch if I was super busy, but Kira will have none of it. And who could blame her?
I've seen children who will only eat chicken nuggets and fries at every restaurant. Sometimes, that's just a phase. But I have to wonder if sometimes that is caused by a generation of children raised on these Gerber Graduate meals. They are bland to the point of ridiculousness when few spices cause children any bother. How many children think that is what food is supposed to be?
I've decided that if I want a quick and easy lunch for Kira, I'll just make extra real ravioli next time we have it and put it in the freezer. Thawing might not be quite as fast, but it will be so, so much better. In more ways than one.
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Me and Dr. Sears
Brace yourselves. I am about to speak words of blasphemy to many new mothers. Ready? Do you have your fingers in the angry-comment position? Okay.
I do not like Dr. Sears.
There, I said it. Now, I have nothing against the man personally. I've never met him or interacted with him in any way, so it would be entirely unfair to dislike him on that level. What I don't like is the phenomenon that is Dr. Sears. The figurehead. The ultimate authority.
Dr. Sears is everywhere. Open up a magazine on babies and toddlers, and chances are good that you'll find an article written by him. Baby products proudly announce that they are endorsed by Dr. Sears. "But he is full of wisdom about babies," you might say. I'm sure that is true. I'm sure that his advice has helped plenty of parents.
That being said, he is not the god of pediatricians. "Because Dr. Sears said so" should not be the end of any discussion. I have encountered that attitude entirely too often. Your method of parenting is not necessarily better just because it is endorsed by Dr. Sears. There are other pediatricians and baby experts in the world, and I can even have an opinion different from all of them.
Really, I think we rely on "experts" entirely too often for things that are not serious health questions. Maybe it goes back to that need for validation that I've mentioned before. We as parents need some way to say "I'm doing a good job because..." But these experts are not in our homes with our babies. Their advice can be useful, but it shouldn't be used as an ultimate authority.
It is time to rely more on Dr. Mom and Dr. Dad.
I do not like Dr. Sears.
There, I said it. Now, I have nothing against the man personally. I've never met him or interacted with him in any way, so it would be entirely unfair to dislike him on that level. What I don't like is the phenomenon that is Dr. Sears. The figurehead. The ultimate authority.
Dr. Sears is everywhere. Open up a magazine on babies and toddlers, and chances are good that you'll find an article written by him. Baby products proudly announce that they are endorsed by Dr. Sears. "But he is full of wisdom about babies," you might say. I'm sure that is true. I'm sure that his advice has helped plenty of parents.
That being said, he is not the god of pediatricians. "Because Dr. Sears said so" should not be the end of any discussion. I have encountered that attitude entirely too often. Your method of parenting is not necessarily better just because it is endorsed by Dr. Sears. There are other pediatricians and baby experts in the world, and I can even have an opinion different from all of them.
Really, I think we rely on "experts" entirely too often for things that are not serious health questions. Maybe it goes back to that need for validation that I've mentioned before. We as parents need some way to say "I'm doing a good job because..." But these experts are not in our homes with our babies. Their advice can be useful, but it shouldn't be used as an ultimate authority.
It is time to rely more on Dr. Mom and Dr. Dad.
Friday, July 8, 2011
The Difference a Week Makes
It is amazing how quickly babies change. You hear that statement so many times, but when you are struggling with a transition, it can be hard to believe it. So goes the sippy cup saga. Was it just a little over a week ago that she finally started drinking from the sippy? Yesterday, she took all of her milk from sippy cups without a complaint. It didn't even mess up her bedtime routine!
I suppose this has me feeling a little philosophical. How often do we feel like a situation in our lives can never change? When you are in the middle of said situation, it is difficult to consider that it will ever end. But you just never know. I have no idea why Kira went from zero interest in her sippy cups to loving them. It just happened. That kind of unexpected, unexplained change can happen in other areas of your life, too.
I've had a lot of trouble with postpartum depression and anxiety, and at times, I feel like I'll never get better. But hey, I never know what day my hormones might settle down. I could go back to feeling normal tomorrow. One thing is for sure, though: as long as I keep feeling like things will stay the same emotionally, then they certainly will.
It is hard to remember to look on the bright side. You never know when a negative will become a positive.
I suppose this has me feeling a little philosophical. How often do we feel like a situation in our lives can never change? When you are in the middle of said situation, it is difficult to consider that it will ever end. But you just never know. I have no idea why Kira went from zero interest in her sippy cups to loving them. It just happened. That kind of unexpected, unexplained change can happen in other areas of your life, too.
I've had a lot of trouble with postpartum depression and anxiety, and at times, I feel like I'll never get better. But hey, I never know what day my hormones might settle down. I could go back to feeling normal tomorrow. One thing is for sure, though: as long as I keep feeling like things will stay the same emotionally, then they certainly will.
It is hard to remember to look on the bright side. You never know when a negative will become a positive.
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
First Birthday Madness
Baby's first birthday is coming up in a couple of weeks, and I have to admit it--I've started going just a little crazy about it. Don't get me wrong. I'm not going to be featured on TLC's Outrageous Kid Parties. There won't be a petting zoo, circus, or fair rides. Heck, there won't even be a clown. It is more that I have become obsessed with the details.
First, I had to find the right theme. Kira loves giraffes, so I went to Party City and various craft stores in search of a jungle-themed party set. For baby's first birthday, they had: Sesame Street, Princess, and Sports themes. Thankfully, partycity.com had this set:
Perfect! (Why am I so obsessed with this?)
The other big question: What about the cake? I've been to Kroger, Publix, and Walmart in search of the perfect giraffe cake. Of course, the cute book full of cakes is focused on licensed themes from every kid's show you can think of with surprisingly few general ideas. I found one jungle cake at Walmart that would in no way match the above set.
My mom considered making the cake, but I stressed her out too much. That design is too round, I don't like the colors on that one, etc. We finally decided I should find a bakery so I wouldn't be mad at a family member if the cake was wrong. (In case you are wondering, Publix has a giraffe template and can use the colors from the plates and napkins. Here's hoping it looks good!)
This whole thing is rather odd to me, as I am usually easy-going about these kinds of details. I hated wedding planning because I just didn't care about most of the small stuff. Aside from my dress, I think someone else could have picked everything, and I would have shown up happy. Why am I worried about the dark green jungle cake matching the plate set? WHY?
I don't know. But I hope I don't drive my family crazy before the birthday party gets here. :)
First, I had to find the right theme. Kira loves giraffes, so I went to Party City and various craft stores in search of a jungle-themed party set. For baby's first birthday, they had: Sesame Street, Princess, and Sports themes. Thankfully, partycity.com had this set:
The other big question: What about the cake? I've been to Kroger, Publix, and Walmart in search of the perfect giraffe cake. Of course, the cute book full of cakes is focused on licensed themes from every kid's show you can think of with surprisingly few general ideas. I found one jungle cake at Walmart that would in no way match the above set.
My mom considered making the cake, but I stressed her out too much. That design is too round, I don't like the colors on that one, etc. We finally decided I should find a bakery so I wouldn't be mad at a family member if the cake was wrong. (In case you are wondering, Publix has a giraffe template and can use the colors from the plates and napkins. Here's hoping it looks good!)
This whole thing is rather odd to me, as I am usually easy-going about these kinds of details. I hated wedding planning because I just didn't care about most of the small stuff. Aside from my dress, I think someone else could have picked everything, and I would have shown up happy. Why am I worried about the dark green jungle cake matching the plate set? WHY?
I don't know. But I hope I don't drive my family crazy before the birthday party gets here. :)
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Morning Milk and Cuddles
If you remember one of my last posts, you know how much trouble I've had getting Kira to drink from a sippy cup. I'm happy to say that we've had a little progress on this. For the last two days, she has drunk almost all of the milk at her mid-day feeding from a straw sippy cup. I had to hold the cup the whole time, but hey, I'm still counting it as a win.
Now that she has started to drink from her sippy, I know it is time to begin moving her off bottles. Every day, I tell myself that I'll start tomorrow. Tomorrow, I'll get Kira up and dressed, then give her a sippy cup of milk in her high chair. Yep, I'll get right on that.
I know I should have started trying sooner to get her used to the concept, but I keep hesitating. This time, it is all me. See, I love our mornings. Kira starts to chatter in her crib, so I go make her milk. When I opened the door this morning, she started kicking her feet happily and saying a few words (?) of greeting, though sometimes she is standing up and jumping. I cuddle her in my lap in the glider and give her her milk. I can lean down and kiss her head and hug her close. It is a precious moment.
I guess it is hard to face that my baby is turning into a little girl more every day. If I had been able to breastfeed, I suppose these moments could have continued, but that was not to be. Right now, it is all on me to transition. I dread doing it. After her milk, Kira cuddles on my lap and often gives me hugs. The rest of the day, she wants to be on the go constantly. Will I lose that when she starts taking her milk from a sippy cup?
Only time will tell.
Now that she has started to drink from her sippy, I know it is time to begin moving her off bottles. Every day, I tell myself that I'll start tomorrow. Tomorrow, I'll get Kira up and dressed, then give her a sippy cup of milk in her high chair. Yep, I'll get right on that.
I know I should have started trying sooner to get her used to the concept, but I keep hesitating. This time, it is all me. See, I love our mornings. Kira starts to chatter in her crib, so I go make her milk. When I opened the door this morning, she started kicking her feet happily and saying a few words (?) of greeting, though sometimes she is standing up and jumping. I cuddle her in my lap in the glider and give her her milk. I can lean down and kiss her head and hug her close. It is a precious moment.
I guess it is hard to face that my baby is turning into a little girl more every day. If I had been able to breastfeed, I suppose these moments could have continued, but that was not to be. Right now, it is all on me to transition. I dread doing it. After her milk, Kira cuddles on my lap and often gives me hugs. The rest of the day, she wants to be on the go constantly. Will I lose that when she starts taking her milk from a sippy cup?
Only time will tell.
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Free Music Through Amazon!
Hey, guys, if you don't have a lot of spare money for music or like to try an artist before buying a whole album, this deal is for you. Actually, it is pretty much for anyone who likes music. Amazon has a $2 MP3 store credit with the code CLOUDMP3 through June 30th. You can CLICK HERE to get directly to the place where you enter the credit. I had to enter mine all in lowercase for some reason, but I have two free songs to add to my collection.
Also, if you have multiple devices and are tired of trying to save your music on all of them, give the Amazon Cloud Drive a try. You get up to 20 gigs of free music storage, and you can access that music from the internet. There's even a Cloud Player app for Android. I am totally in love with this service.
Also, if you have multiple devices and are tired of trying to save your music on all of them, give the Amazon Cloud Drive a try. You get up to 20 gigs of free music storage, and you can access that music from the internet. There's even a Cloud Player app for Android. I am totally in love with this service.
Friday, June 24, 2011
Candlemaking 101: The Workshop
Last week, thanks to help from my wonderful nephew, I finally got my craft room back in order:
This reminded me that I hadn't blogged about crafting in a while, so I thought I would do a few posts about candlemaking. I'm not going to try to tell you how to get an organized workroom; clearly, it can be done in a more organized manner than shown above. This post is more about what you will need to get started.
This picture shows most of the basic supplies:
1) A good work surface, either something you don't care about or something well-covered. Note the wax stains. Drips are common and accidents happen.
2) A hot plate of some kind.
3) A double boiler setup of some kind. You boil water in the bottom pot and cover that with a pot with holes in the bottom so the steam can come through. NEVER PUT A POT OF WAX DIRECTLY ON THE BURNER. Don't worry, I'll remind you when I go through making a candle.
4) A spatula. Silicone spatulas designed for high heat (not the cheapo ones) are perfect for stirring wax and working wax out of stubborn places.
5) Heat-resistant pads to put hot candles and wax pots on to cool.
6) Not shown: Oven mitt, apron, wax thermometer, and fire extinguisher. Hmm, maybe that last should have been number 1.
Candle molds are great, but you don't have to start with them. Tin and glass containers are excellent to learn in, and coffee cups are cheap at the dollar store. If you look at the first pictures, you can see the types of containers I currently have in my craft room.
I also have plastic and silicone molds not pictured. Plastic molds are cheaper, but I'm not a fan of them. I tend to prefer either metal molds or containers.
While you can use old tin cans, I recommend getting the pitchers made for melting wax. The handle and the spout have saved me a lot of burns, and it can be hard to get a precise pour from a tin can. However, if you are not sure you want to do much candlemaking, this isn't necessary.
You will, of course, need wax. This pitcher is for beeswax, and that is what beeswax looks like when it is cool. I prefer beeswax and soy because they are natural, but paraffin is pretty common. I'll list my favorite candle supply websites below if you want to see prices, though I recommend ebay for beeswax.
Wax dyes and scents are optional when you are first starting out, but they certainly make candlemaking more fun. You will also need wick (of course) and wick clips. I forgot to pull out a wick clip for the picture, but you'll see it when I do a tutorial on making the actual candle. (I believe that is soy wax in the glass cup, by the way. It tends to come in flakes.)
As promised, some of my favorite candlemaking supply websites:
www.lonestarcandlesupply.com
www.fromnaturewithlove.com
www.specialtybottle.com
www.peakcandle.com
www.thecandlemakersstore.com
www.cierracandles.com
 |
| Well, usable at least |
This picture shows most of the basic supplies:
1) A good work surface, either something you don't care about or something well-covered. Note the wax stains. Drips are common and accidents happen.
2) A hot plate of some kind.
3) A double boiler setup of some kind. You boil water in the bottom pot and cover that with a pot with holes in the bottom so the steam can come through. NEVER PUT A POT OF WAX DIRECTLY ON THE BURNER. Don't worry, I'll remind you when I go through making a candle.
4) A spatula. Silicone spatulas designed for high heat (not the cheapo ones) are perfect for stirring wax and working wax out of stubborn places.
5) Heat-resistant pads to put hot candles and wax pots on to cool.
6) Not shown: Oven mitt, apron, wax thermometer, and fire extinguisher. Hmm, maybe that last should have been number 1.
Candle molds are great, but you don't have to start with them. Tin and glass containers are excellent to learn in, and coffee cups are cheap at the dollar store. If you look at the first pictures, you can see the types of containers I currently have in my craft room.
I also have plastic and silicone molds not pictured. Plastic molds are cheaper, but I'm not a fan of them. I tend to prefer either metal molds or containers.
You will, of course, need wax. This pitcher is for beeswax, and that is what beeswax looks like when it is cool. I prefer beeswax and soy because they are natural, but paraffin is pretty common. I'll list my favorite candle supply websites below if you want to see prices, though I recommend ebay for beeswax.
Wax dyes and scents are optional when you are first starting out, but they certainly make candlemaking more fun. You will also need wick (of course) and wick clips. I forgot to pull out a wick clip for the picture, but you'll see it when I do a tutorial on making the actual candle. (I believe that is soy wax in the glass cup, by the way. It tends to come in flakes.)
As promised, some of my favorite candlemaking supply websites:
www.lonestarcandlesupply.com
www.fromnaturewithlove.com
www.specialtybottle.com
www.peakcandle.com
www.thecandlemakersstore.com
www.cierracandles.com
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
The (Anti) Sippy Cup Revolution
I might as well face it. I am going to be one of those mothers. The ones maligned in playgroups and motherhood forums. Yes, you guessed it--I'm still going to be giving my baby a bottle after she's a year old. Other mothers will give me dirty looks in public or smirk about my inferior parenting skills. How could I do such a thing? Don't I know that doomhorrordentistbillsOMG will descend upon my head?
Okay, maybe that's a bit dramatic, but I have heard people talk about how horrible it is for babies to have bottles after a year old. The truth is, they need to be convincing my 11 month old. I'm on board. We've bought multiple types of sippy cups (about 3 more types not pictured below), but my daughter will have none of them. Now, some of you might remember an earlier post about sippy cup success. It seemed that she would initially take the type on the bottom right, and she will chug water spiked with a dash of fruit juice out of the darn thing. But milk? Not so much.
 |
| My enemies |
The doctor told me at Kira's 9 month checkup that she should be drinking out of sippy cups by a year. He forgot to mention how to accomplish this feat against a willful baby. Lately, Kira's favorite game is "drink an ounce from the cup, then see how far I can throw it." You might be thinking that maybe she isn't thirsty, but that is not the case. She'll take the rest of the milk in a bottle.
It appears that she is having her own little revolution. She doesn't care about anyone else's plans. She wants the bottle, and that is what she will have. Mommy, doctors, and random passersby cannot change her mind.
Vive le biberon!
Friday, June 10, 2011
A Request for Votes
I'm not going to get a very long post up today. My niece and nephew are visiting, and so far, our fun hasn't involved much blogging. :) I did want to post a brief request, though. Please go vote for my baby in the Parenting Magazine's cover baby contest at this link.
How can you resist this face?
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
Baby Safety (Or a Lack Thereof)
I have a little bit of a rant, my friends. This isn't about people who endanger their children, though that could certainly be its own post. This is about companies that endanger our children without thought of the consequences.
You know the scenario: You are out and about with your baby when you smell that telltale scent of 'diaper needs changing.' So you go to the store's bathroom, pull down the changing station, and prepare to change that diaper. Now imagine my surprise the other day when I went to secure the safety strap (You use them, right? Concrete floors are hard.) and found that our local Wal-mart cut off the safety straps. This was clearly not negligence, a simple lack of knowledge about broken equipment. The straps were intentionally cut off close to the base, and I found this to be the case in the other bathroom. I've found plenty of broken or otherwise unusable safety straps at other changing stations.
Another common scenario: Your family is going out to eat, and you request a high chair for your baby. Many times this works fine. But there have been cases where restaurants have had to search through their chairs to find one with working safety straps. Now, I know that there are plenty of moms who don't use them. I see it all the time, especially with older babies. But when my daughter was six months, she didn't always sit up well, and at ten months, she likes to try to lean over and reach stuff she drops. Darn skippy I use those straps! We should not have to search through a stack of high chairs to find one that is actually safe.
I don't understand how companies can do this. Aside from obvious lawsuits (it's only a matter of time for our local Wal-mart), these are babies. How can you play with the safety of little babies just so you don't have to spend a few bucks on a new high chair? It is truly sad.
I wish more places would copy our local La Siesta restaurant. When I pointed out a broken plastic piece on a high chair, the waitress was horrified and took it to the manager immediately for replacement. We haven't had a broken one since. Much better than the server we had at O'Charley's who put two broken high chairs back on the stack without a word.
Anyone else run across this problem?
You know the scenario: You are out and about with your baby when you smell that telltale scent of 'diaper needs changing.' So you go to the store's bathroom, pull down the changing station, and prepare to change that diaper. Now imagine my surprise the other day when I went to secure the safety strap (You use them, right? Concrete floors are hard.) and found that our local Wal-mart cut off the safety straps. This was clearly not negligence, a simple lack of knowledge about broken equipment. The straps were intentionally cut off close to the base, and I found this to be the case in the other bathroom. I've found plenty of broken or otherwise unusable safety straps at other changing stations.
Another common scenario: Your family is going out to eat, and you request a high chair for your baby. Many times this works fine. But there have been cases where restaurants have had to search through their chairs to find one with working safety straps. Now, I know that there are plenty of moms who don't use them. I see it all the time, especially with older babies. But when my daughter was six months, she didn't always sit up well, and at ten months, she likes to try to lean over and reach stuff she drops. Darn skippy I use those straps! We should not have to search through a stack of high chairs to find one that is actually safe.
I don't understand how companies can do this. Aside from obvious lawsuits (it's only a matter of time for our local Wal-mart), these are babies. How can you play with the safety of little babies just so you don't have to spend a few bucks on a new high chair? It is truly sad.
I wish more places would copy our local La Siesta restaurant. When I pointed out a broken plastic piece on a high chair, the waitress was horrified and took it to the manager immediately for replacement. We haven't had a broken one since. Much better than the server we had at O'Charley's who put two broken high chairs back on the stack without a word.
Anyone else run across this problem?
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