Giving Makes the Giver Happy Too!

Making handcrafted items is a dying art, but they are so fun to make & get! So, here's a little game to encourage the handcrafting to live & thrive!! The first 5 people to leave a comment on this post will receive, at some point during the year, a super-duper handmade gift from me.What it will be and when it will arrive is a total surprise!The catch is that you must participate as well-before you leave your comment here, write up (or copy & paste as I did!) a pay it forward post on your blog to keep the fun going. Then come back, let me know you're going to play, and sit back and anticipate the arrival of your gift! Remember that only the first FIVE comments will receive a gift from me, so be quick!

This offer does have some restrictions and limitations:1. I make no guarantees that you will like what I make!2. It will be done this year (hopefully sooner than later.)3. You will have no clue what it is going to be.

C'mon, you know you wanna play!

Things I love!

I started thinking about all of my "favorite" things the other day, as I went throughout my day. I made a list & thought I would share it:

1. Netflix -- we just got a subscription & are using it like crazy! Its a nice break to have a movie to watch either online or with a dvd after Chase has gone to bed or for a date night.
2. Ken's Steakhouse Honey Mustard -- I just love honey mustard but have never been able to find a restaurant style honey mustard at the store. When I found this brand, I knew I wouldn't miss going out to eat this year!
3. Dove chocolate!
4. Taste of Home magazine & cookbooks -- awesome recipes for real people!
5. Clorox toilet brush
6. Swiffer sweeper - great for picking up all my hair that I lose; I keep it in my bathroom & use it every day after I do my hair.
7. Manicures -- I just got my first one a few months ago. If you've never gotten one, you just have to do it!
8. Wii -- we love playing on our Wii and being a little more active some evenings; we love just the basic sports package that comes with the Wii; tennis is the best!
9. Jon Schmidt -- incredible piano music; I love his stuff!
10. NCIS -- a new favorite tv show; a little quirky, but lots of fun
11. Altoids -- the new chocolate dipped creme de menthe ones are sooo good!
12. Baby Wise -- great book that gets your baby on a schedule; Chase was sleeping through the night by 7 weeks thanks to this great book!
13. Homeology -- all natural cleaners that I sell through Gold Canyon, incredible fragrances, so natural & they work!
14. What Not to Wear -- a favorite tv show on TLC
15. Brite Music -- great music for kids
16. Anita Stansfield -- a favorite author of LDS fiction
17. Sandra Boynton -- a great author of children's board books
18. Gold Canyon candles -- of course I sell these, but I do it because I love them & so does everyone who tries them!
19. Reflections of Christ -- this is the cd I'm currently listening to; can't get enough of it!
20. Weight Watchers -- you can find all sorts of great weight watchers recipes out there that taste great & are good for you
21. Emerge -- body products by Gold Canyon; I love that this stuff keeps my skin moisturized!
22. Kohls -- favorite clothing store to shop!
23. Loreal mineral makeup -- more expensive, but the stuff lasts forever & I love it!
24. Max Factor Lipfinity -- this stuff stays on ALL DAY; no joke - won't come off when you kiss someone, take a drink, etc.

IVF - could we end up with octuplets?!!

Of course, the story of the octuplets conceived through IVF has been widely publicized and debated. I just found out about an article that addresses some interesting stuff & the doctor that they quote is actually a dr. with the clinic that we use: Shady Grove Fertility

Here's the link for the article: http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2009-03-03-invitro-fertilization_N.htm#uslPageReturn

We will most likely be using 2 embryos this time, though we used just a single one when we got Chase. As is addressed in the article, ours is an issue of insurance. Insurance covers 50% of the costs for us (but doesn't cover the medications at all) and also has a limit that when we reach it, they won't cover any more. So, we're willing to take the risks associated with twins, but not more than that. Shady Grove is excels when it comes to fertility treatments & we have been so impressed with their concerns over multiple birth possibilities as well as their advancements in technology. We're thrilled to be doing our procedures with them!

$50 kids shoes!

I can't believe I spent over $50 on a pair of shoes for Chase today! Jeff doesn't know yet, so . . . shhhhh!LOL

Over the past year, I have purchased several different pairs of shoes & none of them ended up working for us. Usually it was a case of not being able to get the shoes on his feet, but if we were able to squeeze his feet inside the shoe then they wouldn't stay on for more than a minute or two. So, I've wasted a lot of money on cheap shoes.

Today, we went to the mall to the Stride Rite store. I've never been there before & I was impressed! You get one-on-one service to pick out the right shoes. They asked if Chase was walking yet and that determined the selection of shoes that we got to pick from. They measured his feet to determine a size and discovered that his feet weren't as pudgy as we thought and could easily fit shoes after all -- he just needed the right ones. We chose the styles to try on & then they brought them out & put them on him, had him stand up so they could feel how the fit was and then had him walk around. (That was pretty funny to see him trying to figure that one out, it involved high & wide stepping on his part, like he was trying to climb over something.) After picking out the right pair of shoes, they took a picture of him in his first shoes and encouraged me to keep the shoes on him instead of taking them off & putting them back in the box.

It was great service & I was impressed! And even after we left, he kept the shoes on for quite a while today, though he kept grabbing at his feet trying to figure out what those things on his feet were!

Here we go again!

So here we are on a very similar path that we were on almost 2 years ago, working towards an Invitro (IVF) procedure. I thought that this time would be easier since we already have a baby. So far, it hasn't been that easy. The hormones swirling around from the medications and all the poking & prodding at my body add to my already edgy state of being since we're adding doctor's appointments and everything else into our already busy lives.

However, this time we're doing a "frozen" cycle as opposed to a "fresh" cycle. In simple terms, it means that I have to take fewer medications, will have fewer doctors appointments, and the cost will be less. But it also means that we have a much lower chance of actually getting a baby out of it.

Poor Jeff is dealing with me & my emotional rollercoaster as best he can and I am so grateful for his patience with me. Last night, I had to apologize for being so "mad" all the time and made a promise to myself to do better today. So far, its been a good day and I'll hope that I can make it through the day as a "nice" person. I think I just need to take it one day at a time, but that's always easier said than done.

In the end, will it be worth it? Chase is definitely worth the 10 years of heartache, thousands of dollars & many miserable medical procedures that we had to go through to get him. So, if we get another baby, yes, it will definitely be worth it.

The Joys of Teething

The past couple of weeks have been difficult with Chase trying to cut some nasty teeth. As the ever-happy baby, he still has moments of lots of fun, but these are also combined with moments of frustration, complaining, whining, and crying -- and not just by me, but by Chase, too!

Its been a tough couple of weeks & I find that when Chase gets in a real stinker of a mood, its best for us to load up and get out of the house. We've been going to the mall to walk around or just out for a drive to run errands. How I wish we were back in Arizona so we could go out for a walk during the day, but its been way too cold here.

Last Thursday, we spent the day in bed, with Chase curled up in my arms, drifting in and out of sleep all day. Even though it completely messed up my plans for the day, I had to enjoy it since Chase will normally not let me hold him for more than a few seconds, let alone snuggle up in my arms. While I did feel bad for the pain he was in, I had to sit back and enjoy being able to just hold my son.

I guess we have to find the joy in everything. I'm not usually very good at that, but I am grateful I was able to on that day.

Chase Turns ONE!

Warning: This post contains what could be considered "picture overload", due to first time parents who think their kid is the cutest thing in the world!

Chase turned ONE this week! Wow -- I think I was more sentimental on this day than I was when he was born. In my defense, I went through a lot of complications while giving birth and so while it was great to have a baby I was also dealing with a lot of other "stuff". I truly enjoyed Chase's first birthday, without having to worry about anything else but being with my kiddo.

In the morning, Chase & I went to the store together to get the last couple of ingredients I needed for his birthday cake. He was mesmerized by all the valentine balloons all over the store, so I bought a red balloon for him and he seemed excited by it -- until it got too close, which made him extremely nervous; it was too cute!

About mid-day, I realized that I hadn't purchased birthday candles for the cake and by this time had decided to make cupcakes -- easier for our small family of 3 to avoid eating an entire cake, since we could freeze some cupcakes & share some at a meeting that I had coming up later in the week. So, it was off to the store again to buy the candles & cupcake wrappers.

When we returned home, there was a box at the front door. My sweet husband had sent me flowers with a message, "It may be his birthday, but you did all the work!" It made my day, and yes, made me even more emotional! Chase enjoyed playing with the bubble wrap that came in the package (completely supervised, of course).

When Jeff came home from work, we had a quick dinner of Chase's favorite foods (hot dogs & french fries). Then we headed to the mall for ice cream and a ride on some of the coin operated toys. How can a little boy instinctively know to turn the steering wheel back & forth? He really enjoyed the fun at the mall, as did we!

Back at the house, Chase got to unwrap presents and enjoy his birthday cupcake, once he figured out that it was something he was supposed to eat & not just a toy. We had fun spending the rest of the evening playing with his new toys. What a blessing it is to have this cute little boy in our lvies!

Yay!!!

"So, I'm supposed to eat this thing?!

"Alright, its bubble wrap!"

Keeping an eye on that balloon . . . who knows what its up to!

And that's my birthday boy!