Birthday Card Crafting

Who had the brilliant idea to make my little girl's birthday invitations by hand? Oh wait, that was me. :) It actually wasn't that bad - just very time consuming! I got the idea when we visited a local Amish store and the lady behind the counter was making cards by hand. They sell them in the store and have just about any kind you could want. They use different types of paper, colored pencils and stamps to make them. So I bought one of their little stamping kits and it's really pretty neat. It was also a pretty good deal - $8 for a stamp pad, 8 stamps and colored pencils. I know I'll use it for other craft projects too. I used some card stock for the invitations and cut around the edges with my scrapbooking scissors. I colored both sides and then decorated the front with the stamps and some stickers. Hubby printed off info for the back telling where the party was, what date and time, etc. It did take longer than just buying some cards from the store and filling them out but it was a fun project and each one is a little different. It will be something neat to put in Ellie's baby book too.

Theta Mom Thursday: Our Belated Valentine Dinner

I'm joining Theta Mom Thursday this month! Head over to Theta Mom's blog to leave your link if you'd like to participate too. It's hosted by Theta Mom (obviously!) and is a time once a month where moms blog about an hour that they found during the month to spend on themselves without the kiddos.
This past Tuesday, hubby and I went out for our belated Valentine's dinner. It was organized by our church's Bible Study group and was planned for right around Valentine's but got canceled due to the snowy weather. On a side note, if you've read my blog in the past you'll know that I'm a *huge* sci-fi fan and that Battlestar Galactica, or BSG as it's sometimes referred to, is one of my favorites. Hubby and I got a good chuckle out of the church bulletin that listed this Bible Study group event as "BSG Date Night." :) Anyway, it was rescheduled for this week. So on Tuesday afternoon, I took a nice uninterrupted shower, got some pretty clothes on, put in my contacts and even put on a little makeup! Of course, that didn't stop everyone from wanting to "help" me:

My grandma and my aunt came down to watch the kiddos and we took off. We went to a local steakhouse and had a lot of good food and good conversation. Our pastor had found out that day that he was cancer-free so that made the night even more wonderful for him - he has been battling it for quite awhile now. I don't know about the other table in the room but ours had a TON of laughter! I had fried shrimp and mashed potatoes for dinner; hubby had steak and mashed potatoes. We left there and went to a home improvement store (hubby could stay there all day!) and wandered around for awhile. Hubby picked up a thing or two and then we went over to Applebee's for a few drinks. We watched the Olympics at the bar, which neither of us had been watching at all this year, and talked. I tried a Bahama Mama and it was delicious - it's definitely on my favorite drink list. After that, we headed home to our wonderfully chaotic house and our children who acted like they hadn't seen us in seven years! The picture I posted yesterday of hubby and I is from that lovely evening. :)

Wordless Wednesday: Handsome Hubby & Me

To see my previous Wordless Wednesday posts, click here!

Post It Note Tuesday

Review and Giveaway: Covergirl ShadowBlast & ShineBlast

This giveaway is closed.

I've been a BzzAgent since 2007 when I accidentally stumbled upon their website. For anyone who doesn’t know what BzzAgent is, it's the leading word-of-mouth marketing company. You can sign up on their website and they will send you emails about new "campaigns" which feature different products and/or services they’d like for you to try and spread the word about. All you have to do in exchange for the products is submit a few reports on your opinion of the product, who you talked to about the product and their responses. Pretty simple, huh? The more reports you submit, the more benefits you will get like MyPoints, that you can redeem for gift cards and BzzPerks, which enable you to be notified of campaigns sooner, among other things. Since becoming a BzzAgent, I've gotten to try lots of neat products and have networked with a lot of other people who are also BzzAgents. I highly recommend them if you like try products (for free!) and have an opinion! (Who doesn't?) If you're already a BzzAgent, leave me a comment or add me HERE.

My review and giveaway today is about Covergirl ShadowBlast and ShineBlast. Here's some info on the products from Covergirl:

Not many of us can claim the talented hand of a professional make-up artist. But with Covergirl's new Smoky ShadowBlast and ShineBlast Lip Gloss, we don't have to. These new innovative tools and shades will amplify your eyes and play up your pout for looks that get you noticed, no make-up artist required.
SHADOWBLAST: The smoky eye just may be the most desired, yet most challenging look to achieve - but with Smoky ShadowBlast you can do it yourself in just two simple steps using one smart tool! This innovative new eye shadow features expertly coordinated shades and a unique double-ended stick with precision tips to let you easily apply colors, smudge and blend them to smoky perfection.
SHINEBLAST: This striking gloss boasts light reflecting shimmer, layed under a high gloss finish for attention-getting, bold, "look at me lip." While most lip glosses just have a traditional sponge tip (you know, the classic "slap it on and rub your lips" application), COVERGIRL ShineBlast Lip Gloss features a breakthrough applicator, the ShineSculpt. It's made from unique soft and flexible material that allows for its optimal tapered shape, comfortable feel and precise application. There’s science in that ShineSculpt!

I'll admit, I got VERY excited for this Bzz! When we got the mail and I opened up the big box of makeup from BzzAgent, I probably looked like my son when he gets mail! (You know, dancing up and down and smiling a cheesy grin!)
I don't wear makeup all the time but I do enjoy it. And I will admit that I am a lip gloss addict. I always have some in my pocket, the diaper bag, wherever - and even if I don't have time for makeup, I usually swipe some on as I go out the door. I found the ShineBlast to have just the right amount of shine. It wasn't overpowering, like "there's a strobe light on my lips" but it wasn't incredibly subtle either. I've tried some lip glosses in the past that was nice but smelled horrible. ShineBlast is not one of those. It barely has a smell, which is a plus for me. The colors I tried were nice - a few I thought were a little too light but all the others had a nice color.

I absolutely LOVED the ShadowBlast. It was a simple two-step product that I did in no time. It would definitely be a valuable product for a mom who's on the go or busy chasing after kiddos! And most importantly, it looked great! The smoky eye was surprisingly very easy to do. I received a variety of colors and they were all very vibrant - but not so vibrant that I could be mistaken for a clown. Overall, I really enjoyed the products. You can find them in any store where Covergirl is sold. The retail price for ShadowBlast is $7.99 and $7.49 for ShineBlast but I see coupons in the paper every Sunday for Covergirl so I'm sure you could find a deal on it. Below I posted a little picture of my mini-makeover, please don't mind the dark circles. :)

Now on to the giveaway! I'm giving away three (3) ShadowBlast eyeshadows and two (2) ShineBlast lip glosses to five (5) lucky readers! To enter this giveaway, comment telling me your favorite makeup product. (Also, don't forget to make sure and leave your email address if it's not already on your profile.) Other ways you can enter are as follows:

- Become a follower through Google Friend Connect or Networked Blogs (see the sidebar) OR if you are already a follower just leave a comment letting me know you already follow.

- Subscribe via feed reader or by email.

- Follow me on Twitter.

- Become a fan on Facebook.

- Tweet about this giveaway or post about it on your blog. (Don't forget to leave a link to your tweet or post!)

- Add my blog to your blogroll or display the button for my blog somewhere. (Please leave a link!)

- Vote for me HERE, HERE or HERE.

This giveaway will be open until Saturday March 6th (my daughter's birthday!) at 9 PM (EST). I will choose the winners via random.org and notify them via a blog post and email. Products will be shipped the following Monday. This giveaway is open to residents of the USA and Canada.

This COVERGIRL giveaway is courtesy of BzzAgent. I received the makeup in exchange for my opinion and for spreading word of mouth. The opinion in this review is my own.

Poster Photo Giveaway Winner

I meant to post this last night but the night got away from me! So without further ado, the winner of the Photo Poster Giveaway is...................

Lyn!

Lyn, I'll be sending you an email with more information! Thank you everyone for participating and reading my blog. I will be putting up a new giveaway today, if you're interested! :)

These Gorgeous Kids of Mine

I really have nothing to write about today so I'm posting some pictures instead! :)

Why I Love Laundry

I love folding clothes. I may not like a lot of other chores but folding clothes is therapeutic for me. I get a sense of accomplishment from it and it's something that can be done while I'm watching the kids or talking to them. It’s also a task where you can actually see your progress as you go along and when it's done, it's done! Other than putting the clothes away, of course.
Another reason I like folding laundry is because while I'm folding, I see our life unfold in each and every article of clothing. When my husband and I were first married, it was just my clothes and his. Well, and towels and sheets. Occasionally blankets. But you know what I mean. The clothes I have folded over the years for myself have shrunk and grown to accommodate my pregnant body and the {very} occasional weight loss. My husband's clothes have varied from his different job and family responsibilities – work shirts, pajamas, old clothes for working in the yard or other projects, church clothes. Some of our clothes have memories in them too - the shirt my husband wore the night we met, an old sweatshirt I got at a concert a long time ago, a favorite maternity shirt.
And then there's my kids. Their clothes (and the babies themselves) start out teeny tiny. And don't we just "ooh" and "aah" over all the witty bitty socks and the tiny little onesies? But for something so teeny tiny, they go through a LOT of clothes. All that puking, pooping, peeing and spitting up means changing them several times a day. But before you know it, they've grown out of the newborn, the 0 - 3 months, the 6 - 9 months and so on and so forth. Their clothes get bigger and bigger - and you go through the various stages, phases and trends. My son's clothes have been adorned with Pooh Bear, Thomas the Train, Spiderman and Star Wars, just to name a few. And before I know it, he'll be taller than me and probably arguing with me about pulling up his pants. ;)

I know time is only going to go faster...but it stops for a moment when I get to fold laundry.

Forgiveness

I find it so fascinating that every time I have gone to church recently - no matter what church - I hear exactly what I need to hear. It's really amazing what you'll hear when you truly open your eyes and ears. (Well...open your eyes, anyway. I don't know if someone can technically "open" their ears!)
We visited a different church a week or so ago and the pastor's sermon was on forgiveness. One thing that struck me in particular was "Biblical Forgiveness." He mentioned that when we're wronged and we tell someone we forgive them, it's supposed to be "Biblical Forgiveness," which means TRUE forgiveness. The kind of forgiveness that has no ifs, ands or buts. Biblical forgiveness is not any of these:


I forgive you...until you do it again!
I forgive you but I'll never forget.
I forgive you...but I'm going to bring it up the next time we argue.

We need to learn to forgive like God forgives. He doesn’t say, "I forgive you...except for that one thing you did. That was REALLY bad!" He doesn’t bring up past transgressions to remind us about them. Once he's forgiven them, they're gone - wiped clean. Micah 7:18-19 says, "Who is a God like you, who pardons sin and forgives the transgression of the remnant of his inheritance? You do not stay angry forever but delight to show mercy. You will again have compassion on us; you will tread our sins underfoot and hurl all our iniquities into the depths of the sea." God is compassionate, as seen in the verse - "he delights in showing mercy." The band Audio Adrenaline has a song called Ocean Floor that talks about that very verse. They lyrics say, "They're all behind you/They'll never find you/They're on the ocean floor/Your sins are forgotten/They're on the bottom/Of the ocean floor." (It's a great song. If you're interested, here's a link to the video.) That’s exactly what we need to do when we are wronged by someone.
I realized I've been holding on to several things recently where I need to truly forgive the person – and then just let go of it. Later after that church service when we were at home, I said something to my husband about someone who had "done me wrong" and how irritated I still was with them. A little while later I thought, how childish and petty of me! I’m still dwelling on that insignificant thing that really doesn't matter! AND we just heard a sermon on forgiveness!
Being angry at people that have wronged us and dwelling on past mistakes is a sure fire way to bring ourselves down. It's definitely not going to put us in a good frame of mind and can cause more heartache and pain for us in our everyday lives. If I'm angry at someone and dwelling on it, I might take it out on the people I'm most often around - my family or friends - and that's definitely not fair to them!
Let me note that I'm not saying to let yourself be tread upon - by all means you have to stand up for yourself, your faith, your family, whatever the case may be. I'm just saying not to dwell and let your life be consumed by hatred or bitterness of a person or problem. And if someone comes to you asking for forgiveness, it's in everyone's best interest to give it to them! If we expect God to forgive us, we have to be forgiving of others. Colossians 3:13 says, "Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you."
Forgiveness is something that a lot of couples struggle with too. It's very easy to bring up your spouse's past mistakes in the heat of a fight. And it's definitely NOT easy to say, "I forgive you." If we want to practice Biblical forgiveness, we need to truly mean what we say and not hold things over people. I know I am guilty of holding grudges about the dumbest of things. Just a few days ago I had a disagreement with my husband about something petty. He came up to me a short while later and said, "I'm sorry" and I ignored him. I was still very angry and didn't feel like saying, "I forgive you." How foolish is that? We have since worked out our differences on that issue but I hope in the future I will be able to remember this blog post and be more readily forgiving.
We say the Lord's Prayer every Sunday at church and this past week I was particularly reminded of forgiveness when we came to the line, "And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us." (Some churches say debtors instead of trespasses - pretty much the same thing!) The whole Lord's Prayer is important but that line in particular always seems to stand out to me. It usually brings to mind any problems I'm having with others and I try to pray about them right then when I think of them. The Bible mentions forgiveness so many times and in so many different ways, but the thing that I notice the most is how we are constantly reminded that we are supposed to forgive as God forgives - Biblical Forgiveness! Mark 11:25 says, "And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins." I'm going to make an effort to work on this in my own life and I challenge you to try to remember the verses I've mentioned here in your daily lives to help you as well!

Wordless Wednesday: Colts Kids

I'm not a football fan but my parents are big fans of the Colts. My Mom got these Colts outfits for the kids right before the Superbowl and I thought they looked very cute.

Blog Awards!

I have received two different awards in the past two weeks. It just brightens my day so much to see them (I've added them to my sidebar under Awards) and I hope I can make somebody else's day by passing it on to them! Thank you ladies! :)

First off, I received the Sunshine Award from 'Manda Blogs About.

The rules for accepting this award are:
- Put the logo on your blog or within your post,
- Pass the award onto 12 bloggers and link the nominees within your post.
- Let the nominees know they have received this award by commenting on their blog.
- Link to the person from whom you received this award.

The people I feel deserve the Sunshine Award I have read for a little while or a long while - and they always have a good deal, an interesting article or something else useful to share with others.

1. Liv's WAHM Blog
2. Mommy's Money Cents
3. Come, Have a Peace
4. The Organizing Mama - Real Life Solutions for Real Busy Women
5. Housewife Hacks
6. Work at Home Mom Revolution
7. Natural Moms Talk Radio
8. Jennifer James
9. The Suburban Jungle
10. Stockpiling Moms
11. The Homeschool Desk
12. Penny Sophisticate

I received the Happy 101 Award from The Practical Mom Guide.

To accept the "Happy 101 Award" I need to:
1. Acknowledge the person who gave it to me.
2. List ten items that make me happy.
3. Award it to ten other bloggers.

Alright, ten things that make me happy are as follows:
1. My kiddos
2. My handsome hubby
3. The rest of my family (Most of them anyway, lol)
4. Writing
5. Music
6. Sci-fi stuff
7. Autumn (Hint, hint winter...get lost!)
8. Books
9. The piano
10. Food!

And the ten bloggers listed below are some I've followed for awhile and a few others that I've just discovered - but either way they bring a bit of happiness into my weekly blog reading! :)

1. The Liliac Grove
2. Witkowski Family Happenings
3. It's a Beautiful Life
4. Theta Mom
5. Art's Chili Pepper
6. Going Peanuts: A Young Mom's Tale
7. Under the Golden Apple Tree
8. Three Pumpkins Little
9. ACU's, Stiletto Shoes and Pretty Pink Tutus
10. Our Three Peas

Happy Valentine's Day!

I've never been one that goes gaga over Valentine's Day. In High School, I always deemed it Black Whatever-Day-It-Was (even if I had a significant other) and one year I wore black boots, a black shawl, black skirt, black shirt and black tights. Yes, I was a bit odd...still am at times! A couple years back, though somebody told me that he didn't need a day to tell me that he loved me, that he loved me all time. :) I think that's very true - you don't need a day to tell someone you love them, you should tell them all the time! But in case you've been lax in telling your special someone, make sure you tell them today!
I've had some really nice Valentine days with my hubby over the past (almost) five years. I've also come to enjoy making Valentines crafts with my son and sharing in his love of the simple things. So I guess Valentine's has grown on me some...but I'm still keeping the all-black outfit at the ready, just in case. ;)

♥ Me and my loves ♥

Photo Poster Giveaway

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED!

I couldn't wait so I'm posting the giveaways earlier than planned! :)

I know that a lot of my readers are photo fiends like me. I'm surprised my children haven't been permanently blinded from the flash of my camera. I've often thought about getting some of the pictures I've taken printed out to put on our walls.
OnlinePosterPrinting.com is one place to consider if you're looking for prints. They make high quality prints from photos or artwork and are a fantastic way to brighten up any wall. What better way to showcase a photo of your little ones? Online Poster Printing is graciously hosting this giveaway for a prize of one (1) 18x24 Poster Print in High Gloss or Semi Gloss. The details for this giveaway are as follows:

Visit them for Digital Photos on Posters and Digital Photo Enlargement.

Specifications/Shipping - 1 Business Day Turnaround and FREE UPS Ground Shipping.
Eligibility - Limited to US Residents only. (Sorry to my non-US friends! Don't worry, you'll be included in the next giveaway!)
End Date - Winner will be drawn via random.org at 9 PM (EST) Sunday February 21 - so you have until then to enter! I will send the winner's email address to the giveaway contact and they will send you an email regarding your prize. You should receive your poster by the end of the month or soon after.
Ways to Enter - Obviously, you must leave a comment to be entered in this giveaway. To get extra entries, you can do any of the following. (Separate entries for each, please!)
- Tweet or blog about this giveaway. (Please leave a link to your tweet/post.)
- Subscribe to the blog through Google Friend Connect (see the sidebar), a feed reader or by email.
- Follow me on Twitter or become a fan on Facebook.
- Vote for me HERE, HERE or HERE.
- Add my blog's button on a post or sidebar - you can find it in the sidebar of my blog. (Please leave a link to where you posted it!)

February: The Month of Giveaways!

Just wanted to drop a note to let you know that February is the month of giveaways! I don't want to become a blog of *just* giveaways so no worries there! I'm not going to make fifteen million posts about them either, just the post about the actual giveaway and a post about the winners. I'm not a person that likes to do a giveaway a day or anything like that, I've just had several offers on products recently that I thought you guys would enjoy. There is currently a book giveaway going on that you can enter until tomorrow. I'm going to be putting up a makeup giveaway (HINT: Their brand name is two words, first word starts with a B!) on Sunday and not too long after that I will be putting up one from one of my sponsors, UPrinting! Keep checking back for more!

My Children, The Hoarders!

We got some fabulous new rugs last fall after my hubby re-did the floor in our living room. The new floor is laminate that a lot of people have actually thought was hardwood. There was hideous shag orange/brown/yellow carpeting in that room when we bought the house and the room just looks a hundred times better now. (See the before and after pictures below.)

Before

After

The rugs!

So we now have these pretty rugs! They're really easy to manage and have helped make the room look even nicer. Unfortunately the other day when I was vacuuming, I discovered that my children have been stashing things under the edges of them! Not just one toy either, it was like an entire FAO Schwarz under there.

Innocent looking rug, huh?

Aaaaahhhhhh! Secret stash!

These children are apparently going to be seen on a future episode of "Hoarders" one day! I found little piles like this all around the edges of the rugs - cards, a toy car or two, puzzle pieces, all kinds of things. Craziness, huh? I cleaned them up and they have yet to come back...but I'm keeping my eyes peeled!

Love Actually

Whenever I get gloomy with the state of the world, I think about the arrivals gate at Heathrow Airport. General opinion's starting to make out that we live in a world of hatred and greed, but I don't see that. It seems to me that love is everywhere. Often, it's not particularly dignified or newsworthy, but it's always there - fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, husbands and wives, boyfriends, girlfriends, old friends. When the planes hit the Twin Towers, as far as I know, none of the phone calls from the people on board were messages of hate or revenge - they were all messages of love. If you look for it, I've got a sneaking suspicion...love actually is all around.

- one of my favorite quotes from the movie Love Actually

Wordless Wednesday: Valentine, Won't You Be Mine?

Zeke and I (but mostly me) made Valentine's boxes this week. He insisted on making one for us all - well, hubby and I had to share because I couldn't find anymore boxes - even though he kept getting up and running off during the actual "making" of them to do something else. Mine and hubby's is the white one, Ellie's is the pink one and Zeke's is the red one. They're very eco-friendly too - ours is a Capri-Sun box, Ellie's is a cracker box and Zeke's is a shoebox. Z is very excited to put Valentine's in them and has filled out at least five for Daddy already!

(Yes, he does need a haircut!)

"Spread the Love" Campaign

As I mentioned in my last post, this week is Congenital Heart Defect Awareness Week. I received an email today about MyPunchbowl partnering with The Children's Heart Foundation to sponsor the "Spread the Love" campaign. MyPunchbowl is going to make a donation to The Children's Heart Foundation for every recipient who is sent one of their ecards during the month of February. What a simple way to help a really great cause! I'm heading there now to send out Valentine's cards! Go check it out!

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Congenital Heart Defect Awareness Week 2010

Congenital Heart Defect Awareness Week is something I try and participate in every year in one way or another. This year I'm hoping to spread awareness through my blog and social networks. If you have no clue about this or why I participate, let me inform you.

Congenital heart disease is the most common birth defect and the leading cause of birth-defect related deaths worldwide. Oftentimes the defects are genetic but in many cases, the cause is unknown. To see a full list of congenital heart defects, go here.

CHD affects approximately 1.8 million families in the United States alone but sadly there is little funding that goes into research, support and education for patients and parents. The organization CHIN (Congenital Heart Information Network) hopes to raise awareness by sharing real-life experiences and providing information. They hope that in educating the public there will be improved early diagnosis, more funding and research.

CHD has affected me personally. I was diagnosed with Mitral Valve Prolapse my senior year of High School. Mitral Valve Prolapse (MVP) is – in non-technical terms – when the valve separating two of your heart's chambers doesn't work right. In my case, the valve regurgitates blood back the wrong way, which in turn causes my heart to race extremely fast.
The Mayo Clinic states: "Although MVP is a lifetime disorder, many people with this condition never have signs and symptoms. When diagnosed, people may be surprised to learn that they have a heart abnormality because of the absence of signs and symptoms." My symptoms started slowly and then got gradually worse until I couldn't even participate in Marching Band or most physical activities anymore because I felt like I couldn't breathe. It felt like my heart was going to burst out of my chest.
My regular doctor referred me to a cardiologist because of my fast heart rate and breathing problems. I wore a halter monitor for a few days so he could see what was going on. According to the monitor, my heart rate fluctuated and at times when I was active or stressed it would go upwards of 150 beats or more per minute. If I was stressed or overworked, I would often go into a panic attack that felt much like a heart attack. He recommended that I start taking Toprol. Toprol is a beta-blocker that helps slow my heart rate and lower my blood pressure.
I also found out that I have a small hole in my heart – a congenital heart defect that I have probably had since birth. It's really nothing to worry about - for now - but I have to get an echocardiogram done once a year to check it out and make sure that it hasn't gotten any bigger or changed in any way. I have an excellent cardiologist who is really on top of everything and I completely trust him.

So I take medicine and it helps my problem but it's never fully going to go away. It's something I'll have to live with forever. I have to check out every medication I take with my cardiologist to make sure there's no drug interactions. If I were to take anything with aspirin in it, it could really mess me up. I can't forget to take my medicine either – if you just stop taking it, it can cause serious problems. Whenever I get pregnant, I am typically classified as high risk, although I've had no issues giving birth. Eventually I could have to have a valve replacement - but that's a long way down the road, if it even comes to pass. MVP has also caused me to occasionally have panic and anxiety attacks. Luckily, I've been able to keep this to a minimum with breathing and relaxation techniques.

I could have it a lot worse and I'm thankful that I don't. I'm one of the lucky ones that gets to take medicine and feel better. But there are many people out there who have to go through procedure after procedure and surgery after surgery. I've gotten involved in advocacy of heart awareness because I think that every child that is born should have a mandatory heart screening and because I want people to be more aware of these issues. I hope you'll take a moment to visit one of the websites listed below or pass the information along to someone else!

*Facts and information for this blog post was taken from:

- The Congenital Heart Information Network

- The American Heart Association

- The Mayo Clinic webpage on CHD

-  Congenital Heart Defects.com

Book Review: Ending Female Pain

I received Isa Herrera's "Ending Female Pain" awhile back and am just now getting to my review of it! Sorry for the delay! Here's a short summary of the book, borrowed from Amazon:

Isa Herrera, MSPT, CSCS, women’s health physiotherapist, has written the quintessential self-help book for women suffering from chronic pelvic and sexual pain. In this unique book, Ms. Herrera delivers the goods, sharing her trade secrets with you and putting you on the right track to a pain-free lifestyle and enjoyable sex life. The large selection of techniques in this book are based on Herrera's real life experience in treating women at her NYC based healing center, Renew Physical Therapy, where she treats women who suffer from conditions such as vulvodynia, vaginismus, interstitial cystitis, vestibulitis, endometriosis, and pre and post-natal pain. Ms. Herrera has written a multi-layered book, fusing yoga, pilates, internal massage, scar therapy, visualizations, and vulva self-care, ensuring that there is something for every woman who has suffered long enough with sexual, pelvic, or scar pain. With this book Ms. Herrera shows you how she helped countless women get on a path to self-healing, ultimately breaking their cycle of pain. With this book Ms. Herrera is declaring a revolution, stating "I have given you the tools you need, don’t hesitate to get started, end your pain and be the heroine of your own story."

This book has been endorsed by Ricki Lake and Abby Epstein (the lovely ladies of The Business of Being Born and My Best Birth) and numerous doctors and gynecologists. You can see more about the book here.

What I appreciated about this book was it's open and honest nature. It was completely candid about how these issues can affect women but also explained the technical details in such a way that anyone could understand. I had no idea how these problems could affect women in so many ways and interfere with their everyday lives. Ms. Herrera takes you step by step through the female system and explains how to counteract the problems by a variety of techniques. While I myself have never had problems like the ones that are mentioned, I can see how it would be helpful for a woman who has recently given birth or had surgery, or for someone who had those types of problems. The stretching exercises and mind-body techniques could really be beneficial for anyone. Overall, it was a very informative read.

Affordable Valentine's Day Ideas

Valentine's Day is just a week away - can you believe it? It seems like this year *just* started! This year I've been trying to find some affordable crafts and gifts for the kids and I to make for Valentine's Day and of course there always tons of good ideas on the internet! :) I thought I would share with you some of the things we've found:

- The Practical Mom Guide wrote a post a little while back called 20 Ways to Say I Love You Without Spending a Penny that I thought was really good!

- I love DLTK's websites - they are run by a mom & her family and have TONS of fun things for kids to do on them. They have a special section just for Valentine's related things.

- I recently found this blog called 365 Ways To Say I Love You that has a different thing to do each day to show your significant other that you love them - very cool!

- AllFreeCrafts.com has one of the ultimate Valentine's craft pages - SO much stuff on it! See it here. (I especially liked the Inexpensive Ideas for Couples With Kids...hehehe.)

- I've always thought coupon books were an affordable and neat idea for the holidays - just make sure that the person actually redeems them! See Activities for Kids, Links 2 Love and All Free Printables for several different kinds of pre-printed coupon books, individual coupons or coupon ideas.

Wordless Wednesday: Momma's Girl

Ask Mrs. Addison

I've seen some other bloggers do this recently so I thought I would try it too!
I'm opening up a post for you to feel free to ask me any questions about me, my family, beliefs, favorites, hobbies, anything! They can be really thought out questions or just off the top of your head. If you have any questions for the hubby or kids, feel free to ask those too. Just be forewarned that any questions to Ellie will be limited in their responses and will probably not make much sense - i.e. Mama, Dada, Bruhbruh, etc. :) You should also be forewarned that I won't answer questions that I don't think are appropriate - otherwise, have at it! Hopefully this will help you to learn some more about me & the family and I'll learn more about my readers & the things they're interested in. I'll wait until there's a good amount of questions and then post our responses in a new post.

Marriage Monday: Staying True to Our Vows

Julie at Come Have a Peace hosts Marriage Mondays and this week she wrote about the part of the marriage vows that says "in sickness and in health." It can be hard to "love and cherish" when the person is whining, complaining and just generally not a lot of fun. It's not their fault, they can't help being sick - but it doesn't make it any easier on the person caring for them. It's good to remember that you're not just in your marriage for the good times, but the bad times as well.
I know in my own marriage we've definitely had some rough spots. We've never done things slow or by the book. We met in October, got pregnant and engaged in December and were married in March. But things have always turned out alright. This March will be five years together and we're still going strong.
The traditional marriage vows also mention some other things - "for richer or poorer" and "for better for worse." There will inevitably be times in our marriage when things are rough - things can't always be perfect! We're supposed to hold fast even when we're experiencing turbulence - a job loss, an illness, arguments or anything else that may come up. If you are experiencing difficulties in your marriage, I encourage you to try some of the following:
- Draw closer to one another. Trouble forces couples further apart. Less communication means even more trouble.
- Pray and read! Talk to God about your issues and ask him to help & bless your marriage. Read your Bible and/or find a couples devotional that you can read together.
- Consult other couples who may have experienced something similar. Get together with some friends to discuss issues facing both your marriages or find an older couple to be your "marriage mentors."