I couldn’t help but notice in my email this morning that Plum District (A daily deal site) has an offer of $15 for $30 worth of flowers at Teleflora. You can use this for Mother’s Day which is just around the corner (next weekend!).  It’s an absolutely awesome deal so I wanted to make sure my readers knew about it.  I know most of us are hoping for our own flowers on Mother’s Day but I still remember the times back when I could barely afford them for my own Mom since the prices always go up at local shops during any type of holiday.

The site says “Voucher may be applied to service, shipping or delivery fees”.  Almost all delivered flowers have a service fee + tax of about $20. So even if you pick something out for $30 in the end you pay almost $50.  If you take this deal at least you can bring it back down to $35!

Click the picture to sign up for Plum District and grab this deal. But hurry because it ends in 3 days.

That special day is just around the corner. Yep, it’s almost time for Mother’s Day. Mark your calendars for May 13th so you don’t forget. I’ve personally been a mother for 4 years now & I have to be honest when I say that even if we don’t tell the people in our lives that we want flowers, we do! (You hear me guy’s?) Who doesn’t want flowers? They’re beautiful and they smell wonderful. Some of my favorite flowers come from Teleflora. They have a very affordable selection. Truly something for every type of Mother & perfect for a family that’s on a budget. In fact their Mother’s Day arrangements start at only $29.99.  Far cheaper than stopping off at a local florist the day of (believe me I’ve done it before).

Now my children are still small they won’t be ordering me any Mother’s Day Flowers but you know what? That’s ok because I know they love me & just waking up to their beautiful smiles reminds me that I’m one of the luckiest people in the world to be graced with the ability to be a Mother.

But hey, who says we can’t celebrate ourselves right? I’ve certainly been in the position over the years in my life where people have forgot special occasions. I’ve gotten over that though because being a mother has truly changed me. I know what I do is valued. So although I’d love for the other people in my life to recognize all that I do for my children, I don’t expect them to do it. Actually I’m proud enough these days that I can do it for myself.   So, if you’re not expecting any flowers this Mother’s Day, why not send some to yourself?? why not? you deserve it! You work hard every single day for your family.

Of course I know a lot of you also have special women in your life be it your Mom, Grandma, Aunt or even a friend that you can think of who truly deserves to have a smile put on their face just for being a great Mom. 

So, whether it be yourself, or a special woman you care for. Make sure to check out the flowers at Teleflora before time runs out.

^{I think I deserve this arrangement this year, what do you think?}

Another year passed for me on Monday, so on Sunday while my son’s father was still at home we had a bit of cake and I got to open my presents from my boys. My 3 year old made sure to remind his father every time he seen him in the 2 weeks prior that they had to make a cake for my birthday “It’s going to be a great surprise. A beautiful cake” he said.  He also reminded his father that he had to take him to the store so that him and his brother could buy birthday presents for me. I thought it was amusing because my husband and almost all the other men I’ve ever known (except for a select few) don’t’ remember birthdays and when they do it’s usually last minute.. and here was my 3 year old reminding him for weeks! I know it may sound mean or rude but I think a big part in how men behave on special occasions is how we raise them to behave or allow them to behave when they’re children.

While they were at the store my husband had texted and told me that he didn’t know what to let my son get, so I told him to let my son pick everything out himself. “Let him get whatever he wants! I’ll enjoy whatever it is.. after all he is only 3 years old” (soon to be 4 next week!!).  Well, lo’ and behold… when I opened up my wonderful presents, this is what I had:

Earlier in the day I got some flowers picked from out of the “garden”, body wash, deodorant, a candle, hot pink nail polish, a snickers and a beautiful card that both the boys drew on!

How lucky of a Mommy am I??   I couldn’t have been happier because I KNOW my son picked these things out himself and I know he felt proud to do it. I think he knows his Mommy really well and that made me grin ear to ear.   I just hope 20 years from now he still gets as excited to help his old mom celebrate another year! 

Aidan will be 17 months next week. I can’t believe how much he’s grown. He was almost exclusively breastfed, except for a small amount of time where I got really wore out and took bad advice… we quickly went back to nursing and he finally weaned at 16 months!.  As you can see by the last picture he has grown just as well as his big brother, who weaned at 6 months & was/is also 90-95th percentile.  I can’t believe I’m going to have another one of these little ones pretty soon.  Incredible.

Every year, just like most of you, I make a New Years resolution. Sometimes it works out and sometimes I give up before I’ve even started. This year I’ve contemplated A LOT about what I really want to accomplish this year. I have had a lot of drama in my life lately. 2011 was not a good year to say the least. I kept taking in the positive though and moving forward. I actually accomplished my goals these last few years and this year I want it to be the same, except my main goal is very different, and maybe some might think a tad bit selfish.

This year, as a New Years resolution I want to put me first just a little more. I give a lot to others and I don’t take much. In fact some people might find it crazy to know that I haven’t had my hair cut at a salon in more than 21 years. I’ve never had a manicure or a pedicure. I’ve never been to a spa. Up until last year I was literally wearing the same pair of Nike’s that my mom had bought me for Christmas over 10 years ago! They were still in great shape believe it or not and it took A LOT of effort on my part to lift my fingers to the keyboard and order a new pair of sneakers. I hate spending money on myself. Hate it.

In the past year I took up smoking again, and quit again, for GOOD even though the odds were against me. I didn’t gain 1 single pound the entire year. I managed to keep this blog somewhat together and build an amazing following of women on Facebook. I ditched the negative friends who weren’t headed in the right place and I reconnected with an old friend who is, and together we forgave our problems of the past. I fixed up my house to make it a little more of my own, and I worked worked worked in my spare time on giveaways and reviews just for that little bit extra that might help my own family and any other needy families…… but… I stopped my personal posts.. I forgot about me.. my feelings, my needs.. I didn’t even post Xmas pictures of my kids!! on my own blog… I kept it all inside, I internalized it.

Now, it’s time to work on ME. Just a little bit at a time. This year will be great. I’m going to give birth to a baby girl, my last baby.. my last chance to live in that miraculous moment that every woman should get to experience. I’m going to get myself together, and I’m going to continue to rid myself of any negative in my life. I’m going to continue to move forward and strive for all that I want for myself and my children. I’m going to be happy with the little things. I am going to be me again. The real me. Why? Because when you feel good about yourself inside and out and acknowledge all that you can accomplish in life, you give your own self strength to continue on your journey, whatever journey that may be. It’s great when other people lift you up and help you along, but it’s even greater when you can accept yourself and all that you are worth. When you truly love yourself and are true to yourself. I want that!

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Little girl.  She was confirmed by Amnio just last month.   Yes, I’ve been hiding this for quite some time. I surprised even myself. I’m already 19 weeks.

Because Aidan, my 16 month old son was born with the cord around his neck, a true knot (which only happens in 1% of pregnancies), merconium…. and especially because I’m now past the age of 35 I decided to get Amnio and wait until the results to announce my pregnancy,  Everything looks good so far and all the tests came back fine.

So I can’t believe it…  I just can’t believe I’ll have a baby girl!  I am the only blood girl on my Dad’s side of the family in the past 50 years or so.. no joke. Ironically my sister-in-law is due with a baby girl in May so that poo poo’s my Dad’s saying of “It’s a boys club only”.

Overall guys.. I just can’t believe I have a baby girl on the way after spending the past almost 4 yrs with 2 little boys!! I’m so freaked out!

So now you know why I’ve been so quiet these past few months on my blog. I suffered from horrible morning sickness (better known as ALL DAY sickness) up until just a few weeks ago.  Hope you’ll forgive me.

Have I told you yet that I’m a secret foodie? Of course I did. Well tonight I’m going to share one of my favorite recipes with you. Rosa Marina Soup. It’s a delicious tomato basil soup that can be cooked like a soup or a pasta dish to make it easier for small kids to eat. (Let’s just be truthful, pasta = less messy than soup!) It’s also very cheap to make.

Just recently I was contacted by a representative of Red Gold Tomatoes and asked if I’d like to try some of their new products & participate in a small contest they have going on. They will be inviting bloggers to the Taste of the NFL. a fund-raising, food and wine tasting event  the weekend of the Super Bowl. The bloggers will also be invited to the Red Gold Tomatoes headquarters to learn all about growing and cooking exceptional tomatoes.

So what makes me so interested in this? Well, it’s not the NFL to be truthful.  I’m hoping to learn quickly since I have 2 sons though! It’s more the fact that some of Red Gold tomatoes are actually grown in Michigan (the great state where I live) and Taste of the NFL raises money for food banks across the country, including Gleaners Community Food Bank of Southeastern Michigan.  I love giving back in any way I can and I love buying local.

Now I’d like to set something straight before I go any further. I’m all about fresh food and supporting local farms. In the summertime we get almost all of our fruit & veggies at a local stand, but in the winter I rely on canned tomatoes, like Red Gold. It’s fast, convenient, and because they’re packed at their peak they’re just as delicious as fresh.

So, let’s get down to this delicious recipe. Shall we?

Rosa Marina Soup

Ingredients:

2 Tbsp Butter Or Margarine
1 Sm Onion; Finely Chopped
1 Rib Celery; Finely Chopped 
2 Cloves of Garlic; Minced (I use organic pureed squeeze garlic)
1 Can Red Gold Tomatoes with Basil in Puree (28 Oz)
1 C Uncooked Orzo (Rosa Marina)
1 Tsp Salt (more or less to taste)

1 Tsp Pepper

2 C Warm Milk

Makes approximately 6-8 servings. (full bowls!)

We start out with Orzo pasta. If you’re not familiar with it you can find it in the imported food area of your local grocery store, not the pasta sauce aisle.

• Measure out a cup
• Cook orzo according to package directions. Approximately 10 minutes. Drain.

_{ORZO PASTA}

Our second most important ingredient is a 28oz can of Red Gold ‘Culinary Classics’ Tomatoes with Basil in Puree. They are ONLY located at Meijer stores.  If you can’t find these (because they’re only in select markets)  you can substitute a small can of Red Gold Tomato Puree and a small can of Red Gold Crushed Tomatoes & then add in your own basil (to taste).

• Empty your can into a pot and add 1 tsp of salt. ( I cook low sodium so you may like more).
• In another small pan melt your 2 tsp of butter or margarine. Add in your celery, onions, and garlic. Cook approximately 5 minutes, until the onions are somewhat translucent.
• When done add all (including that melted butter) to your pot of tomato puree.

_{Red Gold Tomatoes with Basil in Puree – Look at the gorgeous color.}

• Warm up 2 cups of milk in the microwave for approximately 1.30 minutes, add it to your Tomatoes with Basil in Puree.
• Add in your cooked Orzo pasta.
• Let pot simmer and reduce (it will thicken the longer you cook it) on low (don’t boil it) while you finish the rest of dinner. Approximately 1/2 hour.

_{Rosa Marina Soup minus Orzo – Nice and creamy just like a classic tomato soup}

I serve my Rosa Marina soup with Italian bread grilled cheese with provolone & an antipasto salad.

As you can see by the picture my soup is more like a pasta on this occasion. The kids like it that way as it’s much easier to eat for a 3 and 1 yr old! If you want yours to be more like soup (the traditional way) only add 1/2 cup or less of orzo!! It expands more than you think it would.

• Eat and Enjoy

_{Provolone Grilled Cheese, Rosa Marina “soup” and Antipasto salad}

Yummm

Keep reading or click “read more” to enter to win Red Gold products of your own.

Prize: 2 cans of 28oz Red Gold new‘Culinary Classics’ tomato products. (Products may vary), fridge magnet, small cutting board, measuring spoon, coupon.

I am using Rafflecopter to run this giveaway. If you have ANY questions or comments leave a comment in the blog section and I will email you back (only I can see your email).

2 step process for entering to win!! Leave a blog comment (Telling me what your favorite tomato based food is) & then fill out the Rafflecopter form!

Please wait for the form to load!

Good Luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclosure: I received the above products in order to facilitate this review. No monetary exchange took place. My experience and opinions are my own and yours may vary. Prize fulfillment will be handled by representatives for Red Gold.

Thanks to Plum Organics for sponsoring my post about tips for baby feeding magic. What if you let baby choose what’s for dinner? Check out their cute “Quest for Yum!” video and see what happens!

With 2 kids under my belt I like to think I’m an old pro at getting babies to eat. Now toddlers on the other hand, oh man, don’t get me started. The thing is, babies and toddlers alike go through stages where their tastes change. They may be happily eating spinach and peas one day & refuse to even look in your direction at the brief mention of them the next. So I’m going to give you a few tips that I’ve learned along the way that has made feeding time at our house a lot easier.

• Take It Slow – Don’t be in a rush to feed your baby solids for the first time. A lot of mothers will take to heart the old wives tale that putting cereal in babies bottle will make them sleep longer. Wait until at least 5 or 6 months and start out with a spoon! Babies have something called a tongue thrust reflex. It protects them against choking. Their tongue automatically pushes food out instead of down the throat. By around age 6 months this disappears. And here’s a little tip, all that rice cereal in babies bottle could give them a lot more belly aches. (Rice cereal is known to constipate. Babies can better digest it after 5 or 6 months when their intestines have matured.)

• Write Down What Baby Eats – There’s a very good reason for this and my youngest son is the proof. I assumed because my first son didn’t have allergies that my second wouldn’t either. WRONG. It took around 3 separate incidents of my baby getting violently ill before I figured out he was allergic to bananas amongst other things. I had mixed bananas with rice cereal, with oats, with toast. I literally had to take each thing away and deduce what it was that was harming him. Keep a list of what baby eats. Do 1 food at a time. Sweet potatoes 4 days in a row, carrots 4 days in a row, and on and on. Once you have 2 foods that you’ve tried you can combine the 2.  I know it may seem tedious but I wouldn’t wish what we went through on another Baby & Mother, ever. It’s better to be safe than sorry & if anything happens you’ll have a list of what baby ate that day to present to the Doctors.

• Let Baby Get Messy – Its Fun – It can be hard to give in and let baby go at it when you’re trying to get them ready for daycare or school, the babysitter, or even bed. You’re in a rush & sometimes it’s just easier to feed them yourselves. But where’s the fun in that? really? Baby has to learn how to use utensils. Both of my boys were using utensils before the age of 1 because I took a chance on letting things get dirty. I guarantee you, put a spoon in front of a hungry baby & let them watch you use your spoon, they’ll be feeding themselves in no-time. If things get too messy just thicken up their foods a bit with cereal. Things won’t splatter quite as easily!

• Try, Try, Again – And if baby doesn’t like it, try again! I’m serious. You may have to present something 10 times before baby goes for it. Don’t push it on them, if they don’t like it, let it go. In a day or two try again! Babies tastes are constantly changing. Those peas they hated yesterday they may love tomorrow.

• Be Sneaky – Once you’ve relaxed and mastered having fun feeding your baby the time will come when they start getting picky. Not all kids, but most will. There’s a big debate on whether to hide veggies in kids foods or not and after dealing with my oldest son, who loved everything and then out of the blue loved nothing I’m all for sneaking in veggies. Lately I’ve been really adventurous and made my own mini muffins for the baby & my toddler. I found a simple recipe for zucchini bread, removed most of the sugar, substituted half the oil with applesauce and a bit of apple juice & upped the amount of veggies to about 3 cups instead of the 2 it called for. I made them into mini muffins and the kids LOVE them. They beg for them! They have no idea they’re eating veggies!! This is your kids health we’re talking about.. sometimes you just have to get sneaky.

• Practice What You Preach – Kids learn by example. Plain and simple. Once your babies are a little older they’ll be watching everything you do.  If they see you eating broccoli once a week for a month they’re going to want to try it sooner or later. Believe me they will. Put it on your plate and eat it with them. Show them what it is to make healthy choices. If you’re not a great eater yourself now is the time to experiment. Find something new and healthy the whole family can enjoy together. Practice what you preach and eventually your kids will come out of that picky stage and you’ll have a healthy eater on your hands who when they get a bit older just might thank you for setting such a great example.

I hope you’ll put these tips to good use. Most of all, just remember that babies grow up  quickly! Savor the moments and have fun with it all while you can! And don’t be afraid to get messy!! It makes for great memories.

I was selected for this sponsorship by the Clever Girls Collective. To learn more about Plum Organics, visit their Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/PlumOrganics.

If there’s one thing I’m familiar with, it’s a squirmy baby. When my now 3 year old was born, he was a big boy, 10lbs. I swear he came out kicking. Only 2 weeks later he was rolling over. By 5 months he was sitting up like a pro, and by 6 he had mastered crawling. The boy has never sat still.

Before he started crawling I was at least able to change his diapers without a problem but once he learned to get around his own, forget about it. He squirmed, kicked, rolled, and slithered his way all over the floor or bed. Where did my sweet little newborn go I wondered. Diaper changing time became an absolute chore. His head turned this way and that, his hands grabbed at the diaper, and of course there were many near misses when he’d kick his leg or try to sit up while I was attempting to change his diaper faster than the speed of light.

There are a few tips and tricks I learned along the way to keep my little wiggle worm distracted.

• Give them whatever they’re grabbing for! (not if it’s dangerous of course) but if it’s a remote. Let them have it, it will keep them still and quiet for at least 30 seconds.
• If they have an older brother or sister, have them distract them. Have them play peekaboo with them.
• If they take a bottle & are in need of one, give them one.
• Musical toys are great distractions
• Sing a song together.

There are a ton of other little things you can do to make things go as quick as possible. One of my best tricks is to have everything ready to go. I have the new diaper unfolded and open. I have the diaper cream next to me & I have 3 or 4 wipes out of the box and ready to use.

Most kids go through this stage and the best thing you can do is to have patience. It will pass believe it or not. My oldest son’s stage lasted from about 6 months to a year and then he calmed down a bit. And of course not all kids are wiggle worms. My youngest is very calm and laid back.. but chances are you’re probably going to come across a squirmer at some point.

Need more than advice? Huggies have just introduced their new Little Movers Slip-On Diapers which make it easy to handle the wiggliest of little wonders. Just catch, slip on, and release! It’s that easy.

We already use little movers so I can’t wait to try these out! How about you? Do you have a little wiggle worm? What do you do to help diaper changing go by as quickly as possible?

Disclosure: I wrote this blog post while participating in the SocialMoms and Huggies blogging program, for a gift card worth $35. For more information on how you can participate, click here.

My Best Friend - Bailey

 

After 13 yrs my poor boy was going senile. It was getting progressively worse over time. On top of this he seemed to be losing his hearing. I could be 2 ft from him when we were outside and he couldn’t hear me calling him. Although he loved going outside he recently started barking not 2 minutes after being out. He also started almost going insane when it would rain. It used to be he was scared of thunderstorms but then it got worse and even if he heard it raining he would have an accident on the floor. One night when it was storming heavily he actually barged into our house (he slept on my enclosed porch) and he walked into my bedroom where the kids and I were sleeping and he pee’d right next to my son’s bed.

Bailey Visiting Lake Superior

There was also the fact that for some reason my 3 yr old started being deathly afraid of the dog. I think he may have nipped at him or growled because my son used to love spending time around the dog. Just last week I was on the porch cleaning and my baby walked out there and my 3 yr old screamed at the top of his lungs and started pulling the baby in the house saying “No he going to bite my baby!” and I mean screaming, bloody murder. I thought for sure someone was going to call the police. I have never seen my 3 yr old act so scared.

Then just the other night it had rained again and Bailey went wild out on the porch. He could always come inside the house if he wanted by pushing the door open but when I woke up in the morning I found his hair in clumps all over the porch and he was in the corner, behind a ladder, hiding. The floor was wet and he was laying in it.

Hanging Out In The Yard

It was this behavior that led me to take him to the vet a few months ago. They checked him out and said his health was fine, although he had lost 20lbs in the past 2 years. (He used to be sorta chubby). The Dr. talked to me about him being senile and gave me some options for medication. Yeah apparently they have something similar to Alzheimer’s medication for dogs! You buy it at the human pharmacy too. It was at that visit I couldn’t go through with having him put down. I brought him home and I tried these past few months to change some things and make his life a little easier, unfortunately it didn’t work.. time only made it worse.

Soo… here I am now. I’m feeling so lost without my buddy Bailey. He was my best friend for so long. Before I was married, before I had kids.. he was there with me, always my friend, always waiting for me. I used to cry when I had to leave him with friends when I’d leave the country. Everyone used to tell me to get rid of him and I watched a lot of my friends/family go through numerous animals.. but I kept Bailey by my side. I made a commitment to love him the rest of his life. Heck, he even drove all the way to California with me one time. Sat in the front seat awake and looked out the window the whole time! He literally went everywhere with me.. and everywhere he went people told me how beautiful he was.

He had the most awesome eyes, one blue, one light brown.. and he was very smart. He knew how to crawl, give high-fives, help us pick up sticks from the yard.. but most of all he was a great cuddler. He was like a big stuffed animal.

Bailey Giving Me A High-Five

I’m just so sad these past few days. I wake up and look out on the porch and he’s not there. I think I hear him barking or whining but it’s not him. My son keeps asking me if he’s coming home and telling me he misses his doggy. I just feel so empty inside. Maybe if we had a fenced in yard, or a bigger house, or a different place for him to sleep… I keep thinking about all the ways I could have prevented what happened but I know in my heart that none of those things would have changed anything. He was old and nothing fixes old age. I never thought this would hit me so hard. I really miss my friend…

I’ll never forget you Bailey and all the love you gave me. You were my first “baby”. You were there when no one else was. You were such a sweet boy. You will never be replaced. I hope your life with me was a happy one. Until we meet again baby. I love you.

Me & Bailey during happier times