Avon Calling!!

Being a stay at home mom is great but sometimes you need something to keep you busy and since blogging isn't making me and cash I need something to make a little side money, I want to contribute ( I guess, haha).  We need to save some money so that we can move into our own house one day. 

So I went to the website and now I have a meeting on Monday to possibly becoming a representative.  Cool huh?  You know your gonna buy from me right?  Right?  please say right!!  Now I know what your thinking, ( I think I know what your thinking...)  Avon? Why Avon?  Well because the start up fee is mininmal and now that they have online representation and people can just go online, its not all about the door to door anymore.

They do have great products other then makeup as well.  Like I can tell you that the Skin So Soft Bug Gaurd Plus Picaridin pump spray is an awesome product for the kids in the summer.  We tried mosquito sprays on our kids before and they never seemed to work... So last summer when we discovered that Kara is severly allergic to mosquitos we tried this product and she never got bit while wearing it!  She never walked out the door without this bug spray on!  But hey don't get to excited yet, yeah go ahead and check and see if there are any products that you want to buy but wait till next week when I become an Avon representitive before you buy :)  I need customers :)

So thats it for now...

Have an Oh So Wonderful Day!

Catrina



Huh, What? I don't know...

How many people here partook in Black Friday yesterday? Raise your hands! Nope not I, because well there is no way I was going to be dragging 4 kids to a ton of overly crowded stores with people who would maul you down for a good deal with no disregard for your well being. That sure in the hell wasn't going to happen. I would have love to get some awesome deals on Christmas gifts and such but I just didn't have it in me to deal with all that mayham. But I did do some online shopping and guess what I found?! A professional photography lighting kit with the estimated retail value of $1149 and we only paid (after tax and free shipping) $300! So can you guess what I am getting for Christmas? Yes I ordered my own gift but when the Hubby doesn't exactly know what I want then sometimes I have to do it myself (haha). Hopefully though the set is a good one and helps me with my photography. If I practice enough with my kiddos and my freinds & family maybe I will take it up professionally. I just need to learn more about the camera settings and other such things to get perfect pictures.

Sorry I'm getting ahead of myself... I do that alot, and I mean ALOT! I start thinking about things and my mind just keeps going....

I guess this will just be a short post today, because honestly I don't know what else to say.

Have a Great Day!

Catrina

Still need a babysitter!

How old were you when you no longer needed a babysitter? I think the last time I had a baby sitter I was about 10 (unless my parents went out of town). I'm 29 years old now so theres no longer a need for a babysitter right? Apparently I was wrong! Saturday my family were all out of town. Well my Mom and Dad took the kiddos up went up to my cousin's graduation party about 1.5 to 2 hours away. I didn't go because well 1 I was 38 weeks (well I still am now) and because the doctor had stripped my membranes. The Hubby would have stayed home with me but he went with his Dad and Brothers to drag race about 4 hours from our house so there was no way I was going to that either. Well of course with everyone being so far away my dad and hubby didn't want me to be alone, so my mother in law came over to babysit me (Haha). Its was partly her idea as well with everyone being gone. Of course I was a little upset that everyone thought I needed a babysitter, again hello I'm 29 years old! But you know what I don't mind, we had a good time. We hung out at the house for a little then went to lunch (we had mexican if you were wondering and it was good!) then we went to the outlet mall and went shopping. We walked the entire outlet mall and can you believe I still never went into labor! We bought the girlies (even the baby) clothes, but nothing for ourselves. Of course my dad and hubby asked if I bought them anything when they got home. No I didn't geeze I didn't even buy anything for myself! I know they were playing but geeze whenever I am out usually the only people I think about buying stuff for anymore is the kids. Sometimes I think about myself or the hubby but lately... thats rare.
Anyways so that was my Saturday. Sunday we did nothing, I ended up taking a nap and the hubby took the kids outside to help him wash his truck. Once he was done we ended up taking the 56' for a ride looking at houses for sale and got stranded at the gas station. The damn battery went dead! So we had to wait for my dad to come give us a jump start to get home. It was nice to go for a ride.
This week I don't know what is in store for us. You know a mothers job is never done so obviously I will be taking care of the kids but other then that I am not sure what else I will be doing other then waiting for this kiddo to make her appearance (waiting impatiently I must add) The Hubby's birthday is this week so yeah we will be spending time with daddy on his birthday (and hopefully having a baby the next day), I know I have said it before we've been hoping that the baby would come the day after the hubby's birthday because Devin was born the day after mine. So hopefully Thursday I will be delivering a baby, If not I have a doctor appointment on Thursday and we will be scheduling my induction that day (hopefully it will be within a day or so of my appointment) I am definatly hoping that by Saturday this kiddo will be here, but I guess we'll have to wait and see. Its definatly getting harder and harder to sleep and get comfortable and move around. I know I am not the only mommy to experiance all this but guess what? I'm going to bitch if I want to! You know why? Because this is my blog!

Are you wondering how cloth diapering is going with Kara? Well we are now on day 4 and doing good, it takes a bit longer to get them dry but other then that cleaning and such has been pretty easy (even with the poopies). When we go out we put disposables on her but at home (which is were we are usually at). Kara love showing off her new diapers to, she loves the designs. Devin actually wants to get involved with changing her diaper too but unfortunitly the kid wiggles to much and Devin can't get the diapers tight enough. So maybe she'll be able to help with the new baby.
Well its off to take care of the kiddos and clean a bit....

Have a Great Day!
Catrina

Weekend and much more....

How was your weekend? Mine for the most part was pretty uneventful.... Friday I went to my Mother-in-Laws and picked up 2 of her little kitties that she was trying to get rid of, so I could try and find a home for them. Of course though looking at those precious little kitties who's names were Kevin and Spots (which we changed to Patrick), we didn't really want to give them up but unfortunately there was no way we were going to be able to keep them as we had 3 cats and 3 dogs (not to mention the 3 kids we already have and the one on the way) So the Kitty's were only visiting for the weekend. Saturday I was stuck at home (in a bad mood) by myself with Kara. My mom and Dad took Devin and Brooke to Grandma Rose's to visit, and the Hubby went to his fathers to work on his old truck, leaving me and Kara home alone. For some reason Kara decided to be the biggest pain in the butt on Saturday and was getting into everything that she knew she wasn't suppose to be getting into. So of course my bad mood got worse! Once everyone got back home the neighbors came over for a bon fire and the neighborhood kids decided to take the kittens for a walk and see if they could find a new home for them. To my surprise, they found a home for Kevin on their first stop (to the next door neighbors house). I was excited to see Kevin have a new home but was sad because he was so lovable and became my favorite! But that still left Patrick with no home, and Sunday we took him back to the in-Laws because we couldn't find him a home. He was happy to see his mommy as she was happy to him as well. So who knows, maybe my Father-in-Law will change his mind and let Patrick stay. We visited with the in-Laws and some of our Friends (Jeff & Nikki) came over to visit as well and we hung out while our kiddos (Kara and Kaylee) played with each other. I think Kara was amazed to see a baby younger then herself. Most "babies" she sees are all older then she is. She did really well with Kaylee though (who is 8 months old), I hope that they will be good freinds when they get older! Oh did I mention we found a huge splinter in Kara's finger Sunday? It must have been there for a few days because it was infected and looked horrible. It took me and my dad holding her down for my mom to get the splinter out! My poor baby was in so much pain! I felt so sorry for her, she looked and me and my mom like we were the devil! She cried for a while (which of course I don't blame her) but it was scary when she would scream so loud and make herself gag. But we got it out and gave her some Ibuprofen for the pain.

Kara had her 18 month check up yesterday and it went pretty well.... For the most part. The doctor looked at her finger and said it looked good! It no longer looked infected, to just continue putting neosporin on it and cleaning it a few times a day. That's a relief that its fine, I was worried with as bad as it looked before we took the splinter out. Over all Kara looked good and her appointment went well. She weighs 23.9lbs (but for some reason they put 24lbs on her chart) she is in the 42nd % for weight, She is 33 1/4 in tall or 90% for height (yeah shes got some long legs) and she has a big noggin at 47.1cm (66%). Maybe that big head is holding a big brain (no wonder she picks things up so quickly, except for when it comes to getting into things she knows she should be in). The doctor noticed as she was doing her exam that Kara had some bumps on her legs and that's when I piped up and asked what they heck they were because she had them on her arms to and Brooke also has them on her arms, legs and torso. Well I guess its a skin condition called Keratosis Pilaris , Its a hereditary skin condition that cause bumps on the body that look like goosebumps, I guess there are worse forms of it that can be irritating and red but luckily for Kara and Brooke they just have flesh colored bumps that don't cause irritation. There is a lotion that the girls can use called Lac Hydrin but unfortunately Kara can not use it till she is 2 (not quite sure why about that one but I will be waiting to use it on her). Hopefully we don't have to many issues with it this summer because I notice when she is out in the sun on a hot day, the bumps get worse and spread, she still doesn't notice them but they spread. Its good to know that its nothing serious though.
After her appointment we went shopping were else but Target (hey her doctors is in the same area its hard not to go to the doctors and not hit Target afterwards). I tried to control my spending but hey I love Target! So we bought a bunch of stuff, then it was off to payless to get Kara a new pair of sandals since the little turd lost her other pair (who knows how since she lost them in the house and we can not find them any where!) I let her choose the pair and the very first pair she went for were princess light up flip flops! remember Kara is only 18 months. But she didn't want any other shoes so that's what I bought her (and another pair of sandals that she will wear more often). Hey sometimes I let my kiddos splurge if they want a pair of shoes that are more for play then for purpose sometimes I allow it. She actually walks in them pretty well though! I'm a bit surprised.
Today I am tired and don't feel like doing anything.... So I think today I will just relax (like I don't do it every other day) Hopefully Kara doesn't get into to much the rest of the day (since she has been into EVERYTHING this morning!

Have a Great Day!
Catrina

Some thoughts on being "Crunchy"

I've been thinking.... (I know your thinking this can't be good). I love the environment, I mean were would we be without it? I love the idea of doing things to better the environment, and although I was unsuccessful with being "crunchy" or "eco-friendly" with any of my other children, well I tried to with Kara and I started a bit late and unfortunately did not quite stick with it (fail on my part). This bundle that I am now 14 1/2 weeks preggo with, is probably, most likely (I want to say defiantly) our last child, I want to do right with this one, I want to do things that are better for my baby and better for the environment. I started cloth diapering Kara at 11 months, I only started out with about 5 or 6 gdiapers I loved the concept of these it seemed so easy, I bought cloth prefolds and then when gdiapers came out with their cloth inserts I bought some of those. I thought this will be easy I can use the disposable/flushable part of the diaper when out and at night and the g's during the day, no problem right? Except I think I messed up from the start, I wasn't using the flushable inserts at night or on outings because I had disposables left over still. But then once those ran out I thought well this is easier to use the disposables at night (because I didn't want to double up on the flushables because I didn't have alot) and it was so much easier with disposables on outings too. So cloth diapering last for a while, during the days only though. Okay it also didn't help because the hubby and my dad refused to use the g's. Things worked out for a while and we were spending less on diapers (yea!) but then I got lazy and started using the g's less and less, okay mainly because when she would poo in them it made me sick to clean and no one else was going to do it for me. So we have been on mainly disposable for quite some time, we do still have a use the g's but not as often.

I would love to try and go completely green (especially to save money) but to be honest I just don't have it in me (as much as my brain wants, I just don't think I can do it). So I have decided if I can't go completely cloth then I will at least start buying better disposables, I tried Seventh Generation but I just was not happy with them they felt weird and I had leaking issues, I'm sure they are great diapers but I just didn't like them. I have been researching today looking at my options out there and seen that Huggies has a new diaper out called Pure and Natural they are made with organic materials and I am sure they are not as organic as cloth but its a start right? I have been thinking about also making my own baby food, don't quote me though because this is just my thought right now when it comes down to it I hope that I have the time, energy and patients to do but there are no guarantees. I've made the decision to go for the BPA free bottles, the brand I am not sure on yet, I may just try a few to see what I like. I know for sure that I will give another go at breastfeeding, as I had failures with it with my last 3 children I am hoping that this time around we will be able to do it and stick with it for at least 6 months (if not longer).

If anyone has suggestions to help achieve my goals I welcome opinions!

I have been reading a lot of "crunchy" blogs to see what they are all doing. I hope that I can do things that are more organic and better for the environment with my baby and family. I commend all the women and families that can go crunchy all the way. I wish I had it in me to do it also. I think for me it is a little difficult because my family isn't about all the organic aspects of life, and the hubby is more about the money aspect because even if it can save in the long wrong, if its not saving us now he doesn't want to do it, especially if it will cost a lot of money up front.

I will continue to read up on how to live life better for my children and our environment and I will start trying to bring it into our everyday life. I want to set a good example for our children to be healthy and live healthy. I just hope that I can get the support from my family to do so. It may take some time but I hope I can do this.

Bring on the Holiday.

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

What are you Thankful for today?
Today I am Thankful for one the health of my children, I am thankful for my beautiful children, thankful for my wonderful husband, my health, my supportive family, my husbands job, my step father for being there and acting as my real father (he has always been there for me and I appreciate it so much!).

Today we will be going to the in laws for dinner and then after we will go to my grandparents, we always have to pick who's house we will be eating dinner at because usually they are at the same time, we had dinner at my grandmothers last year so we will have dinner at the in laws this year.
So who out there will partake the excitement that is Black Friday? I'm still unsure if I want to endure the traffic and hoards of people fighting to buy everything that is on sale, and do I really want to wake up before the sunrises? I guess we will have to see what tomorrow brings.