Product Review: Baby Sleepytime Bath

As promised in this post, I am happy to finally get around to my product reviews for EcostoreUSA. I apologize for taking so long. Things have been nuts, as I'm sure you can guess if you follow my blog! ;-) That said, let's get on with this. For more information on EcostoreUSA and their products in general, please see the aforementioned post.

I am starting with what's the easy product for me: Baby Sleeptime Bath. The description on the Web site says:

Ecostore’s aromatherapy blend of Lavender and Geranium will help your little one fall into a relaxed, calm sleep. Just use one capful in the bathwater. NO NASTY CHEMICALS are used in the SleepyTime bath and this helps keep the planet’s water pure and safe. (6.8 fluid ounces)

On the bottle it says:

Aromatherapy oils to soothe, calm & relax your baby

Now, I'll be the first to admit. I'm skeptical of aromatherapy. But, I'm all for trying something that says it'll help relax my baby. We've used it a couple of times, and it's really hard to say if it's really doing just that. We do baths so close to bed time that it's hard to know whether it's their tiredness in general, just taking a bath, the product we use, or some combination thereof that calms and relaxes them.

That said, I love this product. For one, it smells lovely. In the bottle, it's kinda strong - woodsy, for lack of a better description. But, once we have it in the bath water, it smells WONDERFUL. It's light and pleasant. I'm all for that! ;-) My baby smells so nice after her bath. And I noticed her skin's not getting very dry after her baths. I'm not sure what, but something in there seems to help her dry, itchy skin hold more moisture - or something. That alone makes me a fan of this product! Then there's one added benefit not on the bottle anywhere: my bathroom smells LOVELY for quite some time after my kids' baths! :-) Bonus points for this product! ;-)

In summary: EcostoreUSA's Baby Sleepytime Bath is an excellent product. It smells great, helps keep my baby's skin from drying out, and - perhaps best of all - is safe for our environment. For those of you in the Midwest, if you have a Meijer store nearby keep an eye out for EcostoreUSA products, as they're coming soon - if not there already! For those of us without Meijer, their products can be purchased via the company's Web site.

Wow. This is so me.

A lot has happened since my last post. A lot. And, amazingly, I'm doing OK. I'm on the verge of tears almost constantly, but I have amazing peace. I have decided NOT to walk away from my site after all. It's MY site. I built it from the ground up. Before I did this, we were just a buddy group that moved from one forum to the next - often because the site went paid. I did this so we - the group, not just I - could have a home. Our own domain. A place we wouldn't have to leave. A place we could always go to. Every time we had to move, we lost people. I didn't want that to happen anymore. I didn't want anyone to be left behind. Even if someone chooses to leave, they will always know where to find us. We're not going anywhere. And I am not going anywhere. It is my site. My e-baby. My blood, sweat, and tears. It is time away from my kids, my husband, my family. It is MY money that pays for the server. What was I thinking in wanting to go away? Well, I know - I wanted to keep the peace. I thought if I quietly disappeared, things would be OK. The person I've had a problem with can go on and enjoy the site - sometimes I think she needs the board more than I do. I suffered in silence for two years. I sucked it up and dealt with it. I tried not to let that stuff get to me. I guess it was just festering under the surface, though. Honestly, I don't even remember what caused this whole mess in the first place. I mean, I do remember the post. There was a post about kids' cartoons, and I felt she was being snarky - she felt I was being snarky. I think, honestly, I was just finally lashing out against what has been a long, hard problem for me. But, I don't know when it went from that to me saying I'm gone. Oh, I do know. My co-Admins and I decided to bring up the matter (in general terms) with our Staff. See what they thought. See if anyone else noticed me being picked on and bullied. The very first response to the question about this was in support of the individual in question. Something about that post made me feel like it was over. Forget it. If no one else saw what I did, no one would support me. No one would care how this person made me feel. So, I decided to leave. I didn't want to hurt anymore, and I KNEW that this issue was going to be explosive if I didn't. It exploded anyway. I'm going to spare the details, as it's really no one's business. But, I'm torn up. I'm so sad and so exhausted and so - I don't know how to say what I'm feeling.

I was afraid this would look like a personal vendetta. It's NOT. Despite my feeling bullied by this individual, I didn't want to see her get hurt. I didn't want to see her lose something that I know she needs. I am as torn up over this whole thing as anyone else involved.

Anyway, I have been starting to feel better. More at peace. More accepting of the way things are playing out. I can only control me. I cannot control someone's reaction or emotions. I cannot force someone to see things from my perspective. I can just pray - and hope God shows one of us something we hadn't seen before. So, that's what I'll do.

That said, now I get to the point - or at least the explanation of the title of this post! LOL DH and I took the kiddos out to Chili's for dinner tonight. We had a gift card to use, and he didn't feel like cooking. I can respect that - plus, we love Chili's. On the way there, we were listening to KLOVE. There were some good songs, but the best came on shortly before we got there.

I have loved this song ever since I first heard it - and it's in my playlist thingy toward the bottom of this page. (If you wanna listen to it here, make sure to pause the playlist thingy first.) As I listened tonight, I heard it anew. I heard it in a way I'd never heard it before. I knew it was for me. I knew it WAS me - no, not was, rather IS me. Every single word to this song rings true. Every single word. I am going to give in and let God do His thing. I thank Him for this song, as it has ministered to me in a way I've not experienced for quite some time.



And after you listen to this, scroll down and listen to the song Strong Tower by Kutless. That's the other song that really reaches me right now.

My heart is breaking

As many of you know, I own and run a Web site. It has been a labor of love for me - my e-baby, if you will! But, I think the time has come for me to move on. It kills me to say that. It kills me to walk away, but I fear I must. I don't want to go into too much detail - because the last thing I want to do is slander anyone - but I need to get this out.

I have mentioned in the past how there is someone on the site who has made my life hell. She ruined the get-together we had in September, and she has done her damnedest to shut me out of my friendships. On the board, she has been rude, condescending, and anything-but-supportive for me. She has been a part of that site for a couple of years now, and I cannot tell you the last time I shared my inner most thoughts and/or feelings with my friends because she is there. I feel like I'm always being ridiculed and judged and belittled by her. I don't love being on my site anymore. I go there out of a sense of duty, nothing more. I hardly share much of anything. I can't bring myself to face her lippy bullshit anymore. I can't. I'm done.

What hurts the most is somehow I'm being made out to be the villain here. I never did anything wrong! I let her into my site - my inner circle of friends. I tried to embrace her as a sister in Christ. I got paid back by repeatedly getting belittled and ridiculed. I got paid back by getting pushed out of my own site. I am sick over this. So sad and so upset.

DH is watching Leno, so I'm now losing my train of thought. So, that's it for now. Maybe tomorrow I'll have better thoughts.

Book Review: Inkheart

Inkheart by Cornelia Funke

My review

rating: 5 of 5 stars
I absolutely loved this book! I was quite surprised. It started out kinda slowly, but after a couple of chapters I didn't want to put it down. The plot is amazing - so imaginative and so well developed. I loved most of the characters - especially Dustfinger.



I wondered if Fenoglio's reaction to seeing his characters in the flesh is how Cornelia Funke would react if she was able to see her characters brought to life. It was really neat to see her writing about an author. I wonder how much of it was derived from her own experience.



Anyway, this was an excellently written book. I cannot wait to get started on the sequel, Inkspell!


View all my reviews.

Coming Soon ...

Product reviews. I recently was contacted via e-mail about possibly being sent some products to review. I agreed to give it a try, and I will share my thoughts here. (Probably on Vox, too.) I am going to share part of the text of the initial e-mail because who better to tell you about the company and products than the individual who is representing the company. So, here is the important info:

... I represent ECOSTORE USA which is an extension of a 20 year old New Zealand company http://www.ecostore.co.nz/ that makes plant based, non-toxic HOUSEHOLD CLEANING, BABY, and PERSONAL CARE products that contain NO NASTY CHEMICALS(tm)** ... We are an e-commerce site that will be launching at a major Midwest retailer, MEIJER, in early spring.

This is a small part of the initial e-mail I received. Anyway, I immediately checked out the Web site to see what this is about. If you haven't caught on yet, I'll spell it out simply for you. They sell products that are plant-based and containing No Nasty Chemicals™. They have a wide range of products from baby care and pet care to laundry and cleaning products. I was sent the following:

• Front Loader Laundry Powder
• Pure Oxygen Whitener
• Rosemary Orange Shampoo
• Rosemary Orange Conditioner
• Baby Sleepytime Bath

I have tried each of them once, but would like to try them a bit more before I form an opinion to share. After that, I'll post reviews of each in separate posts - with the exception of the shampoo and conditioner! ;-) That said, my first impression is good. The products seem to be a good quality, and I'm enjoying the scents! For those of you (like myself) with no Meijer stores nearby, it's nice to know that you can purchase their products via their Web site, too.

For more information about EcostoreUSA and their green - and safe - products, check out the following links:

• EcostoreUSA home page
  
• Ecostore USA FAQ page
• Ecostore USA "What is green" page
  
• Ecostore USA company info page
  
• Ecostore USA product page
• Ecostore USA blog

Watch for my first review coming soon!

Short Update

Sorry to be absent so long. I've been busy and really haven't had much to write about. I will be back soon, though, with some new product reviews. Until then, I thought I should update.

I GOT ONE! :-) What you ask? Well, read this post. If you don't wanna, read it, I'll just tell you. I got my Wii Fit! :-) A friend of mine in a neighboring community (which is smaller than the community in which I live) happened upon a new shipment at Walmart earlier this week. They got about 20 in on Monday night, and she called to see if I still wanted it. Of course, I said YES! :-) The plan was that she'd pick it up Tuesday morning and bring it to me Wednesday. Of course, she woke up sick and wasn't able to get there. But, her son was going to Walmart that afternoon and she had him get one! :-) There were only two left, so I'm glad he was able to get there when he did! I'm so excited!

No, I haven't used it yet. I've been sick all week! :-( I have had hardly any energy. I'm still not quite well, but hoping to get started with it tomorrow or Monday!

Anyway, I realized I'd complained about no Wii Fit here and thought I'd update. I'll share my opinion of it when I get going with it.

Never Saw It Coming

It's amazing how having babies changes your life - or at least how it changed my life. I'm not talking about the stuff like years of being sleep-deprived, suddenly loving driving a mini-van, having leftover baby fat, or other typical - and somewhat expected - changes. I'm talking other things. Things I never in a million years saw coming.

Seven years ago (I say seven because six years ago I was pregnant with Abby and the changes were under way), I was so different it's amazing. Well, not just me - my life. My husband and I had some close friends with whom we'd stay up into the wee hours of the morning playing games and just hanging out. (We still have those friends, but they moved to another state and we don't see or hear from them much.) Oh, yeah, and I worked second shift as a copy editor - a job I generally hated. I hated reading all those boring news stories, then having to write headlines. I think I've mentioned before that I'm not very good at that - and knowing that made it all the worse, especially when TPTB like puns. I hate punny headlines - so overused - and I could never write them. Well, not never, per say, just VERY rarely!

Seven years ago we had a nice house (we still live in it) with new carpeting and a dinky garage we were hoping to replace in the near future. That garage was so small that one of my sisters thought it was a shed the first time she saw it! LOL Pathetic - and, really, that's all it was worth. We could barely fit a Dodge NEON in it, let alone anything else! In that house, we had one cat and were planning to get another one - we ended up with two more. The first cat, Shadow, was our "first baby" - as I'd referred to her many times. She was a sweet cat, and was my pet before DH and I were married. So, naturally, she was part of the package - marry me, marry my cat. And I was one of those people who doted on her cat. I bought her birthday and Christmas presents (and presents from her for DH) and loved her to pieces. All that despite the fact that she was literbox-challenged to the worst degree. She would NOT pee in a litterbox to save her life. She had had a couple of UTIs, but even healthy she flat out REFUSED to pee in the litterbox. Thankfully, she did at least poop in there, but the pee's almost worse. The smell - and the fact that it's next to impossible to get out! Let's just say I wish we'd gotten rid of her long before we did. It was heartbreaking to do so - she's such a people kitty and really was my furbaby. We gave her to my ILs, who were planning to keep her outside. She's disappeared. :-( I feel guilty - a tiny bit - but less so than I did a couple of years ago. Anyway, what compelled me to get rid of her was - you guessed it - the kids. I was pregnant with Grant when finally I'd had it. I was ready to let her go. By that point, we already had Zeus and Huckleberry - angels compared to Shadow. Well, unless Huckleberry's antics were bothersome - he'd attack the toilet paper, shredding an entire brand-new role when we weren't looking. He'd done plenty of other things, but that's the one that most sticks out in my mind. I think what Dh and I referred to as "the voices" would tell him to do it. Either that or the toilet paper was taunting him! We'll never know, but - thankfully - he has out grown that. My point is I was one of those people who doted on her pets. Loved them and even referred to them as her babies. Until I had babies. Poor cats were forced to take a back seat when Abby was born. I still tried to give them attention and whatnot, but they definitely became second-class citizens. That's something I'd NEVER thought would happen.

Between Grant and Natalie we got a puppy. I don't know WHAT possessed me, as it was my idea. And, yes, I'm still kicking myself for that one! Grant was 6 months old when Sawyer was born - on Abby's third birthday. He was about 8 months when we brought Sawyer home. The cute thing is they are like buddies. They're growing up together, sorta. It's neat to see their bond. Anyway, Sawyer is a PITA. Now, I grew up with cats. So, perhaps part of the problem is this dog is much needier than any cat I'd ever had. I'm sure I'd have enjoyed him more if we'd gotten him before kids. Now, he's just extra work - an extra kid, if you will. But not an extra kid - they trump him. ALWAYS. I found myself thinking of him today as just a dog, and all of the pets in this house as "just animals." GASP! That's what prompted this post. It made me realize just how much kids change things you never see coming!

I had more on my mind, but it's gone. Maybe having to write between feeding the kids, letting the dog out, and other things is to blame! LOL Yeah, that's it! ;-)

Woe is Me

Like almost every other American, one of my goals for this year is to lose weight. No, you don't get to find out how much I weigh! LOL No one needs to know! ;-) But, I have had three babies in the past six years - and you can tell! It sucks. I gotta do it a little at a time - I'm getting close to my first goal, but not close enough! After my first goal, I have to lose about 10 more pounds to get to my pre-Natalie weight. That will be cause for much celebration indeed! Then, there are another 10-15 lbs to get to my pre-Grant weight. That will be cause for even GREATER celebration. Beyond that, there are another 20-25 lbs to get to my pre-Abby weight. THAT will be the celebration of a lifetime - well, at least since the birth of my babies! ;-) Beyond that another 15-20 lbs would be nice, but I'll be THRILLED just to get to my pre-Abby weight. Can I do it? I sure hope so - but I'm skeptical. See, as much as I hate to admit it (out of shame), I'm lazy. If something's work, I don't wanna do it. BUT, if that work can be made fun, I'm all for it! For instance, I HATE exercising - it's a chore and takes a long time to get noticable results. BUT, I love dancing - I was on the poms squad in junior high and in high school and LOVED it. Lost weight when I joined both (there were 3 years between the two - for various reasons I'll spare you for now), and looked great. If there was a way to do that kind of thing again now that I'm 32, I'd be there - and I'd likely lose the weight! But, well, anything even remotely close to that - Zumbo, I think is what it's called, for instance - is pricey. I don't have money for that right now. Plus, if I were to take it and get results and want to keep going, it'd be a recurring expense - no room in the budget for that right now. What I really wanna do is get a Wii Fit and use that. I know it's not anything like Zumbo, but I know I could enjoy that. But, of course, I can't get a Wii Fit to save my life - and I'm sure as hell not paying upwards of $100 for something that regularly is priced around $80. No way, no how. But, let me tell you, it's all I can do to keep from just saying screw it and ponying up the money! I am sure part of the problem is the aforementioned other Americans with the same goal - and likely a similar plan. I just wonder when the Wii Fit craze will die down so I can walk into Wal-Mart, Best Buy, or Target and buy one then and there. I feel like the king dude (I can't remember what they are - lemurs?) in Madagascar - "HOW LONG IS THIS GOING TO TAKE!" So, for now, I'm using Wii Sports. That tennis gets me moving pretty well. It's better than nothing, right?

Another endangered show

This is another one of my FAVORITE shows. Apparently I'm great at picking unpopular shows! :-( I personally think the writers' strike last year killed it, as it started last year with pretty good success. This year, it fizzled. There was too much time between the first and second seasons. It's a shame. This show is funny, dramatic, tongue-in-cheek, and just a ton of fun! So, again, with it being endangered, I never know when it's on next. So, I'll be watching my widget for this one, too! ;-)

One of my favorite shows

This is one of those shows that's soon-to-be no more, much to my dismay! :-( As such, I never know when another one's scheduled. So, I'm posting this to help me remember! ;-) I don't know if there's a chance that ABC will change their minds, but maybe if more people watch the last few episodes ...

Year in Review

A follow-up to my New Year's post, if you will. My friend Lisa posted this on her blog and I had to follow suit! You go back through your blog and copy the opening sentence from a post (or two) for each month. I began this blog in March, so I will start there - obviously! LOL

Below is the opening sentence from a post from each month. (Any italicized text is a comment I'm writing NOW.) To read the whole post, click on the date/month name:

March: I had a bunch of stuff that I wanted to write. (Is that the story of my blog or what? LMAO)

April: I saw my allergist yesterday, and he said it doesn't sound like an allergy to food!

May: I've never been good at titles - or writing headlines, for that matter.

June: That sums it up perfectly!
June 25: My precious baby girl was born.

July: Around 9:30 p.m. our power was restored!

August: A few months ago, once my daughter got into the wonderful world of Webkinz, I bought her a couple I knew she'd LOVE off eBay.

September: I was just starting up a Baby Einstein DVD for Grant.

October: At this point exactly 12 months ago I was getting to know my sweet new baby girl, Natalie.

November: There is so much going on in my mind right now.

December: DH got home yesterday!

In looking this over, I have to say a couple of things. One, I need to blog more. And two, I need to be more creative in my first lines of my posts! It was hard finding something interesting. No more first sentences being one-word sentences! LOL So far as blogging goes, for 2009 I resolve to write more and better! Wish me luck!

Book Review: The Crown Conspiracy

The Crown Conspiracy by Michael J. Sullivan

My review

rating: 5 of 5 stars
Wow! I thoroughly enjoyed this book! I must admit that when I obtained it I was slightly skeptical. But, I was given a great deal - and even got a signed copy! :-) So, I set about reading it. And I could NOT put it down! I read this book in a few days - and probably would have read it faster if I wasn't sick this past week. That said, I'm going to be somewhat vague in my review, as I hate spoilers and prefer to avoid writing anything that might ruin the book for others! ;-)



Anyway, this book was so much better than I'd expected. I loved Hadrian and Royce - despite the fact that they were master thieves! Most of the characters were well-developed and quite interesting. The plot moved quickly and had very interested twists and turns. The descriptions were detailed and really helped me "see" everything as I read.



One thing - the description of the sword fights lost me. I know nothing about fencing or whatever, and some of the terminology was over my head. But, the plot was awesome and I couldn't put the book down.



I do wonder if Mr. Sullivan is planning to make this into a series. There were things that happened that made me wonder if more was coming that would expand on some of the events in this book. I certainly hope so! If there is another book (or more) to follow this one, I won't waste any time obtaining it. I might even pre-order it! Either way, I will be looking for more books from Michael J. Sullivan!


View all my reviews.

Happy New Year!

I cannot believe that 2008 is now a mere memory and 2009 is upon us! Wow, that happened fast! A year ago I had a 2-month-old baby and was just beginning my stint as a stay-at-home mom. Abby was in her last year of preschool before starting Kindergarten in August. Grant has grown from a 2-year-old toddler to a talking, running, reasoning 3-year old. Natalie, well, she's gone from newborn to full-fledged toddler - they go through so many changes that first year or so that it's impossible to catalog it all! Me? I dunno - I've continued to slowly lose the baby weight. Slowly. I weaned Natalie about a month ago, so hopefully more weight will come of quickly! DH - well, he's working. He spent 30 days in Austin, TX, for work - working with FEMA in the aftermath of Hurricane Ike. It was all about the money - that's a lot of OT and extra cash. And we desperately needed it. In fact, I suspect he'll be doing it somewhat regularly (not necessarily Austin - wherever there's need) to help make it possible for me to continue to SAH. Oh, and he had his vasectomy - no more surprise babies for us! ;-)

So, what are my hopes for this year? That's a very good question.

• Lose weight - at the very least get to my pre-Natalie weight. That's a start. I eventually want to get to my pre-Abby weight, but that's 60 lbs away, so I'm not kidding myself that it'll happen this year!
• Get off the Zoloft - I've been on it for three years in February. I didn't get to wean off after weaning Grant like I'd wanted b/c I got knocked up. Now that there's no chance of that, I wanna get off it. Natalie's weaned, so the only thing working against me is possible PMS issues. But, I don't wanna be on the Zoloft forever!
• Be a better housekeeper
• Stop spending and help us get out of debt. Don't know how yet, but stopping spending is a first BIG step! ;-)
• Get back in the habit of attending church regularly.

I'm sure there are more things I'd like to change, but really having too many goals can set one up for failure. I already might be setting the bar too high. Time will only tell. That said, HAPPY 2009! I wish you all many blessings and much happiness this year!

Stopping in to say

May you all have an absolutely wonderful, blessed day!

Book Review: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

Fantastic Beasts & Where to Find Them by J.K. Rowling

My review

rating: 4 of 5 stars
I enjoyed this book. It's a nice addition to the Harry Potter series. I found the descriptions of the magical creatures to be quite imaginative and fun. While I wouldn't call it spectacular, I would say it's a must-read for every Harry Potter fan.


View all my reviews.

Book Review: The Shack

The Shack by William P. Young

My review

rating: 5 of 5 stars
This was a very good book. I found it to be a fast read, because the further I got into it, the more I wanted to keep reading. It's a sad tale about a man whose 6-year-old daughter was murdered by a serial killer. He meets with God to come to terms with both that and his troubled childhood. (I'm going to refrain from saying much more, because I don't want to reveal the plot.) In some ways, it's a story of redemption. I didn't find this book to be life-changing, as I've heard others label it, but it did make me think about my own faith. All in all, I would highly recommend this book.


View all my reviews.

We made it!

DH got home yesterday! :-) His flight ended up delayed by about a total of an hour - not too bad, especially not when flying out of ORD (more commonly known as O'Hare). The kids and I picked him up at the airport. We got there as his plane was landing, and could see it taxiing to the gate. By the time we got settled in the waiting area just outside the security checkpoint, DH was coming down the hallway. I saw him and asked Abby who that was. She took off running "Daddy" - and Grant followed suit. Natalie had to be brought over to him - she was too distracted by the new surroundings to notice people! LOL When she first saw him, she hesitated a little. But once he spoke to her, she came running! It was so sweet! She clearly missed him much more than I'd realized. She was big-time clingy with him last night, and still some today. She's more animated and just doing better overall. It's amazing the difference. She hadn't acted all that different during his absence, so I really thought she was somewhat indifferent.

Me? I must've been running on adrenaline while he was gone - once he was home, I just got DEAD tired! I couldn't believe it! LOL I had to take a nap this afternoon, too. I have been just so very tired. Must be the adrenaline crash! He's super tired, too - falling asleep on the couch since about 7:30! LOL But, he worked almost constantly, so it's not unexpected.

Well, in my super-tired state, I'm feeling not too eloquent right now. So, I'm gonna jet - maybe go to bed early. Night, night (to quote Natalie)!

The Home Stretch!

That's right. We're about to enter the FINAL week of DH's deployment! :-D A week from this very moment, he will be HOME. I cannot wait! I pray this last week flies by, as I am so ready for him to be home. He said today he's finally getting tired of living out of a suitcase and not being home. Saturday, December 6, cannot come fast enough! I had to get groceries today, and I picked up some things that he typically uses and I don't so that we have them when he comes. (I'm hoping that was my last trip while he's away. I also hope I have enough diapers for this week - I'm pretty sure I do.) He gets home about 2:30-ish in the afternoon, so the kids and I will pick him up at the airport. I'm so excited about that. I remember when he went on his first deployment - a little over three years ago. Abby and I picked him up, and were walking from the baggage claim area to the waiting area. He turned round the corner into the hallway, and Abby was so excited! She screamed "Daddy" and took off running to him. It was so sweet (and a little funny, as she had been eating some fruit snacks and left a little trail behind her LOL)! It's definitely a memory I'll cherish. I can't remember if we picked him up last time - I think we did, but clearly it wasn't quite as sweet! LOL I'm hoping this time he'll have all three of 'em running to him. We've talked using Gmail's video chat, and they just LOVE getting to see him while talking! Even Natalie - who shies away from the phone - loved it. She was blowing him kisses - very sweet. Anyway, we're entering the home stretch of being without DH. C'mon, Saturday - GET HERE ALREADY! ;-)

It's All Downhill from Here ...

... or so they say. The halfway point of DH's time away has been reached and passed. Two weeks from now he will be HOME. :-) December 6 cannot come fast enough! I will say that overall this has gone better than I'd expected. The kiddos are generally doing great, and I'm holding up better than before - maybe that's because I'm not pregnant this time! LOL I just miss HIM. His companionship. His hug. His voice - which sounds different IRL than over the phone! ;-) His smell. His smile. Two weeks - I can do this. Really. I can. Plus, my mom's coming out in a few days to be here for a few days - including Thanksgiving. So, that'll help. I'll finally have some much-needed adult company! And maybe, just MAYBE she'll let me get away - even if it's just to run to Panera and get a chai tea latte. Here's hoping! ;-) Anyway, we are over the hump. We're closer to the end than to the beginning. It feels SO GOOD! Oh, Lord, please help these two weeks fly by - and me to make it through with my sanity in tact - or at least what's left of my sanity! ;-)

Thanksgiving will be weird this year. DH and I haven't ever been apart for Thanksgiving in I don't know how long. This is our ninth Thanksgiving since we were married, and I know we'd spent a couple together prior to our marriage, too. So, it's been 10+ years since we last were apart for a major holiday! I really don't think it'll feel like Thanksgiving. Not even with a meal. But, we'll do our best.

What I haven't decided is whether to get the Christmas stuff down Friday like we normally would do or wait until he's home. Maybe it'll depend on how my back feels - and how heavy everything is! Perhaps I should ask him about it - that might be a good idea. Yes, I will tomorrow - assuming I remember.

Well, I think I'm gonna head to bed early. Grant was up around 5:30 this morning, and wouldn't go back to sleep. So, I am exhausted. Night, night!

Happy Hump Day!

Yes, I know, it's not Wednesday. But, it's still hump day - and, no, I'm not being dirty! LOL Today is the midway point of DH's absence. We've reached the hump - it's all downhill from here! :-) In some ways, it's energizing. In others, it's EXHAUSTING. But, I'm excited. Two weeks from TOMORROW, he comes HOME! :-) I'm so excited. It's odd, but I think I've missed him even more this time - which I so didn't expect. The other times I was pregnant, and I thought my hormones made it worse. But, perhaps this time it's b/c I don't work. It's me and the kids, day in and day out. Always. No breaks for me, unless right now counts, but even then I have to be ready in case I'm needed. I miss his companionship more than I have in the past. I'm sure our new situation accounts for that. But, I'm not complaining - especially with Thanksgiving being a few days away. My mom is coming out - and probably bringing my niece and nephew - so that'll keep us busy. Hopefully the time will FLY! Abby only has 2 and a half days of school. Part of me wishes she was off all week, but I know it's better NOT that way - we clash way too much! LOL

On a completely unrelated note, I decided I wanted a more seasonal template. So, I found a Christmas/winter one. It was so hard to choose! I again went with Simply Fabulous Blogger Templates - I just LOVE her stuff! She recently released her seasonal templates, so I decided to switch. She does an absolutely lovely job!

I have another post I want to write - about my faith. But, it'll have to wait until I'm not falling asleep at the keyboard! ;-) That said, I gotta get to sleep. I'll write more tomorrow.