The Rabbitt Hutch

Psalty DVD and CD giveaway!

2011-09-06T22:20:00.002-04:00

So I recently purchased a few Psalty cd's for Grace. She LOVES them! Now that we have a second one (the first one was always in the car) she listens to it every night! I ask her if she wants to listen to her story or to Psalty and Psalty always wins! Thrifty Nifty Mommy is having a giveaway on her blog for two Psalty DVDs and a CD! I would love to see what Grace thinks of the DVDs. If you want a chance to win visit Thrifty Nifty Mommy's blog, the giveaway ends September 19th.

29 Diapers giveaways

2011-08-30T16:13:00.002-04:00

29 Diapers is at it again! She has another great set of giveaways going on, and all cloth event! You can check her out here for your chance to win a softbums omni, a fuzzibunz, a smartipants, and more! Good luck!

Horses

2011-08-30T11:49:00.007-04:00

I had the opportunity to take Grace horseback riding last week. I wasn't sure how she would do. If you know Grace, she can be a little chicken about some things. For example, we were at the local pool and I asked her if she wanted to go down the slide with me. She wouldn't no matter how many times I asked her. I even tried bribing her with a box of fruit snacks, lol. Finally she said she would. She did it once and wouldn't go down again.

So they brought the horses out and she got to pet them. I asked her if she wanted to ride one with me and she said yes! She wasn't afraid at all. When we got off I asked if she wanted to ride by herself and she did, no hesitation at all! She had such a great time. I would love to own property and a couple horses someday! Enjoy the pictures!

Grand Rapids Mud Run 2011

2011-08-27T20:38:00.008-04:00

At the start...nice and clean!

Up over the barrier

Across the finish line.

And the end result!

I participated in the second annual Grand Rapids Mud Run and I had a blast! It is a 5k run with lots of mud and lots of obstacles. There are mud pits, mud, mud puddles, mud, wall climbs, mud, tunnel crawls, mud, a mud slide and, you guessed it, mud!!!! I had a really great time and look forward to running again next year!

29 Diapers giveaways

2011-08-19T15:23:00.004-04:00

29 Diapers has a really awesome Back To School giveaway on their blog right now. TWO readers will each win a $100 gift certificate to www.teacollection.com. They have some really cute clothes! She has another giveaway for a $50 gc to old navy for one lucky reader from CouponChief.com You can find that one here. Check them out for your chance to enter!

Happy Birthday To My THREE Year Old!!!

2011-05-22T20:19:00.010-04:00

Blowing out candles!

She loves her Larry the Cucumber birthday card!

I love her smiles!

We played Blues Clues. This is her drawing her clue in the Handy Dandy Notebook.

This is her finding her first clue!

My cute baby Molly.

She was upset about something, but I don't remember what, lol.

Wow, I can't believe Grace is going to be 3 tomorrow!!! She is such a grown up little lady already! We celebrated her birthday yesterday with family. She had a good time. We got her a violin for her birthday and it comes tomorrow, we are both very excited! We are also going to start school tomorrow! Grace can't wait to start school. We asked her what tomorrow was and instead of saying her birthday she said school! Here are a few pictures from her birthday party. I will update with how our schooling is going!

Bootyful Baby Giveaway

2011-05-22T20:05:00.002-04:00

Hello everyone. I just wanted to let you know about a giveaway for a Bootyful Baby AI2 diaper at KAMsnaps' blog. It ends May 27th. I reviewed them on my blog this past January. Check it out here. Good luck!

Attention Local Mamas!!!

2011-04-25T20:44:00.005-04:00

Bootyful Baby Boutique is hosting Handmade in the Grand Trunk Show this Saturday, April 30th from 10 am - 2 pm. It is a free event that will showcase an amazing variety of beautiful, unique products. These upscale products are handmade by the very talented female artisans that own the following businesses:

-Bootyful Baby Boutique (modern cloth diapers and diapering accessories)
-Chickadee & Me (upcycled woolies)
-Cindy’s Suds (natural products for health & home)
-Cuppycakes Confections (gourmet cupcakes)
-Hip Violet (appliquéd bibs)
-K Bella Bambino (children’s clothing)
-Lil’ Creations Bowtique (hair accessories)
-Mom N Mia Quilts (baby essentials and art buckets)
-Naturally Adorable (reusable snack bags)
-Organic Mamas Shop (jewelry and wool knit items)
-Shoes by Meg (custom painted shoes)
-Yellow Horse Art Studio (stuffed animals)

At the show you will have the opportunity to enter drawings for a variety of free products valued at more than $250! And one of my lucky readers will have the chance to win a $5 credit to Bootyful Baby Boutique and 10 extra bonus tickets to be used in any of the drawings! How generous is that! For your chance to win just follow my blog and comment below with your email address and which business you are most excited to check out!

Win a Coccoro Flash Travel System!

2011-04-16T17:49:00.002-04:00

Hi all! I just wanted to tell you about a great blog giveaway. Head over to www.29diapers.com for your chance to win a Coccoro Flash Travel System. It is a convertible car seat and stroller frame. The car seat comes in some cool colors too! The giveaway ends Monday the 18th so you have a few days left to enter!

California Here We Come!

2011-03-26T20:54:00.011-04:00

My girls in matching pinafores I made them.

My beautiful ballerina!

I love Molly's gorgeous eyes!

Sister kisses!! Ewwww!

My beautiful girl Molly.

This is how I found Grace sleeping...

Grace is in a Boba on my back and Molly is in an Ergo on the front...just to see if I could. :)

It has been a busy week! Last Friday my DH came home and asked me what I thought about going to California for a few weeks. He travels quite a bit for work. Wednesday it was a sure thing and we are leaving tomorrow morning at 6:30am! It takes quite a bit of work to pick up the lives of four people and go away for three weeks. That is what I have been doing the last few days. I am soooo tired, but I'm up waiting to throw my diaper laundry into the dryer so I thought I'd add a few pictures to my blog. I hope you enjoy them. Hopefully next week I'll have some beach pictures to share!!!

We are all alive and well!

2011-03-22T10:51:00.003-04:00

It has been way to long since I have updated the blog. It is so easy to get caught up in life and let this go by the wayside. Let's see, in the last two months quite a bit has happened. Molly has three more teeth and is walking like a pro. She gets into everything and thinks its funny when you tell her no. She is finally sleeping through the night. She just stopped nursing this past Sunday. It makes me sad, but she went two months longer than Grace did, which is good! She still isn't really talking, but she can sign please, all done, and up. I know she's got a light bulb on in there and I am sure once she starts talking I'll be wishing she didn't talk so much!

Grace is such a big girl! She is day potty trained now, with just an occasional accident, usually when she is busy and forgets to go. I tried night time potty training her and she just isn't ready yet. I'm okay with that. She knows all her letters and we are working on her numbers. I want to start teaching her how to read soon. I'm procrastinating a little because I think it is going to be a large undertaking and I'm not a very patient teacher. Grace still cracks me up all the time, at least when shes not driving me crazy with the whining of a two year old. Recently I thought I heard someone in the bathroom in the middle of the night, but I fell back asleep. In the morning I wondered if Grace had gone potty by herself, but when I got up she said she peed her bed. I went into her room and discovered that she had gotten up in the middle of the night, got a towel out of the bathroom, put it on her bed where there was a little wet spot and went back to sleep. She never woke me up, just did it all on her own. Such a goof.

Bob has been busy with work. He has been traveling more than normal the last few weeks. It's good that work is busy, but we miss him when he is gone. I have been busy with bowling the last few weekends, the city and state tournaments. I am looking forward to the national tournament in May, and yes, it may have something to do with being childless for a few days. ;)

I am going to make a concerted effort to update my blog more. I just took a bunch of cute pictures of the girls yesterday and I will try to get them on this week. Also, spring is kind of coming so hopefully we will be able to get out and do more blog worthy things (playing inside day after day gets kind of old!) I hope you all have a wonderful week and thanks for stopping by. Also, I do have a review/giveaway for mama cloth coming up so check back!

Charity Raffle for Coupon Mommy of 3

2011-02-09T09:27:00.001-05:00

Many of you know of Coupon Mommy of 3 and have heard about her daughter Emily. Fabulous Family Reviews and Giveaways has organized this awesome charity raffle to help raise money for Shannon and her family. Thanks for your support!.

This is all for little Emily

You can read about Emily's story here.
Shannon's blog
Shannon's Facebook page
Shannon's Twitter

Here are some important details:

To enter this giveaway a mandatory $5.00 ($5 = 1 entry) donation is required. All money is going directly into Shannon's paypal account. Click here to donate.

For every $1.00 over the $5.00 mandatory entry you receive another entry. Ex. donate $10.00 and receive 1 entry for the first $5.00 and 5 more entries for the other $5.00, total would be 6 entries.

Must be 18 or older to win.

This giveaway is open to US and Canada. However some sponsors are not able to ship to Canada. In that case I (Melissa from Fabulous Family Reviews & Giveaways) will be the go between and have the items shipped to me and then I will ship to Canada.

Sponsors and bloggers ARE allowed to enter. Fabulous Family Reviews & Giveaways will be the only one with access to the entries therefore they will not be eligible to win. Everybody else is fair game.

You MAY win up to TWO packages. If random.org picks you twice I will allow it but if you are lucky enough to be picked a third time then it is somebody else's turn to win.

If you are a sponsor or blogger and you win the item you have donated it will be separated from the prize package and be raffled off via random.org as a single prize to all other entrants.

If you have any questions at all please email Melissa from Fabulous Family Reviews & Giveaways at fabulousfamilyreviews@gmail.com

Feel free to comment on this post but it will not count as an entry unless you fill out the giveaway form posted below.

If you have not entered a giveaway from Fabulous Family Reviews & Giveaways before it's really simple. Just fill out the form and add up your entries at the end. ALL entries will be verified.

Here is a Link to all Sponsor's websites, Facebook pages, Twitter pages, and blogs.

You also get an extra entry for following all participating blogs on Google friend connect, twitter, and 'Liking' them on Facebook. So be sure to hop around all blogs below for up to 3 extra entries for each participating blog.

To learn more about each prize you can view them all here: http://www.facebook.com/FabulousFamilyReviews?v=photos#!/album.php?aid=48511&id=126257537393106

Click on the ChipIn Widget below to donate. After you donate Click HERE to fill out the entry form. If you have any questions at all please email Melissa at fabulousfamilyreviews@gmail.com

Thanks!!!!

Now on to the fun stuff!! The prizes you can win!

Cloth Diapering Package #1

FuzziBunz one-size diaper from Wee Little Changes
Small wetbag in either cars print or vines print (winners choice) from Green Bumkin

1 gender neutral diaper from Mud Butt Cloth Diapers

Bag of Rockin' Green from Rockin' Green Cloth Diaper Detergent
Fitted diaper, winner's choice of in stock diaper or a custom one from Wee Expressions

$25 Gift Certificate from Sew Crafty Baby
Limited Edition diaper (only two of a kind!) from Knickernappies

Wool Longies (boy or girl colors) from Babee Greens
Diaper kit including The Champ diaper, wipes, wet/dry bag, and pail liner from GoGreen Pocket Diapers

$15.00 Gift Card to the The Fruit of Her Hands

2 Little Bundles from AppleCheeks
$5 gift card from HootHootBaby

Cloth Diapering Package #2

Limited Edition diaper (only two of a kind!) from Knickernappies

$5 gift card from HootHootBaby
bumGenius 4.0 onesize pocket diaper from Jennifer's Cloth Diaper Boutique
Go, Baby, Go! 14" X 12" Hot Pink wet bag with orange and lime stripes from Gina Turella Garcia- Go, Baby, Go! Independent Consultant

2 size Medium gPants, a bag of gRefills and a package of gCloth from gDiapers

$10.00 gift certificate to The Ginger Kid

Happy Heinys OS Snaps Puppy Print from Cute N Fluffy Cloth Diapers
$15.00 Gift Card to the ali AND swan

6 pack of organic prefolds with 2 covers and a roll of biosoft flushable liners from Bummis
Wetbag from Prairie Tales, LLC
LolliDoo Diaper Anonymously donated
Bag of Rockin' Green from Rockin' Green Cloth Diaper Detergent
Fluff's Enough donated a set of Tree Huggin Momma's fleece liners. (*Not pictured)
1 size Medium BabyKicks Hemparoo Joey-Bunz PREMIUM donated by Life With My Littles (*Not pictured)

Cloth Diapering Package #3

Pack of 6 Charlie Banana 2-in-1 eco-diapering system from Charlie Banana
24 oz bag of detergent from Eco Sprout

Cloth Diapering Package #4

Good to Go package from SoftBums

Comfy Rumps Package

For donating $5.00 you can win 2 diapers from Comfy Rumps. If you donate $10.00 or more you can win 5 diapers! 7 total diapers being given away. If you have entered for any of the cloth diaper packages you will automatically be entered to win the Comfy Rumps packages as this was added after the start of the giveaway.

Baby Package

Pacific Moby Wrap from Moby Wrap
Key Fob from BabyBug Creations
Carnival bloom bib & burp cloth set from Designer Bub
Aden & Anais Diwali - Bamboo Muslin Swaddles 3 pack from Kelly's Closet (DiaperShops.com)
Winner's choice of hat from SweetPeas An Bumpkins
Custom shoes, size and print from Clothbaby.org
Fabric covered wipes case from BabyBug Creations
(1) pair of Rock-a-thigh baby socks in winners choice of color from All American Baby Boutique

Custom diaper/wipe case from BabyBug Creations

Gift Basket - Items will include some crinkles, loopies, soakers, reusable lunch sacks, cloth wipes and some baby balm from Hen House Creations (*Not pictured)

Toddler Package

Musical Gear Center toy from Playskool
Toddler Pillow from BobbleRoos

Custom appliqued shirt/onesie from Tiny Toe Creations
Winner's choice of ERGObaby carrier and color choice from ERGObaby

$25.00 Gift Card to The Head said

10 Handmade Birthday invitations of any Disney Character from Moms Saving Money

1 green children's edition of the i like book
$15 gift certificate to EcoMom
Denim apron from Five Talents Boutique
imagiPLAY Counting Octopi toy from The Cloth Experiment (*Not pictured)
Planet Wise Bag Your Snack Stuff gift pack from Nicki's Diapers (*Not pictured)

Girls Package

Custom tutu and matching flower clip from Little Miss Posh
Two girl style pair of BabyLegs from Mom 4 Life
Size 3T dress (pictured) from Cute Factor
Pink & white korker from Lily's Bowtique
$25.00 Gift Card to The Head said

Mom's Package #1

1 BEADtastic book bling from Bouncing Woolies
Pair of FUNKtastic dryer balls (design will vary) from Bouncing Woolies
Wool car freshener (colors will differ, without beads) from Bouncing Woolies
A batch of french pressed soap for the winner from Beck, The Crazy Housewife
$20.00 Gift Card to Homestead Emporium
Necklace from Avon anonymously donated
Wrap-a-Nap winner's color choice from Wrap-a-Nap
2 - $5 Amazon gift cards anonymously donated
Corn/therapy pillows, facial-sized with flannel cover from Delaynie Cooper Designs (*Not pictured)
Sewing Instructions/PATTERNS/ Tutorials from 2 Teens and a Toddler Boutique

Sewing Instructions/PATTERNS/ Tutorials included:

-Shopping Cart Cover (Single)

-Rag Quilt Blanket

-Boppy Nursing Pillow COVER

-Crayon Roll

-Ring Sling

-I Spy Bag Toy

*Theseare for a sewing pattern only, the items pictured are NOT included.

Mom's Package #1

5 - 8x10 original photographs by Samantha Shuman (Fresh Samantha)

Scentsy Warmer and bar of Scentsy from Independent Scentsy Consultant ~ Lisa Marie
You Go, Girl! Scentsy Bar from Adventures in Abby Land
Pin from Avon anonymously donated
A basket full of bath goodies made by a 7 year old little girl (with help from her Mommy.) Wash Away Cancer (Beck, The Crazy Housewife)
Wrap-a-Nap winner's color choice from Wrap-a-Nap
4 EasyLunchbox containers and 1 EasyLunchbox cooler bag, winner's choice of color from Easylunchboxes
Corn/therapy pillows, regular sized and one facial-sized with flannel cover from Delaynie Cooper Designs *This is just an example, fabric will differ*
1 couples edition of the i like book
Flat wallet from The Accessory Barn (*Not pictured)

Boba Carrier

Boba Classic 2G, winner's choice of color from Boba Baby Carrier

BabyLegs

$50.00 in BabyLegs products

Sleepy Wrap

Classic Sleepy Wrap, winner's choice of color from Sleepy Wrap

Advertising Package

Enter to win ad space on multiple blogs (more blogs are participating in this than pictured - complete links to come soon!) ** I just wanted to note the winner for this package will be drawn last. So if you win this you will not be taken out of the running for other prizes. I know many individuals will enter the giveaways and might not be so interested in this package. However it would be super cool if you are an individual that wins it and you donate all the ad space to your favorite shop(s)! It would be a great way to pay it forward! **

Disclosure: I nor participating bloggers received any monetary donations or item donations for this posting. This is a charity event and all money goes directly to Shannon Hubbel of Coupon Mommy of 3 for her families unexpected medical expenses, travel expenses, and time off from work. This is being done out of the goodness of our hearts. ♥

My Baby is ONE!!!

2011-02-04T21:48:00.005-05:00

getting into her diapers...

sucking her sisters toes...goof

So, this actually a few days late because Molly turned one on January 31, but it feels like her birthday is tomorrow because that is when her party is! This last year just flew by, I can't believe she is one!

She is a little crawling machine, but no walking yet. She has taken a few small steps here and there and can stand like a pro, but she hasn't taken off yet. I keep expecting her to just start walking any day now because she is so close! She has a whopping total of TWO teeth, silly girl. She can eat just about anything though. She still nurses three times a day. She cracked me up today. For the first time she tried crawling around while nursing. It took her a second to realize my boob wasn't going with her. Then she tried to nurse in all sorts of silly positions. I love the silly girl!

She has been kind of whiny lately, I am praying that she is not getting sick! Normally she is a sweet little person. This last week she learned how to do "How big is Molly" and play peek-a-boo...well sort of. I have also been working with her to learn sign. She hasn't said any words yet so she communicates with grunts and crying. She learned how to sign please...on me, lol. I kept telling her to say please and she wouldn't, so I squatted down to her level and she signed it on me, so cute!!!

Enjoy these couple of pictures. I will post birthday pictures next week!

Bootyful Baby Boutique Review and Giveaway - Closed!

2011-01-15T15:16:00.011-05:00

Let me start this review off by saying how excited I was to be able to try out a local WAHM's diaper! I love trying new WAHM diapers and it is ever better when they live right in town!

The diaper I had the opportunity to review is the Bootyful Baby AI2. Ashley was great and let me choose my color. I chose the plum because it is such a gorgeous color! Actually all of the AI2's are really great colors, very vibrant and rich. Here is a description of the AI2 from the Bootyful Baby website. "Our All-in-Two is a trim-fitting, perfectly sized diaper. The outer layer is polyurethane laminate (PUL). It is waterproof, meaning a separate diaper cover is not required. The inner layer is microfleece - a wicking material that provides a stay-dry feeling for baby. The absorbent insert snaps in to the diaper. It contains four layers of a super-absorbent hemp/cotton blend topped with white microfleece. The edges of the soaker pad are serged in white thread. The diaper has a side-snapping closure system which allows for maximum adjustability. A wonderful feature of the All-in-Two is the ability to only change the insert if the shell of the diaper is not soiled; essentially making this a diaper cover as well. This gives you the convenience of a one-step diaper, at significantly less cost."

I've been using my AI2 for about a month now. The insert is still really soft and stain free after using it about every 2-3 days. I am really impressed that there aren't any stains because Molly loved pooping in it as soon as I put it on the first few times. I don't know what it is with babies pooping in their new diapers!

I started out testing it for a few hours during the day, then moved to nap time, and finally the ultimate test, night time! This diaper was great during the day and at nap time. I never had any leaks and it was tested with all sorts of messes. When I tried it at night it did leak, but I only had the one insert in it. I have a really heavy wetter, but I know that when I get myself some more inserts I can just add one in for night time and it will work like a charm. The inserts are definitely VERY absorbent. It was super heavy in the morning!

I am also impressed with how trim the diaper is. Molly's jeans slide on easily over her cloth booty. That is one benefit of a side snapping diaper. I must say that I was not a huge fan of side snapping diapers. On other brands I tried I always seemed to get leak issues, but the Bootyful Baby did not give me any troubles. It was easy to adjust and it was great to have a little more control over the fit around her slightly chunk chunk thighs. I have a more favorable opinion of side snapping diapers now! The only down of the side snaps is that it was a little more difficult to get on my wiggly 11 month old. That being said every diaper is a little more challenging to get on than it used to be!

Another great thing about this diaper is that the insert fits the cover really well. All the messes were contained on the insert which means you can use the same cover longer while just changing the insert. That is great for maximizing your stash!

Over all these diapers would be a great addition to any stash. They are trim, absorbent, pretty and a great fit. Oh and did I mention that they are so squishy and soft! Wouldn't you like to get your hands on one of these? Well here is your chance! Ashley has graciously offered my readers a chance to win a $15 store credit! Here is how.

Please leave a separate comment for each entry. Please leave an email address so I can contact you if you win.

Mandatory Entry
1. Follow my blog via GFC. (1 entry)
2. Check out Bootyful Baby Boutique and come back here and tell me what your favorite product she makes/carries is. (1 entry)
Extra Entries
3. Go like Bootyful Baby Boutique on facebook and thank her for the giveaway. (1 entry)
4. Go like The Rabbitt Hutch on facebook. (1 entry)
5. Blog about this giveaway. Please leave a link in your comment! (1 entry)

This giveaway will end January 29 at 10 pm. EST. The winner will be picked via random.org. The winner will be posted on the blog and the winner will be contacted at the email address provided. They will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be drawn.

Happy New Year

2011-01-03T10:20:00.003-05:00

Well, it has been way too long since I have done a real blog post so I thought I would get started on the new year. 2010 was a very good year, fast, but good. I had Molly January 31st, nine months sooner than we were planning on having a baby, but God's plans are better than our own. She has been such a joy. She is a sweet, laid back baby. She always has a smile for you and she has the greatest laugh! She finally got her first tooth! No words yet, but she is getting good at standing without holding on to anything! She will be walking all too soon I am sure!

Grace is growing into a little person (or big person if we are talking about height, lol)! She is going to be three in a few months! She is smart and so funny. She catches on to things so fast and makes the funniest connections. This last week she pointed to my nursing pads and called them my boob circles. She has also started "getting" relationships. I am now HER mommy and Molly's mommy. She also is totally day potty learned! I can't believe what a big girl she is!

We are so blessed. Bob has a wonderful job, we have the two sweetest, funniest girls ever, and the best friends and family. I thank God for the wonderful year we had and look forward to serving him better this coming year.

On a side note, keep your eyes peeled for a couple of cloth diaper reviews/giveaways and a mama cloth review/giveaway in the next couple months!

Hip Hooters Giveaway

2010-12-17T21:42:00.002-05:00

Just wanted to let all my nursing followers know about a giveaway for nursing pads over at Beah and Bubbas. It is a giveaway for a pair of Hip Hooters and they are super cute! Check them out. Ends December 18th.

Night and Day

2010-12-15T22:23:00.002-05:00

I was just thinking today about how different babies are. I have two little girls and they are like night and day! My 2 1/2 year old Grace was such a serious baby. My 10 month old Molly is such a smiley girl. Grace didn't crawl until a week before her first birthday and walked at 15 months. Molly crawled at 8 months and is well on her way to walking! Grace was ready to wean at like 9 months (she didn't until she was a little over 12 months) and Molly loves to eat! She still nurses 4 to 5 times a day. I feel like the list could go on and on! I love how they each have their own special personality and how they are born with it! I love them both so much!

Ankle Biter Apparel

2010-12-14T17:19:00.002-05:00

Check out this giveaway on Brooke Van Gory Design's Blog. You can win your choice of item from Ankle Biter Apparel. There are super cute clothes for your little one. Check out her blog here. Check out Ankle Biter Apparel here. Good luck if you enter!

29 Days of Christmas

2010-12-02T09:49:00.003-05:00

Hello all you giveaway hunters! I just wanted to share about the giveaways over at 29 Diapers blog. She is doing 29 Days of Christmas giveaway. Today is day 7 so you still have plenty of time to get in on the action. Each giveaway lasts for 24 hours. Today's giveaway is for some Rockin' Green so hurry and check them out here!

A Ragababe Giveaway

2010-11-27T13:45:00.002-05:00

Just wanted to share about another Ragababe giveaway over at Lauren't Little Lovies Blog. These are the best diapers I have ever tried so go try to win yourself one, I know I am!

Ragababe Black Friday Giveaway

2010-11-24T15:59:00.002-05:00

Hello. Just wanted to share that Ragababe has an awesome Black Friday Giveaway going on right now on their facebook page. They also have awesome Black Friday sale on top of their great November sale. Check out their specials here. These are seriously the best diapers I have ever used!!!

Kids Say (and do!) The Darndest Things

2010-11-09T09:29:00.002-05:00

My older daughter Grace will be 2 1/2 this month and let me tell you she is a hoot. This age is so hard, but so FUNNY! I just wanted to share a few Grace stories from the last week or two.

This past week she was sitting in the hallway with her sister Molly. She kept telling Molly to sit down, sit down Molly, I read to you, sit! Molly is only 9 months old, so she had no clue, but she finally sat down. When she did Grace preceded to "read" her a bible story. When she was done she said now its bedtime Molly (can you tell what we do at bedtime, lol).

That same day we went to get Molly up from her nap and Grace climbed into the rocking chair. She said I feed Molly my boobs. HAHAHA. Where do kids get this stuff?

It also amazes me what they learn at this age! She can recognize almost all of her letters (she gets e and f mixed up and u, v, w, and y mixed up), she knows her colors (sometimes pink is blue), she can count to ten (she revealed this during hide and seek) and knows her basic shapes. I was asking her what shapes things were in her book and I pointed to a triangle shaped piece of cheese and asked her what shape it was and she said pizza. We might be pizza fans at this house...

One last story. Yesterday day she kept saying bye bye, see you next week. I looked and she had her shoes and coat on (over her pjs). I watched her to see what she would do. She opened the front door, went outside and climbed into the driver's seat of our mini van (she is a really tall 2 year old). She just cracks me up!

I would love to hear some of your funny kid stories, please share!!!

Abby's Lane Gift Certificate

2010-11-09T09:25:00.002-05:00

Hello CDing Mamas....and Daddy's. Just wanted to share a giveaway with you. Check out Cloth Diaper Addictions blog for a chance to win a gift certificate to Abby's Lane. Even if you don't cloth diaper you could use this! She sells baby carriers, shoes, etc. Check them out! The Giveaway ends tomorrow so do it quick!

Monki See Monki Do

2010-11-08T08:56:00.002-05:00

Just wanted to share another giveaway with my readers. Check out Beah and Bubbas blog for your chance to win Monki See Monki Do, fun and interactive videos that teach babies to identify their body parts, colors, shapes and more, all while learning to read. Today is the last day to enter so head on over there quick!

AppleCheeks Blog Giveaway

2010-10-29T10:42:00.003-04:00

Hello all CDing fans. I just wanted to share that AppleCheeks is having a awesome giveaway on their blog that ends Sunday. Be sure to check them out quick! Here is the link. Have a great weekend everyone!

Rock-a-Thigh Baby Review

2010-10-26T20:26:00.010-04:00

I recently discovered the cutest new socks....thigh highs for babies! I love these things! I usually put my girls in socks and leggings during the day when we are just lazing around the house, so these are right up my alley.

I love how cute they look in their leggings and how easy it is to change their diapers. I DON"T love the fact that Molly (9 months old) loves to pull her socks off. When she does that I have to hike up the leggings, put her socks back on, and then cover them back up with leggings (not always an easy task with a wiggly baby). With the Rock-a-Thigh baby socks, I don't have to do that. She tries to pull them off, but so far she has not been successful, yea! She can pull them down a little bit, but it is easy enough to pull them back up. They also work great for protecting her knees as she just started crawling last Monday!

They work great for Grace (29 months) too. She likes to match Molly, so I love that they come in sizes up to 4 years old. They also make it easier for her to go potty when she actually tells me she has to go, lol. It is quicker just to whip off her diaper and put her on the potty when you don't have to deal with getting pants on and off. It is also easier for her to go potty by herself.

Rock-a-Thigh Baby has a 15% off coupon code, but you have to hurry it ends Sunday! The code is sd15offoct2010. You can check out all the cute styles here. Also, be sure to read how Rock-a-Thigh Baby's were "born" here. It is too funny! If you are a facebooker you can check out Rock-a-Thigh Baby's page. Be sure to thank them for the 15% discount!

The Dirties on Diapering - Round 2

2010-10-18T11:33:00.002-04:00

I just wanted to take a minute to share a really cool idea from Jamie Wilkinson.

I want to use photography to create a visual hard-cover coffee-table style book, which will let people know about cloth diapering vs. disposable diapers. I want to show, using pictures, both the health risks and environmental risks moms take by choosing disposables. I want to make the recent information about disposable diapers a more vivid picture in people's minds. I also want to show a bit on the modernization/history of the cloth diaper through photography. If funded, the book will be sold on both Amazon.com and BarnesAndNoble.com and will be available for stores from the publisher.

Kickstarter is a wonderful webpage which funds artistic & creative projects through pledges using Amazon.com. Unfortunately they do not yet use PayPal because only Amazon has the option of not charging people unless the project is fully funded. It would be difficult to complete the project and give out backer rewards without proper funding. This is all or nothing! Nobody is charged until pledges reach the funding needs. So help me spread the word so we can make this happen! Thank you everyone for your support!

Also, I know sometimes it is difficult for people to make a pledge. Although amounts as small as $1 are accepted, it's definitely a time when budgets are tight! So if you are excited about this project but can't pledge, it would be a huge help to simply spread the word! Facebook, tweet, or blog about it! All bloggers who blog about it before the end of funding will receive two books to give away for their blog! Just post a link to your blog under the "comments" of this webpage.

GIVEAWAYS! I will also be doing giveaways throughout the pledging process to random backers. The sooner you get your pledge in, the more giveaways you will qualify for! Every backer, no matter how big or small, will get 1 entry in each giveaway drawing.
If you are a green company interested in giving away a product to both promote your company and this project, please email me (Jamie) at SugarSnapPhoto@gmail.com Thank you!!!

A DOZEN CLOTHDIAPERS FOR FREE!
If "The Dirties on Diapering, Round 2" funding is a success, I will personal buy a dozen cloth diapers for one random backer, any brand & any type. Each backer, no matter what size pledge will have one entry.

BUMESSENTIALS GIVEAWAY!
IF this project is a success, BumEssentials has generously offered to give away three A-Z Kits (a $47.99 value) to 3 random backers! Wow! A-Z kits include 2 Bumbino Diaper Shells, 2 "Terry Towel" Bum Pad Combos (inclusive with diaper shells), 1 "Classic" Bum Pad combo, and 1 Travel Bum Bag. This is the perfect starter kit. It covers everything whether you are at home or on the go. Check it out at www.bumessentials.com

NIFTY NAPPY SNAPPY SWIMZEAZE GIVEAWAY!
Nifty Nappy is excited to promote this project by giving every $50 pledge a Snappy SwimzEaze Swim Diaper!! That's in addition to your backer rewards!!! Check out their swim diaper and more of their great products at NiftyNappy.com!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Please note: I do not intend to use this project to speak poorly upon any companies. I just want to educate parents on their choices.

Also, if you pledged the first time, you will need to re-pledge during round 2. Nobody was charged during the first launch, and all pledges were void. Thank you for your continued support!

You can also find "The Dirties on Diapering" on Facebook & "Sugar Snap Photography" on Facebook & Twitter.

Please help if you can. Only 5 more days left for Jamie to reach her goal! Click here to visit The Dirties on Diapering Kickstarter page.

Ragababe Organic 2-Step and 'Easy' AIO Review and Giveaway!-CLOSED

2010-10-09T20:28:00.021-04:00

Molly in her rocking Hero 'Easy' All-In-One!

Molly is 8 months old and about 17lbs. She is in the medium 'Easy' AIO with room to grow.

Grace wearing the Organic '2-Step' in a size 2. She is 28 months, about 38" tall, and about 31lbs. She is long and skinny. I did accidently put Molly's size 1 on her and it did fit, just a little short. :)

Did I mention how awesome the fit on these diapers are? NO leg gapping. Even when I put in an extra insert for bed time they fit great!

Let me just start by saying that I am SO glad that I got a chance to review the Ragababe Organic '2-Step' Diaper! I really love them and they are now my go-to diapers. Ragababes are high quality, effective diapers. And they are made in the USA! You can read Joy's story here.

So let me tell you about the Organic '2-Step' and its awesome features. The cover is waterproof laminated polyester PUL with a soft inner lining. I really like the lining. I prefer having a soft lining rather than PUL coming into contact with my daughter's skin. The lining also dries pretty quickly. If the cover gets a little wet, I can wipe it down and leave it on the dresser to dry for the next diaper change.

The inserts are made of organic cotton sherpa with ultra absorbent bamboo rayon interior. The inserts also snap and tuck in which I love. It keeps the inserts in place, which is helpful with cleaning up poo messes! The inserts are also nice and soft and really absorbent. My daughters, Grace is 28 months old and Molly is 8 months old, are heavy wetters (I used to use BG's with their microfiber insert and a superdo at night and still got occasional leaks). I have no problems during nap times with just one insert. They can go 3 plus hours during the day and not have any leaks. I can also use them at night, I just lay in an extra insert or two of the Ragababe doublers.

Another feature is a wide comfort-fit waistband designed to resist wicking and deter "blow-outs". Let me just add here that my daughter Grace has had "sick poo" for the last three days and I haven't had any leaks! They also have contoured leg elastic made with 'last-ever' elastic that won't need replacing.

The Velcro is nice too. They have cross-over star Velcro that can adjust really small for those skinny babies! These diapers also feature 'stay-locked' laundry tabs. From my experience they almost always stay put during the wash. I suspect that the few times that they haven't is because my husband....okay and sometimes maybe I, forgot to stick them to the laundry tab!

I recently went on vacation and we did all cloth! I took my Ragababe Organic '2-Steps' as my primary diapers. They held up great. I love being able to fold up the inserts and shove in the covers. Two days of Ragababe '2-Steps' took up about the same amount of space as one day of pockets. It was also nice being able to add an extra insert for the plane ride and still have trim bottoms.

The only con that I can think of is that they don't come in the same super cute prints as their Easy AIO diapers! (Maybe someday?!?!) I have never been a super big fan of white diapers, however I will say that I love the white with the colored snaps.

Speaking of the 'Easy' All-In-Ones...I love them! I started out buying the Hero print because I love stars. It worked so great during the day AND at NIGHT that I bought more. They are my new bedtime diapers! They are an AIO and they have a pocket. I just stuff a Ragababe insert in the pocket and my daughters are good for the night!

The 'Easy' AIO's have most of the same features of the Organic '2-Step'. Instead of replacing inserts, the AIO's have sewn-in soakers made of quick drying, light weight, ultra-absorbent bamboo rayon. The lining is hypoallergenic suede cloth that draws moisture away from the skin into the soaker.

Okay, I know this review is super long, but there are so many good things to share about Ragababes! If you would like to buy one you can check out their website here.

Whats that? You would like to win one? Well you are in the right place! One lucky reader will win their choice of a Ragababe Organic '2-Step' or a Ragababe 'Easy' All-In-One! The winner will receive a coupon for the price of the diaper of their choice and free shipping, that way if you want to add more to your order you will have free shipping on everything! Here is how to enter. Please leave one comment for each entry. Please include your email address in your comment or profile so I have a way to contact the winner!

Mandatory Entry

1. Check out Ragababes website here and tell me which style and color diaper you will choose if you are the lucky winner! (1 entry)

Bonus Entries

2. Follow my blog publicly via GFC (2 entries)

3. Like Ragababe on facebook and thank them for the giveaway! (1 entry)

4. Like the Rabbitt Hutch on facebook. (1 entry)

5. Blog about this giveaway. Please leave me the link! (1 entry)

This giveaway will be open until October 22nd at 9PM. I will choose a winner using random.org. I will contact the winner via email and they will have 48 hours to respond. If I don't hear from them I will draw a new winner. This giveaway is open to US and Canada residents only. Thank you for participating!

SoftBums Mystery Diaper Event!

2010-10-01T11:56:00.005-04:00

Are you ready for the SoftBums Mystery Diaper Event???

Steps for the Mystery Diaper EVENT:

#1. The SoftBums Blog will be linked with a list of over 100 bloggers who are all participating or reviewing the NEW SoftBums Mystery Diaper.

#2. On Oct 1st at 12pm CST SoftBums will reveal their newest SoftBums diaper on YouTube and…

#3. at the same time all the reviewing bloggers will post their reviews of the new diaper.

#4. Blogs are open early to begin taking comments

#5. After the entry period ends (Oct 18 @ 8pm CST) 23 winners will be chosen from all the compiled entries!

*Check Back Here on October 1st, I’ll post the video and more info on the NEW myster diaper!*

Come join the SoftBums Mystery Event and visit all the participating blogs for a chance to win these amazing prizes!

Grand Prize:A Brand New iPad

First Prize: Complete Birth to Potty Package of SoftBums NEW Mystery Diapers!!

Second Prize: Win a gift certificate for $75 to www.softbums.com

Third Prize: Amazon Gift Card worth $50

PLUS:1 SoftBums Mystery Diaper given out to winners #5-#20

PLUS: Baby Legs to winners #21-#23

You can choose to enter only one participating blog, or bounce around and enter on ALL the BLOGS!

Sound like fun?

To get an early start and extra entries:

Post, blog or Tweet about the SoftBums Mystery Event and comment here to enter your entry!

Plus Extra entries available for:

Going to other SoftBums Mystery Event Blogs, listed on the SoftBums blog
Follow the SoftBums “Love Cloth Diapers” Blog
Tweet ”Enter to WIN a new mystery #SoftBums diaper and more from @softbumsmama!http://bit.ly/aIcL38 @lizhaslife #clothdiapers #giveaway 10/18″ (leave a comment)
Follow SoftBums on Twitter (Leave comment)
Like SoftBums on Facebook (leave comment)
Tell why you are excited to try the new diaper! (leave comment)
Share this Mystery Event as your status on Facebook (leave comment)
Leave a review on SoftBums (leave comment)
Follow my blog publicly through Google Friend Connect (leave comment)
Blog about this giveaway (leave comment with link)

This giveaway is open to US Residents! Winners will be drawn using random.org and 23 winners are chosen from all entries compiled from all participating blogs. All Entries on www.therabbitthutch.blogspot.com count toward the first prize and under. Ends October 18th, 2010 at 8 pm CST!

You gotta do what you gotta do....

2010-09-26T21:05:00.003-04:00

I always want to line dry my diapers outside, but I never actually do. I have a really shady backyard and nowhere good to hang a line. Fall is here and we don't have many nice days left so I was determined to sun my diapers. This is what I came up with. A clothesline from my tree, wrapped around my light post, and then tied to my minivan....in my front yard. Awesome, I know! I got some stains out of a few diapers though!

It's hard to be a Lions fan...

2010-09-26T16:01:00.002-04:00

I am just sitting here watching the Lions lose while Molly plays and Grace naps. I thought I would update my blog today because I will be going on vacation this Tuesday! I am very excited even though there is no such thing as vacation with a 28 month old and a 8 month old. We are going out to San Jose to visit Bob's sister and brother-in-law Emily and Joel and their two boys Ender and Grey. Gracie is very excited to go to the zoo with the boys!

I visited Emily and Joel when they were in LA when Grace was 5 months old. What I learned on that trip was that I would much rather travel with my cloth diapers than disposables. Grace had a couple of poop blowouts and leaky diapers and ever since then I bring my cloth diapers with me when I travel. I am especially excited to bring them on this trip because I have new Ragababe Organic 2-step diapers to try. I think it is going to be really easy to travel with them because they are an AI2 system. I will bring 4 covers for each girl and then 14 inserts each. I will also bring some of my favorite pocket diapers for them to wear while I am doing laundry. I also recently purchased a hanging planetwise wetbag to use for traveling. I have already tried that bag out when I went to visit Bob's brother. It worked great.

Well, the Lions have officially lost (yes, I always hold out hope until the very end) and Grace is awake. Time to head over to my parents for some french toast and bacon, yum! I hope everyone has a great week! I'll try to post some pictures this week!

★RagaBabe Cloth Diapers Grand Opening www.ragababe.com

2010-09-19T21:40:00.005-04:00

Ragababe cloth diapers just came out this week and I am so excited to try them out! They have two different styles of diapers and I am going to try them both. They have the Organic Two Step Diaper and an Easy AIO Diaper.

The colors and patterns of the Easy AIO diapers are SO cute. I ordered an Easy AIO in Hero. I am a sucker for stars! I love the purple and aqua colors and the pinwheel pattern too. Too much cuteness.

I am excited to try the Organic Two Step as well. I use Flip brand diapers. They make up about half of my stash. I really like my flips and these Organic Two Step diapers seem like an improved version of the Flips. Be on the lookout for my review!

★RagaBabe Cloth Diapers Grand Openingwww.ragababe.com

Please Nominate Me!

2010-09-16T08:30:00.002-04:00

Hello followers! I have a favor to ask. RagaBabe diapers is offering a chance to review their diapers to two lucky bloggers. I was wondering if you all would be so kind as to vote for me! If you are on facebook please go to Ragababe's page and like them. Then click on this link

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=522865&id=127158910630142&comments&ref=mf. and comment on the photo saying you would like to see The Rabbitt Hutch do the review. Thank you so much for your time. To show my appreciation for your help you can have an extra 5 entries into my 150 fan giveaway! Please comment once for each extra entry saying you voted for my at Ragababe!

The Rabbitt Hutch 150 fan giveaway!

2010-09-14T20:21:00.004-04:00

Thank you so much to all of my fans on facebook! I really enjoy sewing so I appreciate the support as I am trying to get The Rabbitt Hutch going. This giveaway is for matching bib and burp cloth set of your choice from my Etsy store. Please do all mandatory entries before completing any extra entries. Thanks again for you support and good luck!

Please complete the following items and leave your comment with your email address saying that you have completed them. Remember to leave one comment per entry.

Mandatory Entry

1. Follow my blog publicly. (1 entry)

2. Visit my Etsy store and tell me your favorite item. (1 entry)

Additional Entries

3. Like The Rabbitt Hutch on facebook. (1 entry)

4. Follow me on twitter, username therabbitthutch. (1 entry)

5. Tweet about this giveaway. You can use the following tweet. "Check out the giveaway from @therabbitthutch on her blog http://therabbitthutch.blogspot.com/2010/09/rabbitt-hutch-150-fan-giveaway.html" (1 entry per day)

6. Any purchase you make from my Etsy store gets you 1 extra entry per dollar spent!

This giveaway will close on Sunday, September 19th at 9pm EST. I will choose a winner using random.org and will email them. They will have 24 hours to respond. If I don't hear from them I will select a new winner. Thanks again for participating!

My Custom Diaper Set From Forward Thinking!

2010-09-14T10:50:00.004-04:00

I just wanted to share my awesome new custom diaper set from Forward Thinking! This diaper is now my new favorite. I also ordered six new diapers from her fall line, the fabric is SO cute. She is even customizing the diapers with a higher rise for my tall skinny girls! Check her out on facebook. She is also having a giveaway for a custom Paul Frank Diaper set when she reaches 2,500 fans...if she does that by September 15th she will giveaway two sets! Please go fan her page and let her know Jessica Rabbitt sent you! Enjoy the pictures of miss Molly. The Lions can't lose next Sunday with her on their side. :)

Guest Blog on Top to Bottom Baby Boutique!

2010-09-13T11:49:00.002-04:00

Hello all. I just wanted to share that I was a guest blogger on Top to Bottom Baby Boutiques website, how fun! You can check out my post at http://toptobottombaby.blogspot.com/2010/09/two-in-cloth.html. You can check out Top to Bottom Baby Boutique at www.ttbbb.com. They have a great variety of cloth diapers and supplies. Have a great day!

The Cotton Babies Free Cloth Diaper Week Ends Tonight!

2010-09-12T16:05:00.002-04:00

Hey all cloth diapering mamas. I just wanted to remind you that the grand finale of Cotton Babies free cloth diaper week ends tonight. They are going to have FIFTEEN WINNERS of six packs of bumGenius 4.0s (one of my absolute FAVORITE diapers!) Check out how to enter on www.clothdiapers.blogspot.com. Good luck!

Two In Cloth...

2010-09-07T21:58:00.004-04:00

Means twice as much cute fluffy bottom!

When I was pregnant with my first daughter Grace I decided to cloth diaper. When she was first born I used disposables until she was big enough to fit into her diapers. I love cloth diapering so much that when I was pregnant with my second daughter I decided to cloth diaper her right from the beginning!

My daughters are only 20 months apart so I knew that I would have two in diapers. Not too much has changed from cloth diapering one to cloth diapering two. I had to invest in a few more diapers so that I didn't have to do laundry more than every other day. I got a second laundry pail and pail liner so that I could have a pail in each of their bedrooms. I got a few more cloth wipes. Mostly just small changes. And depending on your budget, changes that you don't necessarily have to make.

My washing routine is pretty much the same for two as it was with one. I just grab the second bag of diapers on the way down to the laundry room. Sometimes I wash more frequently because the pails just seem to fill a little faster!

One of the great things about cloth diapering two as opposed to using disposable diapers is that they can share diapers! All of the cloth diapers I use are one-size diapers, meaning they adjust to grow with your child. If Grace is out of diapers, I can just go grab one of Molly's and adjust it larger to fit Grace. How convenient!

As I started the post, the best thing about cloth diapering two is twice as much cute fluffy bottom! There are some many different styles, brands, colors and patterns to try. I've had so much fun trying out diapers and finding what works best for our family. Cloth diapering can be addictive and now I have two bottoms to feed my habit!

Doopsy "SD" Giveaway Winner!

2010-08-30T21:15:00.002-04:00

Congratulations Becky Huss! You are the winner of the Doopsy "SD" giveaway! Please respond to you email with in 48 hours! Thank you every one for participating and thank you Doopsy!

My First Review - The Doopsy Diaper! GIVEAWAY CLOSED

2010-08-22T15:16:00.008-04:00

I have been cloth diapering for a little over two years now. For those two years I have used only two different brands of cloth diapers. In the past few months (when I had to buy additional diapers because I now have two in diapers) I've realized how big the whole cloth diapering world really is! My husband thinks I've gone a little crazy trying out different diapers.

I saw a sale on Doopsy Diapers on facebook and they were so reasonably priced I decided to try them. I was interested trying the Super Doopsy because of the insert, it has 4 layers of bamboo double loop terry (70% bamboo, 28% organic cotton, 2% spandex) and is backed by a layer of PUL. On top of that it comes with a extra absorbency pad made out of two bamboo hemp terry layers (30% hemp, 70% bamboo). I have heavy wetters, especially at naps and bedtime, so I thought a insert with a waterproof layer sounded really cool!

I ordered a Giggly Orange Doopsy SD from www.babyecomart.com. The SD comes with the unique Super Doopsy insert with extra absorbency pad and a microfiber insert. It was shipped quickly. I think I received my fluffy mail three days after I ordered it!

When I opened it up the first thing I thought was this isn't going to fit my older daughter (Grace is two and 39" tall). I wasn't too bummed about that because my younger daughter, Molly, is 7 months old. To me the ultimate test of a diaper is to use it at night. I did my diaper laundry that day and tried it out that night on Molly with just the Super Doopsy insert (no microfiber insert). The next morning I went in to get Molly and was expecting her to be soaked. She wasn't!!! I used it on her again at night the next time it was clean and she stayed dry again! I decided to test it even further and put it on Grace for bedtime. It stretched and actually fit her well. I thought about trying the Super Doopsy insert and the microfiber insert, but I really wanted to see how well the Super Doopsy insert worked on its own. She was dry in the morning too!

If you are interested in buying one of these great diapers check out www.babyecomart.com. They come in five great colors and are very reasonable priced! What's that? You would like to win a Doopsy SD in your choice of color? Well, you are in luck because you can win one here! Here is how.

There is one mandatory entry. You must do this to be eligible to win this awesome diaper. Visit www.doopsy.com, pick your favorite Doopsy color, and leave it in a comment below (please be specific).

Here are a few ways to earn extra entries. Please leave a comment for each extra entry that you complete.

1. Become a fan of Doopsy on facebook. Please thank her for the giveaway! (1 entry)

2. Follow Doopsy on twitter. (1 entry)

3. Follow The Rabbitt Hutch on twitter. (1 entry)

3. Tweet about this giveaway. You can use the following tweet "Win a @doopsydiaper Doopsy SD Giveaway from @therabbitthutch www.therabbitthutch.blogspot.com" (1 entry, please leave a link)

4. Become a public follower of my blog. (1 entry)

5. Become a fan of The Rabbitt Hutch on facebook. (1 entry)

This giveaway will end August 30th at 9:00pm EST. I will use random.org to choose a winner. Thanks for entering!

A giveaway from Life Semi Crunchy

2010-08-18T14:32:00.002-04:00

Just wanted to let you all know about the giveaway that Life Semi Crunchy is having. She is giving away a Beah Strap from Leah Beah. It is a cool strap that you can use on your child's sippy cups (toys, teethers, etc.) so they don't get dropped and lost. Check out her blog at www.life-semicrunchy.blogspot.com to see how to enter!

Potty Talk...The Highlight of A Mother's Day

2010-08-12T21:45:00.003-04:00

So...I am pretty much done with P90X. I have a good excuse for not finishing though (I am not doing the last three weeks), I am going to run the Grand Rapids Marathon. I haven't officially signed up yet, but I have decided that I am going to run it. I am all caught up on the Hal Higdon Novice training schedule.

I don't feel too guilty about ending P90X early. I am going to try to do it again in early spring next year after Molly is all done nursing. I saw good results, but not as much as I was hoping for. I think part of that is because I am nursing, but I know part of it is because I haven't put in as much intensity this last 6 weeks or so and definitely haven't been sticking to the diet. 90 days is a REALLY long time. I am skinnier than I was when I started and stronger, but no 6 pack abs. :( And I still have a bunch of belly and back fat that needs to go, but again I think part of that is from nursing. I ended up losing 12-13lbs. and I went down two pants sizes and one shirt size.

On to the kiddos. Grace has been doing great learning how to use the potty! Ever since we had our potty war two weeks ago (where I made her sit on the potty until she went because she told me she had to go...she sat for two hours, but she went!) she has gone potty at least once every day except one. She has been wearing big girl underwear on and off this week too. On Monday she wore big girl underwear from 9 am to about 6:30 pm before she had an accident. I just kept asking her every hour or so if she had to go potty. Today she wore big girl underwear until nap time and had one accident. I put them back on after nap time and she wore them until she pooped in them...YUCK! After that I put her diaper on, but she told me when she had to go and peed twice and kept her diaper dry. It is amazing what a little bribery can do...she gets a piece of candy (a piece of taffy or a couple of M&Ms) when she successfully goes on the potty. :)

Tonight after she was in bed, we went downstairs. I heard her walking around so I came to check on her. She was sitting on her potty. I watched her without her seeing me and she ended up laying on the floor in front of her potty...I think she was trying to figure out how to get her diaper back on. She did go pee that time, but not much. I think she just wanted to get out of bed. A few minutes after I put her back to bed I heard her walking around again. This time I came upstairs and she was laying in our bed. I walked in and she said Gracie sleep in Mommy's bed. Silly girl.

Molly is getting to be such a big girl too! She has started eating solids. Last week I gave her cereal a few times and she wasn't a big fan. This week I decided to do veggies. She had carrots Tuesday and yesterday and loved them! Today she had squash and she really liked that too. She is figuring out that she should open her mouth when she sees the spoon. She is getting good at sucking the veggies off the spoon and not spitting them all back out. Today was much less messy compared to just two days ago!

Molly had her 6 month check up last week. She was 27.5 inches (98th percentile) and 15 lbs. (20 something percentile). Nice and tall like the rest of her family. The low weight percentile is funny because her have real nice chunk chunk thighs. It was funny the other day Grace called Molly's legs chunky. Grace is definitely listening to what Mommy and Daddy say!

One last story for the night. This one is not for the feint of heart. Today I was changing Molly's diaper and right when I am wiping her clean she decides to poop. I was like okay and caught most of it on the wipe. No big deal I can just dump it in the toilet. So she finishes and I go to clean her again and she poops all over my hand. SO GROSS! By this time her changing mat is a mess so I leave her to finish her business and I go wash my hand. I come back to clean up and she decides a little pee will finish her diaper change off nicely. It gets all over her clothes and up her back. What a stinker!

TMI

2010-08-04T22:48:00.002-04:00

Grace has gone potty at least once everyday since Friday except Sunday. I hope she keeps it up! It started Friday when she told me she had to go potty and I told her she was going to sit on the potty until she went....two hours later she went! Earlier that week she kept telling me she had to go potty, getting undressed, sitting on the potty, telling me all done, getting dressed, and the repeating every 15 minutes or so. Mostly she has peed, but she even pooped once! I have been giving her a piece of taffy every time she goes potty. Anyway, its late and I just wanted to share how glad I am that Grace is starting to get the whole potty thing!

To Marathon Or Not To Marathon, That Is The Question...

2010-07-29T21:16:00.003-04:00

So, I am debating whether I want to run the Grand Rapids Marathon in October. I know I want to run a Marathon, I just don't know when. Originally I was not going to run this year because Molly and Grace take up a lot of my time, but I really think I would be able to make the time commitment this year. I just feel like this is a good time to do it, I am young and healthy and not pregnant! I am just afraid that if I wait, something will happen and I will have to keep putting it off. The problem is there is only 11 weeks left (and Bob doesn't want to have to babysit while I do my long runs, I know it isn't babysitting when it is your children!) I have been doing P90X so I am fit, but I haven't really been running. I think I am going to train for the next couple of weeks and see how it goes. I did 5 miles today and it went very well. I think I am going to try 8 miles or so Saturday.

I still have 4 weeks left of P90X. I didn't really have a very good week, so I am going to repeat this week. With the training schedule for the marathon I am supposed to have a cross training day and two rest days. I think I will have two cross training days where I do my P90X weight lifting dvds and then run the other 4 days instead of doing plyometrics, core synergistics, yoga, and kenpo.

Okay, on to the kiddos. Grace has been real silly lately as usual. She loves water! When we were in Chicago we went to Millennium Park and she played in the water. When we were walking downtown she saw the river and kept saying Gracie go in the water! Now whenever she sees water she asks to go in it! I really need to get her a little kiddie pool for the rest of the summer! She also has been saying things like "in a minute", "tomorrow", and "in a little bit" and it is SO cute. When she says in a little bit, she points her finger up by her mouth and kind of leans into it. I want to get a video of it but she does it randomly so it is hard to catch on video.

Molly hasn't done anything new lately that I can think of. I think she is working on several teeth. I just ordered her some amber teething necklaces, so I can't wait until they get here. I ordered a couple of them on babyhalfoff.com. I've heard good things about them so I hope they help her. I can't believe she is going to be six months old Saturday! I think I am going to start her on cereal next week. She has been a fussy and gassy nurser lately and I have no idea what I've eaten wrong this time! Enjoy the video of Molly in her jumperoo!

Weigh-in

2010-07-24T21:36:00.002-04:00

Today's weigh in was pleasantly surprising. I lost 3 lbs. this week and 3% body fat! I am not sure where it came from because I feel like I look exactly the same. Wherever it came from I'll take it, however it wasn't from my belly or love handles where I want to lose fat!

Today's workout went pretty well too. I did all but a few minutes of the Kenpo dvd and then I ran a mile. It wasn't a long run, but I was tired from the 50 minute workout I did right before. I am really glad I lost weight this week because I feel more motivated to workout next week. Only 4 more weeks to go!

Tomorrow Grace, Molly, and I are going to Chicago with Bob. He has to work down there Monday and Tuesday so we thought we'd go along and see Auntie Katie and Auntie Christa. Bob has been gone for the last couple of weeks, so I am glad we can go with him this week. We are going to go to Millennium Park Monday and play in the splashy park. Grace will be SO excited! When we went to Millennium Park in GR last weekend she loved it! I will try to get cute pictures or videos!

Feeling Worn Out

2010-07-23T21:26:00.004-04:00

Did you know that 90 days is actually quite a long time? I do now that I am doing P90X! This weekend is the end of week 9, only 4 more weeks to go! I am so tired! I am having a hard time staying motivated to finish. My workout yesterday was a bust. It was yoga day. I got about 20 minutes in and then quit. Molly was crying and refused to take her morning nap and Grace would not stop whining. I decided to run a few miles, because then I could turn the music up and drown out the noise. I was 1.3 miles into my run when I had to get off the treadmill to discipline Grace. It is SO hard to start running again when you have to stop like that, so I quit. It is getting harder to fit in my workouts with the girls. The workouts are 60-90 minutes and that requires on lot of patience from them. Today's workout was better. I got all but the last 7 minutes or so done. I had to stop because it time to feed Molly. I didn't even get to take a shower first, which I hate. Oh well.

My diet the last two days was not so good. Thursday I went out to dinner with Melanie, Bob, Grace and Molly. We went to Applebees. I got garlic herb chicken which was good, but we got potato twisters as an appetizer. For the day I ended up at about 2,500 calories. With exercise and nursing that is about breaking even, that is ok, but not what I want to do to get rid of fat! I ended up with 19% fat, 63% carbs, and 18% protein. I had only 3 servings of fruits and vegetables. Today was worse. I did okay during the day, but then we got Vitales for dinner. I had about 2,400 calories with 24% fat, 62% carbs, and 14% protein. A normal diet is 25% fat, but again, not okay for trying to burn the last of my belly fat!

Tomorrow is just a weigh in. Hopefully I will be about the same. Tomorrow's workout is Kenpo (punching and kicking). I think I want to fit in a run too. Maybe Bob and I will take the girls if it's not too hot. They liked it when we went last weekend. Actually, I just looked at the weather and it is supposed to rain...maybe the treadmill then.

Back to being tired...I'm sure Molly getting up in the middle of the night to eat is not helping the situation. I am glad she is growing, but I sure hope she is done with the nighttime feedings soon! My not going to bed on time doesn't help either!

Lately I have been having tons of fun trying to find new diapers for the girls. Yesterday I got a couple of GrowBaby diapers. I put them on for bedtime....not a good nighttime diaper. They both woke up wet. I put them on during the day today. Molly leaked during naptime, but Grace stayed dry playing. I am disappointed that they won't work at night. I love how trim they are. I might keep these shells and just get a few more inserts and use them for Grace during the day. I am waiting for my new bumgenius diapers to get here and also a bottombumpers. I also traded some diapers on diaperswappers.com for a couple of wahm made diapers and some wool dryer balls. Right now Sewcraftybaby.com is having a 15% sale on iCandy diapers and I think I am going to try them. I like the idea of snapping in a new insert and reusing the shell, kind of like my flips. I love sewcraftybaby.com. She always has good sales and fun giveaways on her facebook page. Anyway, enough about fluff. And this entry has gone on way to long, so goodnight for now!

Another cloth diaper giveaway!

2010-07-23T17:43:00.002-04:00

I know, ANOTHER cloth diaper giveaway. I've recently discovered the world of blog reviews and giveaways. This giveaway looks pretty cool. It is for a Lollidoo Overnight Eco-Pocket diaper. Crystal from Biehl Adventures gave this diaper a rave review for an overnight diaper, and who doesn't need a overnight cloth solution. You can check out the review and giveaway at http://biehladventures.blogspot.com/2010/07/lollidoo-overnight-eco-pocket-review.html.

Another Okay Day

2010-07-21T22:45:00.000-04:00

Today was just another okay day for P90X. I did arms and shoulders today, but only a small part of ab ripper. I just ran out of time this morning. My diet was just ok too, not the healthiest, not the unhealthiest. I had about 1,950 calories. 18% were from fat, 55% from carbs, and 27% from protein. I only had one serving of vegetables and no fruit.

Tomorrow is the dreaded yoga x. I always want to quit part way through, yoga is just not my thing. I made it all the way through last week and I am going to again this week. I am hoping to get a little run in as well, but that is iffy because the yoga workout is an hour and a half!

Hopefully the girls will be super good tomorrow and not interrupt my workout every five minutes!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

bumGenius 4.0 giveaway

2010-07-20T21:36:00.002-04:00

I just wanted to take a quick minute to share a great giveaway with my cloth diapering friends. Maria from www.change-diapers.com is having a giveaway of two the new bumGenius diapers. Just follow this link http://www.change-diapers.com/2010/07/bumgenius-40-review-comparison-to-30.html to read her review and how to enter the giveaway. Good luck!

Catching Up

2010-07-20T20:52:00.003-04:00

Let me quickly review my last week. I did okay Thursday, Friday, and during the day Saturday, but then we went out to eat at Don Julios for dinner and I had enchiladas. Then we got ice cream for desert. I got a reese peanut butter cup flurry with frozen yogurt (at least a little better than ice cream right?) Sunday wasn't any better. I did okay again yesterday, but then went out to dinner with my parents tonight at Texas Roadhouse. I WILL eat healthy for the rest of the week.

Saturday we weighed in and measured. I did not lose any inches or body fat percent and only lost about a half pound. It was really depressing to know that I worked hard for 4 weeks and didn't see any progress. I briefly considered quitting, but after 8 weeks of work and only 5 weeks left, I just couldn't do it. I have been thinking about why I didn't see any results, and I think it is a combination of things, not just the diet. I also switched from the lean to the classic program and the lean is supposed to be for burning more fat and the classic for building more muscle. I am going to do better with my diet for these last 5 weeks and I am switching back to the lean program. I am also going to throw in more running when I have the time as well. I need all the cardio I can get to burn this baby belly off!

Now let me share some cute Grace and Molly stories. Grace has been more into singing lately. She can do almost all of her alphabet. It usually goes like this a,b,c,e,f,g, some letters that she says faster like she is saying l m n o p, she picks up with q, and does the rest correctly. It is real cute. I have been trying to get a good video to share, but she just likes to look at herself when I turn the camera on. Silly girl. The other day she was playing on the piano and singing Molly's crazy, Molly's crazy. I am not sure singing is her special gift from God...lol.

Molly has been sweet and cute as usual. I think she is going through a growth spurt at the moment. A few nights this last week she woke up to eat in the middle of the night so the last few days we have been back to nursing every 3 hours or so. I am glad she is going through a growth spurt though. I weighed her last week and she had only gained about 4 ounces in a month and a half. I just weighed her before bed tonight and she is up another 4 ounces. She has her 6 month check up in 2 weeks and I am looking forward to seeing how much she has grown!

On another note, I have been having a productive couple of days. I have been cleaning out closets, our guest room, and my sewing room. It feels good to get rid of stuff and get things organized! I am looking forward to sewing again. I haven't done much since Molly was born and I want to start making and selling stuff again.

Alright, enough for tonight. I will start blogging about my P90X journey again (I am loathe to use that word just because I know it drives Bob crazy, haha) Thanks Jen for keeping an eye on me!

Day 3

2010-07-14T21:58:00.002-04:00

This morning Grace was playing while I was getting breakfast ready and I heard the cd player come on. Her music started playing. I went in there and discovered that she took our cd out, put hers in, turned the radio on and pushed play. Pretty talented two year old.

Molly is getting really close to sitting up! She can sit up and lean forward on her hands, but she still needs help because she will topple backwards if she gets too excited! I can't believe how big she is getting!

Well today was just an okay day for the diet. I was really hungry all day today for some reason. I ended up eating 1,992 calories. I am okay with that. I like to be closer to 1,800, but I am okay to going up to 2,000. For breakfast I had Kashi Go Lean Honey Almond Flax with 1/2 glass of skim milk (245 calories). I have been occasionally having a little milk and Molly seems to tolerate it a little better. I had a banana and some turkey jerky for a midmorning snack (215 calories). For lunch I had Bob bring home Subway. I had a chicken teriyaki on wheat with lettuce, tomato, green peppers, and sweet onion sauce. No cheese! (380 calories) My afternoon snack was a clif mini bar, a yogurt, and a granola bar (310 calories). For dinner I had a ham and turkey sandwich with cheese on light bread and potato chips. When I got home from bowling I had a second dinner (I feel like a Hobbit) of two peanut butter and jelly sandwiches (672 calories for both dinners). I then had the ice cream I had been craving all day. A skinny cow caramel cone. Yummy! (170 calories) I ended up with 15% fat, 64% carbs, and 20% protein. Not enough protein. And I only had one serving of fruits and one of vegetables.

I do not like very many vegetables. I like green beans, peas, and corn.....not a good variety! If anyone has any good ways of getting vegetables in let me know! I am also looking for a healthy vegetable soup recipe! Thanks for keeping me accountable!

Check In Day 2

2010-07-13T22:29:00.003-04:00

Today was a busy day. I have five girls again today. It went very well and they even all napped at the same time again! Now I am just doing a quick update and then heading to feed Molly and go to bed.

I will start by sharing how I finished my day yesterday. For an afternoon snack I had Clif Mini Bar (100 calories). For dinner I had pork loin sirloin chops with green beans and watermelon (395 calories). After dinner I had a skinny cow ice cream sandwich with a 1/2c. of edy's slow churned mint cookie crunch (280 calories). I didn't do a good job spreading my calories out yesterday so after dinner and dessert I was only at about 1500 calories. I try not to eat under 1800 just because I don't want to mess up my milk supply. I ended up eating popcorn, rice cakes, and a skinny cow chocolate truffle bar. Not the best calories I could have eaten, I know. I ended the day with 1808 calories, 17% fat (20% or under is my goal), 58% carbs (between 50-60% is my goal), and 25% fat (20-30% is my goal). Not too bad, I even ended up getting two of my four servings of fruits and veggies I was going for.

Today was okay as well. I had blueberry pancakes with crystal light kiwi strawberry for breakfast (332 calories), a yogurt for my midmorning snack (180 calories), a spinach salad with ham, turkey, fat free mozzarella, raisins, pecans, and light honey french dressing (421 calories), a cup of grapes and a clif mini bar for my afternoon snack (175 calories), an english muffin with egg whites, swiss chesse, and turkey sausage links for dinner (332 calories), and edy's slow churned mint cookie crunch and skinny cow cookies and cream ice cream and kettle corn for dessert (370 calories). I know that I treat myself to too much dessert, but at least it is low fat dessert! I finished the day at 1809 calories, 20% fat, 60% carbs, and 20% protein. I even had 3 1/2 servings of fruits and vegetables.

Thinking about having to share what I ate today really did help keep me in check, so thanks to those who read this and keep my accountable! As far as working out goes, I didn't today. I have a stretch day this week and I made it today because it is too hard to work out with 5 kids 5 and under. Tomorrow is core synergistics. Yippee!

Accountability

2010-07-12T13:44:00.001-04:00

Today is the beginning of week eight of P90X. I feel like I haven't made any progress in the last three weeks. I have done all the workouts except three, but I have done a very poor job with my diet. I have pretty much been eating what I want on the weekends and then doing an okay job during the week. I end up working off my weekend during the week. It is good to know that I will be able to maintain my weight doing that once I have finished, but I need to finish first!

At the end of this week we are supposed to weigh in and measure and I almost don't want to. I don't think I have lost any inches. On the plus side, my arm and upper back muscles are looking really good.

I think I am going to take a page out of my best friend Melanie's book and try to blog everyday for the next six weeks. I figure if I have to tell people what I'm eating and how my workouts went then I will be more faithful to the plan. I'll count this as today's.

I had yoga x today and I finished the whole workout! When I get to yoga day, I am really unmotivated and tend to cut the workout short. If I do that I will usually run, but I really want to stick to the workout plan as much as possible.

So far today (through lunch) I have had 700 calories. I had oatmeal and a string cheese for breakfast, yogurt for an after workout snack, and a ham and turkey sandwich with 2% swiss cheese and maple Dijon sauce on light wheat bread and some baked lays for lunch. On a typical day I try to eat about 1800 calories and five "meals" (breakfast, snack, lunch, snack, and dinner with dessert).

On the average day I burn about 1800 calories just breathing, taking care of the girls, etc. I burn about 300-500 nursing Molly and P90X says I burn about 600 calories doing that exercise. I figure if I consume around 1800 calories that is enough for nursing Molly and I can lose about a pound of fat a week.

Another goal I want to achieve is eating more fruits and vegetables. This week I am going to try to eat four servings a day (at least one veggie). I know that is not nearly enough, but it's a start! So far today I am at zero. :(. I'll check in again tomorrow!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:Giddings Ave SE,Grand Rapids,United States

Short and Sweet

2010-07-08T21:03:00.002-04:00

I love when both of my kids sleep all night! Grace has been doing so much better the last couple of weeks, thank you God! Molly has been a pretty good sleeper ever since she was born and she has continued getting better. The last week or so she has been sleeping until 8:00 or 8:30.

I can't believe Molly will be starting solids in a month or so! Right now she eats at 8:30, 12:00, 3:30, 7:00, and 10:30. When she starts solids I am going to try dropping her 10:30 feeding. She is growing up so fast! She is getting close to being able to sit up by herself and she learned how to jump in her jumperoo tonight! So cute!

Well, I should probably get ready for bed. I get to go decorate for my sister's wedding tomorrow and have to fit in my workout in the morning before I go.

Another cloth diaper giveaway!

2010-07-06T09:17:00.002-04:00

Hello all. I just wanted to share another cloth diaper giveaway! Check this website out.

http://www.clothdiaperblog.com/category/feed-your-stash-friday/

Have a great day!

Blog giveaway

2010-06-27T22:01:00.003-04:00

Tonight I wanted to tell all my cloth diapering followers about a great giveaway from http://www.change-diapers.com/. This cloth diapering mama is giving away a few of her favorite diapers. You can earn entries by following her blog, following her on facebook, tweeting about the giveaway or blogging about the giveaway. She is giving away a flip (which I love and use for Molly), a smartipants and a kissaluvs marvels aio (which I would love to try)! Besides having great giveaways she also has helpful review information. I hope you all enjoy her blog!

2010-06-24T16:26:00.003-04:00

Today is the first day that I didn't complete a whole workout due to laziness. It was yoga today and I procrastinated getting started for about an hour. I am just so tired today! Grace was up 3 or 4 times again last night. It doesn't seem like much, but it is really draining. This has been going on for about 4 weeks now. It has been getting better, she has some nights where she doesn't get up, but she is still not back to her good sleeping self. Molly was an angel and slept till 8:30 this morning!

Once I started my workout, I was stopping every 5-10 minutes to help Grace, take care of Molly, scold Grace, move Grace out of my way, etc. It didn't feel like I was getting much of a workout! Finally 45 min into the video (and what felt like the billionth time stopping) I quit for the day. I only feel slightly guilty because I know that I am going to get two workouts tomorrow. I will do the legs and back dvd tomorrow afternoon and then I am going to a Zoomba class with Mel, Allie, and Cammy tomorrow evening. I feel more guilty about all the snacking I have done this afternoon...

I am a total stress eater and Grace has been driving me bonkers today! She has been SO WHINY!!! She has also been very disobedient. She has been sent to her room about 5 times this afternoon. I told her if she disobeyed one more time she was going to get spanked and sent to her room until Daddy got home. She has been good since then. Sometimes the only thing that works is the threat of spankings! Sometimes time outs work, but they aren't always as effective.

At least my stress eating is healthier than pre p90x. My snacks that I've had this afternoon consist of a banana and two granola bars. Before I started p90x it probably would have been double stuf oreos or something along those lines. I still need to be more careful about my snacking because the calories add up quickly!

Well, I should probably think about getting Grace dressed, although it is 4:45pm so it is almost pointless now....Have a good night!

P90X 4 week update

2010-06-18T12:51:00.002-04:00

I am very happy to report that there are noticeable changes after 4 weeks! I guess working hard and eating right does pay off! There is still plenty of work left to do, but I guess that is why there are 9 weeks left! I still can't imagine myself having 6 pack abs, but I know that if I keep pushing hard for the rest of the 90 days, I can! :)

Here are my stats. I have lost just under 10 lb. and 2% body fat. My chest, hips, and bicep measurements haven't changed, but my biceps are definitely more defined. I have lost 1 3/4 inches in my waist, yahoo! I have also lost inches around my rib cage, but I didn't measure that so I don't know how many. I have lost 1/4 inch in each of my thighs, not much, but something! I am so happy to see results in the mirror as well as on the scale. It fuels my motivation for the next 9 weeks.

I am really feeling strong and healthy and I love it! Everything is more firm and I am more flexible. My posture has improved as well. I think this is the healthiest I have been in years! I am starting to feel slimmer and dare I say sexier as well! :-D I am glad I decided to do this and I am ready to kick some butt for the next 9 weeks!

Babies and Body Fat

2010-06-12T08:20:00.003-04:00

I am so tired! Grace had a really bad night last night. She was up from around 11pm until about 1am and was up again around 3:30, 5:00, and 7:00. At 7 I sent her back to bed with her milk and she didn't get up again until 8:00. Bob had to extend the right hand of fellowship to her last night, which is really the first time she has ever gotten really spanked. It really upset her. It was so hard to watch, but I know it needs to be done. This has been going on for over two weeks now. She tries all kinds of things to get up. She tells me she is all done, asks for drinks, diaper changes, walks, etc. Anything to get up. I am really at a loss as what to do for her. I've tried compassion, new diapers (which I love and really help her rash, it is almost gone, yea!), ibuprofen, teethers, spanks, etc. Nothing seems to keep her in bed. Any suggestions? I'll talk suggestions for discipline books too!

As far as her new diapers go, I ordered two different kinds to try for nighttime. I was looking for something that would keep her more dry than her econobums, but that wouldn't leak. I tried a Fuzzibunz perfect fit and a Rumparooz. I liked them both. They both kept her dry and neither one leaked. The Rumparooz won out though, because I like that they are adjustable to four different sizes so I can use them on Molly and any future babies (although Bob's plan of two and done is looking really good lately...) and I like the fact that I only used the soakers that it came with and that was enough for Grace's super soaked nighttime diapers! I ordered some more to use for both her and Molly at night. This website sewcraftybaby.com had a special buy 7 and get a store credit for an 8th free! I made myself order some gender neutral colors just in case there is ever a third child, but I did get another purple and a pink. I just couldn't help myself!

On a totally different topic, today is the end of week 3 of P90X (well, technically tomorrow is, but it is just a stretch day, so no big deal). Here is an update. I have lost 6.8lbs and 1% body fat. This last week has been really hard as far as diet goes. At this point numbers on the scale don't really mean anything because I will be gaining muscle while losing the last of my fat. The changes are going to come in the mirror, not the scale and that means I won't see results as quickly as I would if I could use the scale. That makes staying motivated, especially with the diet, very hard. After the first week or so, I noticed that I've lost fat around my rib cage, but who cares about that when you have a belly from too babies right? Why is it always the belly that is last to go? It just seems so unfair! Next weekend we will weigh in, take photos, and measure ourselves so I will get to see if I've lost inches. If I have that will definitely help me finish the next two phases!

Well, I am going to put Molly down for her nap so I can do my Kenpo X workout and then I am going running later this afternoon. Got to get ready for my 10k next Saturday! Have a great day!

Just Life

2010-06-07T21:22:00.002-04:00

Today is day 15 of 90. It has been a hard day. I am a bit of a stress eater, so when I get tired and frustrated eating healthy gets harder and harder! It helps not having the junk food in the house. So far I have been doing okay although I had a too much sodium today. Better than too many calories or too much fat I suppose! The exercise is going pretty well. Running is a lot more difficult right now though. I am hoping at the end of the 90 days I will be running even better than before!

The lack of sleep definitely makes things harder too. Grace has been getting up again for the last two nights. I think her diaper rash is bothering her at night. I ordered her a couple of new diapers to try for nighttime. I ordered her a Fuzzibunz and a Rumperooz. Hopefully they will keep her dryer at nighttime. She slept better when she was wearing a disposable, but she pees so much that she soaks through them and gets her pajamas and bedding all wet. The other morning she woke up and came in Molly's room while I was feeding Molly and said "Gracie sweaty". She thought she was sweaty, but really it was pee. Ewww!

Molly had a big weekend, she 99% rolled over from her back to her tummy!!! I say 99% because she was sucking her thumb so she was lying on her arm. She was able to roll back over because her arm was under her like that. She is getting to be such a big girl! At her four month check up she was 12lbs. 2oz. and 26.5 inches long, a whole .5 inches longer than Grace was at that age. Bob and I have been blessed with tall babies! At least I will be able to help them buy jeans when they are older!

Sleep Deprived

2010-06-03T21:14:00.002-04:00

It has been a long week. Grace has been getting up from about 11 pm until 2 or 3 am for about a week now. I don't know why she keeps getting up, but I feel like I am at the end of my rope! I don't know what to do for her...I am tempted to put her in a pack n' play, so she can't get out, but I know that is not the solution. She asks for drinks, diaper changes, to go for walks, etc. I don't know what to do for her!

On a positive note, Molly slept over 10 hours last night! She didn't go to bed until 9:30, but I guess that was okay since I had to wake her up at 8 to feed her! Now if only I could get them to synchronize their sleeping schedules!

I have to say that eating healthy seems to have helped me keep energy through all this lack of sleeping! Today is day 11 of P90X. It had been going very well. The diet is lots of fresh fruits and veggies, lean mean, etc. The goal is to keep my fat at 20% of my calories. I have done really well so far, but I do miss my pizza and junk foods!

I am very grateful to God for giving me the strength to handle the sleepless nights!

Home Sweet Home

2010-05-14T20:47:00.002-04:00

It is good to be home. I have been in El Paso since Sunday for the national woman's bowling tournament. I had a good time (bowled terrible), but it is always great to get home. I took Molly with me. She was SOOOO good. On the way to El Paso, I had three flights. She cried maybe 10 minutes the whole way there.

On the way home my flight was delayed enough to miss my connection to Grand Rapids, so they rescheduled me to fly out the next day. I called Bob to tell him, and said he was going to be near Chicago so he could pick me up. I called United and got put back on my original flight. I got to the airport and almost missed my flight. I made it and ended up having an empty seat next to me so I could lay Molly down. Bob couldn't get to Chicago until an hour or two after my flight came in so Auntie Christa and Auntie Katie came and visited Molly and kept us company. It was a nice way to finish a hectic day.

Grace was so excited to see me today! I was excited to see her too! She was jumping up and down and spinning in circles. I have only been away from her for five days, but she seems to be speaking even more clearly. This was the longest I had ever been away from her, I missed her! Molly was glad to be home too. I fed her when we got home last night around 2 and she slept until 8 this morning...the longest she had slept since we left on vacation. She was really good about taking her naps today too.

Bob got out of work a little early and we all walked to the park together. While we were at the park Bob and I were sitting and Grace came over and made us get up. She then got behind Bob and pushed him over to a wall (about waist high on us). She then did the same thing to me. When we were both up against the wall she said "Mommy timeout." She is so funny!! I don't know what I did to earn timeout!

Sorry this is so scatter brained, but it has been a long few days, I am tired and I am watching TV while typing...not a good combination!

Baby Pool Winner

2010-02-13T19:01:00.001-05:00

Sorry it took me so long to post this, but I've been a little busy. :) Molly Joy has been a wonderful new addition to our lives, but babies are time consuming! There were actually two winners, Irma and Kris. Irma got the date, gender, and length correct. Kris got the gender, length, and weight correct. Great job ladies. I know who to go to to find out info about my next baby! I will get your prize to you soon! Thanks to everyone who participated! I will update my blog soon!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Getting Ready For Baby

2010-01-24T20:44:00.010-05:00

Well, I have been working hard the last week or two trying to finish tasks that I have been wanting to do for quite some time. It has been a last minute rush to finish everything before the baby comes, because I know I won't have the time for quite a while to do the things I want after that baby gets here. The three big projects I finished this week were replacing laundry tabs on all of Grace's diapers, making a diaper bag, and making curtains for Grace's room.

I have had Grace's diapers for 15 months now and I still love them. We use the bumGenius one size pocket diapers. The velcro used to hold the tabs in place while you are washing them just didn't stick anymore and I would end up having to pull them all apart. That is the only thing I have had to fix on her diapers, which is great. I am looking forward to being able to use them for baby #2 as well!

The second project I did this week was making curtains for Grace's room. She had blinds up over two of her windows, but we didn't have the parts to put the blinds up over the third window. It was also still pretty bright in there with just blinds. Besides, pretty curtains are much nicer than plain white blinds. The curtains do a much better job keeping her room dark and I like how they turned out! I also sewed some black cloth on the back of the curtains in the baby's room to make it darker in there as well.

The last big project I did was make a diaper bag. I bought the material to make the diaper bag in February 2009....So sad I know, it took me almost a year to get around to making it! Whenever I would sew I would feel like I had to do my sewing for work instead of for me. I have had the last month off sewing for work so I finally made the time to sew for me!

I really liked how the diaper bag turned out. My goal was not to be ashamed of using it in public, haha. I only had a little trouble at the end, but I made it work and you can't really see that flaw so its okay! It even has pockets! There are three outside pockets and one large and three small inside pockets. I also made a matching changing pad, but that did not turn out so well...I had trouble using bias tape as an edge. I am going to take it apart and make it how I know how to at some point, I was just all sewed out by the time I was done!

Here are some pictures of my diaper bag, Grace's curtain, and of course Grace! I can't wait to see what Grace thinks of her baby brother/sister! She knows where the baby's room is and if you ask her where the baby sleeps she'll walk you to the nursery and point to the crib, such a smarty. Well, enjoy the pictures. I can't wait to post some of the new baby!

My finished diaper bag!

The inside of the diaper bag.

Grace's curtains.

Sitting in the storage bin on the couch. So silly!

Giving mommy cheese while wearing her hat.

Picture Day!

2010-01-19T09:57:00.008-05:00

Today is going to be a picture day. I have been busy and tired and I don't know where to start for our last week, so we'll just put pictures up instead! Who doesn't like cute Gracie pictures??? By the way, don't forget to enter the baby pool, today is the last day to do so! Just look on the right under archives and click on Finally, It's a Baby Pool and follow the instructions. Enjoy the pictures!

Lately Grace has taken to bringing me clothes and asking me to put them on her. This particular day it was her swimsuit bottoms she wanted to wear.

This is what you get when you ask Grace to smile for the camera now, BIG CHEESE!! I love it! She used to not smile at all when you asked her.

More big cheese!

We peeked in at her before going to be and this is what we found....butt in the air and thumb in the mouth. So silly!

Sledding out front with Aunt Katie. She kept saying all done, but she didn't cry!

Grace's First Snow Fun!

2010-01-10T21:23:00.010-05:00

Grace getting bundled up to go play outside in the snow for the first time!

Grace was finally able to go play outside in the snow today! I have been looking for snow pants and boots for her for a few weeks now. I am cheap and I didn't want to buy new because she is only going to use them a handful of times this winter. I had been looking on craigslist without much luck. I finally thought to ask Grandma K. to keep her eyes open at goodwill and she found these snow pants and boots for $5 each. What a deal! Thanks Grandma!

Grace likes looking at the snow, so I was excited to see what she thought of playing in it. She had a good time. I stood her in a snow bank and she faceplanted right into the snow! I felt really bad giving Grace her first whitewash! She was only upset for a minute and then went back to playing. She thought it was really funny when I threw snow into the air. She tried to do it too! It is really sweet to watch her try to imitate you. (On a side note, she tries to copy me when I stretch before I run and it is the CUTEST thing! I am going to take a video of it this week and post it.) She also kept saying and signing snow while she was playing. It was very sweet! Enjoy the little snow bunny pictures!

All bundled up and heading outside.

Mommy putting her in the snow bank.

Grace face planted in the snow!!! Poor girl!

Cleaning off the whitewash.

Grump face.

She wasn't upset for too long.

Signing snow.

Grace the Night Owl

2010-01-05T20:44:00.002-05:00

I am very tired today. That just might have something to do with my wicky picky #1. Last night Grace got out of bed 9 or 10 times, all between 11:15pm and 1:15am!! The first time she got up it was kind of cute. I heard her open her door, but she didn't come into our room. I called her name and she ignored me and started walking into the living room. I followed her calling her name, but she continued to ignore me. When I went to get her she gave me her baby and started walking toward the front door. We went and gave Daddy kisses (she was in bed before he got home from work) and then I put her back to be only to have her up again in 15 minutes.

The next few times she got up, I went to her and she said hi like she wasn't doing anything wrong. For some reason she was not sleepy and wanted to play. A few times she got up and was playing in her room before she opened her door to come out. In the morning I even found a book in her bed.

After 4 or 5 times of getting up I started spanking before sending her back to bed. I was reluctant to spank her because she wasn't in a grumpy mood, and I didn't want to start one, but enough was enough! She got out a bed a few more times after I started spanking (mommy's spanks aren't very threatening apparently). I finally woke Bob up so he could put her back to bed because sometimes she listens to Daddy better when sleeping is concerned. She stayed in bed for maybe 20 minutes after Daddy put her there and I had just started dozing off when she got up AGAIN!

I was fairly upset when I put her back to bed after that. Thankfully she was finally tired too and stayed in bed until morning! Of course she did all this on a night where I had to get up early the next morning. I thought maybe she would sleep in, but I was getting out of the shower when I heard a knock on the bathroom door. There was little Gracie up at 7:45.

I was hoping for a good nap today at least, but no. I put her down at 12:30, but she was up by 1:45. Of course Brooke was excellent and slept until 3:15. What a nice nap I could of had if Gracie wasn't such a pickle!

Don't forget to enter the Rabbitt Baby #2 contest.
http://therabbitthutch.blogspot.com/2010/01/finally-its-baby-pool.html
Have a good night!

Finally, It's a Baby Pool!!

2010-01-03T21:23:00.003-05:00

Well, I've been meaning to post a baby pool on my blog for a few weeks now. I couldn't decide what the winner should get so I have been procrastinating. Since I am due in 4 1/2 weeks, I figured I better get going! I've decided that the winner will get a $10 gas card, because who doesn't need gas?

So here is how the contest will work.
1. Become a follower of my blog. To do this, scroll down a little ways, and in the right column there is a button that says follow. Click on it. You can sign in with a google account, a twitter account, a yahoo account, a aim account, and a few others. If you don't have any of those it gives you the option to create a google account. If you need help figuring it out, just drop me a message!

2. Guess the baby's gender, birthday, weight, and length. I will use the length as a tie breaker if two people get the other three categories correct. Just leave your guess as a comment on this post. Don't forget to leave your name and email address so I can contact the winner!

That's it. Simple right? I will let the winner know within a week or two after the baby is born. Gotta give me a few days to get back on my feet right? Just so you all have a starting place, my due date is February 3rd and I am scheduled for a c-section Feb. 11 (so that is the latest I will go). Guessing will end Jan. 19th when I am 38 weeks, unless of course I have that baby before then! Thanks for participating and happy guessing!

A Few Weeks in Pictures

2010-01-03T20:47:00.016-05:00

So, it has been FOREVER since my last post. I've decided that is too overwhelming to try to catch up, so I am just going to post a bunch of pictures from the last few weeks. I will start fresh this week. Enjoy the pictures!

Grace wearing her awesome new faux leather pants and hi-top pink converse.

She reminds me of Jim Carrey in Ace Ventura wearing this tutu. Too cute!

Crawling through her new tunnel.

Playing in her new tent.

Beating Aunt Greta at foosball Christmas morning.

Eating her fake corn and opening presents at the Keena Christmas.

Opening presents from Aunt Mel, Aunt Cammy, and Aunt Allie. She was a pro by this time!

This was the Wednesday before Christmas. She was so tired she was falling asleep in her bouncer. She ended up with a sinus infection poor girl!

Helping Mommy make cookies for Christmas. She helped by cleaning off the spoon of peanut butter!

She decided it was a good idea to sit in my pot.

Giving her monkey a piggy back ride.

Night time fun

2009-12-15T21:27:00.003-05:00

Grace is such a silly girl. Last night she was up and out of bed four or five times. The first time was at 12:30. I woke up when she opened her door. I was laying there waiting for her to come in our room, but she didn't. She went out into the living room instead. Apparently she wanted to play! I got up to get her and when I walked in the living room she said hi. Totally cute, like she was supposed to be up playing and was glad I joined her. I told her it was still night night time and she went back to sleep without a fuss.

The next time she woke up was a few minutes after Bob left this morning around 5:30. She then was up again at 6:00 and 6:20. I think 6:20 was the last time. I was kind of groggy by that point. Of course when she finally fell asleep she slept in past 8:00 but I had to be up at 7:30.

She has been doing really well for the last week or so about sleeping all night. She got out of bed a few times Sunday night, but that was right after she went to bed, not in the middle of the night. That was a really cute night. The first two times she got up she kept saying "loon" like that was her excuse for getting up. After the second time she got up I hid the balloon, so on the third time out of bed it was her "blockies" that were her excuse for getting up. The fourth time (and last time thankfully) that she got out of bed Sunday, Bob and I were downstairs and heard a couple of thumps. We went to the stairs and there was Grace making her way downstairs, looking very innocent of course.

The big girl bed has been quite the adventure the last few weeks, but I am very proud of how well she has done! She is such a big girl and is going to be such a good big sister. I can't wait to see her holding her little baby brother/sister. It is going to be so sweet! No pictures tonight. Today was a busy day. We are going to have a relaxing day tomorrow so I will spend some time taking pictures.

Today was spent watching Brooke and sorting through all of Grace's baby clothes. She had two big bins and six bags full!!! Way too much even for a little girl! I took out all the gender neutral clothes and put them in the baby's dresser. I then sorted what I wanted to keep and what I wanted to give to goodwill. I got rid of three bags of clothes! Then I sorted the clothes by size and folded them neatly this time (originally I just pitched them in bins and bags, lazy mama), and put them away. I got all the clothes I kept to fit into two bins. It took me about 3 hours! I felt accomplished by the time I was done though!

Well, I will try to get some extra cute pictures tomorrow. Oh yeah, I am still looking for prize ideas for the baby pool contest. I need to come up with something soon so people have time to get there guesses in, so please leave me your ideas! Have a good night!

Miss Smarty Pants

2009-12-11T21:38:00.004-05:00

I am always surprised by how much Grace understands. I know I shouldn't be, but I forget how smart she is just because she can't communicate as much as she can take in. This morning we were sitting on the couch and I was holding her hand looking at her fingernails. I was saying how I needed to clip her nails, just talking out loud. A minute later she got down off my lap and went into her room. She was being quiet (usually a sign of her getting into something she's not supposed to) so I went to see what she was up too. She had pulled her storage bin off her dresser (a downside of having a very tall child). She had taken her nail clippers out of the bin and was bringing them to me. So smart!

This afternoon we were getting ready to go to the store. I had put her shoes on and was getting some things together when she brought me my shoes. I didn't even ask her to get them! She brought me slip-ons and I wanted my boots, so I asked her to get my boots and she did. Very convenient for mommy!

When she does things like she did today, I have to remind myself that when she is being naughty she understands that too! I always feel bad when I have to discipline her because I wonder if she understands and remembers. Today is a good demonstration that she does!

Even though she can't communicate as well as she can understand, her ability to speak seems to grow greater everyday! She is at a stage where she likes to repeat words that you say. And she learned so many new things this week! She knows that cows moo, duckies go quack quack, and piggies go oink oink (added to those she already knew; doggie, kitty, monkey, sheep, and lions). She also learned how to say and sign snow. I know there are other things she has learned this week, but I just can't remember them all now. It is so fun to see her learn and grow.

I only have one picture for today. I am too lazy to go get the camera to import the ones from yesterday and today. Hey, I am 32 weeks pregnant...that is a good excuse! Look forward to a baby pool coming up on my blog. I just have to think of a good prize for the winner. You can comment with any prize ideas!

Wearing Daddy's hat.

Uh-oh

2009-12-05T20:50:00.009-05:00

Grace started a new thing tonight. She came over to me and took my hands and started walking backward. She was trying to help me up. So silly.

Being cute.

Her is really good at getting into things!

Brushing her teeth just like a big girl!

Well, it has happened. I knew it would, but I was hoping it would be a little while yet. Grace has figured out she can get out of bed anytime. Last night she woke up around 12:30. I went in and comforted her and gave her a drink. She was quiet for about 10 or 15 minutes and then she started crying again. She cried for about 5 minutes and then suddenly she stopped and said bye bye. It was quiet for a few seconds and then she started saying bye bye again and you could hear her getting out of bed. When she got to the door she started saying see ya over and over and trying to open the door. Even though it was the middle of the night it was really cute! Bob got her and brought her in bed with us for a little while. She laid down with us for a while, but then she started trying to sit up so I brought her back to her room. She went to sleep without a fuss, wicky picky.

This afternoon at nap time I heard her start talking and moving around after 10 minutes or so. I peeked at the monitor and she was at the end of her bed contemplating getting out of bed. Daddy had to go in and scold her and lay her back down. She went to sleep after that. Then tonight at bed time I heard her crying about 10 minutes after I laid her down. I went up to check on her and she was standing by her door with her glow worm and blanket trying to get out. I laid her back down and told her she would get spanks if she got up again. She went to sleep without a fuss. :)

I really hope she sleeps better tonight. I am just very run down. I don't sleep that great as it is right now so any extra wake ups are really draining. Only about 8 more weeks and I am going to be really exhausted so I guess I should be grateful for all the sleep I am getting. She did take a 2 hour nap again today which was nice. I hope she keeps this trend up. We did an 8 o'clock bed time again tonight, so we shall see!

Daddy came home!

2009-12-04T22:13:00.007-05:00

Today was a good day...Daddy came home! Grace was very excited, but she always gets excited when Daddy comes home, even if he is just gone for the day. I've noticed lately that when Bob gets home she wants to show him things. For instance when he came in today she showed him her blocks. It is very cute.

Grace was in a good mood all day. She woke up around 7:15. I heard her talking to her monkey that sits on her bed. She was saying oh oh ah ah over and over. After 10 minutes I heard her getting out of bed and trying to open her door (sometimes she can get it herself and sometimes she can't). I got up and just opened it a crack and went back to my room just to see what she would do. She came right into my room and found me. She walked up to the bed and said Mama, it was very cute.

She played really well all day and wasn't grumpy while I got my run in. Day 5 of my training. The runs so far are shorter than what I have been doing, but 6 days a week as opposed to the 2, maybe 3 I was doing. My back is a little sore, but I feel great every time I finish another run!!

Grace even took an extra long nap today, 2 hours and 15 minutes! Yea!! She got herself up again and managed to get the door open on her own. She came right into my bedroom again, smart little girl. She wasn't even very grumpy after her nap like she can be sometimes.

Tonight we are tried a slightly later bed time for Grace. We put her down at 8:00, only a half an hour later than normal, but I am hoping it will help her take better naps. Lately, with the exception of today, she has been napping around an hour, an hour and a half max. Mommy would much prefer a two hour nap time. It takes me a little bit to fall asleep so my nap always seems too short!

These pictures are random shots from the last couple of days. There has been a little more picture taking than normal because of the new camera. I am glad I have such a cute subject to use my new camera on!

I think she has decided she likes the camera...she claps and signs more!

Uh-oh!

She climbed into the baby car seat that is sitting in the closet downstairs. Silly.

She climbed into the cupboard today. She was actually all the way on the shelf, but by the time I got the camera she was off.

Peek-a-boo!

Grace practicing being a big sister

2009-12-03T12:27:00.008-05:00

Grace going "night night"

Twice a week I watch my best friend Melanie's niece. Brooke is about 8 months old and Grace just loves her. First thing after Brooke gets here Grace wants to hold her. When I go to take Brooke off her lap Grace will sign more, it is very cute. Grace also likes to hug Brooke and try to pick her up so I have to keep an eye on her. I call Grace the not so gentle giant, but she has really gotten a lot better at being gentle. Brooke is really moving around now so she is able to interact more with Grace which is great. They are very cute together. Here are a few pictures from this morning of Brooke and Grace. Enjoy!

Grace "helping" Brooke get dressed....and laughing about it!

Brooke smiling nice for the camera.

Grace giving me silly looks.

Grace giving Brooke a kiss. What a good big sister!

Brooke had it figured out...Grace was totally looking the wrong way!

Pictures for Daddy

2009-12-02T22:14:00.008-05:00

Playing outside with rocks

Classic Grace

Saying all done

Her funny look at the camera

Looking surprised

Today I got a new toy in the mail...a new canon camera. Bob is very jealous because he is out of town. I am putting pictures up for Daddy so he can see his little pickle. I really like the camera so far even though I am not really smart enough to operate it to its full potential... Grace doesn't know quite what to think of it. It has a very bright flash and makes a funny noise. She kept giving me funny looks, saying uh-oh, and all done. Hopefully she gets used to it so I can get some pictures of smiles!

I also added a video of Grace, Ender, and Grey from this morning. They were being so cute tonight. Grace sure is going to miss her cousins when they go! Enjoy the pictures and video!

Decisions Decisions

2009-11-29T21:34:00.002-05:00

So, I am having a hard time deciding on which baby girl name I like best. If it is a boy Bob gets to pick so I don't have to worry about it, but if its a girl I get to pick. I have three names picked out, approved by Bob of course, to chose from. I am looking for feedback from friends and family to help me decide. If you can tell me your favorite and maybe why it is your favorite, that would be awesome. So here they are...
1. Elizabeth Rachel - I would call her Lizzie
2. Isabella Faith - I would call her Bella
3. Molly Joy
Please leave your comments on this post! Also, in case you want to know, if it is a boy Bob will probably choose Isaak James. Our second boy name is Isaiah Daniel. Thanks for the input!

Who hates I teeth?!?!?

2009-11-18T16:33:00.008-05:00

So, does anyone else think that cutting teeth really bites? Haha, pun intended. This last week or so has been really crummy. Grace has been cutting her I teeth and has had such a hard time sleeping. That is bad enough at home, but maybe a little worse when you are sharing a hotel room with her. Last night was not fun. I didn't fall asleep until midnight or so and then I woke up a few times feeling nauseous before Grace even started waking up. Then around 1:30 Grace started whining/crying in her sleep. She woke up around 3:30 and I gave her more tylenol and orajel, but she just couldn't fall back asleep. She was trying...she was sucking her thumb and occasionally playing her glow worm. She would get quiet after a little bit, getting my hopes up and then I would hear the glow worm. After about 30-40 minutes she started crying again. I think she was frustrated that she couldn't fall asleep. I finally just got her up and took her out in the sitting room. She was grumpy out there, but I was hoping Bob could at least get some sleep. I laid her back down around 5:15 and she finally fell back asleep. She was in a fairly good mood this morning considering. However she only took an hour nap, so I am VERY tired! She definitely needed more sleep, because she is being quite crabby this afternoon.

On a more positive note, we went swimming this afternoon and she enjoyed that. She tried to drink the water a few times, yuck! She didn't really try again after she got a mouthful that made her cough. I suppose we have all had our fair share of chlorine. I got a few pictures, but it was hard because I was keeping and eye on her and trying to take pictures. I think we might go with daddy again tomorrow night and then we can get cute video and better pictures.

On another side note, I think Grace finally has her first real case of diaper rash. I guess diaper rash once in 18 months is pretty good. I love her cloth diapers. I don't have any of the inserts that I need to use the diaper rash remedy the doctor's office said I should use, so I will have to get a small pack of disposables. I should buy some of the inserts just to keep on hand, but I have never needed any in 18 months, so I never thought about it. Speaking of diapers, I just changed her because I thought she was smelly, but she wasn't and guess what she just did....I guess I will go change another diaper her in a minute. I am going to make sure she is good and done this time. :)

Right now we are just waiting for daddy to get home from work and then we are going out to buy what she needs for her rash and then out to dinner. I think we are going to go to some italian place that I can't remember the name of (blame it on the babies). After Grace goes to bed tonight I need to go run. I don't really feel like it, but like I said the other day, excuses aren't going to help me run the 5/3rd in May. I really want to run the 25K (assuming my delivery is healthy), so I am going to run as long as I can until the baby gets here. I am hoping to at least make it until January, if not longer. I still feel pretty good running, I just have to keep it to 3 miles or less, but that is enough to give me a base to start with after I deliver wicked pickle number 2. Running has made a big difference in weight gain this pregnancy compared to Grace (I gained 40lbs with her and I am on track to gain about 28lbs with this baby), which is great, and I am hoping to shed to pounds faster afterward than I did with Grace (after one year I was 4lbs. short of my prepregnancy weight and then I got pregnant again).

Well, I think stinky is done filling her diaper so I am going to go change and her and go downstairs and watch for daddy. Sorry to ramble so long, but it makes up for the two weeks that I didn't blog at all. :) Enjoy the pictures!

The problem with making such cute barrettes for work is that I want to buy them all for Grace!

Playing peek-a-boo like a silly girl.

Checking out the water.

I love this face. I think she might have been leaning in to try to take a drink! Goofball!

She has a cute butt, what can I say?

Walking back to our room.

Leaves

2009-11-07T20:29:00.004-05:00

It was such a beautiful day out today! It was so nice to be able to spend time outside today. Bob and I (well, mostly Bob) finished the leaves today. Of course Grace helped. She loves being outside so she had a good time. I helped bag about eight bags and I was done. Things are definitely getting more difficult to do as I get closer to my due date. Only about 13 weeks left!

It is supposed to be even nicer tomorrow so we are going to try to go to the zoo tomorrow. Grace loves animals so it should be fun. Hopefully I will get some good pictures. I hope you enjoy the pictures of Grace playing with the leaves!

Colors

2009-11-02T21:38:00.003-05:00

I have been working with Grace on her colors for the last few weeks and we finally seem to be making progress. About a week and a half ago she learned pink. (Maybe because of all her pink clothes and her pink room....) Today she learned blue and yellow. It is so cool to see her learn and to see our practice paying off! It is just so cool to see how fast and how much she is learning. I am constantly amazed at how much she understands and she is getting better and better at communicating.

Grandpa was over today playing Zelda (Grace knows how to say Zelda, of course). We were playing and did something cool and Grandpa taught Grace how to fist bump. He only had to show her once or twice and voila, she knows how to "give knuckles". It is soooo cute. Sorry no pictures today!

A Pleasant Week

2009-11-01T19:39:00.007-05:00

This week was a fun week. Grace was in a good mood all week which was such a nice change after her being sick for a week and a half! She just played so well all week. This last Thursday we decided to go the orchard because it was probably one of the last nicer days this year. It wasn't as sunny as I would have liked, but at least it was warm enough and dry! Brooke, Ender, Grey, Emily and Allison came with us. We had a really nice time looking at pumpkins and eating apples. I was a little disappointed that there weren't any donuts, but at least I discovered that Grace likes to eat whole apples...a lot. On the way home I was hungry and I asked Grace if I could have a bite of her apple and she kept shaking her head no. She did not want share with mama! I literally had to force her to give it to me! Silly little piggy.

This week we also discovered something Grace likes doing...she has taken to standing on our bed and looking into my vanity mirror with her shirt pulled up. She thinks it is hilarious! We took a video because it was just so cute! Apparently my kids are modest in the womb, but lose that modesty somewhere in the first year of their lives and become exhibitionists! Enjoy the pictures and the video!

A very long week

2009-10-24T18:15:00.007-04:00

This is one of the silly ways we found Grace sleeping this week. She even did a little butt wiggle while we were in her room. Too cute!

Well, it has been quite awhile since I have updated the blog. This last week has been a looooong week for us. Grace hasn't been feeling well since Sunday, I started feeling sick on Monday, and Bob started feeling sick on Wednesday. I took Grace to the doctor's on Wednesday after she had a fever for three days. They tested her for strep because her throat was really red and irritated. That came back negative so the doctor said that it was either a cold or the swine flu, but she was on the mend so they didn't test to see if it was swine flu. She told me I should call my OB to let them know that I might have been exposed to swine flu. I am now taking tamiflu as a precaution. My sickness hasn't gone beyond a stuffy/runny nose and a sore throat so that is a praise. Grace finally seems to be feeling a little better today, but she still has a runny nose, a pretty good cough, and is really tired. She has been going to be early every night and sleeping in a little later every morning. She even took two naps on some days! I really hope she is feeling back to normal this week because I really need to get things done! I have just been taking care of sick people all week, so it will be good to get some work done next week. Also, Aunt Christa is coming to town tomorrow and I want Grace to be able to enjoy the visit! Here are some random pictures from the last week, enjoy!

Posing for a picture with mommy. You can see how tired she looks!

Ready to eat at Olive Garden. We had a nice time with Jen, Leah, Tieler, and Courtney!

Grace's new big girl room!

2009-10-14T15:32:00.008-04:00

I haven't updated the blog in awhile because I have been so busy sewing, getting Grace's room together, taking care of Grace (she was a little under the weather yesterday, but is feeling better today), and what feels like a million other things! Her bedding came today and I got things mostly together in her room so I wanted to update the blog with pictures! I love Grace's new bedroom! Every time I walk in her room it makes me smile! It is so bright and cheerful and GIRLIE! I was going to paint it gender neutral colors because baby #2 didn't cooperate, but I decided to do it girlie because that is what I really wanted to do! (and going by Rabbitt genetics baby #2 is probably a girl anyway!) I am so glad that I did. We can always repaint if we are still here when baby #3 comes along. Now, just to get her to sleep in her big girl room...We attempted nap time in the big girl bed this afternoon, but that didn't go so well. She ended up taking only a short nap and that was in her crib, but we will try again tonight. I wanted to start early so we could have plenty of time for her to adjust before baby brother/sister gets here! She likes playing in her new room and on her new bed, just not sleeping in it! Enjoy the pictures!

Grace being silly on her big girl bed!

I love her bedding!

I love the paint job in her room! Bob did such an awesome job, getting it exactly how I pictured!

2009-10-09T21:30:00.007-04:00

Today was a pretty good day. Grace woke up too early for my taste, but that is usually the case. She played really well while I did stuff for church, folded laundry, and ran. Then I took a shower and she took a shower/bath. She likes playing in the shower! She thinks its fun to have the water rain down on her, so I will fill up the bathtub that way. We played for a little bit after lunch and then it was nap time, yea! Grace took an excellent nap today, two hours and forty five minutes! Finally a long nap when I could nap with her! I really needed that nap today. After nap time we ran a few errands and then came home to cook dinner. After dinner we went to Home Depot to pick out paint for her bedroom. I decided to paint her room girly even though we don't know the gender of baby #2. Bob said he expected to paint with each child anyway! At home depot we put her in the car cart. She had so much fun driving around the store. After Home Depot we went to Meijer to get a few things and let her ride Sandy the pony. She enjoyed it, but I think she liked driving around Home Depot more. Enjoy the pictures. Sorry about the poor quality, I didn't have my camera so I used my phone. But she was so cute that I figured those pictures were better than no pictures!

A day of little girls and dancing!

2009-10-08T21:27:00.003-04:00

Today was a day full of girls! I was watching Brooke today and also watched two little girls from church, Mallory and Lauren. Considering there were four little girls under the age of four, I thought the day went remarkably well! They even all napped/rested at the same time! Grace enjoyed having friends over to play with. After her friends went home, we went and picked up some prefolds off craigslist. I also bought a few BumGenius AIO's and a diaper cover from a friend and she brought those over today as well. They are so tiny! I don't remember Grace being so little! She is growing up SO fast. Her newest thing is dancing. She has finally learned how and now she is learning new moves. She was being so cute that we got out the video camera. Of course, as soon as we did she stopped doing her new moves. The video I got is still cute so I am sharing it with you. Enjoy!

Naughty Baby

2009-10-08T09:39:00.006-04:00

Well, as most of you know, I had my second ultrasound on Tuesday. They were able to get all the rest of the measurements that they needed, but the silly baby still wouldn't reveal what was between those legs! Apparently my children are modest in the womb, but by the time they are one they are exhibitionists! I was trying not to get my hopes up about finding out, but it was kind of hard not to. Needless to say I was a bit disappointed! I know I should have been happy that the baby was healthy, and I was, but I really wanted to know! I am very happy that the baby is healthy. They said it was measuring about 5 days small, but that was okay. Me a small baby? Maybe it will only be 22" instead of 22 1/2", ha! Well, enjoy the pictures of the new babe and enjoy waiting about 4 more months with me!

2009-10-05T21:12:00.004-04:00

Today was a pretty busy day. Grace was grumpy again this morning. I think she might be cutting her top two molars. At least I hope that is why she is being such a pickle! I started the morning by feeding Grace who didn't want to eat her breakfast. Then, while I was eating mine she kept begging for mine. Silly girl. Then I cleaned the house and Grace kept wanting to be picked up so I was cleaning my floors while occasionally holding a heavy piggy. Fortunately she was in a better mood after nap time. We took a walk and went to the park in the afternoon and she had fun walking around and going on the slide. I like fall although I would like a little more sunshine. But it is the time of year I get to break out Grace's leggings and who doesn't like a baby in leggings! I also did some shopping for baby #2 today. I purchased some diaper covers on diaperswappers. I decided to do prefolds with this baby instead of disposables while the baby is still small. I love doing cloth so much with Grace that I want to do it right from the start with this one. Tomorrow is my second ultrasound for baby #2. I am excited to see the baby again. It is always amazing to see him/her moving around inside of me. I am really hoping that I can find out the gender tomorrow! Check back for an update. Enjoy the pictures of Grace in her leggings!

Getting Started

2009-10-03T20:19:00.000-04:00

Well, I don't really know what I am doing quite yet, but I've decided to start a blog anyway. What an interesting day to start. I am not feeling well today and Grace was quite the wicky picky. I was too lazy to get up and see what she was getting into and so she got into quite a bit today! The bathroom door got left open and she decided to unroll a whole roll of toilet paper, play in the trash, and play in the toilet. Later our bedroom door was left open and she went and got Daddy's glasses and broke one of the stems off. Uh-oh! Fortunately Bob was able to fix them using a screw from his back up pair of glasses. She is now in bed and I am watching Ghostbusters 2 with Bob, Jeremy, and Greta, contemplating an early bedtime. Unfortunately I can't breathe through my nose, so sleeping tonight should be interesting. Well, I am going to keep it short for my first entry. I think I'll go play around and see how this blog works.

The Rabbitt Hutch

Psalty DVD and CD giveaway!

29 Diapers giveaways

Horses

Grand Rapids Mud Run 2011

29 Diapers giveaways

Happy Birthday To My THREE Year Old!!!

Bootyful Baby Giveaway

Attention Local Mamas!!!

Win a Coccoro Flash Travel System!

California Here We Come!

We are all alive and well!

Charity Raffle for Coupon Mommy of 3

My Baby is ONE!!!

Bootyful Baby Boutique Review and Giveaway - Closed!

Happy New Year

Hip Hooters Giveaway

Night and Day

Ankle Biter Apparel

29 Days of Christmas

A Ragababe Giveaway

Ragababe Black Friday Giveaway

Kids Say (and do!) The Darndest Things

Abby's Lane Gift Certificate

Monki See Monki Do

AppleCheeks Blog Giveaway

Rock-a-Thigh Baby Review

The Dirties on Diapering - Round 2

Ragababe Organic 2-Step and 'Easy' AIO Review and Giveaway!-CLOSED

SoftBums Mystery Diaper Event!

You gotta do what you gotta do....

It's hard to be a Lions fan...

★RagaBabe Cloth Diapers Grand Opening www.ragababe.com

★RagaBabe Cloth Diapers Grand Openingwww.ragababe.com

Please Nominate Me!

The Rabbitt Hutch 150 fan giveaway!

My Custom Diaper Set From Forward Thinking!

Guest Blog on Top to Bottom Baby Boutique!

The Cotton Babies Free Cloth Diaper Week Ends Tonight!

Two In Cloth...

Doopsy "SD" Giveaway Winner!

My First Review - The Doopsy Diaper! **GIVEAWAY CLOSED**

A giveaway from Life Semi Crunchy

Potty Talk...The Highlight of A Mother's Day

TMI

To Marathon Or Not To Marathon, That Is The Question...

Weigh-in

Feeling Worn Out

Another cloth diaper giveaway!

Another Okay Day

bumGenius 4.0 giveaway

Catching Up

Day 3

Check In Day 2

Accountability

Short and Sweet

Another cloth diaper giveaway!

Blog giveaway

P90X 4 week update

Babies and Body Fat

Just Life

Sleep Deprived

Home Sweet Home

Baby Pool Winner

Getting Ready For Baby

Picture Day!

Grace's First Snow Fun!

Grace the Night Owl

Finally, It's a Baby Pool!!

A Few Weeks in Pictures

Night time fun

Miss Smarty Pants

Uh-oh

Daddy came home!

Grace practicing being a big sister

Pictures for Daddy

Decisions Decisions

Who hates I teeth?!?!?

Leaves

Colors

My First Review - The Doopsy Diaper! GIVEAWAY CLOSED