Poor Little A!

Man, Ava had a hard day. And while we're being honest, mommy did too!

Today was our appointment with the allergist to look further in to what is causing A's reactions to certain foods. She's been displaying classic milk allergy/milk protein sensitivity signs since birth (though I wasn't able to figure out what exactly was going on until she was a few months old), but reacted to eggs a few weeks back when I gave her scrambled eggs for the first time, so at that point I knew I needed a couple of things. For one, having a baby who is unable to consume both dairy products (including milk, cheese, butter, whey, casein, etc.) and egg poses some issues with regards to what she CAN eat, and with her expanding appetite and desire to eat any and everything D and I are eating, I knew I'd need help to manage her dietary restraints and still ensure she was getting sufficient nutrition and calories for her needs. I also wanted to have her tested for allergens that tend to be more severe and can potentially be life-threatening, including peanuts and tree nuts, so that if God forbid she had an allergy to them and it was severe, we'd be armed with an epi-pen and the information we'd need to be prepared. I've been in situations before as a nanny where a child was over and was so severely allergic to nuts, their presence in the pantry near a snack he consumed was enough to send him to the hospital...SCARY.

Anyhow, the visit went pretty great, I must say. The doctor was amazing (seriously, if you're in the Austin area and need a rec. for an allergist, email me! I'd 100% recommend our doc for children AND adults!), and was really thorough and listened to all my concerns and questions without making me feel like an overzealous parent. Thanks, doc. They did a standard 8 panel food allergy test, which tested for the most common food allergens, including milk, eggs, wheat, soy, peanuts, corn and two controls to ensure the tests were working.
{Such a brave little girl!}

The good news? First, I am super proud of my brave little munchkin, who - despite looking extremely annoyed - didn't even cry! She did, however, continuously look at the nurse over her shoulder until she left the room, though, as if to say, "I don't trust you for a second, lady!" The best news? Ava tested for negative on everything except for corn, and he said that corn has an extremely high rate of false positives. SHE TESTED NEGATIVE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So what does that mean for us going forward, and for her current issues? A couple of things. First off, chances are instead of a true allergy, which would likely be lifelong, she has digestive sensitive to the proteins in milk and egg whites. Okey dokey, no problem. I avoid them while nursing, she avoids them until we revisit this per the doctor's suggested timeline, and the odds are skyrocketing that she'll outgrow them as her stomach matures. THANKYOUTHANKYOUTHANKYOU!!

The bad news?
-There is a high rate of false negatives, so we're not entirely in the clear until the blood test results that accompany the skin test comes back.
-She had to have a blood draw. OMG. She's had one once before, and let me tell you, there is NOTHING wrong with homegirl's memory. She knew immediately where we were (even though it was a different CPL location) and what was about to happen, and started to let out the most blood curdling screams. Seriously, it was heartbreaking. She was screaming and hyperventilating, trying to wrestle her way out of my arms, all the while turning beat red, sweating and, sadly, vomiting. She was hysterical, and mommy had tears falling fast down her cheeks as well. It was pitiful. Poor darling. She came home and zonked right out:


Thankfully, it's over, and as long as the bloodwork looks OK, fingers are crossed that we just got some answers and that they're great news :)

I'll keep y'all posted when we know for sure!

Y'all Ready For This?

So...there's been a bit of interest in hearing about my former life as a NYC nanny, and as such, I thought I'd appease you all, and start confessing.

Catch all the dirty gossip here :) Care to follow along?

Favorite Thing..Monday?

A few of the blogs I frequent have participated in Favorite Thing Friday, which I've always liked and found helpful and informative. I participated myself a few times back during my pregnancy, but weekly postings have given way to postings about Ava, exhaustion, working motherhood and marriage, and I've managed to continuously forget to participate. Anyhow, long story short, today - while it's actually on my mind - I will be participating in FTF either three days late, or four days early. Four days early has a nice ring to it, right?

We haven't done a ton of traveling since Ava was born, aside from a trip to California to see my side of the family (where we stayed in a baby-equipped relative's guest area), and a trip to D's parents in April, back before Ava was really eating solid foods, so this was the first opportunity we had to use Ava's portable, folding cloth high chair by My Little Seat.


The seat was something we had added to our registry thinking it would come in handy for traveling to the grandparents, and boy was that thinking right on target! Check out how amazing this thing was while we were out of town for Thanksgiving:





If you see a bit of travel in your future, I highly recommend! Plus, they're only $20!!!!

Happy 11 Months, Baby Bear!

Well, friends, the time is near! This is the last of the monthly posts for Ava's first year! This time next month, she'll be turning 1!!! AHHHHHH! Cliche aside, these past 11 months have flown!

At 11 months, Ava is:
-Walking is an understatement. Try, slowly jogging her way around my house, leaving a path of destruction in her wake! She's so insanely busy and never stops moving. Mommy has started napping on the weekends with Ava when she can because my activity level is skyrocketing!
-Eating any and everything you'll give her, aside from anything with dairy or eggs. Some favorites include: pulled pork, mandarin oranges, broccoli, black beans and oatmeal. Yum! She has also decided she likes onion (weird, I know!) and likes to eat my sandwich with me when I leave the mayo off. Last night, she had chicken enchiladas with red sauce in corn tortillas (no cheese, obvs!). I'm so lucky to have such a good eater!
-Remains exclusively breastfed (obvs she has solids also, but no formula still). This is something I'm really proud of, and can't believe how close we are to meeting my goal of one year! I am like 120891023812038% sure I'll continue past a year, as long as she wants to!
-Taking two distinct naps a day, at least when we're home and she's able. Her afternoon nap is hard with my work schedule, so sometimes it's abbreviated as she only will sleep en route to pick up S from preschool. These days, I'll take what I can get!
-Says "mama", "dada", "baba", "hi", "oof" when you ask what sound a dog makes, "ooh ooh ah ah" when you ask what a monkey says, and has said "byebye" once.
-Waves hi, goodbye, claps her hand, rolls her hands for patticake, and tries to snap her fingers whenever she wants you - or anything - to come to her, after seeing us do it for the cat.
-We see the allergist on Tuesday afternoon (dreading it!) so hopefully we'll have some more insight into her food allergies then!!
-Weighs 21lbs, and is 30" long!

Happy 11 months, baby bear! There are no words for how much I love you and how greatly you've enriched our lives. These last 11 months have been the most amazing months of my entire life, and I cannot imagine what my world would be without you! I can't wait to celebrate your first year of life!

Black Friday = Hell on Earth.

Actually, to clarify, the Black Friday shopping experience itself wasn't so bad, until you factor in my in-laws. JAY-SUS, they're impatient. I'm talking, five minutes into our trip to Walmart, they're like, "We'll be waiting for you guys in front." Now believe me when I say I step foot into Walmart as little as humanly possible, but when you're spending the holidays in a teeny tiny town and this is all they've got, you've still got a first birthday/Christmas shopping mission to complete, ya hear? And no, it wasn't due to the crowds or anything like that. That's just HOW THEY ARE. Seriously. Everyday. I HATE going anywhere with them looking for something, because I inevitably get rushed out the door and end up forgetting at least half of what I'm there for, and browsing? Looking for ideas? These are concepts completely unbeknownst to them. HELL.

Anyhow, aside from that little gem of crappiness, we actually had a very successful shopping experience. Most of Ava's Christmas shopping is done, and since we're all grasping at straws for ideas, I thought I'd share what we've gotten for her so far.

First off, this is her mega birthday present for this year, which she'll open on her birthday despite her party not being until January 8th:


That should help some of these gifts to make a bit more sense :)

Here's the Christmas loot thus far:








I'd still like to pick up a few things, but then again, I suppose we could leave some things for the relatives to get her? :)

Happy Black Friday, y'all!

Happy Thanksgiving!

WOOHOO! It's Thanksgiving. You know what that means. Family :)

What? You thought I was going to say turkey, pumpkin pie (or around these parts, Paula Deen's Pumpkin Gooey Butter Cake - YUM!) and the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade? Well, all of those things, too!

Growing up, I remember distinctly watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade with my mom, all snuggled up taking in the aromas of the day. Turkey roasting, pies baking, sweet potatoes soaking...I LOVE Thanksgiving.

This year, I particularly love Thanksgiving, since after being able to phase a bit of dairy back in, after today I'm back to completely dairy-free, as it's becoming increasingly irritating to Ava's tummy. She was handling it, now she's not. We'll see what's causing this soon, as her appointment with the allergist is on Tuesday, but in the meantime, dairy-free is back to being the way for me. Wah wah.

Anyhow, aside from all of the amazing traditions, both past and present, one of the things I love most about Thanksgiving is the opportunity everyone takes advantage of to really appreciate all the blessings in their life. This year, I have a multitude!

Things I am thankful for, in no particular order (aside from the first!):
-AVA
-David
-His parents, for making Thanksgiving such a wonderful time to spend with family, and for handling dinner prep :)
-My parents, grandparents, Aunt & Uncle, Granny Wendy, and the rest of my wonderful family. Without you, I'd be lost.
-The D's. There are no words. I consider them as much family as I do David and Ava.
-Our jobs. In this economy, having a job at all is a blessing, but one that I absolutely adore and allows me the flexibility to not have to put Ava in daycare? AMAZING.
-Our home. I love love LOVE it more and more every day, after four beautiful years in it. Here's to another year :)
-Ava
-Our pets, and their surprisingly positive reaction to Ava.
-The many wonderful women in my life who have been role models of what it is to be a mother, a wife, a working mom, a stay-at-home mom, a superhero.
-The lovely ladies who have contributed clothes and other supplies to Ava, without whom I would be in the poorhouse from keeping up with this kiddo's style ;)
-The librarian customer service rep (JK, but she was nice!)
-Ava

There are so, so many others. My church, my friends, my writing jobs, etc. I am infinitely blessed, and hope that this day, and the rest of the year, does not go by without me thanking our Heavenly Father for the abundance of riches in my life. I am one of the luckiest people I know :)

Happy Thanksgiving, all! Count your blessings!

Oops.

The holidays are frying my brain. Seriously. Listen to this.

So today's been one of those days. Whatevs, no worries. I'm used to it. It's allllll good.

So I make it through the morning at work, despite tantrums and overtired babies and only being able to find one of every shoe in the house when I'm trying to get the girls ready to drop them off at their mom's office. Deeeeeeeep breath. Manageable. (Side note: I'm now on vacation until Monday at 2:30. WORD.)

Drop the girls off. Breathe a sigh of relief. Head to drop off the library materials (books and a Rockabye baby CD - too cute, btw) and run pre-heading-out-of-town errands so I can head home, finish laundry and pack. Successfully drop items, then hit the road towards the T-Mobile store (Oh yeah, forgot to mention that P stepped on my screen and cracked it this morning. Still usable, but bleh. Was looking at new phones last night anyways, so that seals the deal...).

Driving, driving, driving...wait, huh? Imagine my surprise when the opening chords of "Today" by The Smashing Pumpkins begin, all lullaby-style. ASLDKFJASLDFKJADFLJ. I returned the WRONG CD. (Some unsuspecting bebe is going to be rocking Taylor Swift and wondering why she's so angry with all the boys who leave her when she appears to be the problem, not the victim. I mean, Taylor, love you girl, but when ya gonna learn that being all needy and saying the L word three days into every relationship isn't the way to keep a man?!?!?)

Call the library. Endure humiliating conversation that ends in the help desk's hysterical laughter. Luckily, I'm not devoid of a sense of humor and am able to laugh along with her. In fact, by the time I settle the situation - we'll be returning the right CD post-vacation because customer service lady is a BADASS who understands just how inconvenient it would be to drive the 20 minutes back downtown with a napping infant who would no longer be napping and instead screaming (thankyouthankyouthankyou) - I'm giggling also :)

NOW...vacation*!

*If vacation now is an acronym for laundry, packing, baking and general stressing out, all while amongst the in-laws, who may or may not babysit so we can have our first date night post-baby.

**She's almost 11 months old. FIRST. DATE. NIGHT.

Happy Turkey Day friends!!!!

PS - wouldn't ANYONE out there like to buy our 2 Texas vs. A&M Thanksgiving Day tickets please GOD ASLDKJFASLDKJASLDKJF?!?!?!

Wordless Wednesday - All Worn Out.

"You Have a Baby...In a Bar!!!"

Yes, today was very Sweet Home Alabama of me.

There are no words for how infinitely blessed I am! I could go on and on about what amazing friends I have, how incredible they are to all come together for causes we all believe strongly in, which this year included our mainstay - Capital Area Food Bank - as well as a monetary donation coming from our silent auction of great prizes to Equality Texas! I'm still waiting on final figures, but many, many food bins were filled, with probably close to at least 500 lbs of food that will be donated to those families who are in need this holiday season. I could tell you how wonderful it is that Ava has been born into an extended family that wants to make a difference, and that brought together over 400 people from different backgrounds and races and sexual orientations and so on to celebrate the holiday season and give back to those less fortunate than ourselves. Or I could just show you these:















On a side note, I may see the resemblance between Ava and myself in one of the pictures above...

Tiny Dancer.

This is probably one of the cutest things I've ever seen:

Happy Thanksgayving!

Today is one of my favorite days of the entire year, and marks the beginning of the holiday season for our family. And by family I don't just mean myself, D and Ava, but also, the wonderful people who have come to mean as much to me as my actual relations, those who I share my life with by choice, and couldn't possibly imagine my life without.

Yeah, yeah, it's gonna get cheesy up in here.

Each year, as you may recall from this post, this post and this post, me and 9 of my besties (well, sometimes new friends, but usually besties!) start compulsively sending out frantic emails planning our annual Thanksgiving Potluck event, held at a bar downtown (the same every year). It originally began as a home away from home to celebrate Thanksgiving when they were unwelcome at their own homes after having come out (hence the aptly named Thanksgayving), and has blossomed into a joyous occasion where between 300-500 people gather, bring a dish to share, and enjoy one another's company, food, and - of course - boozed-up antics. I mean, it doesn't take place at a bar for nothin'! And no, I'm not hatin'. We all remember a particularly drunken girl's antics back in 2007. Except me. I remember nothing.

If that wasn't awesome enough, we also incorporate local charities into the mix, with admission being both your dish to share AND the donation of an item to benefit either the food bank or the women's shelter. This year, we have 10 food bins, each holding at least 100 lbs of food. That's right. We may take close to 1,000 lbs of food to the Capital Area Food Bank this year, directly before the holiday season. I'm not gonna lie - I'm so proud of this, and can't wait until Ava is old enough to understand what we're doing. We also have started to hold a raffle/silent auction, with proceeds benefiting Equality Texas, a cause dear to all of our hearts! I am so thankful for this opportunity and the people in my life willing to put in the hard work that's required to make this happen! Love you all!

Anyhow, what once was a refuge for friends is now a major, party-of-the-year celebration for friends and family, new and old, and I am so incredibly honored to be hosting for the fourth year in a row. To my previous co-hosts: I adore you. I mean, ADORE you. I can't imagine where I would be without all of you in my life, and am so incredibly excited to not be hauling around an extra 25 pounds of baby this year share Ava with you this year, and introduce her to her extended family.

That wasn't too sappy, now, was it? :)

And what would a Thanksgayving post be without an onslaught of pictures from years past?? I think you'll be able to spot the 2007 ones without too much effort....

On Being a Mom...

I saw this over on my friend Jenn's blog, and just had to share. So beautiful, and so true:

On Being a Mom:

We are sitting at lunch one day when my daughter casually mentions that she and her husband are thinking of "starting a family."
"We're taking a survey," she says half-joking. "Do you think I should have a baby?"
"It will change your life," I say, carefully keeping my tone neutral.
"I know," she says, "no more sleeping in on weekends, no more spontaneous vacations."
But that is not what I meant at all.

I look at my daughter, trying to decide what to tell her. I want her to know what she will never learn in childbirth classes. I want to tell her that the physical wounds of child bearing will heal, but becoming a mother will leave her with an emotional wound so raw that she will forever be vulnerable. I consider warning her that she will never again read a newspaper ; without asking, "What if that had been MY child?" That every plane crash, every house fire will haunt her. That when she sees pictures of starving children, she will wonder if anything could be worse than watching your child die.

I look at her carefully manicured nails and stylish suit and think that no matter how sophisticated she is, becoming a mother will reduce her to the primitive level of a bear protecting her cub. That an urgent call of "Mom!" will cause her to drop her best crystal without a moment's hesitation. I feel that I should warn her that no matter how many years she has invested in her career, she will be professionally derailed by motherhood. She might arrange for childcare, but one day she will be going into an important business meeting and she will think of her baby's sweet smell. She will have to use every ounce of discipline to keep from running home, just to make sure her baby is all right.

I want my daughter to know that every day decisions will no longer be routine. That a five year old boy's desire to go to the men's room rather than the women's at McDonald's will become a major dilemma. That right there, in the midst of clattering trays and screaming children, issues of independence and gender identity will be weighed against the prospect that a child molester may be lurking in that restroom. However decisive she may be at the office, she will second-guess herself constantly as a mother.

Looking at my attractive daughter, I want to assure her that eventually she will shed the pounds of pregnancy, but she will never feel the same about herself. That her life, now so important, will be of less value to her once she has a child. That she would give herself up in a moment to save her offspring, but will also begin to hope for more years, not to accomplish her own dreams, but to watch her child accomplish his or hers. I want her to know that a cesarean scar or shiny stretch marks will become badges of honor.

My daughter's relationship with her husband will change, but not in the way she thinks. I wish she could understand how much more you can love a man who is careful to powder the baby or who never hesitates to play with his child. I think she should know that she will fall in love with him again for reasons she would not now find very romantic. I wish my daughter could sense the bond she will feel with women throughout history who have tried to stop war, prejudice, and drunk driving. I want to describe to my daughter the exhilaration of seeing your child learn to ride a bike. I want to capture for her the belly laugh of a baby who is touching the soft fur of a dog or cat for the first time. I want her to taste the joy that is so real it actually hurts.

My daughter's quizzical look makes me realize that tears have formed in my eyes.
"You'll never regret it," I finally say.
Then I reached across the table, squeezed my daughter's hand and offered a silent prayer for her, and for me, and for all the mere mortal women who stumble their way into this most wonderful of callings.

These Aren't Baby Steps.

OK I promise this is the last video of her walking I'm going to bore you with, but I finally got some decent walking on camera and just had to share:

A Little Reminder.

Some days, I feel a bit disillusioned with my career path. I mean, I'm sitting on a BIG ol' stack of student loans, and I'm a nanny. A NANNY. Don't get me wrong - I adore my job. The thought of S, the youngest, going to Kindergarten in two years makes me tear up already. I LOVE LOVE LOVE my job. But with the student loans I'm buried under, it's frustrating to think that I'm *just* a nanny. Sigh.

Enter storytime this past Wednesday, and an oh-so-welcome reminder of something.

I take A to this great storytime that I love. In fact, I'm concerned what it says about my social life that I look forward to it all week long. This past Wednesday, I walked in, holding my passed out baby in my arms (she's just this week started staying asleep when I take her out of her big girl carseat - thank you Jesus!). I was welcomed by the usual gang of moms, who I've gone to know and like, and know their little one's names and ages and developmental landmarks of note these days. I love that about Wednesdays. Anyhow, there was also a group of college-aged guys and gals in chairs in the back. The woman who leads the storytime, Elizabeth, pointed them out, letting us know that they were HDFS students (one of my own degree plans: Human Development & Family Sciences) that were going to be sitting in on our time and taking notes.

I used to be one of those students. I diligently attended storytimes, shadowed the Master Teachers at the lab school in the 3- & 4-year-old classes, compiled research on attachment, you name it. And you know what all I wanted out of life even then? To be one of the mommies with an adoring baby, getting to really experience life with their child.

Maybe it's my sap mom emotions, but I got a little teary for a second. Lately, A has been a bit of a handful. She's going through a phase where she wants to be held and have your full attention constantly, and it can be exhausting. Furthermore, it leaves me questioning what I'm doing as a parent, as I *thought* I was on the right path to not raising a child with an attitude problem. But despite the emergent tantrum throwing, the frustration of doing tasks either one-handed or to the soundtrack of a crying baby, the total lack of personal space and time, one thing has been resounding to me since then:

What did I do so right in my life to get absolutely everything I ever wanted?

And The Winner Is...

Comment #21:

gatdy said...
i commented on your post about black friday. i can't believe it's almost here. lord! :)
November 16, 2010 9:57 PM

Congratulations! Email me to claim your prize!!

Wordless Wednesday - Whoooooo's Adorable?

And don't forget to enter my current giveaway for $45 to CSN Stores, ending today at 8PM CST!

Mama Bear.

I may be small, but I'm a ferocious beast when you mess with my baby or my baby's health and welfare. Take this for example:

I have a stomach ulcer. OK, whatevs, no big. Aside from the fact that having a stomach ulcer makes me feel somewhere along the lines of 80 trillion years old, like I may as well have osteoporosis or something. Anyways...

So I saw my doctor a month ago. He gave me samples for 10 days of a medication to help make it go away. It worked, but after I went through the 10 days, symptoms came back after a week or so. So I called to see if I could have a longer course of treatment. Being a super nice guy, he had his office call me in something so I wouldn't have to drag my little one to the doctor with me and pay a stupid co-pay. Cool. Thanks, doc. You're the best.

Except he's not. I still hold that he's a super nice guy and I really like him, but he made a huge oversight. While samples notoriously do not feature all the product information, prescriptions, of course, do. And there was a HUGE warning, stating specifically that this medication cannot be taken by a breastfeeding mother. HUH?

So I call the pharmacy, thinking they're probably erring on the side of caution. Nope. As it turns out, studies in rats have shown a tendency for baby rats to form tumors. EXCUSEMEWHAT?!?!?!?

I am so pissed. I called the office, forgot it was lunch break, and left a message. Quite a message. My doctor then called me back, letting me know that those medications tend to have those warnings since it's unethical to test medications on breastfeeding women, so they put them on there in order to err on the side of caution. Except, that's NOT true. So I filled him in. And you know what he said?!

"Hmm. Well, I would recommend not continuing it."

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHhhhhh.

asdf;alkfja;kdjf;asdkljfadkj.

Stupid doctors.

I'm totally suing the pants off him if she has any sort of repercussions from this, either now or EVER. Watch yourself, doc.

Wean Me Gently.

I came across this poem recently, and thought it was so appropriate, considering our babies ages and their stage in the weaning process. It's so upsetting to me (surprisingly!) that Ava is starting to be less interested in nursing. She remains an avid nurser at night and before naps, but during the day, homegirl wants food and playtime! She also likes to nurse in strange ways, what I like to call "nursenastics". She likes to stand facing me bent over nursing, and sometimes picks a leg up, so that it looks like she's in Warrior III. My little yogi :) Anyhow, enjoy:

I know I look so big to you,
Maybe I seem too big for the needs I have.
But no matter how big we get,
We still have needs that are important to us.
I know that our relationship is growing and changing,
But I still need you. I need your warmth and closeness,
Especially at the end of the day
When we snuggle up in bed.
Please don't get too busy for us to nurse.
I know you think I can be patient,
Or find something to take the place of a nursing;
A book, a glass of something,
But nothing can take your place when I need you.
Sometimes just cuddling with you,
Having you near me is enough.
I guess I am growing and becoming independent,
But please be there.
This bond we have is so strong and so important to me,
Please don't break it abruptly.
Wean me gently,
Because I am your mother,
And my heart is tender.

Never Grow Up.

Your little hands wrapped around my finger
And it's so quiet in the world tonight
Your little eyelids flutter cause you're dreaming
So I tuck you in and turn on your favorite nightlight

To you, everything's funny
You got nothing to regret
I'd give all I have honey
If you could stay like that

(Chorus:)
Oh darling don't you ever grow up, don't you ever grow up
Just stay this little
Oh darling don't you ever grow up, don't you ever grow up
It could stay this simple
I won't let nobody hurt you
Wont let no one break your heart
No one will desert you
Just try to never grow up
Never grow up
-Taylor Swift

Can someone please tell me how a childless nineteen-year-old can capture how I feel these days so well???

The Allergist.

Well, it may have taken two business days between the referral from A's pediatrician and the admin at the allergist's office trying to find us an appointment, but we are officially in with the pediatric allergist....for November 30. Ugh. There goes my dream of seeing the doctor this week and getting this squared away. Whatever that even entails.

Anyway, we're lucky to have gotten that one, because it was the ONLY appointment available in 2010, and he's the ONLY doctor that will see babies this young. Geeeeeez. For a second there I thought I lived in rural Kansas, not a booming metropolis capital with a focus on pediatric medicine. Hmmmm...

OK, enough with the sarcasm and angst, I really and truly am thankful for this doctor seeing us and for what I hope is the beginning of the end of Ava's allergies, but I am definitely nervous!

Anyone that's had allergy testing and specifically whose baby has - any tips/pointers? Advice on what to expect? This is new territory to me :)

Thanks, ladies! Happy Friday!

Giveaway Time!

Hey laaaadies! It's Thursday. As in, nearly Friday. And this week has gotten better with each passing day. So, to celebrate, let's have a little giveaway, shall we?

Who wants to win $45 dollars to spend at CSN stores? I sure would, so I'm guessing you might! CSN Stores has been gracious enough to offer one of my lucky readers a $45 certificate to any of their over 200+ stores. Just head on over to check out their amazing shops, which sell anything from modern furniture for a little mommy splurge, baby gear for any upcoming first (or second, third, etc) Christmas gifts you may need, or quality briefcases for the handsome man in your life!

So, let's get started, shall we?

To enter, just head on over to CSN stores and leave me a comment letting me know what you'd like to spend your $45 on if you win! It's that simple.

For additional entries (leave an additional separate comment for each!):
-Follow my blog via Google Friend Connect
-Follow me on Twitter - @unexpexpectbaby
-Follow my Celeb news on twitter - @brijtaylor
-Leave a comment on any of my Gather or Pampers posts - 1 entry per comment!
-Grab my button!

That's it! Good luck, ladies!

This giveaway will close on 11/17 at 5PM CST. For disclosure information, click here.

Baby Steps Part II.

A's walking is really coming along, and I'm so insanely proud I just had to share more video footage:

Wordless Wednesday - Peace.

All I'm saying is, give peace a chance.
-John Lennon

A Sure Sign...

...your kiddo's diaper was put on by daddy.