Sharing

I'm back with more sharing, folks! :) Looks like my sweet friend, Connie, tagged me for the same 8 question meme. And I love Connie too much to say no. FYI: you may want to head over to her place to give her a little Oprah love today ;)

Connie's questions:

1. Share a favorite memory from one of your birthdays. Why is it so special to you?

My 21st birthday was probably the most memorable {and not for the reasons y'all may be thinking!}. Jeremy and I had been "dating" long distance for almost 10 months. He took me to the beach for my birthday, we had the most delicious dinner at our favorite restaurant, and then we went for a walk on the beach. And he proposed. Awwwww!

2. What kind of birthday cake do you like?

I'm not picky. I love all birthday cake. My favorite? It would probably be something chocolate. Double chocolate. Maybe dark chocolate with chocolate filling and lots of chocolate frosting on the top. Not the gross frosting made with lard, but the Pillsbury frosting that comes out of the can. Yeah, that sounds good.

3. What color was your childhood bedroom?

I had many a childhood bedroom. My dad liked to build houses, and I think he got antsy if we spent more than a few years in one spot. My first bedroom was white, I think. The next was pale yellow, then back to white, and the last was an oatmeal color.

4. What is your dream job?

Does it have to pay? ;) I LOVE being a stay at home mama. I love being at home with my girls every day. I love picking out their clothes, reading them stories, playing beauty shop, and watching movies together.

If I had to choose an actual career? A photographer. My camera is permanently attached to me, and I would love to be able to make money taking pictures.

5. What is your favorite vacation destination?

Depends. We went to Hawaii when Sierra was 4 and Kenners was 1 1/2. I LOVED laying around on the beach all day, {and eating yummy food every night!}. But I equally enjoyed our fast paced Disneyland trip, and someday I would love to travel the U.S. with Jeremy and the girls. Just hop in a motorhome and go.

6. What is your favorite movie?

Hmmm, I have many, but if I had to choose only one it would be The Notebook. I've seen it a million times, and I still bawl every time.

7. What is your favorite recipe to make in the winter?

Pretty much anything in the crockpot, and I love baking. Zucchini bread, muffins, coffee cake. All so delicious during the winter months.

8. What do you love about blogging?

I love having a spot of my own to jot down my feelings and memories. I love having a journal of our days. But equally important to me are the wonderful friends I've made. It makes me sad in a way to think that I will never meet all of you. I know that we'd have such fun together.

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If any of y'all haven't been tagged, I tag ya! :) Refer to my questions at the bottom of this post.

Just Gotta Know

Oh, hi there.

So, I guess if I can barely keep up with the laundry, dishes, and other odds and ends that are screaming for my attention these days, it should come as no surprise that my blog has been severely neglected as well.

Luckily I have two super wonderful blog friends who are trying to get me back on track ;) Miss Kelli and Miss Jenny both tagged me to participate in an 8 question/getting to know you meme. I'm going to pick 4 questions from each of their lists {hope that's not cheating}!

From Kelli:

1. If you could live anywhere, where would it be?

I would probably choose to live right here, in the country, in Oregon. I LOVE it. We live on 20 acres {my parents live on an adjoining 20}, with trees, a creek and a pond {that hubby built}. Deer come right into our yard. We have bunnies hopping about all the time. And we occasionally get to see a bobcat or coyote. BUT, if I couldn't live here, I think I'd like to live on the east coast. Maybe Vermont or Massachusetts? I've heard that Fall is gorgeous back there.

2. Who is your best friend, and what is she like?

I met my best friend, Amanda, several years ago when our daughters took dance lessons together. We struck up a conversation one day, and it was like we'd been friends for years. She is so kind, and an amazing mom. We both homeschool, and I honestly don't know how I would have gotten through our first year without her. When I'd have a tough day, I could call her and she would empathize. I just adore her children, and I love being around her.

3. What is your ideal vacation?

Any vacation that includes my husband and children. We've been on some wonderful vacations, but even the little mini trips to the coast or to a waterpark are special when we're all together.

4. What is on your To-Do list this week?

Oh dear. It's a mile long. I need to get this house cleaned and organized. I feel like we've been gone so much lately, that I'm always trying to play catch up. Also, Kenners has a consultation with the oral surgeon tomorrow.

From Jenny Kate:

5. What are you most looking forward to about Fall?

The crisp days {with sunshine, of course}, leaves changing colors, more time in the kitchen baking, lighting candles, holidays just around the corner.

6. Do you take pictures? What kind of camera do you use?

I surely do! I love taking pictures, and my camera goes almost everywhere I go. I just upgraded from my Canon Rebel XS to a Canon 7D, and am learning to love it. It's a little more than I am used to, and I still have a lot to learn, but I love it!

7. Do you go to Starbucks? What is your favorite drink?

I'm not a coffee drinker {gasp!}, but my girls LOVE their Vanilla Bean. Now that our grocery store has a Starbucks, the girls think they need one every trip :)

8. Why did you originally start your blog?

Originally I started blogging because I had an Etsy shop, and I kept hearing that I needed to "get my shop out there". Everyone was talking about blogging, and I really had no idea what it was all about. About once a month I'd post some pictures of things I had in my shop, and that was it {ha!}. I didn't really get how people would find me. Then one day I was visiting my fellow Etsy friend, Lisa's blog, and she was talking about another blogger {Amber} hosting Extreme Makeover. I had just had Kam and needed to shed a few pounds, so I clicked over to Amber's, and the rest is history. A whole new world opened up to me, lol :) Now I blog as a journal of our lives. Days seem to pass so quickly, and life is a blur sometimes, so I love being able to look back on it all.

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And now, my questions for you:

1. Where were you born?

2. What is your idea of the perfect job/ If you could do anything, what would you choose?

3. What is your favorite food?

4. If you had a day all to yourself, what would you do?

5. What is your favorite restaurant?

6. What is your least favorite chore?

7. What is your favorite movie of all time?

8. What is your happiest childhood memory?

I tag:

Heather

Colleen

Julie

Suz

Kelli

Tanya

Mel

Jenny

Tag! You're It ;)

Don't forget to enter the giveaway from Stella & Dot!!!

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Connie, at The Young and the Relentless tagged me for a little handwriting activity. I love writing. I make lists all.the.time.

So, here are the rules:

Write down the following, snap a pic and post it.

1. Name/ Blog Name

2. Right handed, left handed or both

3. Favorite letters to write

4. Least favorite letters to write

5. Write: The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog.

6. Write in caps:
CRAB

HUMOR

KALEIDOSCOPE

PAJAMAS

GAZILLION

7. Favorite song lyrics

8. Tag 7 people

9. Any special note or drawing

Click to enlarge

Now if I could just get someone to analyze my handwriting ;)

How I Became the Mother I am . . .

Connie at The Young and the Relentless tagged me for this special meme. I am to share five experiences that have shaped me into the mother I am today, and tag five moms I admire.

1. My parents. My mom stayed home when I was little. I'm so happy that I wasn't shuffled back and forth to a babysitter day after day. My childhood memories include being at home, playing, and being a kid. That was special to me. My dad worked long hours when I was young, but he was at every dance recital, every performance, everything that was important to me. As I got older my mom went back to work, but she took a job at my school. Honestly, I loved it. She was there whenever I needed her. Of course, my parents shaped the way I parent in other ways too. My mom was very very strict about bedtime, and when I was young it stressed me out. I would lie in bed and worry that I couldn't fall asleep immediately. I worried that my mom would come in to check on me, and I would still be awake, and oh how that stressed me out. So, of course, I had sleep issues. Those issues have translated into me being pretty lax about bedtime around here. And while my sister and I had a lot of rules to follow {I'd say my parents were pretty dang strict}, I think my girls would tell you that life in our house is pretty un-scheduled and laid back.

2. I played house all.the.time. Luckily I had a younger sister to add to the fun. Our imaginations ran wild. We had perfect husbands who worked hard for us so we could vacation together. Honestly, from the time I was little, I knew that my sister and I would raise our babies together. I just knew we'd live right next door to each other and share in motherhood together. I never envisioned it any other way. Unfortunately that's not the way it happened. And I am just now, years later, coming to terms with the fact that we will never live close to one another :( My sis is 300 miles away, and I haven't seen my niece and nephew since August. I have to plan a trip to see them, because I am seriously having withdrawls.

3. The birth of my nephew. My older sister had her first baby when I was thirteen years old. I vividly remember my mom getting a call at school {Mom used to work at the middle school I attended} that Heidi was in labor. And at the ripe ol' age of 13 I was in the room as she gave birth to her first child. It was such an amazing experience, but I will be honest, after seeing what she went through I decided adoption would be my best bet ;) I guess I changed my mind over the years.

4. Sierra's birth. When Sierra was born she developed a staph infection in the hospital that we didn't know about until after we got home. It was one of the scariest times of my life. Here I was, a brand new mom, and no one would listen to me when I called {time after time after time} to let someone know that there was something wrong with my baby. The nurses, the doctors, they all thought I was a new mom that was being a little . . . emotional and neurotic. Finally, after my 6th call, and coming up on closing time at our pediatric clinic, I demanded to speak with our pediatrician. And I broke down and told her that if she didn't see us, I was taking Sierra to the Emergency Room. That got her attention. We went in and were immediately taken to the hospital where Sierra spent the following few days in ICU. She had a spinal tap, rounds of antibiotics, and was finally released 3 days later. But wow, that experience definitely changed me as a mom. Sierra did not leave my side for a long time, and I think we bonded even more strongly because of it. That experience, alone, probably had a big impact on my decision to attachment parent. I wanted my babies next to me every night, and carried close to me during the day. I suppose the experience also made me a stronger mama. I learned early on that moms often do know best, and no one is going to stop me if I need to get care for one of my children. Sometimes we are their only advocate.

5. My pregnancy with Kameryn. I know it wasn't that long ago, and I was already a "seasoned mom", but Kam's birth last year changed us all. As I mentioned above, I'm a bit of an attachment type parent. I rarely leave my children. In fact, last year, when Sierra was 6 1/2 and Kenners was creeping up on 4, I had only ever left them for 24 hours. One time. When Jeremy and I escaped to the coast for our anniversary. I don't know that we were even gone a full 24 hours ;) I take that back, I had left Sierra for 24 hours when Kenners was born too. But you get what I mean, we just don't leave them that often. So, when I was hospitalized at 33 weeks pregnant with Kameryn, that shook us all up. Two straight weeks of not being home with my girls. It was excruciating. I had to watch, every night, as Jeremy and his parents would have to carry both the girls out of my hospital room crying. The thought still brings tears to my eyes. It was horrible. But, I think it made us stronger. I know it brought Jeremy and the girls even closer. And the experience ended with a brand new, beautiful addition to our family. There were good memories too. Several nights they all surprised me by staying the night with me. It was squished, and quite uncomfortable for them, but we have such sweet memories of our slumber parties at the hospital.

That's that. A handful of the experiences that have made me who I am as a Mama.

I would like to pass this along to five moms whom I find to be pretty spectacular:

Tiffany at A Moment Cherished

Rhonda at Down Memory Lane

Kelli at Random Thoughts of a SuperMom!

Becca at The Texas Darlings

Kasey at Beautiful Mess