#febphotoaday

If you are on Instagram, you know what I'm talking about. :)

For the month of February, I took part in a photo a day challenge on Instagram and Oh-Boy was it fun! I dig the challenge that a subject a day puts on you, it makes you think more creatively, look at the beauty in ordinary things and it's also fun to see what your friends posted on the same subject. You can read about the March photo a day challenge here. Are you in for March??
I am. Definitely. :D

Here are my February pics in recap. Enjoy.

1. your view today 2. words 3. hands 4. a stranger 5. 10 am 6. dinner 7. button 8. sun 9. front door

10. self portrait 11. makes you happy 12. inside your closet (maybe I slightly cheated on this one, Zoie's closet is much cuter!) 13. blue 14. heart 15. phone 16. something new (blog post!) 17. time
18. drink
 

19. something you hate to do (getting out of bed) 20. handwriting 21. a fave photo of you 22. where you work 23. your shoes 24. inside your bathroom cabinet 25. green 26. night 27. something you ate
 

28. money 29. something you're listening to <and then...#marchphotoaday>

<3, Tabi :D

P.S.  Don't forget to vote for me on Top Baby Blogs!! Please click on the banner below to vote for me. It only takes a second, I swear. Thanks so much. :) 

 

 

Zoie Boie

Someone I know is no longer a baby <sad face?>. She is a toddler. With a personality (wow, what a personality this one is developing), crazy moods, bossiness, dance moves, intentional cuddles and toddler messes.

Doesn't she just melt your heart??

< bottom left picture: I am so mad at you for focusing on her dress and not her face. >

<3, Tabi :D

Parenting and Censorship

One of the hardest things for me as a parent is trying not to impose my likes and dislikes onto my children. Just because I kind of hate baseball, doesn't mean I want my children to hate baseball.

I don't want mini-me's. I want to discover my kids' personalities along with them.

I do find myself from time to time (and a lot of parents do this - don't pretend you don't), when talking to the kids and giving them a choice between two items, putting a positive inflection on what I want them to choose, and a negative tone on what I wouldn't choose.

i.e. Would you like flatbread pizza for lunch ( smiley face )? Or peanut butter and jelly sandwiches ( frowny face )?

i.e. #2 Do you want to wear this pink dress ( smiley face )? Or this mermaid t-shirt ( frowny face )?
NOTE: That mermaid t-shirt that used to be her all time favorite but now is getting raggedy, kind of short and has a few unsightly stains...

I'm working on that. Christopher catches me all the time.

I like to keep an open policy on shows, movies and books my children watch/read (as long as it's age appropriate and doesn't give them nightmares).  I've encouraged things they seem to get into and find it exciting to discover new things and rediscover old things from my childhood as well.

For example, we watched Ponyo a couple years back, and since then they've been into many Studio Ghibli films and even some (age appropriate, of course) anime on Netflix. I would have never suggested watching Princess Tutu before... even Pokemon is out of my range of comprehension. But Princess Tutu was very intriguing, a beautiful story and inspired many afternoons of dancing around and dramatics involving ducks.

But, I've found lately, I've had to draw the line on a few shows. We don't watch much TV and what we do watch is usually something they've found streaming on Netflix. One that sticks out is Bratz shows/movies. I've even only caught short snippets of this show and decided this is something I definitely don't want my kids watching. Those Bratz girls on the show really are brats and so superficial. I don't want my sweet little children acting like that.

Great, now I sound like one of those Moms...

And then yesterday, Christopher mentioned something about Pucca (another one of their lately favorite shows to watch) portraying Americans in a negative light. This somehow didn't bother me much, but it did him.

I'm wondering, am I... are we turning into those kinds of parents? The parents that censor their children from the really cool and popular things? Is this the beginnings of us turning our children into social outcasts?

Please leave me your feedback. 

I'd love to know where other parents draw the line in their censorship. 

 

<3, Tabi :D

 

P.S.  Don't forget to vote for me on Top Baby Blogs!! Please click on the banner below to vote for me. It only takes a second, I swear. Thanks so much. :) 

 

Five Things That Made Me Happy Yesterday (Friday)

1. My little baby girl is growing up to be a perfect 6 year old girl. It seems she gets more beautiful and more gracious everyday. (Even when she shoots me a silly face every time I point a camera at her: see figure 1 above.)
2. When the Bear's fever gets below 100 degrees. Yes, he's sick... again. :(
3. My washi tape came in!!! And on those adorable wooden spools (brought from Etsy). It's silly, but cute little things bring me so much joy. (Other examples: babies, mini cupcakes, Squinkies, kid size Poang chairs...)
4. Sharing funny little anecdotal stories about the children with Christopher at night on the couch when the house is finally quiet.
   

   Like the one where Zoie and Riley were nicely sharing the iPad and playing on one of Zoie's Fisher-Price apps, when I look over and Riley is trying to poke Zoie in the eye... I yell, "Don't poke the baby in her eye!", so he replies, "But baby Zoie just poked my eye!!" This is bittersweet because Zoie is at that stage where she knows where her nose, lips and eyes are. She was trying to show the Bear where his eyes are, but he thought she was poking him. It's funny because no one cried and he had an aha! moment at the end and shared in her excitement.

5. Dipping my strawberries in sugar. YUMMM.

<3, Tabi :D

Click HERE to read last week's FTTMMHF post. 

 

Anxiety and Super Duper Awesome Thursday

Warning: Ramblings Ahead

Catharsis Thursday??

I have had anxiety since as long as I can remember. Anxiety over different things, my own health, my loved ones' health, the state of the world, the end of the world, the fate of humanity, intruders, planes crashing into my home... (this list truly could go on for thousands of words, I will spare you).

The depth of my anxiety and how much it affects the way I live my life gets better and gets worse. Sometimes, it almost disappears. Sometimes, it's way worse...

I've found, the busier I keep myself, the more it seems to disappear, if only temporary, which is absolutely is a welcome vacation from the irrational part of my brain.

Lately, I've found it's way worse. I feel the negative energy in the world and it really affects me.

So, in order to keep myself busy... today was declared SUPER DUPER AWESOME THURSDAY!!!

Lunch with Roxy, SuperTarget errands, Dinner at Chipotle (Happy Meals with Star Wars toys for the kids), Pump It Up, then Menchie's (mmmm.... Menchie's) . Whoo!!  I bet you got exhausted just reading all this.

But everyday can't be Super Duper Awesome. I've tried many things in the past (and present) to get control over my stupid irrational brain: therapy, psychiatry, exercise, breathing, ignoring it, talking about it... I've gotten pretty good at managing it when the anxiety is in the 3-7 range (on a scale from 1-10).

But anxiety levels 8-10 are hard. Especially when people (little people) are depending on you.

I'm currently searching... I need to find... <sigh> Do people outgrow anxiety?

Maybe I need to schedule a visit with a therapist.

This one looks trustworthy.

I feel better already. <3

<3, Tabi :D

P.S.  I was just listed on Top Baby Blogs!! Please click on this banner to vote for me.

It only takes a second, I swear. Thanks so much. :) 

The Terrible Horrible No Good Very Bad Day

Today was kind of cruddy.

These are all very first world type problems, so I will lay them out here, have a chuckle and be done with it.

• Roxy did not want to get out of bed. So she fought every step of the way out the door to school.
• Christopher broke his beloved Starbucks cold cup. How? He left it on top of his car as he backed out of the driveway. Oops!
• Zoie fell out of her chair eating her Cheerios.
• Riley had cold arms, so he got very angry, growled then punched me and ended up in time out.
• I forgot about a monthly auto deduct charge in my bank account, and woke up with a negative balance.
• I gained another 0.6 pounds. What. the. eff!??!? I am working my booty off at the Y lately!
• I couldn't find any curry paste at the grocery store.
• Riley's baby is hiding (again) and I can't find him.

<3, Tabi :D

Oh Yeah! I was just listed on Top Baby Blogs!! Please click on this banner to vote for me.
It only takes a second, I swear. Thanks so much. :)

The Bear's Apprentice

Get to know the Bear's Baby

Name: Darth Vader, Bobblehead Vader, the Bear's Baby, The Bear's Apprentice

Fun Facts: 

• Baby Darth Vader was a birthday present from Uncle Mike.
• He sleeps and goes everywhere with the Bear.
• Also known as the Bear's Apprentice as Riley is Darth Sidious, therefore making his baby his apprentice. Because Siths always come in pairs. Duh! (Sometimes, I'm known as Mrs. Sidious.)
• Where did he get that sticker on his helmet, you ask? His teacher gave it to him for being a good Sith in school.
• He likes to play hide and seek.
• Sometimes, he's so good at hide and seek, Mommy and Daddy employ a lot of time and patience to find him. Especially at bed time.
• One time, he hid for a whole day and was found in the bat cave. Who would have thought that Darth Vader and Batman were tight like that?
• He loves watching Riley play Sonic racing on the iPad.
• His favorite foods are sandwiches and pancakes.
• He likes juice boxes and apple juice.
• He has a birthday every 3-4 days, but he doesn't get any bigger.
• This baby naps a lot. He even gets tucked in for his naps.

<3, Tabi :D

 

Our Sunday Timeline

Here's what we did today.

I didn't want to get out of bed. ... Extended Mommy/Zoie cuddle session (she took this picture herself). ... A little Lego playing over 'coffees'. ... A strawberry pound cake for Heather's birthday. It looks like a giant yummy donut. ... Zoie is helping Daddy empty the dishwasher. ... So many dishes. ugh. ... Gloomy #tinyhorizon. (Instagram weekend hashtag project: I am a self confessed Instagram nerd.) ... Lordy Lordy, Look Who's 40. ... The kids hanging out in Uncle Mike's room playing Lego something or other. 

This is what Sundays are supposed to look like: family time, good food, rest and relaxation and love. 

<3, Tabi :D

Five Things That Make Me Happy Friday

Since my brain is still a bit mushy, for this week's edition of FTTMMHP (ha!), I drew inspiration from some of my Facebook friends. I posed the question, and here are some of the answers I got:

• BOTH of my sisters just called me from Michigan to wish me Happy Birthday... We always have a LAFF riot when we gab!
• Having the free time to answer pointless Facebook posts.
• That Dylan doesn't have a 104.7 fever anymore!
• I just got a shower!!!!!! Yipee (^_−)−☆
• Arissa taking care of me and being able watch Gage and Xavier play...
• I can't say in public...
• Venturing into the dark side with you today. 

Can you guess which two are Moms? Can you guess which one is Christopher?

...

My own list is quick and easy this week:

1. Yellow Tail Chardonnay.
2. My fixed cracked filling. (phew!)
3. Simplifying my life. Living in the moment. Focusing on the important things.
4. The feeling that time is finally starting to slow down. I used to feel like weeks would go by in the blink of an eye. Lately, time feels so slow that this very morning feels like yesterday. This is how it should be.
5. Christopher. My rock. The rational part of me. <3

Please share with me in the comments what's making you happy today. I'd love to read about it.

For last week's FTTMMHP (ha, again!), click here.

<3, Tabi :D

 

Here's what my brain sounds like right now

I'm hungry, but my face is too numb to actually eat anything. ...  I wish Chris' hair would hurry up and grow out a bit. ...  I really need to start thinking of ideas and get some inspiration to open up an Etsy shop. ... But the stuff on Etsy is SO cool, can I compete? ... What is for dinner? ... I'm so happy tonight is not bath night. Phew! ... Where can I scrounge up $1500? ... I really need to scrub a toilet. ... Maybe I should make some coffee. But will it just drool right down my shirt? ... Sidney is so fat!

...

See the problem? I am super lacking in focus today.

If you are wondering why I'm numb and possibly drooling, I just got back from the dentist and the left side of my face is super numb.

I wanted this post to be about my goal of the week to be to quit milk. But I'm lacking the confidence to commit to it. Maybe it's that pesky focus problem. I'm working on it. 

...

In the meantime, check out my super cute Zoie Boie who wore the Bear's shoes all day long yesterday.

<3, Tabi :D

Happy Valentine's Day all you Lovely Lovers

4 Things that made me smile today:

1. I woke up to a glitter Darth Vader box of chocolates. I couldn't have picked a better Valentine's Gift. My husband is awesome. <3
2. Zoie and her first corn on the cob. She dug right in. She's now a confirmed Deneweth. 
3. This snarky pink cupcake. It's sticking it's tongue out at me! And oh, so delicious - YUM.
4. It's Valentine's Day!! A whole day to focus on love, pink things, sweet things, chocolate things, heart shaped things, romance and pretty much a guaranteed great day. What's not to smile about??

I love you (yes, you)!!

<3, Tabi :D

This post was inspired by Leigh vs. Laundry's 52 Weeks of Happiness Project.

 

Pre-Valentine's Day List

Just a few things leading up to Valentine's Day...

1. Happy Birthday to my one and only Nicole. <3
2. Roxy's kindergarten class has a rule about birthday party invitations: invite the whole class OR all the boys OR all the girls. She chose to invite all the girls. But, there was one boy she really wanted to invite - so we snuck an invite to Ashton, and he came! And then this happened...
   Roxy filled out all her Valentine's a few nights ago. When she was done, I went through them and noticed she wrote a heart next to her name on only one of the cards. I asked her about it and she said, "Yup! Because I like Ashton so much!"
   ... and so it begins.
3. Christopher and I will be celebrating Valentine's Day a day late. He has to work on the real day. It's okie-dokie with me! Less crowds at the restaurants!
4. I've never been good at romance. This Valentine's Day, I am searching my brain for the perfect grand romantic gesture. Suggestions welcome. Please?
5. I'm thinking pink cupcakes are in order. 

<3, Tabi :D

For my Cousin Paulie

I'm so sorry we lost touch with each other over the years, I am carrying a lot of guilt over this. It's mostly my fault, for putting so many miles between us.

I will always remember you as a kid being kind of goofy, strong, very grounded and always warm.

I imagine you to be the best kind of father a kid could ask for, and the kind of husband other wives are jealous of.

To Cathie and your children:

While there is no way I can say to your family I know how you feel at this moment, losing one of the most important things in life so unexpectedly, I can say I've been blessed to become a part of a family who went through a tragedy pretty similar to yours almost 25 years ago.

My husband lost his father to an unexpected heart attack at the tender age of 9. His Dad left behind a wife and 5 young children. To me, being a part of the Deneweth's for 7 years now, I feel Chris' Dad's presence in my life every day. He is talked about with such great respect. He is honored in each and every one of his family's houses by a photo, a plaque, a piece of jewelry, but mostly by stories. I feel like I know him almost as well as if he were actually here.

His unexpected exit from this life is a strong bond they all share. The force of his presence in my life is what comforts me and truly has made me a much more spiritual person.

I'm sharing this with you, because I know right now the future looks dark. Everything seems unfair, I'm sure. I just wanted to reach out and give you a tiny ray of hope, that while he will not be with you everyday like you've always known him to be, he will be there everyday with you, with your children, with your children's children and future members of the family.

A lot of people are far too close to the situation to have feelings like I'm having right now, and it's really hard for me to share this but I need to, it's such a strong feeling...

I have a strong feeling of PEACE about this situation. I feel Paul is okay and at peace. I feel his family will be okay (with time). I feel his honor and legacy will live on through each one of his children. This is not indifference on my part, it's very different. It's a definite and very strong feeling of peace.

All my love from far far away. Hugs and Kisses from all of us to all of you. xoxo

<3, Tabi :D

Five Things That Make Me Happy Friday

Ready? Set... Go!

1. My newly installed Instagram Wall. In the shape of a heart. Featuring some of my favorite memories from the past year, but most importantly... my favorite people. It's so cute! :)







2. Zoie and her hat. I got her dressed this morning. Did her hair in two cute ponies and matching blue bows. I turn around and she's got this hat on her head and refused to take it off. She wore it all the way to the Y and all the way through play center. Once we got back in the van, she was done with it. This is big, because she's always hated hats. I was a proud Mommy today. 





3. Roxy and her first crush? Today we took advantage of the day off of school and decorated our Valentine Mailboxes. Roxy has her name on one side and Han on the front. As in Han Solo. Good choice for a first crush if you ask me.

4. This old picture of Chris and I.  I was going through some old photos. Some of them definitely made me giggle. I believe this may be the very first photo of Chris and I? We weren't together  at the time (I had a boyfriend) and in retrospect, I noticed there were an awful lot of photos of Christopher in that album from the other boyfriend time period. And for the record, I totally hated that hat he's wearing (and he still has it). ;)



5. The support my cousin's family is receiving. My heart is breaking that I can't be there for his funeral tomorrow, he deserves to have everyone there. I'm totally bummed, but I just can't. :(
BUT I am ecstatic about how fast the family has come together to plan the celebration of his life and even the financial support the family has received. It's freaking amazing!! I wrote a little bit about this tragedy here.

For last week's Five Things That Make Me Happy, click here.

<3, Tabi :D

Parent Tip #103

Be proactive with your children's healthcare. 

Ask questions. Do your own research. Trust your gut.

The sunshine on this soy milk was perfect for my #febphotoaday challenge!!

My Riley Bear developed a rash on his mouth shortly before his 4th birthday last December. At first, I treated at home with Aveeno Eczema Cream and Vaseline. It would get better and worse, but never completely went away. When it got way worse, I took him to the dermatologist and the doctor said it was infected and prescribed a few creams. It got better again, but still never completely went away.

One of those creams was a strong steroid which clearly stated in the literature NOT for use on children. I questioned this with the pharmacist, the pediatrician and the dermatologist. After many many phone calls and days of waiting, I was ultimately convinced by the dermatologist that this was the only way to treat his rash.

I remained skeptical, but the cream did help. Again, the rash never completely went away. I decided to put faith in the scary cream and let it do it's job.

Then I had a conversation with my sister who has had a similar rash/problem since childhood warning me to stay away from steroid creams on the face because she is now having major problems from using these scary creams on her own face for years.

She scared me into being more proactive. Thanks, T!!!

I scheduled an allergy test, because I read that eczema is an allergic reaction. Instead of treating the symptoms, let's find out the cause! The results came back yesterday. My Bear is allergic to dust and milk!!! I was floored. It makes so much sense. He eats his cereal every morning and gets it all over his face, and he's allergic to the stuff.

Anyways, long story short. If I had never requested an allergy test, his allergy would probably have caused him more problems to be treated with more creams and/or more scary drugs. Hopefully, this new knowledge will nip the problem in the bud. My fingers are crossed.

And without getting into conspiracy theories and problems with the system, etc, etc. Christopher pointed out that doctors don't diagnose allergies first off because there are no prescription drugs to treat allergies. And many doctors are basically drug salesmen. (Just think about that for a moment.)

<3, Tabi :D

For past Parent Tips, click here and here.

Glitter Puts a Smile on My Face Today

These jars are still drying. And I just realized I didn't glitter to the top! Why didn't I glitter to the top?!?!

I'm a sucker for glass jars and a sucker for Valentine's Day paraphernalia. So when I saw this, I just knew I had to try it out.

I haven't used loose glitter since Elementary School, I think. These days, even Target only sells glitter glue and glitter pens. I had to get mine from Michael's. And I have to tell you, loose glitter (as opposed to glitter glue) is so liberating! I bought a sample pack with many many many beautiful colors. I can't wait to think up more glitter projects! 

This post was inspired by Leigh vs. Laundry's 52 Weeks of Happiness Project.

<3, Tabi :D

My Weekend Had a Theme

Warning: this is not very Happy.

On Saturday, Roxy, Chris and I were honored to attend a small birthday celebration. There were balloons, cupcakes and beautiful gifts.

Roxy and her pink cupcake

The guest of honor, unfortunately could not physically be there to celebrate what would have been her 6th birthday. She was taken away from us six months before she could reach this milestone by a drunk driver. (You can read what I wrote about Lilly's story here and here and here.) Lilly's family is doing such a beautiful job honoring her and keeping her love alive.

Lanterns were released in her honor. Her 5th birthday party paid tribute to her love for Rapunzel, and if you've seen the movie Tangled, you know that lanterns lit up the night sky every year on Rapunzel's birthday.

Saturday night was beautiful, poetic and very healthy for the soul.

I wasn't going to blog about this, because it's really not my story to tell, but with the events of last night... if this post hits home to just one person to think twice about drinking and then sitting behind the wheel of a car... then it's worth it.

...

I grew up in a rather large network of Aunts, Uncles and cousins. My Mom was one of 7 children, so you can imagine. My memory is not very good (one of the reasons I started this blog was to record precious memories before they became too foggy), but I will never forget those many weekend afternoons running around my Nanny and Pappy's backyard playing with all my cousins. We were a close family. A lot of us even danced together, in a group called the Guys and Dolls Cloggers. (Now that's something I don't say out loud often.)

One of my cousins, Paul S. Burnett II lost his life last night in an accident where "alcohol was a contributing circumstance to the collision". Pauly was my age, a loving husband and father to three children.

I admit that when I moved millions of miles away from home when I was 19, I sadly lost touch with my cousins I was once so close to. I haven't seen Pauly since I was a teenager. Nevertheless, he and every one of my cousins will always hold a special place in my heart. Cousins are our very first non-sibling friends forever.

My heart is breaking for my family back home. Pauly's wife and his children. His Mom, his sister and brother. I loathe the distance between here and home today. My love and support goes out to all hurting today from afar.

You can read about the accident here.

Please don't drink and drive. Think about the innocent victims of these tragedies.
There is always a safer way to get from point A to point B.

<3, Tabi :D

Parent Tip #102

This one is simple.

And keep it off as long as possible. I promise, creativity will ensue.

<3, Tabi :D

Five Things That Make Me Happy Friday

It's that time of the week again. Welcome to the third edition of Five Things That Make Me Happy Friday. For the first two, click here and here.

Go!

(1.) This drawing my darling Roxy made for her friend Lilly. It's her birthday tomorrow. (2.) Mucinex D. I wouldn't have been able to function this week without this miracle drug. This stuff is serious, behind-the-pharmacy-counter-serious. (3.) My Bear and his Baby. Baby Darth. They were playing Sonic and having serious conversations. It was too cute!

(4.) I clicked a link on Facebook one day this week and found this guy. Go ahead, click it. His stuff is super rad. One day, I will totally redecorate the boys' room and hang a couple of his prints. (5.) Kristen Bell and her sloth story on Ellen. I dare you to watch this and try not to laugh out loud. I LOL'd. Eye teary LOLing.



Till the next post... have a wonderful weekend!

<3, Tabi :D

Short Term Goal: Feel Better

This weeks goal was supposed to be to focus on losing 5 pounds. But I don't feel good, so eff that!

I am so impatient. It's who I am, <queue whiny voice> I feel like I've been sick forever!! I was starting to think that I'm just getting old and this is what old people feel like.

But I know that is not right.

My body is strong and I know I can kick this, but I did a little research on how to feel better and came across this interesting article. I already lead a pretty healthy lifestyle, but I know I can make some major improvements.

A couple things I need to work on:

• More/Better sleep. This means I have to work on helping Zoie sleep better, and weaning her from mid-night nursing - an issue I've been dreading to address.
• More sex. This will also help with someone else's well being, too. ;)
• Eat more fruits and veggies. I always shove these down my kids' throats <not literally>, then forget to eat them myself.
• Allow myself to rest when I don't feel well. This is especially hard for me. Not just because I have three young children, but also because doing nothing causes me great anxiety.

Some surprising things I learned from this article:

• These things (that I do) help you live longer: happy marriage, eating chocolate, having lots of kids (three and a half kids is a lot, right?).
• Sex and staying married helps you look younger. 
• Onions and garlic are good for your immune system. I love onions and I love garlic! Perhaps this is why my immune system is usually pretty iron clad?
• And this: "German scientists found that the earlier in life a woman has sex, the less stressed she is as an adult. They found that the lowest levels of stress hormone were among those who had had sex at the youngest age. A similar effect was found in men." 

LOL! @ this:

9. Make music: Playing a wind instrument can improve muscle tone and appearance. It keeps skin taut and looking younger. An hour of blowing burns 200 calories.

 I'm so immature. :D

Anyways, this is my goal: To Feel Better. Today, while I have extra help (from Christopher), I am working on trying to rest because I feel like crap. After I scrub the toilets.

<3, Tabi :D