Why didn't I think of that Wednesday- Mermaid Party

I know when I have a birthday theme in mind I search pinterest for ideas. Today I'll be giving you some Mermaid party ideas. Mostly snacks for kids. Some are so simple and when I saw them I totally had the "Why didn't I think of that!" moment. And because I'm cheap, they are affordable too. :)

 Some of the table set up, the "backdrop" (sorry, didn't get a good photo of it) is three of the $1 vinyl tablecloths sliced and then hung on top of each other. I knotted the top so the colors would mix nicely.

 These were our party favors. We had a sign next to them that said "Thanks for fishing me a happy birthday! Love, Zoey" They are actually soap, so the kids can wash their hands with them, and once they get to the middle they get the plastic fishy. These can be found on Etsy, or you can make them yourselves with clear glycerin soap. You melt it, pour it in the bag, stick in your fishy and let it harden. If anyone is interested I can make a better tutorial on that in another post.

 Cupcakes with a simple mermaid printable on top

 We did a lot of different sea creatures, and two colors of icing. Just to give the kiddos some variety.

 Giant Marshmallows dipped in white chocolate (with blue food coloring) and crushed graham crackers.

 All the kids loved the Clam cookies! These are so simple and cute. It's just sugar cookies with pink frosting and a Mento stuck in for the "pearl". I think white whoppers would look better since they are actually round, but couldn't find any.

 Water bottles with a "Mermaid springs water, from under the sea" label

 The easiest snack of the day, a bowl of goldfish. Ha ha. It was easy for the little kids to snack on.

Zoey modeling her mermaid dress. According to her the party was "the best day ever" and that's all that matters!

Make it Mondays- DIY nursing Cover.

To make this Nursing cover you will need:

Material measuring at least 20in high and 70in long (This size fits most)

Satin Binding (optional) 

Elastic

 First cut your material to the correct length

 Fold the edges in about 1in and sew with a 1/4 in seam allowance. This creates an opening in your material to insert the elastic in later.

Next, if you are using the satin binding you simply open it up under your material, lining the inside fold up with the edge of your material.

 Then fold over your material and pin in place

 I burn the edges of my satin binding so they don't fray, you don't want strings hanging off of something your baby will be eating in! Also, I swear I didn't mean to be flipping you all off in this photo. Ha ha.

   Because Satin binding is hard to keep perfectly straight I usually use a zig zag stitch, and sew it "cute side up" so that I can keep it even along the edge.

 Because this is what my back usually ends up looking like. It's not nearly as straight and neat.

 My adorable "helper" for this project :)

 Next cut two strips of elastic 22in long and thread it through not just the satin binding, but also the opening you created in your material, which gives it extra strength. I pin a safety pin on the end of my elastic to make threading it through a million times easier.

Once you get the elastic all the way through you can pin them together so you don't lose either end and do the other side. After that you sew the elastic together, and pin the raw edges of material together and sew the whole thing into a big elastic tube of material.

And you have a simple DIY nursing cover! 

To put it on you put one arm through the top, and keep the other arm inside to support your baby. You wear it like a beauty queen sash. :)

These are my favorite covers because in my opinion they give the most coverage, and it actually stays in place. The only issue I have ever had with it is when my little girl was a newborn and still needed help latching, it was a little hard to maneuver around inside of this cover and see what I was doing. But once she got better at latching on herself I wouldn't leave the house without it!

The Blessings of Technology

I'm going to write a short post on how grateful I am for Technology in my life.

In 2007 my husband was deployed and I was working in a nursing home. The Veterans and past army wives there would love to talk to me about the hardships of a deployment. I couldn't help but feel like I had it easy. They told me about 2 year deployments, where letters were the only communication, they took weeks if not months to deliver. You never got phone calls, nobody came to your door if something had happened to your spouse. All you had was a letter, dated a month ago assuring you that they were at least fine then. Now? Who knew.

I got phone calls, emails, photos, and a couple of times we even got to Skype. Technology is amazing. From thousands of miles away my husband got to hear our daughters newborn baby cry the day after she was born. When she was older he called on Skype and got to see her attempt to dance along to music, bobbing her little head. Technology held our family together in a way we couldn't have imagined. He got to experience important parts of our life through a phone call, or a video emailed straight to him.

When our daughter was two he deployed again, this time he had even more access to computers. He got to Skype often and Zoey loved it.

Zoey fed him cheerios via webcam, Daddy pretended to eat them. He even called Christmas morning and watched her open presents.

We made her a slideshow with pictures of Daddy, and took videos of Daddy reading her books that she could watch before bed. She would ask for the "Daddy movies" and give him hugs when his photo appeared on the computer.

Zoey would take a tape recorder to bed with her, he had recorded himself talking to her, telling her stories, telling her he loves and misses her. She would listen to that thing every night. It kept him close, we did so many things through the blessings of technology that our little girl never forgot his voice, it helped her cope with him being gone. And it helped immensely when it came time for him to come home and be part of our day to day life again.

We have been blessed. We aren't into gadgets, I don't know how to do most of the things my phone is capable of, but I do know that I love technology because it helps my sweet girls and their Daddy every time he is away. I am beyond grateful to live in this day and age where it's possible for these things. I know there are downfalls when it comes to technology, but for me the good far outweighs the bad.

The First Days

I don't mean to brag, but my daughter is a pro at first days of school. She's Six, and just had her 5th first day of school. Ha ha. Preschool, Kindergarten in TX, Kindergarten in UT, Kindergarten in AK and now first grade. My daughter has officially been to as many schools as I went to K-12. Ha ha.

Anyway, every year she's excited and a bit nervous. We go over outfits trying to find the perfect one, pack her bag, decide what to put in her lunch and have countless conversations like this one: "Don't forget to say please and Thank you, Listen to your teacher, be nice to the kids, Mommy loves you, I will see you after school, what's your bus number? Don't forget that number! Tell me one more time, which bus do you get on?" Her reply is always "I know mom, you told me a million times already!" I can't help but have a minor panic attack while she confidently walks straight to her desk and informs me "I will ride the bus tomorrow, you don't have to drive me. You didn't have to drive me today." Sigh. You'd think she was a teenager, but nope, at six s she's hardly nervous and makes friends almost instantly. Every year we take first day of school photos, I looked at them the other day and was shocked how much she has changed already.

From Preschool with her too big backpack and little uniform tightly clutching my hand asking me to sit with her for a little while, to a girl that wants to ride the bus because it's more fun than having mom take you. I'm excited to see what the future brings. It's hard to give her more freedom, learn to let her do things without me but as I see her confidence grow and watch her make good decisions for herself I can't help but be proud of the person she is becoming.

 

She likes school enough that she even wants to be a teacher when she grows up. I hope she continues to love it.

The Happy Moments

Everyone gets hit by a few "buses" in their life. You lay there on the ground wondering what happened, if you can get up again and how you can possibly go on. Everyone has their own story. There have been days where I lay on my living room carpet, tears running down my cheeks thinking "go away bus".

It always does, eventually. And what I thought at the time was a horrible/impossible obstacle in my life fades into the past and all that's left is the memory of what I've learned. I've had my fair share of hard times, but with every "bus" I know it helped me become the wife/mother/woman I am today. I can now look back at what I've been through and be proud of myself for surviving. Proud of the things I learned, and the ways it changed me. Some days I think of things I've accomplished and tell myself "I'm a Rockstar." It may seem conceited, but I call it a healthy dose of self esteem. :)

No matter what happens throughout your life, find the happy moments, they're all around you. At one difficult time in our lives, my husband suggested I start keeping a "Happy Journal" He said "write down three things every day, three good things that happened." Some days were harder than others. Some days one of the best things was simply getting out of the house to drive Zoey to school. But I didn't write down the negative parts of my day, no matter how significant they were. Eventually whenever my girls did something cute or I got time for something I enjoyed I'd immediately think "I have to remember this, I need to write it down tonight." As time went on it got easier to dismiss the hard stuff. "It's not a big deal, we'll get past it. No matter what happens I need to stay focused on the positive things going on." Because those are the moments that keep me going. After a while it felt like I had trained my mind to be positive, and it changed my life drastically.

I love reading that journal. One of my first entries was "hugs through the shower curtain." It was written during the middle of a move, to somewhere I had never been. If I hadn't written it down I would have forgotten my little girl giving me hugs while I was trying to take a quick shower because it didn't seem like the most important thing, all the moving problems were. But now I see, that hug was more important than anything else going on back then. I wish I had taken time to hug her back a little longer, tell her how much it meant to me.

I still have days that are hard, days that I momentarily forget what's important. But now I know that what matters most is sitting outside with my little girls, eating peanut butter off a spoon. Because they need that, they need those moments, and you know what? So do I.

 If you're depressed, or have a hard time being positive in your life lately. I strongly suggest you try a "Happy Journal" even if you miss days, or only do it for a month. I truly believe it has changed my perspective on life. There are ALWAYS good moments.

Camping Essentials For Kids

My husband and I are both big campers, we've been fortunate enough to be able to take our kids on camping in the summer. With a little trial and error we've almost figured out what we need for a successful trip. Here are my top ten:

1- Lots and lots of wet wipes! Grab what you think you'll need, then two more packs. After a long day of treasure hunting almost everyone needs a wet wipe bath before bed!

2-Outdoor friendly toys: Paint and brushes (for rocks, sticks, ect), Dump trucks, shovels, buckets, bug catchers, water guns, and kiddie fishing poles.

3- First aid kit. This seems obvious but many people forget them, and though I hope we'll never need it, it's nice to have.

4- Life Jackets, it's easier to relax and let your kids play in the lake when you know they're safe.

5- Flashlights, lanterns, glow sticks. For little ones afraid of the dark, late night walks, or to tie to your kid so they can run around in the dark but still easy to see. (Yes, we really have tied glow sticks to children before).

6- A portable potty. Midnight dashes to the camping bathrooms are no fun if your child hasn't learned to "hold it" yet.

7- Marshmallows, graham crackers and chocolate! You know why. Camping isn't camping, especially for kids if there are no S'mores involved!

8- Water, and plenty of it. It's one thing that isn't always easily available everywhere you camp and definitely something you and your kids will be need  a lot of.

9-Extra blankets, no matter what time of year night can get chilly, especially for the kids. You'll want to make sure they're warm and happy.

10- Bug spray! Mosquitoes love little kids, it's hard for them to enjoy the trip while covered in bites, so make sure to use something that keeps the bugs away. I've heard rumors of dryers sheets working well. We personally use a ThermaCell, they work fantastic and you don't actually have to spray something on your child.

My last bit of advice is to let the kids get dirty, don't worry about it, it's one of the best parts of camping! Don't over-plan, and don't stress. Last of all, good luck! If you have any other tips feel free to share in the comments.

Easy Baked Salmon

We eat a lot of fish in the summer, so that's what I think of when I hear "summer recipes". My husband fishes all summer and I cook it up. So... here is one of my favorite Salmon recipes. :)

I apologize in advance to those of you who are perfectionists, I didn't measure anything, I rarely do. Just add this and that until it tastes good. Ha ha. I'm fairly certain you can't mess up this recipe.

You will need:

Dill Weed

Lemon Pepper

Paprika

Garlic Powder

Onion Powder

Mayonnaise

 Mix it all together to taste

De-bone your Salmon and put it skin side down in a pan covered with foil that's either non stick or been sprayed with cooking spray. Then spread your dressing mix onto the Salmon, as much or as little as you want

Bake at 350 for 25-30 min or until Salmon flakes easily.  Enjoy :)

It's fast easy and delicious, my kind of meal!

Modesty & Me

I admit I don't know what to say about this topic. I was raised in an LDS home, where discussing modesty was very common, my parents had four daughters and wanted to make sure we knew how to dress appropriately. It's common knowledge that Mormons tend to cover more of their bodies than others, and since that's what makes them happy I think it's great. Heck I think women who wear a Hijab are fantastic if it's what they want to do.

In High school I started to pull away from the church for many different and very personal reasons, I'm now no longer active in the LDS faith. That brought on it's own set of troubles and still does at times. When I would go home to visit family I'd throw on a tank top like I usually do just to second guess myself "I have a baby now, I'm married, should I be showing my shoulders? Will my neighbors from church think less of me? Will it bug my family?" I never had these thoughts when I was in my own home around friends that weren't raised the way I was. But in Utah visiting family I was afraid of them judging me. Nothing is worse than the people whose opinion matters the most to you saying you're doing something wrong. In Kansas I would go to the pool with my daughter in a Bikini because it made me happy, I was comfortable wearing a two piece. Did I care what other men thought? No. I wasn't doing it for attention, I was doing it because it made me feel good about myself, it was comfortable and in my opinion not immodest in any way. What I wore was nobody's business but mine. Well, as long as it covered the essentials and didn't get me arrested! Ha ha. Yet, when I got home to put up pictures of things we'd been doing that summer, I hesitated. I picked through the pictures, not wanting to post any of me in a bikini because that wasn't "right". 

Nobody should feel judged for the way they want to dress themselves. In my opinion Modesty is more about culture. In the LDS culture I was taught revealing the stomach is frowned upon. Much like revealing the face is frowned upon among Muslims. It's cultural, religious, and personal.

As the mother of two daughters I do want to be a good example, and I don't want my girls leaving the house in clothes that barely cover them. I will teach them to respect themselves, but I will also teach them to be true to themselves and not worry about others opinions. I went through a phase as a teenager where I was trying to figure out who I was, a big part of that was the way I dressed myself. I would go get my hair done, maybe throw in some pink because I thought it was cute. I felt happy as I left the salon, I loved my new hair. But there were people who would judge anyone that didn't fit the mold of how they thought people should dress, and it was hard. I don't want my girls to ever feel that way. I don't want them to care so much about what other people think that it completely changes their opinions of themselves. I want them to be confident and know that the way they dress doesn't change who they are.

I guess the bottom line when it comes to modesty for me is dress in a way you're comfortable, dress in a way that makes you feel as though you are respecting your body. And don't be ashamed of it. Eventually I decided to stop worrying about offending others. I'm not a bad person because I choose to dress the way I do, just as someone else isn't weird for choosing to wear as much as a long sleeved full length scuba suit to the beach if they want. I say do what makes you feel good about yourself. I can't describe the sense of freedom I felt when I decided to let go of all those worries and just be me. And guess what? My family didn't care, my friends don't like me any less. Just be you and stop hiding behind what you think society, family and friends think you should be. 

Summer with the Littles

I remember all the fun things I did as a kid. Most of which were just playing in the rain, digging for worms, ect. Now that I'm the mom, it's up to me to make sure my kids have some awesome summer memories to look back on too. Some days I'd rather curl up and read a book, but that's not happening. Ha ha. So I've tried really hard to find some fun things to keep us busy, and in hopes of helping other moms here are a few of our favorites that are free, or at least cheap:

1- Make a "Discovery Jar" this is something we've been doing for a couple of years now. We bought a huge jar and fill it with all sorts of things we find outside. It's full of dirt, rocks, bugs, pinecones, ect. I know this might not sound very exciting. But when we go outside and she sees a cool rock or something she gets so excited about her "Discovery!" And we walk around trying to find other cool things to put in it.

 2- Paint rocks. Luckily for me, this entertains both of my girls enough that they don't have a problem staying in the fenced in part of our yard to play happily.

 3- Build and Grow program. I know I've mentioned this before, it's a program at Home Depot that is free for your kids to go in and build things. My kids both love it! And they get to take home something they made themselves that they can be proud of. If you aren't able to make it the day of the program they also sell the kits you can take home and build on your own time.

 4- Freeze toys in ice. Let the kids chip them out. Again, takes a while and totally entertains them. Honestly, you don't have to even put toys in it. Kids love ice. I'm not sure why. Squinkies are perfect for this, as long as your little one is old enough for them to not be a choking hazard. You can also do bigger containers with bigger toys. :)

5- Balloons. The fun is endless! Blow them up and have a ping pong match with paper plates, throw them in the bath, see who can balance a balloon on their finger. Have a balloon fight. Balloons are so versatile and affordable! They are perfect indoor entertainment for bad weather days.

Of course there are the normal things, ride bikes, go on walks, throw rocks in a river, go camping, color, read books. But above are a few of my kids' favorites. What are some activities that keep your kids entertained in the summer? I would love for some new ideas. :)

Potty Training Pain

My first Daughter decided one day she wanted to potty train, and three days later she was done. Even through the night, she very rarely wet herself. Like once every six months rarely. It was amazing. How did I do it? I have no idea. She's just one of those awesome kids that pretty much potty trains themselves.

My second daughter is still young enough that she has interest, but isn't ready to actually potty train. My most helpful advice is: Wait until they are ready! I tried to get my oldest to do it a few times, it always ended badly. But once she decided it was her idea, it was easier than I could have ever imagined.

Seriously, you can't force your child into it. It won't end well for either of you. They will be screaming, you'll want to sneak into your closet with a chocolate bar and have a good cry yourself. It's just no fun. If there's one thing pretty much all kids are, it's stubborn. Therefore, I don't have anything that I can guarantee will work for you. But, here are a few things that seemed to help us:

1- Let your Child watch you use the restroom. It will make it seem cool and totally normal. Put a baby potty in there so they can sit on it while you use the big potty.

2- Let them pick out their own underwear. My daughter loved that, and tried really hard not to get her new princess panties messy.

3- Act like it's a huge deal. I mean HUGE. Like you just won the lottery big. When my daughter went in the potty I would clap, tell her what a good girl she was and dance around with her yelling "YAY!" It made her want to do it again.

4- Accidents happen. Don't shame them for it, they'll probably be upset enough as it is. Just tell them it's ok, it happens to everyone and eventually they won't have accidents anymore.

5- It's ok to give up and try again later. Kids may be interested but not totally ready. Don't compare your child to others. They all get there eventually. :)

My Deployment Baby

A couple of weeks before I found out I was pregnant with our first child we found out my husband was most likely going to Iraq. So when I saw those two beautiful pink lines I danced around, so excited. "I'm going to be a Mommy!" Then I immediately started crying, I wasn't sure I could do it all without Dust. A few months into the pregnancy it was confirmed that my husband was going to be in Iraq "For the duration of 12 months or until the mission is deemed complete". I didn't know many people in Kansas where we were currently stationed and I decided it would be best if I moved home to be with family for the pregnancy and birth.
Four days before he left we found out we were having a daughter! We decided to name her Zoey Mae. The day he left he kissed my barely showing belly and told Zoey how much he loved her.

 Shortly after he left I moved back home. I found a great doctor and we started planning when Dust should come home for R&R (a two week break from deployments that are 12 months or more to visit family) we found out his deployment was extended to 15 months, and he was going to meet Zoey when she was 3 months old.

During one of my appointments we found out Zoey was breach, my doctor could try to turn her or we could schedule a c section. The way she was sitting we decided to just go ahead and schedule the C section for June 21st ( a combination of my birthday and her Dads) we also got permission from the hospital to Skype the birth to Iraq, and Dust got it all set up on his end that he would be there for our call.

 

Well, Zoey had other Ideas, as she always does. On June 14 about 9pm I started contracting, my doctor had mentioned earlier that day at my appointment that I had a "bulging bag" and may go into labor soon. I'd been trying to call Dust all day, but of course he wasn't answering. I took a nice warm bath to try and calm them, but when I got out of the bath my water started leaking, I went and woke up my mom. We got in the car, picked up my sister, and headed to the hospital. When I got out of my moms car my water REALLY broke. It was running down the hospital driveway. Ha ha. I called my In laws and told them what was going on, and asked them to keep calling Dust for me. I also had a friend on Myspace waiting to see if he logged in.
We headed up to Labor and Delivery, where my mom and sister worked. They were so busy that night that My mom and sister clocked in and got to be my nurses! It was so much fun having only family in the room for the first little while. I was told the OR was booked, and the anesthesiologist was busy so I had to wait for my epidural, I was already dilated to a 7. When the OR was ready, they wheeled me down the hall and prepped me for delivery, and finally gave me some pain medication. It was all rather uneventful, they numbed me then got Zoey out. Not a very interesting story, but births are better when nothing too interesting happens in my opinion. :)

I was laying there waiting and when I heard her little cry, it was the most beautiful thing in the world. It felt like forever until I got to see her, but when I did, wow. I can't even explain the love. She was gorgeous, she was so special, and she was mine. I couldn't ask for anything more. She was born June 15 2007, 1:03 am, 6lb 5oz 19 1/2 inches of pure love.

Throughout the night I kept waking up my mom and asking her to hand me Zoey. I couldn't stop staring at her! We called the red cross to tell Dust that she was here, but I also had a friend message him saying she was born, and my sister emailed pictures. He said that he got on myspace, saw my friends message and thought it was some kind of cruel joke. Then he signed into his yahoo account, saw pictures labeled "Zoey" and ran for the phones.

 In his words: I ran in and yelled "I  need to use the phone, my wife just had a baby!" He found out approximately 9 hours after she had been born. We were both so excited, he said I sounded a little drugged, and I probably was. But he heard her little baby sounds over the phone thousands of miles away, isn't technology amazing!? And he fell in love with her too.
Three months later he finally got to come home and meet her, he held her almost constantly for those two weeks, he was amazed by her. He kept saying things like "look how little her hand is" and "I don't want to leave her" it was the best two weeks of my life up to that point.

 Zoey is now six years old, Daddy got home when she was 10 months old and we later went through a second, shorter deployment. Then added another little princess to the family. But those two are inseparable. She wants to marry him when she's older, I asked her what Mommy would do then and she replied "We can share". I'm so grateful to have a family that loves each other as much as we do.

 Zoey on her sixth birthday. :) She's such a sweet and funny little girl who brings so much joy to our family.