Disturbing Satisfaction!

A special treat from Daddy…

The other day Brett brought a couple of those lollipops with the bug inside for Journey and Faith. Gross! I protested, but he said it was harmless and lucky for Journey she was awake when he brought them home. Faith wasn’t awake and doesn’t know she even got one of these nasty things! (BTW, nobody mention it!)

As you can see in the picture the sucker has a baby scorpion inside (minus the stinger)!

I let Journey have the rest of her lollipop while Faith was napping. She got some kind of disturbing satisfaction from trying to get me to take a lick, and then an even “bigger lick”  and  she basically tried to shove the lollipop down my throat! YUCK! It even has the nerve to taste like sweet strawberries too.

Yes. That is the look of disturbing satisfaction. And the exact look she had when she ruthlessly forced the lollipop into my mouth!

Luckily, I wasn’t scarred by the incident, but I have this great black mail picture! HA! Mommy loves you, Journey!

A Big Birthday Surprise!

My firecracker Faith turned 2 on March 27! I have decided that this nursery rhyme best describes my sweet Faith…

There was a little girl,
Who had a little curl,
Right in the middle of her forehead.
When she was good,
She was very, very good,
But when she was bad, she was horrid.

This nursery rhyme is really about Faith! She can be the sweetest thing and I just melt when she tells me that she loves me, but when she is frustrated or mad–you better watch out! Besides her fiery temper, I feel really blessed to be Faith’s Mommy because she really does give me faith in joy, love and family. She keeps us all on our toes and always gets so excited over the simplest things–including the jumping up and down! Ever since her birthday she has sang me the Birthday song at least once a day and it is so amazing to watch her blossom into a beautiful child.

Faith finally got her ears pierced and now won’t let me go near them to clean. I have to squirt the solution incognito onto her ears in the bath. It is really so bad that Brett was looking at me like I had lost my mind! HA! Oh well, a Mom’s gotta do what a Mom’s gotta do!

I really can’t believe how fast the time has gone, but what makes it even more special is that we all had a surprise visit from my Mom and brother. The really crazy thing is that I haven’t seen them in about two years and they had never met Faith in person!

Basically, I got tricked. I was kind of an emotional wreck for about three days after I found out that my Mom and brother were not going to be visiting for Faith’s birthday or spring break (part of their mean and evil trick to throw me off their trail!) I felt kind of heartbroken because I hadn’t seen them in so long. It has just been finances that have kept us apart and that in itself really sucks. So, when I found out they were not coming I was just bummed. Then on the Wednesday before Faith’s birthday we were getting ready to go on a walk after dinner when suddenly I saw my Mom and brother standing in my backyard! I screamed and cried all at the same time, so loud that Brett got freaked out because he thought Sterling had died or something. It was a great surprise to say the least. I was just so thankful that Journey and Faith really got to spend some quality time with both my Mom and brother. Here are some pictures…

Journey and Faith really loved their time with Uncle JJ and GiGi (stands for Greatest Grandmother!) Now I realize that I didn’t get any pictures with them! I was too busy behind the camera.

Tru Kid Healthy Habits Giveaway!

I am really excited to tell you about this amazing all-natural children’s skincare. Tru Kid. All of Tru Kid’s products are made from essential oils and natural ingredients (all ingredients are non-toxic and gluten-free!) in bright, eye-catching packaging with REALLY fun names! Tru Kid is “built on a philosophy to encourage kids to form healthy habits that last a lifetime.” What I love is that they do it in such a fun, encouraging, and very positive way. It is such a great concept. We can all agree that healthy habits, good manners, and responsibility are learned at an early age. To help children learn how to care for themselves and have fun doing it, Tru Kid provides printable songs, rhymes, and Healthy Habits checklists.

Tru Kid is giving away a Healthy Habits Pack too! Go to the UV Skinz blog to find out more!

Changes…

Hi Everyone! This is Kalisha writing you from my new home in the Valley! So much has been happening and Reneca and I never meant to fall off the bloggy map. So, I guess I will fill you in…

It isn’t as bad as I thought it would be…I guess I became kind of a beach snob (and now I really miss just how close we were to the ocean!), but things are definitely making a change–for the better! Now that we have moved the burden of paying over-priced rent for a house that didn’t feel like a home is gone. We are settling in very nicely; we have an amazing bike path behind our house and lots of our own private space within our very own backyard. I know I sound a little crazy right now, but I haven’t had a backyard in over 4 years! We have been spending our time getting to know where everything is, taking walks to the park (which is huge!) and spending more time together as a family.

That is the most important thing–time together as a family.

Journey and Faith have handled the changes quite well since the “egg incident.” It is amazing how children take change like a breeze in the wind–they just go with it–never fighting it. I know I have fought change before and it has never ended nicely. Motherhood kind of changes you to really accept the changes and go with the flow. At least that is how it has affected me.  There is really no way that any Mom could survive the first year of their babies life if they didn’t give in to the many changes that happen.  Part of my mothering philosophy is to go with the flow, but there does have to be some action to go along with it.

Action requires a bit of Faith and a lot of confidence in yourself. That is the biggest milestone that Reneca and I have come to face. And I can speak for her because we just had this conversation yesterday.We both don’t just want things to happen to us–we want to make it happen! This goes a little deeper than just making changes, but realizing that the changes we make are what we want–not what anyone else wants for us. Sometimes we depend so much on what other people might think or how they will accept us for the changes we make or the action we take. (Am I talking in circles?) I just don’t want to name names–so let me just say this. All people want is for someone to be proud of them. We just need to accept that the most important person that should be proud of us is ourselves.

Having that confidence in ourselves is what can make change manageable. Taking every opportunity or hardship and turning it into a positive to benefit myself is what I am changing.  Sometimes I find myself being sucked into the Mother role and losing sight of who Kalisha really is. And I’m not the same person I was 5 or 10 years ago, but I know I am much smarter and stronger. I mean come on! I’m a Mother! There is no other greater force out there! LOL

I just want to know how you deal with changes? Do you find it harder to accept or make a change since becoming a Mom?

I would love to hear your thoughts…

It’s lovey scrubby time!

If you are like us, cleaning is not one of your favorite activities. We pull out our bright neon sponge to clean our dishes and counter tops.    Aside from the lack of eye appeal, these sponges also leave a huge footprint in our landfills. Well, we have found the solution to getting out of the cleaning doldrums.  It’s lovey scrubby time!

This phrase could not be any truer. Now thanks to TWIST we lovey to scrubby too!

Why is Twist better?

TWIST is Eco-friendly.  The products are made from cellulose which is source from renewable tree farms.  On top of that, TWIST makes sure that most of its waste is reused in production.  What do you usually do with the packaging of your bright neon sponges…throw them out, right?    Well the paperboard packaging of TWIST products can be turned into a bird feeder. How cool is that?

TWIST products are durable, biodegradable and stylish.  They offer a new approach to kitchen and bathroom cleaning through innovative and effective designs.  For example, our favorite, TWIST’s Loofah Sponge is the only sponge on the market with one side absorbent sponge and one side natural loofah. Its like having a cup of coffee and and a Krispy Kream doughnut in one. Not to mention, that it offers safer and more effective scouring and scrubbing power for scratch-prone pans.

Just about every home across the country uses paper towels regularly to clean up spills and messes.  One Twist European Sponge Cloth is equivalent to approximately 17 rolls of paper towels. Check out this video!

TWIST is an environmentally responsible, functional, and fun alternative to normal house hold cleaning products that sit in our land fills today.

Reneca and Kalisha

Double + Trouble = Stress

Written by: Kalisha

For the time being I’m changing Journey’s name to Double and Faith’s name to Trouble. Because lately they have been getting into a whole lot of trouble together. I’m not quite sure who is the mastermind, but they have both been taking advantage of the fact that I have been really preoccupied with a lot of household matters. I have a feeling it is my wild-haired 22 mo. old. She came out sweet, but has become a little bit sneaky.  And I’ve noticed that Journey plays the helpful-big-sister-role to a T.  Journey will gladly help Faith unroll the toilet paper from the roll, or help her to climb up on the table to get on the laptop and “update our blog” (well, I guess if we aren’t–someone has to!) So, amidst all of this I have learned my lesson. NEVER ever leave Double and Trouble alone when they are armed with paint brushes and paints! (And it is a whole other story on the reason Journey is naked. Seems to be an everyday thing. Kind of like the dress-up-like-a-princess phase she went through–except now she’s moved on to just taking her clothes completely off. I was worried, but the doctor said it is normal three-year-old behavior. To each his own.)

 

I usually keep a close eye on them, but life has been so crazy around here…I have been on the phone, computer or filling out paper work non-stop. Which is something I’m not used to because my main role is to take care of Journey and Faith, play with them, clean up after them, take care of the pets, and clean and maintain the house. Doing extra things makes it all so complicated. I’m beating myself up over it because I feel so out of control. I know that this won’t last forever and by this I mean the mess that we are calling “the move.” I hope you don’t feel like I’m exaggerating, but moving happens to be one of the most stressful situations that a person can go through. I think it is just below a death in the family.  Moving has brought me to tears once in my life and not because I was sad to move, but just so over-whelmed. This time I will not cry and I know it will all pass with no problem.

I know the reason why I am upset with myself. I am a very hands-on-type-of-mom. I enjoy just being with Journey and Faith, but lately I haven’t been fully there, in the moment with them (reason they have been named Double and Trouble). I feel like my mind is always someplace else, worrying about everything. We do have times when I feel in the moment with them–like when we go to the park, read books, tell stories, dance, and just play silly…(sigh) It’s hard managing stress and caring for children. I don’t think I’m handling it very well right now and maybe I’m being too hard on myself. I’m sure I’m not the only one who feels the stress of motherhood on top of daily stress, but the very act of being-too-hard-on-yourself actually creates more stress. Geez!

Well, I suppose I will have to add that to the top of the list on how to cope with Motherhood and Stress:

1. Don’t be too hard on yourself!
2. Ask for help if you feel overwhelmed
3. Take time out for yourself on a daily basis
4. Talk with someone who will listen and provide the support you need
5. Laugh at any chance you get
6. Eat more chocolate (wink)
7. Find peace in your Faith

I will stop there because 7 is my favorite and lucky number. I can also end this post on a high note. Today we found out that we were accepted into the house that we wanted. I will let you know more once we are all moved in! It is about half an hour from where we live now and we will all have to meet new people and learn a new neighborhood, but this will a good move for us and I won’t let the latest adventure of Double and Trouble get me stressed out…where’s the chocolate?!

And the Winner is…

Thanks to everyone who entered in our Build-A-Bear Giveaway!It was really fun and interesting to see all of the New Year’s Resolutions. It seems like we all need to work on de-cluttering, smiling more, stressing less, eating healthier and spending more time with our families. If we all accomplish all of those things then 2009 will be a good year for sure!

We had 70 entries and guess who had the honor of typing all of those names into random.org? (Me. As in Kalisha. I feel like I should get an award for that!) Well, I guess I did get a small reward this morning when I shared my ice cream sandwhich with Journey and Faith–giving Journey the “biggest” piece, as requested by my outspoken 3-year-old.  Alright, enough about that and on to our winners!

Grand Prize: Soha Molina…Her resolution is to have patience and tolerance towards her Mother-In-Law once she moves in. We wish her a lot of good wishes with that transition. It can be very stressful to have someone come into your space–hope everything goes smoothly.

1st Prize: We had to pick a new 1st Prize winner because we haven’t heard anything from Marilyn. We feel bad for taking her prize away, but a rule is a rule (dang rules!) So, our new winner is Rhiannon! Congratulations!

 Marilyn…Her resolution was to excersise everyday to maintain her health. Easy ways to exercise daily without really thinking about are to find ways to walk more. Even though I was made to walk everywhere (not really by choice) I found that daily and long walks have helped shed those post-baby pounds.

Congratulations to our winners!

Happy 3rd Birthday!

 Written By: Kalisha

From the first moment she looked into our eyes…we were in love!

Bringing her home was the most exciting and very scary. I had to reattach the carseat because poor Brett didn’t get it right and I’m the type that doesn’t think anything is done right unless I do it anyway. Once we were home I put Journey on the bed in her room and just waited. Paced…checked to make sure she wasn’t cold and I really wasn’t sure what to do next with my newborn baby who was sleeping so peacefully.

 Journey at two months old was used to me taking at least 30-50 pictures of her (a day!).  In this one she really looks like Brett. I have always been amazed at how strong she was–she could hold her head up for almost a full minute!

 During her first summer we enjoyed the sunny California weather by playing in our bikini’s and splashing around in her baby pool!

 Journey at one year old. She has lived up to her name; no matter what she is always on the go. Journey learned to walk at about 11 months and hasn’t slowed down since. So fiesty, busy, and happy!

I feel so lucky that she was able to grow up a little beach baby. There is so much peace at the beach. Here is Journey at two years old playing in the “winter sand”; she loved digging, jumping and squishing in the wet sand!

 Always exploring…Journey has brought home numerous creatures. This one is her littly buddy slug. The spring Faith was born was Journey’s favorite time to catch catepillars, snails and collect many rocks.

 Not only does Journey love animals, but has learned to love trees too! On the way home from the library every tree we passed she hugged and kissed, saying, “I love you!” I am so proud that she has it in her heart to love all things!

 From a busy little baby to a pretty little Princess–Journey shows her love of style and all things glittery whenever she dresses up!

 Journey always knows how to cut loose, be silly and put a smile on our faces! I feel so lucky to have such a playful little girl in my life.

Welcoming a little sister was a smooth transition. Since Journey was 14 months when Faith was born she really didn’t have any jealousy issues because having Faith around is all she can remember. Journey is a great big sister–always loving and helpful. Faith and Journey have their sister quarrels, but I know that they will be close forever no matter what.

 So, I know I won’t win the good mom award for being so late with this birthday post. My originial plan was to post this after her Princess party this past Saturday, but I was so busy with the party that I didn’t even take pictures! I know. I’m so mad with myself. But I do have some pictures to share of Journey’s birthday morning on Jan. 22, 2009. Here is how I decorated her table…

Happy 3rd Birthday Journey!

(Hopefully, people will email me the pics they took so I can add some of the party.)

Kind of like a Fraternal Twin Giveaway!

We just had to let you know about maybe the coolest giveaway (since our last one) yet! We like to think of it as a “fraternal twin” giveaway because it’s a giveaway, but with nothing in common except these things are used for babies and kids…

Alright. Alright. We weren’t going to make you guess or anything so we will cut to the chase so you can hurry up and enter to win!

The first is a must have as far as kids go. Comfort for your child and having your Mommy mind at ease is the perfect combination for a successful shopping trip or night out at a restaurant. The secret to the success is a KozyPal Cart Cover! Mmm Hmm. Yep. That’s right! These covers are stylish…they keep your child comfy cozy in those metal shopping carts…and also prevent the horror of your child eating that macaroni noodle she dropped in the restaurant high chair.

You need one.

We have one.

So, here is your chance to get one! KozyPal is giving away TWO $50 gift certificates to shop in their online store. With such good prices you could get one for yourself and your fraternal twin! Just go on over to the KozyPal blog to enter. Good luck!

Did we mention that these covers are handmade?! Very cool!

Now on to the other half of the giveaway. Just before Christmas and before our “sabbatical”, we were given the chance to welcome two cuddly friends into our homes; Hello Kitty and Hal the Moose. After a few weeks of sister fights over who would get to dis-robe and sleep with the Hello Kitty and poor Hal only being used for the pretty lights in his antlers, things have died down enough for us to be able to share the Build-a-Bear love with all of you!

Since the theme is fraternal twin giveway (so silly, we know) we have two gift cards to Build-A-Bear Workshop to giveaway!

First Prize: $25 giftcard

Second Prize: $10 giftcard

Sorry, no third or runner-up prizes–this isn’t like those child pageants were the non-winners still get a trophy. Either you win or you don’t. You could increase your chances by earning extra entries (*wink) and here is how to enter:

Win a gift card to Build-A-Bear!

Entry #1 : (Remember to leave a valid email address with your comment!) Leave a comment and let us know in at least 27 words (that’s the lucky number of the month) what your New Year’s Resolution is or goals that you have for you or your family for 2009. Simple. Right?

Extra Entries – #1 must be done first.

(Leave a comment for each)

* Blog about this contest with a link to this post.

*Follow us on Twitter and post on Twitter about the contest. (Remember to leave us the tweet #)

*Subscribe to our Mommy Lounge feed

One winner will be chosen!

*We will be using a random number generator to select the winner.

* Contest ends at 11:59pm on Wednesday January 28, 2009. If the prize is not claimed in 48 hours a new winner will be chosen.

*Contest open to U.S. residents only.

It’s Official!…We’re 27!

Today is Reneca's 27th Birthday! Woo-Hoo! Mine was on the 14th...so I wanted to post something to celebrate our 27 years of life!

Happy Birthday Reneca! We have been friends and have grown as close as sister's over the past 8 years and I look forward to at least 63 more years of friendship (or until one of us kicks the bucket first--NOT IT! LOL)

Love, Kalisha


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