Well ladies it’s official. No matter how “royal” someone is….all men are the SAME!!! Check out this video of the President of Finland’s husband checking out his wife’s boobs!

He gives them a good stare, and then when she turns around…..He looks up like “la di da…look at that light!” hahahaha LOVE it!

OK  just had to share…

I love Pinterest…as a matter of fact I am thoroughly addicted. It’s a problem really, but one that I am OK with admitting to you all. But with this addiction comes a hard realization that I am less of a human being than some of these people who post out there. How can they make such wonderful things? Sometimes, Pinterest just makes me feel bad about myself.

Sometimes, I think “Wow! I love that rug!”…then I find that someone PAINTED it! Or a piece of wall art I am just dying to buy only to find that someone MADE IT THEMSELVES! How do they do it? Even with the tutorials I am at an utter loss. With each step I find myself scratching my head even more.

How about the outfits that everyone posts. Every time I see one put together I get excited and go to the link to find out how I can actually BUY the pieces. I am quickly reminded that I won’t be spending $500 on shoes or $1500 on the bag. Sweat pants are just as good right?

The recipes seem to be something that I can do…so that’s a positive, and I am loving all the activities being posted to do with my son. Out of everything I pin I think those two things are the things I can be good at and accomplish. Everything else? Not so much…

Don’t get me wrong, I love the site and will continue to PIN daily. But I also now realize that I have to be OK with the fact that I will never be a DIYer, or get to wear those fantastic outfits. Each board is more of a DREAM board and less of a REAL board.

Maybe I can convince the DIY people to let me PAY for them to make it for me!

At this point I am pretty much disgusted with my inability to keep my house clean. What the hell is wrong with me? How is it that I am so bad at putting things away once I take them out? How can I be so bad at cleaning up after my family? Most importantly, how can I look at the mess every day and continue to leave it there? How do women do it? Is it in the genes? Is it more of a drive? Or is it just that they are better at being a housewife then I am? How did those perfect housewives of the 50’s do it? Forget them, how did my Grandma do it? Someone please tell me the secret!

My grandmother has every single drape in her possession not hung up marked with the date that she last washed and ironed them….did you read that??? WASHED AND IRONED! My drapes have NEVER been washed or ironed. Even when she was 85 years old she still got herself off the couch to dust. I can bet that she dusted more than me! Now that is sad!

My home is what I like to call “lived in”. If you surprised me on any given day you would find toys all over the floor, stuff lining my stairs just asking to be taken up, The Captains work laying out in his “office” (the kitchen table), and shoes piled up in front of the front door (Captain Awesome’s favorite spot to leave them). It’s not pretty by any means, but it’s home.

My question is when do you get it done? I spend every moment my son’s awake playing with him on the floor. I never put him in a pack and play so I could do other things. Right, wrong or indifferent all my energy goes into occupying my son. Then when’ he’s asleep I am either working, or have ZERO desire to clean because I am exhausted from the day. So what’s your secret?

Do I just accept that my home will never be the clean home? Do I train myself to be a better housewife? What do you suggest? There has to be a better way! What did Donna Reed and my Grandma know that I don’t?

The other week my son had his first stomach bug, and this week brought us our first real fever. Although people keep reminding me that we will experience both of these illnesses many times over in the years to come, I just hope that it doesn’t happen again in the near future because I am not sure I can take it. Sick kids suck…mostly for them of course…but also for me. It’s been one really long week, and I think it’s going to take a lot of wine for me to relax the nerves this time around. Because after 4 days with a fever we are just hoping for a break….a break in the fever that is…

It all started Monday when I noticed the little guy felt warm. I was amazed at how easily I was able to tell with just a touch that he had a fever. I have decided that it’s a super power you get when you become a mom. It’s the only answer I can come up with….a superpower!

Monday night I was scared when he went to bed and couldn’t sleep. I woke in the middle of the night to check on him and he was burning…103.8 in the ear! I panicked. I scooped him out of bed to give him Motrin. I needed to get that fever down. He took it, and I rocked him….long story short after not letting me put him down, trying to get him to sleep in bed, and finally Captain Awesome playing the bad guy and putting him in his crib 2 hours later he was finally asleep.

At the doctor the following day we were told it looked like Roseola, a virus…so all we could do was wait. Poor guy suffered through the day with the help of both Motrin and Tylenol. It broke my heart to see him uncomfortable. When the fever was down he seemed OK. He went to sleep…slept through the night…and then woke with a 104!!! I was TERRIFIED! He was crying…I wanted to. I stripped him down…put on a cool cloth and prayed that the Motrin would begin to work quickly. It did…and he was fever free all day, albeit lethargic…but still fever free.

That is until Thursday morning….woke with a 102…just great. To the doc again we went, and after a CBC was still diagnosed with a virus/Roseola. I am praying the rash shows up soon. I am praying that tomorrow he wakes with no fever.

We have been so lucky that he has been a healthy little boy, so I really can’t complain about 2 illnesses in the past 14 months. But my heart breaks when he is so sad. He doesn’t understand the pain and comfortableness. He can’t tell me how he feels. All I can do is cuddle him and give him whatever he needs. Sometimes I wonder how I would do this with 2 children? All my time these past few days has been holding my son. I guess you just figure it out….

So I have been quarantined for 4 days….going a little stir crazy….but hopefully soon he’ll be on the mend. Fingers crossed! My little boy needs to be fever free.

As you all know I am constantly on the look out for great Mommy and Me classes in my area, and I have been lucky to try out a bunch for my gig writing for The Long Island Mamas. The most recent class that I had the pleasure to take was at Tots On Track in Massapequa Park. I thought the instructor was great, and the idea behind the theme extremely creative. All in all I found it to be a wonderful Mommy and Me class!

Tots on Track was started by two moms who wanted to start a business that still allowed them to be with their children on a daily basis. What a great idea!? 14 years later that business is still going strong, and Tots on Track is a great place for both mom and child to have fun and interact. I personally like the train theme! Everything about the decor of the location and even the names of the classes surround the train theme.

I took the ‘Tootin Walkers’ class for children ages 12 months to 24 months. The area is separated into 3 sections. We started our class in a blocked off room and did lots of songs that got the kiddos going. Next, we moved to another sectioned off part of the room where a ton of toys were laid out on tables. This time of the class, I was told, was to allow the kids time to play and “interact”. At this age it’s mostly parallel play, but it was fun to watch them all play! Finally the 3rd separated area is the play area with a ton of activities for Christian to get involved in…including a big ball pit! Christian had a blast running around to each thing to play with.

The thing I liked most about Tots on Track was the fact that it was started by two moms, and it is a LOCAL business. With so many “chain” type classes out there it was refreshing to have the class taught by one of the owners herself, and to know that she had 14 years of experience. I was amazed at how many of the parents there were there with their second or third child, because their first born had so much fun there. That says a lot about a business!

This Mommy and Me class gets 2 thumbs up from me!

Happy Valentine’s Day everyone! Twelve years ago today The Captain and I went on our very FIRST date! Can you believe it? I remember so many things about that Valentine’s as well as many after that including the day he proposed to me. Yes, he proposed on Valentine’s day at the very same restaurant we went to on our very first date. So of course this day is always special in our life.

The romantic day does change a bit once kids come into the mix. Last year our son was just a few months old so exhausted we ordered food in. This year, we thought we’d be doing the same thing, but then my mother in law came through and told us she would be able to watch our little man. Woo hoo! It’s amazing how hard it is to get last minute reservations on Valentine’s day, but we were going to do our best. Then, our little man came up with some plans of his own.

He got sick…..yes, he got his first real fever. It’s amazing..how I never thought I would be able to tell if someone had a fever until my son actually had one. I knew right away. I guess it’s just a talent you get when you become a mom? Doc is guessing it’s Rosiola, but either way it seems to be a virus. That means we just have to wait it out.

Captain Awesome and I decided to postpone our dinner plans till tomorrow. If we went tonight I wouldn’t have fun and would just worry about my son. He needs his mamma, so I will be here to cuddle him. Our romantic Valentine’s Day dinner can wait.

We still know how special this day is no matter how we celebrate. Just funny how much has changed over the last 12 years. All for the better of course! Happy Valentine’s day to all, and an even bigger Happy Valentine’s day to my Captain Awesome! The most wonderful husband, friend and father. I Love you more with each passing year!

I hate this picture of me, but I shared it for those of you out there who are wondering what it’s like the first few days after having your baby. Notice that you don’t automatically drop to your pre baby size. Notice the bags under my eyes, the tired smile and the horrible hair roots. Finally, just notice that behind that smile, although ECSTATIC that I was a mom, I was also EXHAUSTED, TERRIFIED, and OVERWHELMED!

I will skip telling you about labor. I’ll just say it’s as bad as you imagine it to be. So I will fast forward past that. Past it to the amazing feeling of FINALLY pushing that baby out, and for the first time you can breath a sigh of relief. I dreaded the labor for so long, and I was finally past that. But the pain of labor was still on the forefront of my mind, and the pain was still very real in the female parts! OUCH!

I will tell you that you will be absolutely disgusting. I felt so bad for my nurse! What she had to see when she walked me to the bathroom the first time is beyond what anyone should have to see. Be prepared….it’s a war zone down in the nether regions, but after all  you just went through you won’t even care who sees what. All modesty is out the window from now on. From this day forth you can tell yourself…I gave birth, I can now handle anything!”.

Sleep is now a thing of the past. Your labor will probably bring you total exhaustion, and although you should rest after, I doubt there will be time. You are so excited to be with your child, and so are family and friends. If I can offer any advice it’s to have your husband be the gate keeper. He needs to remind people that you need rest because you probably will barely be mentally present at this point.

I was told that post baby my belly would still look like I was 7 months pregnant. That was so true! So ladies please don’t beat yourself up that you don’t drop all the lbs and belly right away. What do you expect? In that picture above I looked like I was still 7 months pregnant. I waddled like I had a stick up my butt due to all the drama going on down below, and my boobs were so engorged with milk that I winced every time I moved. Not pretty but all true. I will also tell you that getting an epidural may make it impossible to hold in your gas. Let’s just say that I had a few embarrassing situations where each step I took let out a bit of that gas. I feel sorry for my poor roommate in the hospital, as well as my poor family who was spending the night. All I could do was laugh, because if I didn’t I would’ve cried with embarrassment but HEY I just had a baby for goodness sake!

Picture no sleep, lots of pain, and a new baby that you have no idea how to take care of and that’s pretty much the first few days. I also tackled breastfeeding, so that was an added stress. I was riding high on being a new mom though, so I don’t think I fully understood how scared I actually was till much later.

My mom was a life saver those first few weeks. She took care of me and I took care of my son. It was a great set up. I wasn’t sure how I would like having her here because I knew I wanted/needed to figure out how to be a mom myself. But having her take care of the groceries, laundry and cooking made it a lot easier for me. Everyone told me “don’t be too proud to ask for help” and I want to pass that advice on. It really does take a village.

Basically it is perfectly normal to be extremely overwhelmed. I don’t think too many women talk about how scary it really is. But why wouldn’t it be scary? Your life is being forever changed. You will be walking in a cloud post baby for a while….so be prepared. It’s not pretty at all, but the most important thing is that you get that little boy or girl in your arms. In the end that’s all that matters. This too shall pass….and soon enough you will get the hang of your new life and routine.

Good luck!

How were your first few days with your baby?

I really want my son to be a reader and love books. I have gotten so much enjoyment out of them, and I want to inspire him to want to read. That is why since he was born, I read to him ( I should say TRY to read to him since for a long time he had no interest in sitting still). Then, over time he began to get really excited about his books and I was ecstatic! I love it when he hands me books to read over….and over….and over…and over…again. He has his favorites and I have mine, but obviously his favorites win out. So below please find Christian’s list of favorite books. At 14 months old, these are the the big winners.

Our Favorite Toddler Books!

(in no particular order)

1.  Goodnight Moon : A classic, and a book that forces me to think that I too could be a children’s book writer. It’s short and sweet and keeps his attention. But I love reading the same book before bed every night. It helps with our routine.
2.  Alpha Bugs : This one has been one of Christian’s favorites from the start. Unfortunately the poor pop up alpha bugs inside the book have taken a beating, but in my eyes that just shows love.
3. Tails : The moving pieces in this book keeps his attention, and I love that he quickly learned how to make the parts move himself!
4. Noisy Peekaboo Books : The fact that this book makes sounds is a HUGE bonus! Peek-a-boo books are fun, but peek-a-boo books that bark like a dog when the flap is opened? Priceless!
5. The Very Busy Spider : I am not exactly sure what it is about Eric Carle, but he obviously is a children’s book genius. I haven’t figured out what it is, but Christian sure does love this spider!
6. Pat the Bunny : I was truly amazed at how quickly he began doing all the activities the book asked him to do!
7. B is for Bear : This books a touch and feel book that teaches some words! My little guy loves to smell F is for flower (even though there is no scent)
8. Touch and Feel Animals : This was his first favorite book, and it now is torn into pieces and the pages are all over the place. But he still loves it and we read it page by page as he finds them throughout the day!
9. Eyes, Nose, Toes Peekaboo : Not a sound peek-a-book book but fun nonetheless!
10. Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? Slide and Find (World of Eric Carle (Priddy Books)) : This one isn’t the “regular” version. This one has the slide and find flaps. The little man LOVES to slide them to see what’s next! He likes this book on repeat.

Board books are still a must because anything made with paper has a high likelihood of being ripped. I am just so happy that he loves his books, and I will do all I can to have it continue. We read whenever we can, and I love those moments of sitting together and exploring a book.

What are your favorite baby/toddler books?

With my new obsession with Pinterest I am now finding fun and exciting new products and ideas that I never even knew I wanted. Now that I have seen these products I just have to have them, and that is exactly what happened when I came across this necklace on Adorn512.com . I immediately thought about how pretty it would look with my son’s name on it, so I ordered it, and now LOVE it!

Dana Mitchell, a labor and delivery nurse for more than 12 years, started adorn512 in 2010 in response to the lack of retailers in her Chicago-area suburb. She missed the energy of Chicago boutiques and the creativity these retailers inspired. Dana also thought the hip women she had befriended in her neighborhood deserved more–so she brought it to them!

I personally was so excited about so many pieces that I saw on the website, but was happy to choose my Gold Rectangular Name Bar ($79). I had been looking for a necklace that would allow me to carry my sons name around my neck without being cheesy and I found that in this necklace. It was simple and perfect.

Adorn512 Favorites

Vintage Name Bracelet ($24)

Custom Child Silhouette ($40)

Stargazer Locket ($48)

Those are just a few! I love how personalized so many of the items can be! I think that’s what makes the site so special. It’s not often that you can make a piece your own, and that’s exactly what Adorn512.com can do…and more!.

I have gotten so many complements on my necklace and I have only been wearing it a week! Looking forward to many more!

I was provided with the Gold Rectangular Name Bar Necklace for the purposes of this review. As always all thoughts and opinions are my own.

Dear Christian,

Happy 14 months old! Every day I look at your face and think to myself that you are swiftly turning into a little boy, and no longer look like a baby. My Mr. Cheeks seems to be Mr. Cheeks no more….How does that happen?

Look out world Christian is fully on the move! It’s amazing how quickly you became so good at walking! You started at Christmas by taking wobbly steps, and now you basically run. This month started with you looking like Frankenstein when you walked, and now you are a pro. Of course you still fall…ALOT….but you are building confidence. Sometimes you think you don’t have to pay attention to where you are going, but I hope you learn that no matter how good of a walker you become, you still have to watch where you are going!

You are hesitant to use your words. I have a feeling it’s because I anticipate your every need before you ask for it. Maybe I need to step back a bit? You call me Ma Ma, and Daddy Da Da. You say Yes, and Wow. Out of all the words I try to get you to say daily I am not sure why those stuck? We work on animal sounds and you do your version of a Lion, Pig, Horse and Bee. Again, I am not sure why those stuck in your head, but it makes me proud.

One thing you do excel at is sign language! You can sign Finished, More, Food/Eat, Milk, shoes, and Please (we are working on manners). I wish I could sign more to you, but I am learning as you do. You are picking it up quickly, and in no time you and your daddy will be able to talk about me with out me knowing what you are saying. I warn you now that I won’t be pleased!

Why won’t your teeth come in faster? I feel so bad that you are in pain every day. As of now you have 5 teeth (3 on top, 2 bon bottom), with 1 more that has been working it’s way in for the past 4 weeks. I wish they would just pop through! As much as it would be painful, I know it would quickly come to an end. I promise to try to make you as comfortable as possible.

The terrible two’s has already began. You certainly have a mind of your own and are not afraid to tell me when you need or want something. And if I don’t jump the moment you want it you scream. No good little man! Mommy quickly needs to show you who’s boss. Not only that you like to give everyone what we like to call “the stink eye”. You furrow your brow and frown. It’s not a nice face, and I find myself apologizing to everyone who is unlucky enough to get this horrible look.

Eating is our biggest challenge. The world is much more exciting than any food that I put on your plate. Fruit and yogurt always make it into your belly, but everything else is hit or miss. I even have to hide veggies in other foods to make sure you get your share. My new motto is “you will eat when you are hungry”. Let’s just hope enough nutritious food is making it into your belly.

You are now fully attached to your blue bunny blanket and your Nuk (pacifier). You have slept with your bunny since you were 6 months old, but now bunny comes with you everywhere that I will allow it. As for your Nuk, if I let you, you would have it in your mouth all the time. To stop that I try to keep it hidden in your crib, but you are much to smart for that. It makes it’s way out of there every day. Personally, I think it’s sweet that you have things that make you feel safe, so for now I am happy that you have them.

I am having the best time of my life with you my little man. I love your squeezy bear hugs, and I cherish every moment of our cuddle time. Every day is a new adventure, and I love sharing every day with you.

Love, Mommy