I'm linked up today with:
Wednesday, September 07, 2011
Tuesday, September 06, 2011
Huggie Bear - A buckwheat and lavender night time friend
Ever wonder how new routines come about? Ever find yourself jumping through hoops for your children and wondering, How did I get here?
One night a couple of weeks ago, Jack said his tummy was a little sore and I asked him if he wanted a hot water bottle. He said yes. The next night, probably remembering how the hot water bottle routine extended his bed time, he said he had a tummy ache again. I didn't much buy his tummy ache claim, particularly because he was grinning from ear to ear, but still I complied.
In fact, I complied with this request for several more nights - wondering how long it would go on - and then I remembered something. Grandma bought Jack the coolest thing a couple of years ago. It's the Spa and Herbal Therapy Huggie Bear
by Nood. It's a cute little bear stuffed with buckwheat and lavender.
Forty-five seconds in the microwave on high, and he's a snuggly bedtime friend to keep little ones toasty warm. It also does wonders for an upset tummy.
Okay, so I haven't really made any less work for myself by replacing a water bottle with Huggie Bear, but at least I'm cutting down on water costs. And it's just too cute seeing Jack snuggle to sleep with his Huggie Bear... and his two other bedtime stuffies... and his six imaginary friends. Oy, what have I done?
It's Tuesday! Hop on over to the Tuesday Twitter Hop at Heartfelt Balance Handmade Life and link up your Twitter handle. Find new followers. Make new friends!
One night a couple of weeks ago, Jack said his tummy was a little sore and I asked him if he wanted a hot water bottle. He said yes. The next night, probably remembering how the hot water bottle routine extended his bed time, he said he had a tummy ache again. I didn't much buy his tummy ache claim, particularly because he was grinning from ear to ear, but still I complied.
In fact, I complied with this request for several more nights - wondering how long it would go on - and then I remembered something. Grandma bought Jack the coolest thing a couple of years ago. It's the Spa and Herbal Therapy Huggie Bear
by Nood. It's a cute little bear stuffed with buckwheat and lavender.Forty-five seconds in the microwave on high, and he's a snuggly bedtime friend to keep little ones toasty warm. It also does wonders for an upset tummy.
Okay, so I haven't really made any less work for myself by replacing a water bottle with Huggie Bear, but at least I'm cutting down on water costs. And it's just too cute seeing Jack snuggle to sleep with his Huggie Bear... and his two other bedtime stuffies... and his six imaginary friends. Oy, what have I done?
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
It's Tuesday! Hop on over to the Tuesday Twitter Hop at Heartfelt Balance Handmade Life and link up your Twitter handle. Find new followers. Make new friends!
Sunday, September 04, 2011
Ten Things Animal
I'm happy to be joining Stasha of NorthWest Mommy again this week for Monday Listicles. This week's challenge is to list 'ten things animal'. Perhaps Stasha meant we should list ten things about animals in general, but I think it's more likely she wants to know ten things about Animal, the Muppets character.
Here it is then. My list of 10 things Animal:
1. He's seriously loveable. He's intense, man. Maybe that's why he's so loveable.
3. He mostly speaks in grunts and short phrases. "BEAT DRUMS!" / "EAT DRUMS!"
4. He's been a drummer for 4... no 5 years.
5. He loves his drums.
6. But sometimes he thinks drums are food. Cymbals too.
7. He has no patience for bad puns.
8. And he has a bit of a violent streak.
9. In fact, he's a wild thing.
10. And he likes bunny rabbits. Small ones.
Direct link: http://youtu.be/2cEPydnb0Ns
Direct link: http://youtu.be/KM6o1Hv7ec0
Direct link: http://youtu.be/WnJgdyaJ2BQ
Here it is then. My list of 10 things Animal:
Image retrieved September 4, 2011 from http://www.bronxbanterblog.com/2011/07/18/life-after-jim/
1. He's seriously loveable. He's intense, man. Maybe that's why he's so loveable.
3. He mostly speaks in grunts and short phrases. "BEAT DRUMS!" / "EAT DRUMS!"
4. He's been a drummer for 4... no 5 years.
5. He loves his drums.
6. But sometimes he thinks drums are food. Cymbals too.
7. He has no patience for bad puns.
8. And he has a bit of a violent streak.
9. In fact, he's a wild thing.
10. And he likes bunny rabbits. Small ones.
Direct link: http://youtu.be/2cEPydnb0Ns
Direct link: http://youtu.be/KM6o1Hv7ec0
Direct link: http://youtu.be/WnJgdyaJ2BQ
Saturday, September 03, 2011
Tips for Finding Reasonably Priced and Free E-Books @ Cookie's Book Club
Own a Kindle or other e-reader? Frustrated by some of the high prices you see for e-books? Want to know how to get e-books cheap or, better yet, free?
Come on over to Cookie's Book Club.
Today I'm sharing my tips on how to find inexpensive and free e-books!
Friday, September 02, 2011
The ABC's of Me
The ABCs of Me is a post written for Voiceboks, The Voice of Motherhood. If you're not a member of Voiceboks yet, check it out. It's a great community for connecting with other blogging-networking moms.
This list seems to be more The ABCs of Free Association than a list of words that describe me directly.... but it still says something about me.
A is for ADAPTABILITY. I would be nowhere without this word.
B is for BEAUTY. It's everywhere and I'm soaking it up.
C is for COOKIE and that's good enough for me.
D is for DREAM. DARE to DO it.
E is for ECLECTIC. That's my blog. That's me.
F is for FAITH. It'll all work out in the end.
G is for GRATITUDE, one of my favourite and most useful words.
H is for HAIR. I have a lot of it, and I think it's safe to say I obsess over it just a little bit.
I is for I SCREAM, YOU SCREAM, WE ALL SCREAM FOR ICE CREAM!
J is for JACK. Just JACK.
K is for KISSES. Can you have too many of these? Noooooo.
L is for LOVE. It's all you need.
M is for MOM. Best job ever!
N is for NURTURE. It's what we moms do.
O is for OOMPH! There it is!
P is for PEACE. Aum.
Q is for QUIET. I vaguely remember this being highly restorative, bringing me lots of P.
R is for RAUCOUS, something more familiar to me these days than Q.
S is for SERENDIPITY. Surprising good fortune just makes my day.
T is for TRANQUILITY. Are you sensing a theme?
U is for UPLIFT. My mission. My goal.
V is for VALUABLE. You are. I am.
W is for WARMTH. Ahhhh.
X is for XYLOPHONE. It makes music and starts with X.
Y is for YES. Everyone's favourite word.
Z is for ZEBRAS. Who doesn't love zebras?
I'm also linking up today with a fellow Canadian blogger and friend, Bruna for Let's Bee Friends Friday. Each Friday, Bruna features a new blogger. Check it out! It's a great way to meet new friends.
This list seems to be more The ABCs of Free Association than a list of words that describe me directly.... but it still says something about me.
A is for ADAPTABILITY. I would be nowhere without this word.
B is for BEAUTY. It's everywhere and I'm soaking it up.
C is for COOKIE and that's good enough for me.
D is for DREAM. DARE to DO it.
E is for ECLECTIC. That's my blog. That's me.
F is for FAITH. It'll all work out in the end.
G is for GRATITUDE, one of my favourite and most useful words.
H is for HAIR. I have a lot of it, and I think it's safe to say I obsess over it just a little bit.
I is for I SCREAM, YOU SCREAM, WE ALL SCREAM FOR ICE CREAM!
J is for JACK. Just JACK.
K is for KISSES. Can you have too many of these? Noooooo.
L is for LOVE. It's all you need.
M is for MOM. Best job ever!
N is for NURTURE. It's what we moms do.
O is for OOMPH! There it is!
P is for PEACE. Aum.
Q is for QUIET. I vaguely remember this being highly restorative, bringing me lots of P.
R is for RAUCOUS, something more familiar to me these days than Q.
S is for SERENDIPITY. Surprising good fortune just makes my day.
T is for TRANQUILITY. Are you sensing a theme?
U is for UPLIFT. My mission. My goal.
V is for VALUABLE. You are. I am.
W is for WARMTH. Ahhhh.
X is for XYLOPHONE. It makes music and starts with X.
Y is for YES. Everyone's favourite word.
Z is for ZEBRAS. Who doesn't love zebras?
I'm also linking up today with a fellow Canadian blogger and friend, Bruna for Let's Bee Friends Friday. Each Friday, Bruna features a new blogger. Check it out! It's a great way to meet new friends.
Thursday, September 01, 2011
Life's Lessons:
The Return From Hiatus Edition
I'm ba-a-a-ck! Did you miss me? No?! Well, that's understandable. My guests did an excellent job of taking care of the place in my absence. Perhaps too good a job!
You may be wondering, Where did she go? What did she do for a whole month?
One idea behind taking a break from blogging was to spend some time with my family this summer - it's been so busy that I felt I had been neglecting them some. I also intended to organize my life and my blogging efforts a bit in order to free up more time on an ongoing basis. I wanted to knock a few things off of the To Do list that have been nagging at me, and I wanted to rest.
The rest was necessary not only because I'm a mom (enough said, I presume), but also because I have not been feeling well - for years, but the situation continues to decline. I wish I was brave enough to go into detail on that point. I wish I could share something of that journey with all of you, because I know that you would offer your support and that support would be very healing. I tried - I wrote a draft of this post that included those details. I guess I'm just not ready.
I took this break because I needed to give some serious thought to priorities of wants and needs. There are a lot of 'have tos' and 'shoulds' in my life. My family and my health are the top priorities. Truly, if they are not looked after, nothing else much matters. Thus, I have been wondering if I 'need' to give up blogging altogether. It's difficult to manage the time commitment required to keep my blogs running at a reasonable pace. While I have been managing reasonably well, it's not just housekeeping and the laundry that are suffering anymore. My body keeps telling me, in not so subtle ways, that I need to make some choices. Frustrating as it is to me, I can not have it all. Not just now anyway.
Blogging is certainly not a priority. I'm not earning a living from it, though it most definitely is work. The world won't come to a screeching halt if suddenly there is one less mommy-slash-book blogger in it. In my most dour moments this past month I wondered if anyone would even notice if I just stopped writing. But then I yanked myself out of my dramatic, needy funk and started to seriously consider my options.
Blogging is not a should or a have to, but it is fun. I want to write, and if wants are not satisfied my health suffers too. I enjoy connecting through my blog with family, friends and fellow bloggers who share many of my struggles and joys. And this place is a part of me now.
Still the question remains, How do I manage my time? There are things I am 'supposed' to be doing right now, yet here I am, well past time to do those things and still get the sleep that I need, writing this post. I don't want the more vital things to suffer, but I also don't want to give up blogging.
I expect that my blogs will experience some changes over the next while, but, despite a month of reflection, I don't yet know what that will look like. I may blog less frequently. I may blog less energetically. Perhaps my blogs will move in an entirely new direction.
I realize that I'm probably rambling by now, but the anti-perfectionist in me (however minature she may be) is going to let it slide. I could worry also that I am being too somber, particularly given my personal commitment to creating an uplifting internet presence, but I know, and was reminded recently by a wonderful fellow blogger, that it is hard to appreciate the beauty of life without reference to its hardships.
Life is beautiful. Personally, I have much to be thankful for. Yes, life is challenging right now, but I have plenty of hope and plenty of resources. No, this blog is not a priority, but it brings me joy. I have some work to do to fit it into my life, rather than the other way around. While I didn't manage to figure it all out while on hiatus, I did resolve to be kind to myself and to try to let go a little, let the blog evolve how it will, write when I have something to say, attend to life's priorities and its many other joys when I don't.
It's nice to be home. After a month of having guests, it's almost too quiet around here, a little of the warmth has gone from the place. I suppose it is coming on fall. Time to light the fire and settle in with a good book and a hot cup of tea. To your health!
I'm linking up this post with another good blogging friend, Rach of Life With Baby Donut, because if all of these revelations don't qualify as life lessons, I don't know what does!
I'm also linking up with Things I Can't Say for the first time, since, well... I'm sort of pouring my heart out here for the first time. Okay, maybe I chickened out a little shy of pouring my entire heart out, but it was an effort. Baby steps!
You may be wondering, Where did she go? What did she do for a whole month?
One idea behind taking a break from blogging was to spend some time with my family this summer - it's been so busy that I felt I had been neglecting them some. I also intended to organize my life and my blogging efforts a bit in order to free up more time on an ongoing basis. I wanted to knock a few things off of the To Do list that have been nagging at me, and I wanted to rest.
The rest was necessary not only because I'm a mom (enough said, I presume), but also because I have not been feeling well - for years, but the situation continues to decline. I wish I was brave enough to go into detail on that point. I wish I could share something of that journey with all of you, because I know that you would offer your support and that support would be very healing. I tried - I wrote a draft of this post that included those details. I guess I'm just not ready.
I took this break because I needed to give some serious thought to priorities of wants and needs. There are a lot of 'have tos' and 'shoulds' in my life. My family and my health are the top priorities. Truly, if they are not looked after, nothing else much matters. Thus, I have been wondering if I 'need' to give up blogging altogether. It's difficult to manage the time commitment required to keep my blogs running at a reasonable pace. While I have been managing reasonably well, it's not just housekeeping and the laundry that are suffering anymore. My body keeps telling me, in not so subtle ways, that I need to make some choices. Frustrating as it is to me, I can not have it all. Not just now anyway.
Blogging is certainly not a priority. I'm not earning a living from it, though it most definitely is work. The world won't come to a screeching halt if suddenly there is one less mommy-slash-book blogger in it. In my most dour moments this past month I wondered if anyone would even notice if I just stopped writing. But then I yanked myself out of my dramatic, needy funk and started to seriously consider my options.
Blogging is not a should or a have to, but it is fun. I want to write, and if wants are not satisfied my health suffers too. I enjoy connecting through my blog with family, friends and fellow bloggers who share many of my struggles and joys. And this place is a part of me now.
Still the question remains, How do I manage my time? There are things I am 'supposed' to be doing right now, yet here I am, well past time to do those things and still get the sleep that I need, writing this post. I don't want the more vital things to suffer, but I also don't want to give up blogging.
I expect that my blogs will experience some changes over the next while, but, despite a month of reflection, I don't yet know what that will look like. I may blog less frequently. I may blog less energetically. Perhaps my blogs will move in an entirely new direction.
I realize that I'm probably rambling by now, but the anti-perfectionist in me (however minature she may be) is going to let it slide. I could worry also that I am being too somber, particularly given my personal commitment to creating an uplifting internet presence, but I know, and was reminded recently by a wonderful fellow blogger, that it is hard to appreciate the beauty of life without reference to its hardships.
Life is beautiful. Personally, I have much to be thankful for. Yes, life is challenging right now, but I have plenty of hope and plenty of resources. No, this blog is not a priority, but it brings me joy. I have some work to do to fit it into my life, rather than the other way around. While I didn't manage to figure it all out while on hiatus, I did resolve to be kind to myself and to try to let go a little, let the blog evolve how it will, write when I have something to say, attend to life's priorities and its many other joys when I don't.
It's nice to be home. After a month of having guests, it's almost too quiet around here, a little of the warmth has gone from the place. I suppose it is coming on fall. Time to light the fire and settle in with a good book and a hot cup of tea. To your health!
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
I'm linking up this post with another good blogging friend, Rach of Life With Baby Donut, because if all of these revelations don't qualify as life lessons, I don't know what does!
I'm also linking up with Things I Can't Say for the first time, since, well... I'm sort of pouring my heart out here for the first time. Okay, maybe I chickened out a little shy of pouring my entire heart out, but it was an effort. Baby steps!
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