10 month old Superbaby

Being the mom of a 10 month old superbaby is tough, and amazing. So, I just want to let you know some updated facts about my sweet boy:



* He weighs 23 lbs, 2 oz and is 30 inches long

* He is wearing some 12 months and some 18 month clothes

* He is now a very experienced crawler and stander

* He is eating mostly table food, but still occasionally eats baby food

* He now only takes 1 nap a day usually at 12:30pm

* He says "Mama" very clearly and looks for me when I leave the room (melt my heart)

* He definetly knows what "no" means and gives me a very pouty look when I say it to him.

* His bedtime is around 8:30 and he usually sleeps until 8:00-9:00am



I can't believe he is 10 months old already.

Frustrated. Commenter.

Lately, I have been frustrated. I read Mckmama's blog, and I like it. I don't agree with a majority of the political views she has shared on her blog. However, I think her writing is elegant and poignant. She is also a great photographer, and I feel like I learn a lot from her photography lessons.


As much as I enjoy reading what she has to say, I am becoming increasingly frustrated at the Mckhaters. In case you don't read her blog I will explain...Mckhaters go to her blog daily and comment ridiculously hateful things that insult Mckmama, her children, and her readers. Often a "comment war" insues between readers and Mckhaters. Mckmama tries to break it up, and is always asking people who share different opinions "not say unkind words while expressing their opinion", but they don't listen.


I could maybe let it slide if it she posted a highly controversial political post. I know that political debates get heated on both sides, so while I still don't like name calling and ugliness, I guess it is expected when you are talking about such a sensitive topic. However, the Mckhaters spread their negativity on EVERY post. Whether, Mckmama posts a picture of her children, or a post about her recent hospital stay. There is always something mean lurking.


I like to comment on blogs that I enjoy, and if you are here visiting my blog because I commented on yours, you know that. However, this negativity is really bringing me down. I don't want to stop reading her blog, but I am thinking about not commenting anymore. If I don't comment on her blog, then I don't get bombarded with all the mean comments. It saddens me that I this is what it has come to for me, but I don't like getting depressed after I read a blog, and lately that is what happens every time I read Mckmama's post comments. What happened to "If you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all."

Take a Stand

Move over baby toys, We have a stander.

This little 9 month old wonder has been refining his skill over the past couple of weeks, and he now walks holding his daddy's hands. I have yet to get a picture of this, but I am working on it.

I can't believe how quickly time flies when you are having fun.

Superyard XT by North State review

We recently purchased this jail so that our mobile little guy doesn't have free reign of our downstairs area. It is very inexpensive compared to the other play yards we looked at. On Wal-mart.com it is only $52.98 with free shipping. The others we priced were at least $100 more than that.

Our decision to buy a large play yard really stemmed from our son's hatred of his playpen. It worked when he was smaller, but since he has started to stand and cruise around he just screams in the playpen. We have a large brick fireplace and a very open floor plan so gates just don't work for us.

Overall, I really think play yard is a great product. It is very spacious and my 9 month old has plenty of room to move around. There is also an extension kit you can buy for $20 at Wal-mart.com. I would think that the extension kit would only be necessary if you have an older child, or msc (many small children).

There are a couple of issues with this play yard. It is not very sturdy on hard wood or laminate. When it is on theses surfaces it moves VERY easily. The day we set it up, my son just pushed it around everywhere, because of this we had to put down mats. These mats keep it in the same place, so I don't worry about my kid falling every time he holds onto it while he standing.




Another big issue I had with this product is the latch to open and close it. It comes in the mail assembled, so I was under the impression that it was going to be simple to set up. WRONG! I pulled it out of the box and arranged it into a hexagon then I attempted to latch the two ends together. This was incredibly difficult to do, and the instructions were not helpful at all. I spent 90 minutes and bruised the palms of my hands and the thing still would not close. I was ready to take it back when my husband came home and after a little coaxing, and using his manly strength. He got the thing to close. So, now we aren't going to attempt to open it in order to go in and out, because it is so difficult to close. It is a bit of a bummer that we have to step over this tall fence to gain access to our kid, but we decided not to return it.

Overall, I would give this product a 6/10. I would say that the 2 negatives are outweighed by the cost.


** I purchased this item with my own money, and I was not compensated in anyway for providing this review**

Father's Day

Yes, I know it has been a while since Father's day, but remember I was practicing procrastination! So, as late as it is, I thought I would share my husband's first Father's day with you.We decided to go the the Virginia Air and Space Center. We had wanted to do something outdoors, but the insane heat wave that hit Virginia was torture, to say the least, so we opted for something inside.

There were a lot of kid friendly exhibits


and I am not going to admit that we enjoyed them as much as the children running around that day did.

Here is my favorite photo of the day. The piece de resistance :

Frugal Friday

We are very budget conscious. We do splurge every once in a while, but we are committed to putting money away for retirement/emergency/just in case.

There are many things we do in order to save money here or there. I plan to talk about one way to save money every Friday until either, I run out of ways to save, or you guys get bored of my suggestions.

Coupons.

There are a lot of ways to save money by using coupons, but today I am going to talk about couponing via websites. I try never to buy something that I do not have a coupon for. Sometimes that is impossible no matter where I look. If I have to buy formula, then I have to, regardless of what coupons I have. One thing I do when I don't have a coupon for something is go to the web.

Many product websites offer coupons just for registering with their sites. A couple I have recently registered with are Colgate.com, Philadelphia cream cheese (rwop.com), and Suave.com. I am sure there are so many more, but these are just off the top of my head. The good thing about registering with these websites is that periodically they send you more coupons through your email and that = extra money in your pocket.

If I have no luck via the products website, I usually go to google and search for the coupon I am hoping is out there, sometimes I get lucky and find what I need. Sometimes the coupons I find are for online purchases, and that is okay, if it saves me money and offers free shipping.

If I google and I still can't find a coupon, my last online option is Facebook. Many products have facebook pages, and often if you like a product you will gain access to a printable coupon. The most recent coupons I have gotten from Facebook are Welch's grape juice, and diet coke.

One last online tip. I have found this to be especially important for parents or caretakers of children. Often there are online groups for demographics of people that offer coupons and samples of products that demographic might use. I have registered for a ton of these (some for moms, some for homemakers, some for military families), and I have received a lot of sample items in the mail. I have received everything from diapers to air fresheners for free just by registering with these demographic groups.

Good Luck and Happy Saving!

Wordless Wednesday

Secret Admission: Closet Case

I am in desperate need of closet organization. My bedroom closets ( I have his and hers) are an unorganized mess. I have very good intentions of turning them into efficient, clutter free, spacious closets like the immaculate one in the photo. Oh, how I would love to open my closet doors and see this:

Right now, I have 1 shelf at the top of each closet. They are good sized, but not walk - in closets. I would really love to be able to have much more shelving, without losing space for my hang-up clothes. I am also in much need of organization on the floor of the closets. I have plastic storage bins and shoes everywhere.

Another big factor in my huge closet remodel is budget. I really need to do both closets for under $100. I realize that might seem impossible, but I am determined to find a way!! I have looked at a few stores, and found some closet organization kits, but I don't really know what I need, and I don't want to buy something that won't give me the results I want.

So, I am at a stand still. Which brings me to you. Do you have any closet remodel ideas? Have you used any closet organization kits? Do you have any cost effective organization tips?

Not Me! Monday

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

Let's see, this week I did NOT save all my coupon clipping for Sunday at 10:00pm, and I did NOT clip, arrange and list them in bed at midnight next to my poor husband who had to work bright and early the next morning. I do NOT procrastinate that bad, and I would NEVER do something as insensitive as possibly keeping my husband awake too late.

I also did NOT go to bed Saturday night at...8:30pm. I was NOT overjoyed at the prospect of going to bed so early. I lead an exciting life, filled with social engagements, and you will NEVER find me asleep before it is officially "dark" outside.

I did NOT overreact when someone that I consider a minor celebrity in the blogging world followed me on twitter, and I did NOT go against my better judgement and send her a cheesy DM. I am NOT completely embarrassed now at all of the gushing I did.

That was my week, What did you NOT do this week?

Secret admission

I watch Wife Swap. Every afternoon my remote control happens to find it's way to Lifetime for the 3 hour long run of this horrendous show. I don't know why. It is like an accident, I don't want to see it, but I just can't turn away. This is one of those things that I don't want to admit to, and I find very embarrassing.


At every stage of this show (intro, home rules, rule change, confrontation) I find something appalling about each family. It makes me angry that crazy people like this are having multitudes of children, and there is not going to be any shortage of them as long as this show is looking for the crazies to put on TV. I will accept my share of the responsibility. I watch this show, therefore I am part of the problem. I am intrigued by insane lifestyles of the ultra conservative, the uber liberal, the off the wall anarchists, and the overly strict bible thumpers.

The best part of the show is the end. The final five minutes when we get to see how each family has benefited by opening their mind to someone elses way of life. This is the only part of the show that is redeeming. It is amazing to think that by walking in someone elses shoes for a just a short time how much we can learn about our own flaws, and how they are impacting our family. I love the thought that so much change is possible within ourselves when we are willing to open up to other ideas.

Dear Blog,

I am so sorry that I have neglected you for so long. It has not been that I have not had you on my mind. I have so many posts that I am "this close" to writing. I just haven't found the moment to write them, and I have been practicing my procrastination. The good news is I am getting very good at it, the bad news is that you unfortunately suffered. I was very busy last week, and I have the pictures to prove it. I am in the middle of editing a ton of photos to post. If you can just wait a little bit longer, I promise you won't be disappointed.