Special Delivery For Mommy!

Look what happened to me yesterday! Somebody knocked on my door and gave me this:

Oh my goodness, what could it be?? Well, it might have something to do with the fact that I signed up for an awesome thing called MommiesFirst, where for only 25 bucks a month they send me a package with surprise mommy/pregnancy related goods. Much better than the other "monthly gift" I got before getting pregnant, if you ask me :). Now shall we open it??

Look how pretty it looks inside. I almost - ALMOST - don't want to destroy it. The fancy envelope has a personalized message only to me (as if I am the only person in the world to be with child).

Yaaay! Gifts!! So here are some pictures and quick descriptions of what's inside:

Card with 5$ gift card to bookcloseouts.com

Preggie-friendly skin stuff (nice since I told them I'm breaking out)

It's a hit - Melissa's asked to read it a million times and Andrew loves the bear (even learned to say "bear" with it :)

Silly messages that stick, unstick and stick again everywhere. Husband approves the "I love you more than chocolate" one I tossed his way (a huge statement from me :)

Since this is my third package from them, 2 other previous products also deserve honorable mentions:

Au Fait Mama NURSING Shirt, which looks amazingly like a regular top 

Best belly cream EVER!! Fragrance-free (no strong cocoa butter smell like my other one), organic, makes my skin look good and even feels relaxing on my sore stretched muscles.

And now, to close with a bang, here's an exclusive interview with MommiesFirst's inventor, Lorena Scott! (and no, I am not being paid for this advertisement - we've just been keeping in touch because she's that nice, so I wanted to extend my celebrity-meeting moment to this blog :).

Me- I love the story about how you freaked out at a baby store while pregnant for the first time :). Did your a-ha moment for MommiesFirst spark right then?
Lorena- The panic attack at a baby story is 100% a true story.  In the moment, I didn’t really think “oh, this is a business opportunity”. Instead, I just remember wishing there had to be a better way  to discover products, especially for first time moms. I was already really nervous about having a baby and found the shopping was an unnecessary added stressor! It wasn’t until I was pregnant with my second son that I committed to starting MommiesFirst. A month after he was born I hosted my first focus group to talk about what moms wanted and needed.  By the time he was 5 months old we launched the website, and when he turned 9 months we shipped our first care packages.  I track the age of MommiesFirst pretty much with the age of my baby boy!

Me- How is it to run a company while raising kids? Was it difficult at first?

Lorena- I’ll be honest – it is 100% hard.  I am not a super mom – I try and balance all the different responsibilities on my plate, and often I crawl into bed exhausted and feeling like I failed my kids.  I find it’s easier to be honest with moms about these challenges, because we are VERY hard on ourselves.  Luckily, I also have a lot of support. My husband is my best friend, confidante and business partner; my father has moved into help launch MommiesFirst; and my kids – they are just so inspiring.  My family keeps me motivated even on the hardest days.

Me- What's your advice for moms who dream of starting something on their own?

Lorena- Honestly – JUST DO IT! I know I wrote how hard it is above, but starting my own business has also been the most amazing journey of my life. I’ve wanted to be an entrepreneur for so long, and for the longest time I was too scared to give it a try.  Now that I’m actually doing it, I pinch myself every day with excitement, and I really don’t know why it took me so long. I love that I’m creating a service that helps other moms and hopefully I’m inspiring my kids as well. As their mom, I think a lot about what lies ahead for them as they grow older, and I really hope that they will follow their passions and take lots of leaps of faith while pursuing those dreams. I hope watching me build and grow MommiesFirst will inspire them to do whatever makes them happy and hopefully make a great impact on the world too!

Me- You look great in your website pictures! Any tips for taking care of yourself in the midst of motherhood/work duties?

Lorena- Wow – thanks for the compliment. My “secret” is I that run home from work at least 3 days a week. Exercise (running especially) is my therapy and it’s the one thing I do on my own. For a while, I was having a hard time finding time to exercise because I didn’t want to take time away from my kids (especially since I don’t feel like I spend enough time with them during the day), and I was too tired to hit the gym once they’d fallen asleep. This winter, I invested in outdoor running gear and a backpack, and I run home from the office! I am so happy because I get my work out in, help the environment, and it’s truly guilt free! So, my one tip is to be creative about finding time to stay healthy.  Do it for your kids, but also do it for yourself!

Click on the logo to get started! You can also send a package to a friend :) 

 

Mom's Barbershop Strikes Again: Andrew's 1st Haircut

I had this whole grand idea of when Andrew would get his first haircut. I'd research to find the very best kid-friendly salon in town, preferably one with fun car-shaped seats. And if all failed, David would hold his arms down like a straight jacket lol. I had my mind prepared for every scenario. But as much as the worst was the most obvious, I still believed in a magical haircutting experience. 

Ha. Well, for starters, we didn't even get to the salon :). My hopes of Andrew being able to go through this were shattered every time someone he's not used to gets too close. ANYONE. When we're at a restaurant, waiters can't even take our order behind him. That bad. He starts panicking, and if they attempt to interact with him, the world ends. He SCREAMS. Like "get me out of here, this person is TALKING to me! I'm gonna die!"

Now, Andrew's not a fearful boy. He's actually very daring on the things he does want to do - often falling head first while trying to reach something down below, or if we're holding him and he wants out, he simply jumps off of us - as if he could fly :). We have to catch him mid-air lol. So he's not a wimpy kid at all, he's just determined. Like he'll let you know if he disagrees on something (such as socializing if he doesn't feel like it). And he'll get his point across with the strength of a warrior (meaning, screaming bloody murder). 

Oy. Wondering how that's gonna play out in his teenage years :). But so far, while he's an adorable, cuddly boy, I'm enjoying it. He can be a very peaceful and sweet baby if he's not fighting for a strong ideal lol. So back to the haircutting milestone, I was hoping for THAT kind of baby to come out instead of the warrior one. 

Here I am, calling him a baby again :). So weird to think of him as a boy already! Anyway, this week his hair was so long that it was curling down his neck (sorry, should've taken a "before" picture), and he's far too manly of a boy to look like Curly Sue lol. But when I announced we couldn't hold off on a salon visit any longer, David reminded me of all of his fits whenever anyone he didn't know very well got too close. There was this waiter who was SO nice (he could've been a TV host for a kids show), but Andrew got terrified of him. It was embarrassing, 'cause the poor guy couldn't even pass our table to ask how we were doing! Andrew would change from a good mood to WAILING just for sensing his presence. The odds for a hairstylist didn't look promising. 

I knew what I had to do. During snack time, I armed myself with a pair of scissors. Daddy and Melissa were great distractors, and Andrew had a great time! I doubt this would've gone so well had we gone to a salon. Though it probably would've looked better (or you never know, if he screamed too much they might've cut his ear or kicked us out lol). And you know one funny thing? I did the exact same thing I'd done when cutting Melissa's hair for the first time (cut bangs too short - which seems to be a family tradition, my sisters and I all went through this with my mom :), but since he's a boy, it worked! 

A snack and a haircut!

Did my best on the sides :)

Still cute with his mouth full

Enjoying the spotlight

Who's this big boy where my baby used to be??

So this was our haircutting adventure. Any fun stories to share? Or styling tips? :)

It's aaaaa.....

Check out these ultrasound pics and take a guess:

Adorable, right?? And did you find a pee pee anywhere? I know, it's hard to see much (these are actually pictures of the pictures :), but even the technician couldn't detect any boy parts, which meeeans...

It's - most likely - a GIRL!!!!!

I say most likely because turns out my fluid is low (it's Andrew's fault! He loves my bottle of water, so I have to hide it from him and end up not drinking enough), that's why the images weren't too clear. The meanie technician wouldn't give us 100% certainty, but then my midwife said it must be true because she wrote "female" on the chart, and according to my midwife, she only does that when she's 100% sure. So I'm giving myself permission to think that yes, I'm having a girl (especially since babies' pee pees tend to stick out pretty well :). At least we're having another ultrasound in 3 weeks (after I drink truckloads of water) to recheck the fluid, so by then I should REALLY know. 

Now, after all this long explanation lol, I'm still digesting the news. I felt like it was a girl since I found out I was pregnant, but then my mom dreamed it was a boy, and it's amazing how often her dreams come true. So I started to prepare myself psychologically for it - and now, turns out it's a girl!! I have to reprogram my brain again :). 

This is how I'm feeling - like somebody told me that I'm either going to the beach or to the movies on a Saturday. I'd choose the movies, 'cause I'm more of an indoors person, but when I suspect it's the beach, I put my bathing suit on and start getting excited. But then they tell me we're going to the movies! Of course I'm happy 'cause that's what I hoped for, but I feel so completely unprepared. Like, now I smell like sunblock! :) Translated to having-a-baby terms, I haven't imagined having another girl lately, or planned for it enough. I feel like I need to catch up!

Anyway, I'll get there lol. Right now I'd better go to sleep so I can keep up with my already born children tomorrow. Please leave a comment to let me know you stop by!

Monday Musings: The Heart Reconstructor

Proverbs 4:23 says "Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it."

Isn't it amazing how this can be the first thing we ignore when we feel insecure/anxious or just plain bored? Think of how many times have you watched crap on TV (that you KNEW would make you feel yucky later) simply because there was nothing else on. 

But the reason why I thought of this post is that I know so many people who are suffering (or have suffered). Good, wonderful people who got hurt by not so good ones. And even if they had something to do with it, the fact of the matter is, their hearts were broken. Yes, with time, they got the pieces back together and moved on, but a little part or two is sure to be left behind.

That's what happens in this twisted world we live in. Eventually our hearts can come to the point of not feeling whole anymore. But I remember a good friend of mine, who'd been through 2 divorces, and told me that her breakthrough came when she prayed that God would make her feel whole again - and He did just that.

I thought it was so cool at the time, and still do. It hurts me that some of the people I admire most have been traumatized in a really big way. Bad experiences can leave such a bad taste in your mouth that all your outlook on life changes. I've been through that too (spent the first 2 years after college pretty much in a daze), and sadly, I don't know a person who hasn't gone through any kind of crisis. Who's never been let down, and had their innocence taken away. Like it was never supposed to happen if sin had never entered the world.

But here's the good new: there's a heart reconstructor. You know, God created you in the first place. He knows where the lost pieces of your broken heart are. And better yet, He still knows what He made it with, so He can still make the whole thing over if He has to! He's still got some heart material hidden somewhere lol. 

Jokes aside, God KNOWS how to make you over. You don't need to drag your trauma like a ball and chain. Of course things can mature us in a positive way, but to let it haunt you forever isn't from God. You're not doomed by it. There's another exit from this - let Him reconstruct you into the person you were always meant to be (and are). 

Whoa, almost 19 Weeks!! & ALMOST Gender Reveal :)

Today's belly shot has been invaded by my millions of kids :)

I know, I know - my plans to be so faithful in keeping updates aren't always happening. It's not all my fault! I stayed about 2 weeks without a computer (how did I even breathe??) because my old one went to computer heaven (or hell lol).

But there's a happy ending to this tragic story: I got a Mac Air!!!!! Oh my goodness, I can't even believe it. It took 3 pregnancies for husband finally hear my cry on buying a lighter laptop. With this I can type until I give birth! Because by the time you're 8 months, ANY pressure on your thighs (unless it's like, your older kid) makes you want to die.

Anyway. On to pregnancy reports! 2nd trimester still rocks, BUT the baby's definitely going through a growth spurt. Which means that although I have more energy, the muscles around my belly can't take too much. Not that it's so bad to chase 2 little ones (walking around helps me feel better, or reminds me to get up and stretch). It's just bending and heavy lifting that can really hurt me. So yeah, my TV rules have loosened up a bit. But the kids are still having every meal at the table! Like they say, "aim for the moon and you might reach the stars", or something like that. Aim for perfect parenthood and you might end up descent! 

With my belly bulging more, I think the kids are starting to grasp the concept that another sibling is coming. Andrew likes to poke my belly, and I make it talk to him lol. Then he starts wanting to feed it with his food, and it's not so fun anymore :). He's growing up so fast, and I'm cherishing the last moments of him being the baby for as long as they last. It's hard, because I feel like I didn't have enough time to just enjoy his babyhood before focusing on another one. And note to moms wondering if they'll be able love another kid as much as their first - YES you will. You'll be in awe of each child, no matter the birth order. And he's turning into such an adorable little boy! I pray that he never feels ignored in the middle, because he's as special as if he was the only one. 

Melissa's still a sweet and fun sister, but I've noticed she's started some regression (whining/behaving like a baby, or getting upset if we tell her she's big). One morning I had the revelation to tell her that even if she grows up THIS big (I raised my arm) and a bunch of babies come, she'll always be mommy's baby. She opened a huge smile, and then her mood was like night and day - from complaining about everything to being happily compliant. 

I'm SO glad God gave me the idea to say this because she's been so moody, and I hadn't yet considered that it could be because of the baby (since she's already been through having a younger sibling). But the more I thought about it, the more it makes sense - she might wonder where she fits in now that all these babies are coming :). Also hearing me talk about it like it's an exciting thing might give her the impression that being a baby is more special than being big. I'm trying to make sure she still feels like our little one, and not like she's expected to just be a grown girl without ever being babied anymore.

Now, on to the part of the ALMOST gender reveal: we'll find out Tuesday around 4:00!! I bursting out of my seams with excitement. We'll get to call the baby by his/her name! Which will be Holly for a girl or Kevin for a boy. My mom dreamed it's a boy, so I'm pretty much believing it is, because I never doubt her dreams anymore - she dreamt I'd have a girl quickly (and then I got pregnant with Melissa after just 3 weeks trying), and another time she dreamt her friend was pregnant and it turned out to be true. We'll see if she's right again in 3 short days!!

And YES, I hereby make the commitment to post extensively about the official gender reveal. But please leave comments so I'll remember to stop jumping up and down enough to do it :).