Mommy Musings

I think my blog is in need of some light-hearted fluff today, and what better way than to link up with the lovely Shannon for her So What Wednesday! So what if.... - Skip and I totally forgot to take a picture together on our anniversary...whoops! - I still get sad that we're done having babies - I never got on top of the laundry - The shelf in our coat closet broke over a week ago...and everything is still sitting in a pile on the floor of the closet.  I'll get to it eventually. - I'm a little annoyed at myself that I agreed to a girls weekend this weekend...football starts on Sunday!!! {I'm really just kidding, I'm not annoyed at all, but just ridiculously excited... screw football} - I refuse to spend a lot of money on curtains....how are straight bits of fabric so expensive?!? - I am not loving this weather.  It would be great at the end of September..but not now.  I need my 100* back. - I still don't feel old enough to be married eight years - I bought a

One year ago today, at 7:42 in the morning, my life was forever changed.  It was the moment our vet called to tell us our poor sweet bulldog, Braddock, had passed away. It's really strange to think that losing a dog could affect your life that much .  But for me it was true.  Nothing has been exactly the same since he was gone.  A piece of me, a piece of my heart, is different. Maybe it's because he was so much more than just a dog to me.  He was my baby, my boy.  We got him when he was only a few weeks old, when I was pregnant with Emmy.  He would wake up every two hours or so to go to the bathroom, and then I'd lay on the couch until he fell asleep on my shoulder and I could put him back in his cage.  He taught me how to be a mother. He was a really great protector {even though he was ridiculously afraid of thunder}.  I never felt unsafe when Skip would work overtime at night, because I knew Mr. B would alert us to any danger. And no one  was a better snuggler than he was

Eight years ago today I stood confidently at 22, in front of all my friends and family, pledging my undying devotion to the man I loved.  There was not a single moment of doubt in my mind that day, or in the eight years since.  Marrying Skip was the easiest decision I ever had to make.  Because loving him is as essential to my life as breathing.  Eight years One condo One house Five cars Two kids Two dogs Plenty of vacations A couple dozen fish These last eight years have been so amazing with you Skip.  I cannot wait to see what the rest of our life together brings. 

I had a company ask me to send over my blog media kit one day.  I turned to Skip and was like, ummm, what?  I had no idea what they were talking about. Wanting to seem like the savvy blogger I am not , I sent off a quick, "oh sure, I just have to update it a little" and immediately turned to our good friend Google.  After doing tons of research, and even more editing, and re-editing, I finally had a media kit I could proudly send off to promote my blog.  Now I'm definitely no expert, here's a few things I learned when making my kit. - First things first, a media kit is usually a one page document that highlights your blog. - It usually includes: Blog name Blog header A picture of yourself - people like to know who they're dealing with! A short description of your blog, and what you blog about Companies you have worked with in the past Updated blog statistics {page views, social media followers, unique monthly visitors} What services you offer {sponsored posts

Today, pet owners can communicate with other pet owners online. This is picking up in popularity for many reasons. For one, if a pet owner has a question about a dog's diet or a health condition, he or she can ask fellow pet lovers on the forum. Discover some other reasons why more pet owners are joining forums to talk about their pets! Specific Tips on a Breed A person who just adopted a particular breed of dog may have some questions about its behavior or how much exercise it needs. It's likely that another person on the forum owns a dog of the same breed. He or she can give the person tips on how to care for the dog. This sort of personal advice is more helpful than general advice from someone who owns a different breed of dog. If this sort of activity interests you, you can engage with others in the pet lovers forum at PetNetWorld.com . Informed Advice from Experts Many pet owners visit forums to read articles written by veterinarians and other pet professionals. The v

Time for another week linking up with Manda for our 30 miles in 30 days! Thursday July 18 - Shred Level 1 - no miles Friday - none Saturday - 2 miles running intervals Sunday - none Monday - 3.2 mile elliptical Tuesday - 2.8 mile run Wednesday - 3.1 mile walk Weekly Total - 11.1 July total - 31.7 miles Not a terrible week considering I'm still rocking a bum knee, and now a twisted ankle.  My dreams of hitting 50 miles in July are definitely out of reach, but at least I've done 30 already!! How have you been doing? Go link up with Manda and join in the fun!

As I had mentioned before, Skip's mom was diagnosed with lung cancer back in August 2012.  She endured months of chemo, radiation, and even laser brain surgery.  She fought the cancer with everything she had. But then, at the beginning of February, the doctors informed us that there was nothing else we could do.  My MIL was adamant about being at home, with her family, and so that's exactly what we did.  She still needed quite a bit of care though.  Aided by hospice nurses, Skip, his sister, and his cousin rotated being in PA and taking over the role of caregiver.  It took some time for everyone to figure it all out, and there was definitely a large learning curve.  Becoming a full-time caregiver, with no prior training, can be very difficult. I only wish we had know about GENWORTH  then. Iframe support required to view this content. GENWORTH  has so many resources that could have helped us all in the new roll of caregiver.  They have some really great articles, such as how muc

If you're a blogger who has kids, you're probably very familiar with monthly updates that people write about their kids.  What they're eating, what size clothes they wear, what milestones they've reached, and some pictures to complete it all.  They're so organized, adorable, and must be a wonderful gift for the mom to look back on in the years to come. Sometimes I wish I had done them with my girls....to remember what they were doing every month for their first years.  But honestly, other than a quick "hey this is what my kid has been doing" update post, I don't write them.  And today I'm going to tell you why I don't write them, as well as why I don't read them anymore. The why I don't write them started out mainly because I'm lazy.  I'd think of doing one when Emmy was little, forget, and then three weeks would go by and it would be time for me to write another one.  I didn't like the structure of having to do one each mo

Emmy likes to play photographer a lot these days.  She grabs my point and shoot and starts snapping away.  I love getting to see the world through her little eyes. Driving with Daddy and little sis Selfie Taking picture of Mommy, taking a picture Grandparent's truck! Watching Octonauts with Charlie LOVE this pic she took of me and Skip Charlie bear Playing in the sink Worm-y Checking out the peacocks  Looks like we have a future photographer or blogger on our hands!

I'm linking up with Becky for another week of 52 weeks of blogging with a purpose....this week's topic is If I Could Be Anything in the World.. It's funny to sit here at 30 years old and wonder, "What do I want to be when I grow up".  I mean, I pretty much am who I'm going to be right?  I'm a wife, mother, and former teacher....all things I had spent my entire life dreaming of.  I am grown up. But at the same time, I actually have been thinking a lot about a possible new career.  I 'retired' from teaching when I was five months pregnant with Emmy.  My plan is {and has worked out so far} to be a stay-at-home mom until Charlie is either in kindergarten or first grade.  I would love to just stay home forever, but with the high price of school tuition and living in one of the most expensive areas in the country, I will returning to the workforce eventually. My first instinct is to go back to teaching.  I loved teaching...it's what I'm certifie

On Tuesday, I decided to take Emmy on a special little "Mommy and Me" date with just her.  Even though we only have two kids, we still want to make sure they get plenty of one-on-one time with each of us.  I'm not sure who was more excited, me or Emmy. We headed to the park first, where we pretty much had the place to our selves.  We played at the playground, swung on the swings, chased after ducks, and took a long walk around the pond. I made her stop a the gazebo and take some selfies with me as well. Next we headed off to Kmart to pick up some seeds.  I know nothing  about gardening, nor do I care , but Emmy has become obsessed recently.  So we picked up a few little packets and headed out. Outside the store, there is one of those mechanical horses.  You know the ones that run on a few quarters and kids are obsessed with?  Well Emmy wanted to ride it.  As we headed over to it, I told her I wasn't sure that I had any coins with me, but we could go "pet" th

Time for another week linking up with Manda for our 30 miles in 30 days! Thursday July 11 - 2 mile walk / Ripped in 30 Friday - none Saturday - none Sunday - none Monday - none Tuesday - 3.1 mile running intervals Wednesday - 3 mile running intervals Weekly Total - 8.1 July total - 20.6 miles My knee is healing, slowly but surely.  I obviously took a few more days of rest, and I think that really helped.  Not a first half of the month, but not too bad considering my injury and how busy we've been.  Here's to stepping it up some more this week! Go link up with Manda and join in the fun!

Last week I recounted the girls and my trip to the beach .  It didn't all go as planned, but that wasn't going to stop us from spending lots of time with my parents this summer.  Skip suggested we go down for a few more day trips to get Charlie used to the place. So bright and early Monday morning {I'm talking we were pulling out of our driveway at 6:00 am} the four of us headed down the Garden State Parkway towards the shore!! After a quick stop at my parent's house to change, we went straight to the beach!  The one we went to is a tiny little thing on the bay, right near where my parents and sister are.  It's perfect when you have kids because there aren't any big waves, and the shore is so small they can only go so far! The beach is my happy place and I'm excited to say that it seems to be the same for the girls as well.  We spent a long time jumping in the water {and trying to avoid the jellyfish} chasing seagulls, and building sandcastles.  Both my pare