5 most memorable moments from my trip home for Christmas

Well, my family just returned home from what can only be described as one of the best family christmases ever. Why? First of all, if asked what I did over the trip, my first response would be "absolutely nothing"...unless you count eating great food, sleeping plenty, words with friends (aka scrabble), and being babied one last time before the real baby comes. Despite the long drive up north, I always look forward to going home for the holidays. We somehow manage to split the time up with both families and everybody's happy. If I had to choose my top 5 memories of the week, these would be them:

1.  I had a bunch of "proud mommy" moments watching my daughter Leila truly exhibit the spirit of the holiday. I was amazed at how not only was she able to find joy in giving presents to others, but she graciously and humbly accepted all that she was given. Every single gift garnered a dramatic gasp or excited scream.  Needless to say, every gift giver felt great.  Plus, on our ride home, she even randomly blurted out without us asking, "Mommy and Daddy, I loved all of my presents!"

2. Along those same lines, I witnessed the hilarious debate between my mom in law and Leila over who actually gave her a bicycle for Christmas - my mother in law or Santa Claus.  It was a gift from my mom in law, in case you were wondering. :)

3.  I was given the atrocious nickname "pregasaurous" by my cousin and FOR ONCE, a nickname did not stick in my family (for more on atrocious nicknames from my family, read this)

4. My mom and I did not get into a single argument (which is a pretty big deal considering as much as we love each other, we are 2 of a kind)

5.  I saw The Lion King for the first time. Yes, I know it's a classic and No, I really had never seen it! Side note: what did other parents tell their kids when Simba's dad died? Sorry, I wasnt ready for that conversation, so we left it as "Yes Leila, Simba's dad is sleeping." Love the movie though!

In all, it was a great and very relaxing trip and I almost did not want to come back! I know we won't be able to take another road trip for a while with baby # 2 coming, but at least we can enjoy these memories for the next few months. 

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Wordless Wednesday: "Peace Out 2011"

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Wordless Wednesday: The Shirt Says It All

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Confessions of a Chiro-wife: 5 biggest myths dispelled

This post is a little bit off topic, but I just had to share. As some of you may know, I am among so many other things, a Chiropractor’s wife (aka Chiro-wife). It seems as though that would never be a big deal, just as the wife of any other professional, but the differences tend to become apparent in certain situations. It’s always a blast meeting and chatting with other Chiro-wives because a lot of us tend to have really similar experiences and it kinda feels like we are in a league of out own. Like, I wonder if we could even have our own reality show….Ok, so we’re not as hot tempered as Basketball Wives, not as gansgster as Mob Wives, not nearly as complicated as Sister Wives, and thank goodness, not as dramatic as the Real Housewives of {insert city here}…you get the point. Nonetheless, we do have our own sense of community and likeness, which I definitely do appreciate.

So I said all of this to say that I just about each time my husband and I are introduced to a new group of people and the topic of him being a Chiropractor comes up, it’s always the same experience. This past weekend was no different. The topic comes up and it’s like a room full of characters all of sudden – the supporter, the skeptic, the naysayer, the deal seeker, and so on. I guess he gets pretty excited about the dialog because he lives and breathes the topic of Chiropractic. As the Chiro-wife, I wouldn’t say it bothers me as much as just purely fascinates me the assumptions, questions, myths people have about the profession and lifestyle. So, if you’re ever in the company of another Chiro-wife, here are some of the biggest myths I am going to dispel once and for all:

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Happy New Year Cash Giveaway: $120 Cash!

Welcome to Happy New Year Cash Giveaway !

Well, this is my first official giveaway on this blog and I'm actually really thrilled to start it off with a big one: $120 Cash (via paypal)! I am hoping  that this is going to be just a preview of what's to come in 2012! 

As a Thank You to my beloved readers, I have teamed up with some amazing bloggers to bring you all a great way to welcome 2012 also - by reducing the damage caused by all of these holiday expenses!

To enter simply follow the rules on the Rafflecopter, you must complete all the entries. If the Widget isn’t showing, please refresh your browser.

Giveaway will start today, December 19  and run until December 30 2011 at 11:59pm

EST.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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What the heck were they thinking?!?!?!? Products for Kids

As someone who has worked in the marketing/media industry for many years, I have a soft spot for outside of the box marketing ideas. As a mother, however, I draw the line when it comes to what and how we market to kids!

When it comes to tv advertising, the FCC has taken quite a few steps that show that they care and it's very much appreciated. (For example, it's a violation to show a commercial for like a Dora toy while Dora's show is on). Who is monitoring the products now?

I checked out a few articles the other day with the most ridiculous items marketed to kids - from a pole dance doll to pee and poo plush toys - and it makes me wonder who is crazier - the people who produce them or the people who buy them?

The first culprit, hands down, is the clothing industry. Just in the past few years, we have had the infamous push up bras for 7 year olds, kids shirts with nipple tassels,  and of course, a bunch "what the heck were they thinking" onesies! I found this onesie in Miami a few months ago, and I prayed there weren't any drunk dads on vacation tempted to bring this one home as a keepsake:

The only other clothing piece I've come across that made me say WTH was one of the t-shirts given out as a promo item at a Smurfs screening that said "Who's your Papa?". Really? Was that the best they could come up with at a kids movie? Really???

Next up, let's talk about some of these dolls out there. I mentioned the pole dancing doll earlier. Ok, so some might argue that pole dancing is a "sport," but do you give your daughter in pole lessons instead of oh, I don't know, softball or soccer? 

Leila got this adorable little cheerleader doll for her last birthday and when you touch it, it says different cheers. Sounds fine right? But one of the cheers goes like this:

I stomp my feet I boogie to the beat

I turn around, I touch the ground

I wiggle it...just a little bit. 

(Yes, as in Wrecks-n-effect , Wiggle It). Not quite a reference I would want to introduce to my kid. Luckily, the head came off of the doll and we were able to get rid of it before she caught on, but still.

Here's what I have to say about all of this: My daughter likes to imitate me sometimes. She puts on my clothes and shoes...She pretends to cook dinner...She sneaks into my makeup bag...but there is no doubt that she is a child! Here's my plea to these Marketers: let our kids just be kids! There will be plenty of time to promote agendas and innuendo. It does not have to start from birth! 

I could go on and on, but I'd love to hear your thoughts on this. Have you come across any "Made for Adults" kids stuff? What can we, as parents, do about this?

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The Home Stretch

So, on Thanksgiving Day, I entered my 3rd trimester of pregnancy, a time my hubby affectionately refers to as "the home stretch." Am I ready? Trick question. The answer is that I am always ready and never ready at the same time.

If I had my way, I would have it so that biologically, it would take the full 9 months for a woman's first pregnancy and all subsequent ones would only take about 3 months. I think most women would agree that the first go around, you really need all of that time to prepare mentally and emotionally. I mean, I could've used another couple of months even. First I was terrified of the childbirth experience. Plus, I so loved all of the pregnant girl attention!

This time, however, I know a lot more of what to expect and I'm obsessing over much less. The words "Get a lot of rest now" never come out of anyone's mouth because they all know that nobody let's me get enough rest anymore.

Remember all of those fears I had in the beginning? (See my first blog post). They are still there. Getting ready for an expanding family is never easy. But I'll tell you this: I'm ready to get this party started already!!!

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