Abigail's Angels Fundraiser

I have volunteered to hold a fundraiser for baby Abigail, the niece of my friend. Abigail is only 10 months old and was recently diagnosed with 3 Venous Malformations. This fundraiser is to help facilitate the accessibility and treatment for her.

Read Baby Abigail's Story to learn more:
http://www.facebook.com/babyabigailfaith/info

If you would like to help, please place your order for the following vendors through the links below. The online fundraisers will close at the end of the month.

Mary Kay by Leasa Goodwin (Abigails Aunt)
http://www.marykay.com/leasagoodwin
Promo code: ABIGAIL

Thirty-One Gifts 
http://www.mythirtyone.com/shop/catalog.aspx?eventId=E2974163&from=DIRECTLINK

Scentsy 
https://groddy.scentsy.us/Scentsy/Buy?partyId=142538946

A very generous percentage of the sales will be directly donated to Abigail and her parents to help offset the medical costs.

THANK YOU in advance for joining Project Abigail!

Vote for NELL

Our local AAA Baseball Team, the Iron Pigs, is hosting a contest for our local Little Leagues. The winning league will get a field makeover. How awesome is that? This is where I need your help!

I know that each and every one of the little league finalists could use the help but I am asking for help for Northeast Little League. All you have to do is go to this Iron Pigs post on Facebook and click "LIKE" for the Northeast Little League - Bethlehem photo. The league with the most likes will win the makeover.

Per a local supporter:

"Drainage is the biggest issue and it has obviously become a safety issue for the kids. With no money coming in from the City, it is up to the volunteers to raise money AND donate time for the upkeep of this field, money that could be spent elsewhere on equipment and uniforms."

NELL is the only team from Bethlehem (my hometown) that made the finals, so I am more than happy to show my support. Not only are they the only team from Bethlehem to make the cut, growing up I used to play softball for a rival league, South Side Little League. Although back then we "hated" them, I always loved playing against them. They were a good team but also by the time I was in high school I was playing against some of my friends & classmates. Always a good game and always a good time!

So help me and support NELL!

TIA

Craft Room / Office Redo

Since we moved into this house, I wanted to make sure that I had a little spot that I can call my own where I can put my creativity to work. "Back in the day" I was huge onto arts and crafts. I mean I still love them but haven't made the time to do it and quite frankly, I didn't have the energy to do it. As a result, I kind of felt lost. It was definitely time for a change.

At first this little spot was going to be in the basement, in this perfect little corner. There was a little BIG problem though. There was no heat on that side of the basement so in the winter, it would get as cold as it was outside. Yikes! So we had to change our plans. Well since we have pushed off Baby #2 a little bit longer, we now have this spare bedroom that we have been currently using as our office that would work perfectly. In fact, the hubs insisted that I make it the craft room as long as it would have a small spot for him when he needed to work on computers. Yay! So now I have the perfect room!

Of course like any re-do, this will take time to finish. That's the part that drives me crazy because once I get started, I want to finish. I will TRY to be as patient as I can.

To get started, I had to start planning on what I wanted done.

Here are a few of my ideas of what needs to be done:

> Paint the room
> Get a table / desk that is big enough for both me and my hubs
> Get a small table for my sewing machine
> Get bookcases / shelving for storage
> Get a cabinet of sorts for our office paper and such
> Organize our crafting and office supplies
> Decorate. Decorate. Decorate.

It's going to be one heck of a project but should be fun! Stay tuned... As I make updates, I will share them with ya.

Much L ♥ ve

G

**BTW, I know I suddenly disappeared but I am going to choose to ignore it. There's really nothing to explain. Seriously, nothing happened. Just a break.

Hello.

hello. Hola. Aloha. Ciao. 

I promise, one day I will return. Soon!

The POTTY Training Diaries

For a while now Little Miss has been doing fairly well with telling us she had to use the potty and she would hold it too. With less and less wet diapers (minus bedtime and nap time), her school thought it would be a great time to start. They were right or at least we thought so! 

Monday 11/26/12:
We started her in big girl undies except for night and nap time. She did awesome! Had a #2 accident because for some reason LM hasn't thought about the potty for that yet and only one #1 accident because she was playing with her cousin that night.

Tuesday 11/27/12:
Since she was home with me, I put her in her undies once she woke up after using the potty. She had two accidents that day, both being #1. One is when she was sitting next to me on the couch while I worked on my laptop. I was an innocent victim for that mess too. I felt the warmth and knew exactly what had happened. LM didn't seem to notice. The other time was when she was sitting on the floor in front of me, I was still working. She got up and said PeePee, so you know what happened. Crazy part was that both times happened after I had asked her whether she wanted to use the potty. Her response every time I asked her that day was "No". By that time it was nap time, so the diaper went back on and since she had a doctor appointment and gymnastics that night, it stayed on.

Wednesday 11/28/12:
Again, she was home with me. Again her undies went on after waking up. For some reason I have no clue what happened that day. I swear my child has taken my memory.

Thursday 11/29/12:
Little Miss returned to school. From their daily report she had a #2 accident and maybe one #1 accident.

Friday 11/30/12:
Daily report had a #2 accident. Sent home in diapers. Once home she never asked to use potty.

Saturday 12/1/12:
Before nap time she had three #1 accidents, not once asking to go to potty and I checked in every half-hour or so to which she responded with a "No". Diaper was put on the rest of the day and night. She may have gone once in the potty when we asked her.

Sunday 12/2/12:
Diapered in the AM. Did not ask to use potty. Afternoon, undies were on and she had a #1 accident. Immediately right before her bath, she had a #2 accident. Poor Papi had to clean it up, it was everywhere LOL.

Monday 12/3/12:
Diapered to go to school and changed to undies around 10. She had a #2 accident and it appears that was her last accident of the day at school. Just after asking her if she had to go once we were home, she had a #1 accident. She was bathed and diapered for the rest of the night.

Tuesday 12/4/12:
She was diapered all day. She didn't want to wear her undies and she really didn't want to use the potty. She did use it before bed but that was it. Hubs and I decided to back off a little bit with her to release some pressure I am sure she was feeling. And just so I am clear, we have not yelled at her for her accidents. We just speak to her and remind her where she has to go to the potty.

So as you can see, we had a bit of an up and down experience so far. We are not quite sure what has changed her excitement about training. Beforehand, she loved telling us she had to go because she loved her treats (and still does) but she just doesn't want to do it. At least that is what she is like when she is home. Even when she was excited, I wasn't asking her on a consistent basis, she would just go when she wanted to. She enjoyed the praise and at times didn't even want her treats. We thought we were going in the right direction.

Anyone else experience this with their little one?

It's Never Too Late

To give thanks!

I am Thankful For…

GOD

My Entire Family

My health

A place to call home

Warm (or cold) food to feed my family and I

My daughter's laughter and smile

Family time

Playtime 

New beginnings

Challenges

The good and the bad that made me who I am
Disney movies

Comfortable shoes

Clothing with a little stretch (esp during Thanksgiving)

Seat warmers for those cold days and nights

Being alive during this time period

Technology (well, I am in IT!)

My fabulous followers

My wonderful customers

Food Gawker & Pinterest for bringing together sites with amazing recipes 

My commute to my basement on Tuesdays and Wednesdays

...