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Month: November 2009

20ish Months

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Dear Evie,

It’s been a while since I’ve written a monthly letter.  I got off when I had surgery a few months ago and I just never could find the time to get caught back up.  It’s not that I don’t have a lot to say about (or to) you, I just don’t have the time to focus because you demand that my attention be on you whenever possible, not on the computer screen.

Tonight was a night when I just really needed time to wind down.  Zach was watching a movie back in the bedroom.  You were demanding to watch princesses on the play room TV, and I was ready to go sit in my chair and relax for the evening.  You had other plans though.  As I stepped away from you, you hollered out, “Mommy, Mommy, Mommmmyyyyy!” and held your hands up in the air.  One look into your big, bright eyes and I just couldn’t walk away.  You have that power over me.

I grabbed you up into my arms and then sat on the floor hugging you for as long as you would allow.  We watched a few minutes of Beauty and the Beast before you were up searching for toys to play with.  TV never keeps your attention, even when you beg for your princesses or Elmo.  You grabbed your favorite bucket of toys – your shape sorters and stackers – and we sat in the floor playing together for over an hour.

Even though I know to expect it now, you amaze me with just how smart you are.  You pick up on things so quickly.  As we played with the shape sorter blocks, I named each shape and soon you were saying the shape names with me.  Then you started stacking the blocks to make “towers” just like your brother does.  Perhaps not an amazing feat for a kid your age, but it still impressed me.  You just seem to be doing things so much faster than your brother did, although it could just be my memory failing.

Your verbal skills are definitely good for your age.  You talk all the time.  Seriously, all the time.  It’s not often I get a chance to be alone with just you, but yesterday you weren’t feeling well and went to work with me for a while.  You sat in your stroller (incredibly well behaved) and pretty much talked non-stop the entire time.  Most of the time you were just playing and talking to yourself but it was so fun to listen to you.  Not every word is clear, but I can figure out what most of them are.

Before I had you, I would have sworn up and down to anybody that there really wasn’t much difference between boys and girls (other than body parts).  You, my darling, have proven me wrong.  You have a gentleness about you that I rarely see in your brother.  You are obsessed with princesses, dolls, ponies, and kitty cats.  You love your shoes, purses, hair bows, and pretty clothes.  Sure you like Elmo, your brother’s cars, and wrestling on the floor with the boys too, but when it comes down to it, you are one of the girliest girls I’ve ever known.  And, surprisingly, I love every single bit of it.

My heart aches when I realize just how close you are getting to your second birthday.  I’m so proud of who you are, yet I am really missing my baby.  Every now and then when you snuggle up with your head on my chest I remember those first few weeks at home with you.  Never in my dreams did I imagine that in 20 short months you would be filled with so much personality, love, and charm.

Tonight as I put you to bed, you started crying.  It wasn’t just the normal “I don’t want to go to bed” type of cry.  You were sobbing and becoming hysterical.  I never could figure out exactly what was wrong, but after holding you and singing “Rock-a-Bye Baby” (which has magical powers over you for some reason) a few times you finally settled down.  Maybe it was just a long day.  Maybe it was due to you not feeling well the last few days.  Maybe you were scared about something.  I have no idea.  Whatever it was, I was there to make it better.  I always want to be there to make it better, and take the hurt away, no matter what the cause is.  That’s the thing about Moms, we’ll do just about anything to take the hurt away.

Right now I’d give just about anything to peek in on you before I head to bed myself, but you are too much like your Mama and the slightest noise wakes you up.  Instead of checking in on you, kissing your soft cheeks, and saying good-night one more time, I’ll quietly sneak past your door to my own room.  Just know that I’m looking forward to morning, because I know the moment I crack your door open you’ll pop up out of your bed with a huge smile on your face and yell out “Morning!” as you do every day.  It is one of the highlights of my day and I hope someday you’ll understand just how much it means to me.

With all my love,
Mama

P.S. You know that big smile you get on your face with the batty eyes when you’re trying to get away with something?  Save that for Daddy.  I’m on to your tricks, little one.  After all, I’m pretty sure I used that on my Daddy a time or two. 😉

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Global Influence Holiday Guide

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Holiday shopping season is here again and the Global Influence network has some great gift ideas for you, tried and tested by real moms. Click on the links to check out what our team of reviewers had to say about each of these gift ideas, and then take a moment to enter our fun giveaway and take a chance at winning some of these fabulous products.

Featured Reviews
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Pouchees
– Busy moms need all the help they can get to stay organized and keep life as simple as possible. The Pouchee is the perfect solution to keeping all those little things together, putting everything you need, right at your fingertips.

duckhunter Duck Hunter – Duck Hunter turns the excitement of the hunt into an activity the whole family can enjoy. Launch the duck in the air and try to hunt it down with the toy shooter as it flies freely in the air. A fun choice for those who love outdoor sporting.

cardstore CardStore cards– Personalized holiday cards are an important item on everyone’s to-do list and often a hassle to create and print. Cardstore.com has everything from family photo cards to invitations for your big holiday party, simplifying your holiday season.

Great Holiday Gift Ideas

Things Remembered Custom Couture Jewelry

Just Elfin’ Around

Card Cubby

Harumika By Bandai

Harumika Runway Showstopper

Harumika Style Starter

Baby Alive Whoopsie Doo

Strawberry Shortcake Playset

Kota Monty Rex

Wall to Wall Basketball

Nerf Pocket Vortex

Busy Ball Popper

Talking Chuck Truck

Leapfrog My Pal Scout

Leapfrog Tag Jr

Leapfrog Scribble and Write

Animal Planet Polar Land Playset

Animal Planet Dinosaur Playmat

Onionhead Adult/Teen Feelings Pack

OnionHead Children’s Feelings Pack

Onionhead A-Z Feelings Magnet Set

FotoboxPlus

MeTime Tees

Fun Holiday Giveaway!

For this holiday guide, we want to share the love with the blogosphere! Some of our generous sponsors have donated prizes to be given away to lucky readers! To enter to win one of the following fabulous prizes, simply fill out the form here: http://tinyurl.com/y8t92rw

Prizes include:

Things Remembered Custom Couture Jewelry

Pouchee

Elfing Around

Harumika

Onionhead Feelings Pack

Nerf Wall to Wall Basketball

Baby Alive Whoopsie Doo

MeTime T-shirt

Entries will close on December 6, 2009 at 11:59 PM EST. Winners will be contacted by email after the close of the contest.

Global Influence Member Guides

Need more ideas for this holiday season? Check out the guides that some of our Global Influence members have put together on their own sites! Thrifty Jinxy, Happy Healthy Hip , And Twins Make Five , Because Two People Fell In Love, Mommy Musings , Lipstick to Crayons , Bargain Briana , Mommy PR , Shop With Me Mama, Santa Picks, Rave and Review, Connected 2 Christ , 3 Boys and a Dog, The Classy Closet , Contest Corner, Lisa Reviews , A Giveaway Every Day, HulaHoopinMom, Spalibrations, High Impact Mom, From Cribs to Car Keys

All reviews listed in the Global Influence gift guide were product provided. Featured positions were purchased by sponsors. Member gift guides are not affiliated with Global Influence.
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A Night With Zac Brown Band

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Thursday night Hubby and I had the pleasure of seeing Zac Brown Band perform.  I knew the first time I heard “Chicken Fried” that they were a band to watch and they quickly became a favorite.  I pre-ordered The Foundation long before it was released and listened to it over and over again.  I don’t think there’s a song on it that I don’t like.

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I waited for well over a year to get a chance to see them live and it was definitely worth the wait. They were absolutely amazing live. I’ve seen a lot of live music and it’s rare to see a band put so much emotion and heart into a performance. The whole show was incredible, but I’ll never forget the raw emotion of “Junkyard,” a song written about Zac Brown’s home life when he was a child.

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Opening acts Levi Lowry, Sonia Leigh, and Nic Cowen were all great too. Instead of the traditional concert set up where each act plays for an allotted amount of time, each one played a few songs alone, then Zac Brown and various other musicians from each band joined in. It was like one big jam session with everybody playing together.

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I decided to take a chance and bring my good camera along so I could zoom in. I wasn’t thrilled with all of the photos, but I got enough good ones to make me happy. I definitely need to work on getting sharper photos in a dark environment. I played around with settings a little bit, but in the end I was getting better shots on auto so I gave up.  I did have a girl come up to me halfway through the show and ask if I would e-mail her some pictures though.

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If you want to see the rest of the photos, you can check them out on Flickr.

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Custom Thank You Card Giveaway

This giveaway has ended and the winner, Jamie P, has been notified. Keep checking back for more great giveaways!

It’s time for another fun giveaway from UPrinting.com. Just in time for the holidays, UPrinting is giving away 50 Custom Thank You cards and envelopes! These cards are perfect for thanking friends and family for all those holiday gifts or even giving away in a gift basket! Don’t need Thank You cards? Customize it and turn it into a greeting card instead. UPrinting cards are printed on high-quality paper and cardstock and are perfect for just about any occasion.

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Here are the specifics of what you can win:

Prize Offered: (50 ct.) 7 x 5″ (folded to 3.5 x 5″) Custom Thank You Cards with plain envelopes
Shipping: Free UPS Ground within United States
Eligibility: Limited to US Residents due to shipping costs.

Enter to win the 50 Custom Thank You cards by leaving a comment below telling me how you plan to use them! Be sure to leave a valid e-mail address with your comment so you can be notified if you win.

This contest will close on November 29, 2009 at 12:00 Noon (Central).  A winner will be chosen from all valid entries by Random.org and notified by e-mail.  The winner will receive an e-mail directly from UPrinting with a code for their 50 free cards on December 5, 2009.

Disclosure: In appreciation for hosting this giveaway, UPrinting is also giving me a set of 50 Custom Thank You cards with envelopes.

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Canon vs. Nikon

It’s no big secret around here that I want a new camera, a DSLR, to be more specific.   I know, I can’t stop talking about it.  I’m saving everything I can and trying to come up with a way to make more extra money faster. Once I decide that I want something, it is hard to sit back and wait. I’ve been waiting for a long time already. So while I’m waiting, I’m shopping online.
Canon T1iI think I’ve narrowed it down to the camera that makes the most sense for me – a Canon EOS Rebel T1i .  It is reasonably priced and from what I can tell has all of the features that I really want. I have it added to my Amazon wishlist and threw it out on Twitter this morning.

deew27And then I got this response:

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And then I thought about it.  I’ve pretty much decided on Canon, but what if there is some sort of amazing magical thing that Nikons do that nobody has bothered to tell me about?  What if I’m missing out on something incredible by not opening myself up to other options?  I have nothing against Nikon.  I actually have a very old Nikon camera that I really liked at the time.  But, I have a Canon right now that I’m absolutely in LOVE with.  I’m just ready to move above and beyond my PowerShot.

So, I’m opening up the floor: Canon vs. Nikon

Tell me what you love about your Canon.  Tell me what you love about your Nikon.  Any negatives about either one? I want to know.  Keep in mind that I’m very much a beginner.  I’m looking for something to learn on, but also something that will last me a while because I don’t see another big purchase coming for a long time.  Just keep it nice and informative please!  I’m ready to soak it all in.

Also? If you have a specific model that you think is perfect for someone who knows a little about photography but wants to be awesome at it, feel free to share that too!

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I ♥ Faces – Autumn Beauty

This week’s I ♥ Faces challenge is Autumn Beauty. I had plans of getting my kids out in the leaves last weekend for a fun Autumn shot, but the weather didn’t cooperate. It was cold and rainy all weekend so we didn’t get outside at all. Instead, I pulled up this photo from last Thanksgiving. I love this shot of my daughter. Looking back at it now she looks so tiny.

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I loved looking at all the fun Fall photos this week. Be sure to go check them out at the I ♥ Faces blog!

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