Juice Rag

Baby Judson is teething and last night while I gave him a bath and watched him chew on his bath rag relentlessly, I remembered something I forgot to share with you. Judson's GranNana says that teething babies love chewing on a washcloth that has been soaked in apple juice. So... just soak a washcloth in the juice of your choice, ring out and let the little one enjoy! So soothing! Judson thinks so anyway. :)

Heidi

Heidi Montag: Before

I think at some point over the past few years we all have either watched "The Hills" or seen it's cast members in magazines, online, etc... anyway most of us know who Heidi Montag is. This past Sunday night at church we had a ladies night and discussed different topics such as insucurities, beauty, how the world percieves women, and how God made us. Heidi was one of the topics that came up and how she has recently had 10 cosmetic procedures and how she now views herself as "perfect". I watch the show so I know what Heidi has looked like over the years but I looked at her "after" portraits this morning and watched this video and it made me sad. She was actually way cuter before and although she claims she thinks she is "perfect" now, all I see is a really sad girl in the video. I wonder why she thought she had to have all of that work done? Does she look in the mirror and see fat and ugly? Sometimes I do. I think we all do. Church was really good for me Sunday because although I think I am a cute girl at times, I do feel extremely insecure about my weight. I can't help but wonder... if I spent half the time I think about how I look and how people percieve me and spent that time with God... maybe I would feel a whole lot better about myself. I've tried not caring so much this week and not being so hard on myself and I actually feel good- I don't feel like let's say Jessica Alba in a swimsuit good... but I feel happier and content. There are a lot of things I would like to change about myself, but (and I may piss some people off here) I personally do not understand the whole "fake" look. Why would you want someone to look at you and say "oh.. she got her lips done"? I would want to look natural. I will be real honest here and share a personal experience with you- in 2004 I had a breast reduction done. I was a DD and now I am a C. I feel healthier and do not regret my decision to have that procedure. I don't want anyone to get the wrong idea and think I am completely against cosmetic surgeries. I just think a lot of people are quick to jump under the knife, needles, ect. before really thinking things through and seeing themselves for how beautiful they really are- how God made them.... and maybe just maybe Heidi Montag did not have anyone to tell her how beautiful she is no matter what her reputation is or what people say on the internet. Maybe Heidi Montag needed someone to say a prayer for her. Not trying to get all holy roller on you- BUT... pray for your friends, that they feel pretty and feel good about themselves. It's a harsh world out there telling us, our sisters, our daughters, our mothers, our friends.... what they percieve as perfect.. and it's wrong. You never know what someone is thinking in their head or what they see in the mirror.

Love, E

Heidi Montag: After

20 Years Ago

Twenty years ago... my little sister Lulu was born and mine and my brother's lives were forever changed,

In a good way.

Happy Birthday beautiful.

I love you so much I could cry.

Scout

Meet Scout.

Judson loves his little puppy Scout.

He was a gift from our sweet friends, Kevin and Maryann Dean, and honestly I love Scout too!

"My Pal Scout" by LeapFrog has a really cute voice unlike some other toys with creepier tones, his collar lights up, he plays 2, 5, and 10 minutes of bedtime music, reads stories and neatest of all... you can hook him up via USB cord to your computer and customize Scout to memorize your child's name, favorite things including color and foods. You can customize a playlist of songs and lullabies. Scout introduces learning skills such as first words, daily routines, and even counting. Too cool!

Oh and there is also a "My Pal Violet" for baby girls.

Just be sure and remove Scout from the baby crib after your little one goes night night so you don't hear Scout at 3:30 in the morning say over your baby monitor, "Now... 2 minutes of bedtime music!" like we did last night followed with the sweet melody of cries from baby Judson! ;)

Love, E

P.S.- You can buy Scout or Violet here. He is VERY affordable for everything that he does!

January's Book of the Month

"Something Cleverish" is such a cute little coffee table book. This book was put together for Stephanie Nielson (the lady I absolutely adore and wrote Oprah about awhile back) and her husband who were in a near fatal plane crash. The book is being sold here to raise money for the couple's medical bills that are steadily growing.  I believe they have reached around 3 million and she is in surgery as I type this having more reconstruction done. They are the parents of 4 children.

The book is adorable and actually made me LAUGH OUT LOUD and I read several of the stories to my husband who also found them funny! Do something good and go buy this book!

"Forty-three hilarious bloggers, one great cause, one very funny book. We've searched high and low for some of the funniest posts written in 2008, and gathered them here for your amusement. All proceeds go to benefit Stephanie and Christian Nielson."

New Years Resolutions

So... I am a little late putting my resolutions for this year on here, but better late than never. First off- my ultimate goal is to lose 50 lbs. but I plan to make mini goals of 5 lbs. at a time until I get there. I am kicking off this weight loss by making my first resolution to complete the Jillian Michaels' 30 day Shred! I bought it over a month ago and completed 2 days. That is pathetic! So- I MUST complete the 30 days! You should do it with me! :)

Next: to get my husband to quit wearing these camoflauge pants! Lol- okay so they are not too bad but neither one of us hunt and we had an inside joke going on with our friends in Tuscaloosa when we came for a visit a while back that Jimbo and I would show up in camo- and we did.

Well... I never wore mine again but Jimbo finds them very comfy and wears them around the house at least every other day so I get the luxury of seeing him in these delightful pants ALL the time and I'm really just ready to see him in something different, lol

Next: to get baby Judson to sleep the entire night through and have me wake him up at 6 a.m. rather than him wake us up at 4:30 a.m.

and Last but not Least: to not let school and work stress me out so much. I want to relax and laugh more. Stop worrying and being in such a hurry to be done with things.

Hope you all have a good 2010 and achieve the things you wish to achieve.

Love, E