I love the Cha-Cha Slide, don't you?
Can anyone tell me why we don't get to do the Cha-Cha Slide any time other than at weddings?
Has anyone else ever wondered why/how their Nanna is so amazing at the Cha-Cha Slide?
Where on earth is she going to practice those moves?
Or LEARN them?
Are they teaching it during rec hour or what???
Anyway, that is totally not what this post is about.
This post is me asking, nay, BEGGING for help.
(Get it? Reverse? As in I usually give you advice, but today I'm asking for it...clever, right?)
So.
I have this friend.
And this friend has a 3 year old...
And this 3 year old has been potty trained for well over 6 months now....
And recently he has had some...erm...poopy issues.
Last week we...ahem...my friend experienced her first bout with toddler constipation.
Talk about a crappy situation.
Too far?
Yeah, well, you know me....
Anyway, the issue was quickly resolved, but there have been some lingering issues.
Some dangling participles, if you will.
Said 3 year old is frightened, and I mean TERRIFIED to go poopy.
He doesn't want his "bottom to hurt".
SIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIGH
People. This is what consumes my life.
WHAT HAS BECOME OF ME???
Who am I kidding, here.
This is my life.
This is my kid.
Oh how far we fall....
So, tell me, how do I fix this issue?
Other than adding plenty of juice and fiber to his diet?
As it is right now, he is terrified to go, so he will hold it, which in turn, just starts the vicious cycle all over again.
Now, there aren't many things that take me down or that I don't know how to deal with...
But poop is one of them.
So tell me, WHAT DO I DO?????
I need advice, like YESTERDAY!
Please, please HELP ME!
I need it.
Showing posts with label Helpful How-To. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Helpful How-To. Show all posts
Wednesday, January 23, 2013
Wednesday, January 9, 2013
Helpful-How-To: Miracle Cream
Have you ever had one of those days when everything goes wrong?
And then it gets worse?
That's just what kind of day I was having the day I learned about the miracle cream.
It was one of those days when both of the kids had been sick.
And all the bills were due.
And the dog pooped in the floor.
Twice.
AND I was having a bad hair day.
In a nutshell, it was a VERRRRY bad day.
Baby Girl was cutting teeth. (She has been for a small eternity...)
And her diapers were...well, if you have ever had a teething baby, you know...YUCK.
And with that comes a wicked diaper rash.
Think open sores.
Think baby-sobs as soon as you open the diaper.
I think I cried.
And I know she did.
It was pitiful.
So I did what every good mother does.
I dropped everything and ran to the store to buy every diaper rash cream they had.
And when that didn't work, I panicked.
Had it not been 8 o'clock at night, I'd have called the doctor's office.
But instead, I called my sister.
And being the wealth of information that only a mom of 3 can be, she told me to Google it...
That she had heard of a miracle cream that could be made from common household items.
Gosh, she's brilliant!
And not just when it comes to numbers!
Within minutes, I had found the secret!
Apparently, the secret concoction involves equal parts diaper rash cream, oatmeal, and...drumroll please...
MAALOX!
I know.
It sounds crazy.
But the explanation* made sense.
And desperate momma's will try almost anything.
So I mixed up a quick batch and slathered it all over the scary rash.
Then wrapped her up tight and put her to bed.
And proceeded to twiddle my thumbs for the next 12 hours waiting to see if it worked.
And chewed every nail off.
Fingers and toes!
JUST KIDDING.
Only Techy does that....
But yeah, I passed the night with bated breath waiting to see if it worked.
And, obviously, I am posting this, so....
It worked!!
You're totally shocked right now, right?
Yeah.
I'm really good at punch lines.
But by the next morning, the rash wasn't just better, it was almost GONE.
Sadly, I have had to keep the concoction mixed up, because every 2 weeks or so the teething diapers return along with the rash.
Someone remind me how long teething actually lasts????
Siiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiigh.
Lucky for me, the miracle cream works FAST.
Otherwise I'd have no fingernails or toenails by now.
Just kidding!!!
But in case you ever need it, now you know!
Be glad you know me.
Now you don't have to google it in a panic when your it happens to your teether!
*the active ingredients neutralize the acid in icky diapers.... Nuff said!
And then it gets worse?
That's just what kind of day I was having the day I learned about the miracle cream.
It was one of those days when both of the kids had been sick.
And all the bills were due.
And the dog pooped in the floor.
Twice.
AND I was having a bad hair day.
In a nutshell, it was a VERRRRY bad day.
Baby Girl was cutting teeth. (She has been for a small eternity...)
And her diapers were...well, if you have ever had a teething baby, you know...YUCK.
And with that comes a wicked diaper rash.
Think open sores.
Think baby-sobs as soon as you open the diaper.
I think I cried.
And I know she did.
It was pitiful.
So I did what every good mother does.
I dropped everything and ran to the store to buy every diaper rash cream they had.
And when that didn't work, I panicked.
Had it not been 8 o'clock at night, I'd have called the doctor's office.
But instead, I called my sister.
And being the wealth of information that only a mom of 3 can be, she told me to Google it...
That she had heard of a miracle cream that could be made from common household items.
Gosh, she's brilliant!
And not just when it comes to numbers!
Within minutes, I had found the secret!
Apparently, the secret concoction involves equal parts diaper rash cream, oatmeal, and...drumroll please...
MAALOX!
I know.
It sounds crazy.
But the explanation* made sense.
And desperate momma's will try almost anything.
So I mixed up a quick batch and slathered it all over the scary rash.
Then wrapped her up tight and put her to bed.
And proceeded to twiddle my thumbs for the next 12 hours waiting to see if it worked.
And chewed every nail off.
Fingers and toes!
JUST KIDDING.
Only Techy does that....
But yeah, I passed the night with bated breath waiting to see if it worked.
And, obviously, I am posting this, so....
It worked!!
You're totally shocked right now, right?
Yeah.
I'm really good at punch lines.
But by the next morning, the rash wasn't just better, it was almost GONE.
Sadly, I have had to keep the concoction mixed up, because every 2 weeks or so the teething diapers return along with the rash.
Someone remind me how long teething actually lasts????
Siiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiigh.
Lucky for me, the miracle cream works FAST.
Otherwise I'd have no fingernails or toenails by now.
Just kidding!!!
But in case you ever need it, now you know!
Be glad you know me.
Now you don't have to google it in a panic when your it happens to your teether!
*the active ingredients neutralize the acid in icky diapers.... Nuff said!
Wednesday, September 19, 2012
Helpful How-To: My Fall Burlap Wreath
I've made my share of burlap wreaths.
And just for the sake of fairness, I did it again.
How Britney Spears of me, huh?
Oops.
In my defense, this year I whipped up {quite possibly} the simplest one ever.
It's gorgeous, right?
Ruffles and burlap and crinkly ribbon.
Hanging on my front door.
Siiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiigh.
It's like a recipe for long term decor affection, right?
And for the sake of my Helpful How-To's {that have fallen by the way side}, I thought I'd share it with you.
Because I'm supremely generous like that.
And I LOVE to see people copy me.
It's almost like being popular.
Almost.
But I digress.
Step 1: Loosely follow this tutorial.
But rather than using two layers of burlap, used one.
Super easy.
(If you are el cheapo like me, you can pick up a simple wicker wreath at the dollar tree for - get this - A DOLLAR. Shocking right???)
Step 2: Create crinkly ribbon.
Don't you love the word "crinkly"?
I do.
But probably only because it reminds me of french fries.
Which reminds me of how much I want french fries.
And then I remember that I live 7 minutes from McDonald's and they have a drive thru - no unloading the TWO children I have.
And then I remember that I'm trying to lose weight.
And now I'm in a bad mood.
So, lets recap.
Crinkly is a fun word until it reminds me of food I can't eat and now I hate the word crinkly.
Welcome to the inner workings, people.
INNER WORKINGS.
What was I talking about?
Oh yeah. Crinkly {GRRRRRR} ribbon ring.
So, yeah. To make that very imperfect center ring, I picked up a spool of 1/2" ribbon and gathered it using the same method as the burlap (loose stitches along one edge of the ribbon).
The end result is the crinkly ribbon you see in the center.
Now glue it on.*
Step 3. Make a bow and glue it on top.
Same theory as tying your shoes.
Make a bow.
Hot glue it on.*
Step 4: Hang on your door.
Preferably with a hook.
Although, my front door is weird, and I can't really hang a hook OVER it, I am pretty sure that those 3M hooks would do it. For a while, anyway.
However, I cheated and just took advantage of my weird window bars.
Try not to be too jealous of my weird door.
Or my awesome wreath.
Just go make your own.
And thank me for bestowing this wealth of information on you.
I'm kind like that.
*(Warning: This can be VERY TRICKY. Despite the fact that hot glue guns are tiny, I burn myself on the thing everytime I get it out. Am I the only one here? I can't really be the only one, here right??? AM I RIGHT???? HELLO????)
And just for the sake of fairness, I did it again.
How Britney Spears of me, huh?
Oops.
In my defense, this year I whipped up {quite possibly} the simplest one ever.
It's gorgeous, right?
Ruffles and burlap and crinkly ribbon.
Hanging on my front door.
Siiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiigh.
It's like a recipe for long term decor affection, right?
And for the sake of my Helpful How-To's {that have fallen by the way side}, I thought I'd share it with you.
Because I'm supremely generous like that.
And I LOVE to see people copy me.
It's almost like being popular.
Almost.
But I digress.
Step 1: Loosely follow this tutorial.
But rather than using two layers of burlap, used one.
Super easy.
(If you are el cheapo like me, you can pick up a simple wicker wreath at the dollar tree for - get this - A DOLLAR. Shocking right???)
Step 2: Create crinkly ribbon.
Don't you love the word "crinkly"?
I do.
But probably only because it reminds me of french fries.
Which reminds me of how much I want french fries.
And then I remember that I live 7 minutes from McDonald's and they have a drive thru - no unloading the TWO children I have.
And then I remember that I'm trying to lose weight.
And now I'm in a bad mood.
So, lets recap.
Crinkly is a fun word until it reminds me of food I can't eat and now I hate the word crinkly.
Welcome to the inner workings, people.
INNER WORKINGS.
What was I talking about?
Oh yeah. Crinkly {GRRRRRR} ribbon ring.
So, yeah. To make that very imperfect center ring, I picked up a spool of 1/2" ribbon and gathered it using the same method as the burlap (loose stitches along one edge of the ribbon).
The end result is the crinkly ribbon you see in the center.
Now glue it on.*
Step 3. Make a bow and glue it on top.
Make a bow.
Hot glue it on.*
Step 4: Hang on your door.
Preferably with a hook.
Although, my front door is weird, and I can't really hang a hook OVER it, I am pretty sure that those 3M hooks would do it. For a while, anyway.
However, I cheated and just took advantage of my weird window bars.
Try not to be too jealous of my weird door.
Or my awesome wreath.
Just go make your own.
And thank me for bestowing this wealth of information on you.
I'm kind like that.
*(Warning: This can be VERY TRICKY. Despite the fact that hot glue guns are tiny, I burn myself on the thing everytime I get it out. Am I the only one here? I can't really be the only one, here right??? AM I RIGHT???? HELLO????)
Wednesday, September 5, 2012
Helpful How-To: Baby Girl's Grub
If you could sit in on almost any conversation among me and my fellow mommy friends these days, you would hear a snippet about making your own baby food.
I know. I know.
Right now, my sister is rolling her eyes at me so.freaking.hard.*
But it's true.
We also talk about things like knitting and the latest book on Oprah's book club list.
And minivans.
And soccer.
We are the EPITOME of stay at home mom's.
Or not.
But we do actually talk about making our own baby food.
Because it's so stinking cheap.
I discovered this about 2 months ago, when I started making Baby Girl's food.
And today, I will share my secrets with you.
Stop rolling your eyes at me.
You may one day be interested in this stuff.
Really, I'm being generous.
Plus, it's really hard to read this life changing stuff if you are rolling your eyes...
Anyway, soooooo yeah.
Last week, I bought a bag of dried split peas.
For $1.08. (No, I did not buy organic. According to all the research I read, peas are super resistant to pesticides due to the pods.)
When I got them home, I rinsed them, put them in the crockpot and covered them with filtered water.
4-5 hours later, they were ready.
If you have ever cooked split peas, you probably know that once cooked, there is little to no "water" left in the pot, it all turns into "pea soup".
And then, it's just a matter of dumping the gooey goop into the blender and blending until smooth.
10 minutes later, you have over 40 ounces of baby food on your hands.
I know, I know.
So what do I do with all that baby food.
I mean, girlfriend can eat, but 40 ounces is a bit much, even for her.
Enter: my favorite mommy contraption. EVER
These ice cube trays are the best thing since sliced bread.
(Unless it's my sliced bread, which is perhaps the nastiest thing I have eaten since the apple curry incident in college - but that's a story for another day.)
Seriously. They have silicone bottoms to help you pop the ice cubes out.
They have lids.
And each ice cube is 1 ounce.
EASY PEASY.
Freeze it. Bag it. Label it.
And MOVE ON.
Which is exactly what I did.
Next up, was my butternut squash.
(Go ahead. Say it. Slightly phallic. SLIGHTLY. I know. I noticed. As did my husband. I won't tell you what he said, but if you have a man in your life, you probably know.)
Also non-organic. Also not necessary.
Bake at 350 for one hour then chop it up and throw it in the food processor with some water.
And 20 minutes later, you have 60 ounces of baby food.
Freeze it. Bag it. Label it.
Now sit down, prop your feet up, and enjoy the knowledge that you just turned $6.50 worth of vegetables into 25+ jars of baby food.
You can thank me later.
Wednesday, July 25, 2012
My Weight Loss Explained
A few weeks ago, after I posted one of my weekly weigh in pics on Instagram, one of my friends commented with the ever notorious, "How are you doing that?" comment.
Which, I'll totally admit, is loaded with all kinds of awesome flattery-ness in the way I read it.
In my head, I read it full of incredulity.
Like I'm magical and using fairy dust as my secret weapon.
Believe me, people, if I had magic weight loss fairy dust, I'd be selling it on the streets of Miami faster than any cocaine bearing drug-lord. EVER.
In reality, my weight loss "success", if you would actually call it that, is related to a healthy dose of self control, a little bit of Jillian Michaels, and yes - technology.
1. The Self Control.
I know I have said it before. Probably multiple times, even.
But I am a firm believer in the power of Weight Watchers.
Not really current day, Weight Watchers, though.
I'm not a fan of Points Plus.
I follow the old program.
The one I started using 10 years ago in college.
The one that helped me lose 40 lbs. over my senior year.
HOWEVER...and here's the catch.
I only diet 5 days a week.
EVER.
I figure, I am much less tempted by a brownie on Tuesday, when I know that if I make it to Saturday, I can eat one.
It sounds stupid, but it works.
And it has worked for the past 10 years, both to get my weight off and to keep my weight off.
BUT.
That isn't all I do.
2. The Jillian Factor.
I workout.
At least 5 hours a week. With at least 3 of those hours being cardio and 2 hours being strengthening/toning.
In a typical week, I run, bike or use my elliptical on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and on Tuesday and Thursday, I do a combination of 30 Day Shred (30 minutes) and Pilates or Yoga (30 minutes).
Yes, this time around, I am a stay at home mommy who gets nap times to get my workout in.
But that's not to say that you can't workout if you work.
Because I totally did it last time.
And still I managed to train for a half marathon, while still working and being mommy to Little Man.
I just made it a priority.
I would workout for 30 minutes at lunch time and then 30 minutes after dinner.
Or first thing in the morning and then as soon as got home....
You have to be flexible, but you have to make it happen.
3. Technology.
A little over a year ago, my sister started raving about this weight loss app where she could look up any food ever and log her calories for the day.
I just rolled my eyes at her.
Because I don't count calories.
I count points.
Like I would need that.
BUT.
PEOPLE.
It changed my life.
If you have a smartphone, and you are attempting to lose weight, go to your app store and look up my fitness pal.
It turns out, I was eating way too few calories to lose weight doing the workouts I was doing.
I was netting about 200 calories a day.
No wonder I wasn't losing!
This app keeps me on target with my calories as well as my workouts.
It gives me a much more accurate account of how much I am actually burning during a workout.
Versus how many calories are in the foods I eat.
And I get to be friends with my sister and watch her (she - after 3 kids - just found herself wearing a size 6 again) get down with her bad self.
We root each other on.
However, if you don't have a smart phone, you aren't uninvited to the part.
Oh, no, you don't get out that easily.
You can still log in online and log your foods, workouts, etc.
And if you do, be sure to friend me.
There are so many other things that could be said, but this post doesn't need to drag on forever.
So, please, if you have questions, ask them.
If you need a cheerleader, call me.
If you need a running buddy, I'll make it happen.
If you just wanna see a change, start somewhere.
It's slow, and it's painful, but change doesn't happen without discomfort and you are probably going to need someone to talk you through it.
To help you not give up.
To keep you motivated.
I do.
That's why I am so transparent with my weight.
I want to be accountable to all of you.
I want you to cheer me through my goal.
But I would love nothing more than the opportunity to help cheer you through yours.
So, let's be friends, mkay?
Which, I'll totally admit, is loaded with all kinds of awesome flattery-ness in the way I read it.
In my head, I read it full of incredulity.
Like I'm magical and using fairy dust as my secret weapon.
Believe me, people, if I had magic weight loss fairy dust, I'd be selling it on the streets of Miami faster than any cocaine bearing drug-lord. EVER.
In reality, my weight loss "success", if you would actually call it that, is related to a healthy dose of self control, a little bit of Jillian Michaels, and yes - technology.
1. The Self Control.
I know I have said it before. Probably multiple times, even.
But I am a firm believer in the power of Weight Watchers.
Not really current day, Weight Watchers, though.
I'm not a fan of Points Plus.
I follow the old program.
The one I started using 10 years ago in college.
The one that helped me lose 40 lbs. over my senior year.
HOWEVER...and here's the catch.
I only diet 5 days a week.
EVER.
I figure, I am much less tempted by a brownie on Tuesday, when I know that if I make it to Saturday, I can eat one.
It sounds stupid, but it works.
And it has worked for the past 10 years, both to get my weight off and to keep my weight off.
BUT.
That isn't all I do.
2. The Jillian Factor.
I workout.
At least 5 hours a week. With at least 3 of those hours being cardio and 2 hours being strengthening/toning.
In a typical week, I run, bike or use my elliptical on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and on Tuesday and Thursday, I do a combination of 30 Day Shred (30 minutes) and Pilates or Yoga (30 minutes).
Yes, this time around, I am a stay at home mommy who gets nap times to get my workout in.
But that's not to say that you can't workout if you work.
Because I totally did it last time.
And still I managed to train for a half marathon, while still working and being mommy to Little Man.
I just made it a priority.
I would workout for 30 minutes at lunch time and then 30 minutes after dinner.
Or first thing in the morning and then as soon as got home....
You have to be flexible, but you have to make it happen.
3. Technology.
A little over a year ago, my sister started raving about this weight loss app where she could look up any food ever and log her calories for the day.
I just rolled my eyes at her.
Because I don't count calories.
I count points.
Like I would need that.
BUT.
PEOPLE.
It changed my life.
If you have a smartphone, and you are attempting to lose weight, go to your app store and look up my fitness pal.
It turns out, I was eating way too few calories to lose weight doing the workouts I was doing.
I was netting about 200 calories a day.
No wonder I wasn't losing!
This app keeps me on target with my calories as well as my workouts.
It gives me a much more accurate account of how much I am actually burning during a workout.
Versus how many calories are in the foods I eat.
And I get to be friends with my sister and watch her (she - after 3 kids - just found herself wearing a size 6 again) get down with her bad self.
We root each other on.
However, if you don't have a smart phone, you aren't uninvited to the part.
Oh, no, you don't get out that easily.
You can still log in online and log your foods, workouts, etc.
And if you do, be sure to friend me.
There are so many other things that could be said, but this post doesn't need to drag on forever.
So, please, if you have questions, ask them.
If you need a cheerleader, call me.
If you need a running buddy, I'll make it happen.
If you just wanna see a change, start somewhere.
It's slow, and it's painful, but change doesn't happen without discomfort and you are probably going to need someone to talk you through it.
To help you not give up.
To keep you motivated.
I do.
That's why I am so transparent with my weight.
I want to be accountable to all of you.
I want you to cheer me through my goal.
But I would love nothing more than the opportunity to help cheer you through yours.
So, let's be friends, mkay?
Friday, March 9, 2012
Mommy Therapy: Couponing Makes a Comeback
When you live on a revolving 3 hour cycle, the days start to blend together.
(For those of you without kids, newborns eat every 3 hrs or so. Meaning you start over every 3 hrs.... It's kinda like Groundhog Day, only 21 hours shorter. Bill Murray would barely get to Ned Ryerson on this kind of cycle.)
All that to say, I have had to find something to entertain myself while Baby Girl naps and Little Man runs circles around the house.
Long story short, I have rediscovered couponing in an amazing way.
And here in Georgia, every Sunday they sell double papers for $1 less than the actual price of 2 papers.
I have spent hours clipping coupons and daydreaming over the sale ads....
And I'm here to tell you that the best deals don't happen at Wal-Mart or Target. They happen at CVS. And Walgreens. And sometimes Kroger or Publix. And then, if your Wal-mart price matches (mine in Delaware never would without me going to customer service and who has time for that????) sometimes you can get glowing sale items at Wally World.
For those of you in Delaware, we didn't have CVS's though, so Walgreens/Happy Harry's is where its at. First of all, every month they have an instore coupon book that you can combine with manufacturers coupons. And then, every week, they run sales that give back register rewards. Meaning, I invest $25 I'm the right items and walk out with $10-15 in RR to use next week. And next week, if I shop RR items with coupons, I can walk out having spent little to no money and still have $10-15 for next weeks sale.
The thing to know: walgreens does not provide a personal id card, but rather, gives register rewards to anyone one per transaction. The catch is that they have a 1 coupon per item policy and RR count as coupons. So if you have 10 items, you can only have 10 coupons per transaction. It's a balancing act, so to speak. A challenge, if you will. But its much more complicated than lining up pieces of wood in a straight line so if you can't do that, (I'm looking at you, Alicia and Chelsea) then this might not be for you.... Also, you may have to battle your ethics about buying things you will never use to get register rewards (I find this easier to do if you already have register rewards and won't be paying anything out of pocket).
CVS, on the other hand, is amazing. You do need a savings card, so that means only one deal per person, but the extra care bucks (CVS's version of RR) don't count towards the coupon total. Double them up and its easy to get amazing deals. Double them up in items that you get extra care bucks back on, and you'll be addicted too.
You'll be getting amazing deals every week.
Like this.
You can thank me later...
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Helpful How-To: In the Land of Milk and...Well, More Milk
Despite the beautiful babies I make, I am anything BUT a walking poster child for pregnancy and breastfeeding.
I talk to so many women who luuuurve being pregnant.
And even more who cherish breastfeeding.
And they all tend to make me feel like something is terribly wrong with me.
I seriously loathe pregnancy.
And breastfeeding isn't really much better.
I don't feel a huge bond with my child while nursing.
I feel sleepy.
(Which is actually completely normal due to the release of endorphins during let down.)
But my point?
Or the point of this post?
Despite the fact that I don't enjoy the nursing process, I can tell you how to make it less painful.
Or what I did to make it less painful.
Not to mention how I avoided the cracking and bleeding that almost all of my friends have complained of.
It's pretty common sense actually.
Think about it.
You don't go out and run a half marathon without prepping your body, right?
So why would you think you could jump right into anything as rigorous as breastfeeding without doing the same?
And actually, I didn't come up with my idea.
About a month before I delivered Little Man, a nurse friend suggested I start scrubbing the "girls" before I showered every day with a rough washcloth.
And then my lactation consultant in the breastfeeding class I took suggested something similar.
And this time around, I talked to at least 4 doctors/nurses/midwives who agreed.
So around 35 weeks, I started my regimen.
And now, 7 weeks later, I am sooooo thankful. I have had little to no pain while nursing-way different from last time-and not a hint of cracking or bleeding yet.
Honestly.
Let down is actually way more painful than nursing is.
What I'm trying to say is, although breastfeeding can tend to be exhausting and painful and- according to some-completely rewarding, and-according to me- completely FREE, with a little preparation, it can also be completely painless.
And that more than makes up for the fact that you feel like a Jersey cow for a small eternity.
I would love to hear from those of you who have breastfed and or attempted to breastfeed to know if you did anything to peep yourself and or if you experienced any of the messy side affects!
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
Helpful How To: NOT Going into Labor
In case you wondered or cared how last night turned out....
Baby girl is still snuggly and warm INSIDE my belly.
That's right.
After having contractions-painful ones-for almost 3 hours last night, baby girl changed her mind and stopped.
More than a little frustrated, I am.
Kinda excited about the new 3d release of Star Wars, I am.
Kinda tired of being pregnant, I am.
And yes, kinda thankful last night wasn't the big night, I am.
I'm surprisingly terrified of having 2 kids.
So what did I do to make it stop, you ask?
Well, first, I called my sister, who is the resident expert on baby-having.
Obviously.
Then I drank a gallon of water and put my feet up.
Although all that led to was needing to pee alot, thus getting me ON my feet a lot.
Tell me, why do they tell you to drink plenty of fluids and lie down?
Do they know what happens to a pregnant woman who drinks lots of fluids and lies down?
Because I do.
And it's really not helpful.
Also, do they know what it's like to attempt to pee while you are having a contraction?
But back to the point at hand...
It works.
And about an hour after drinking my water and lying down, my contractions stopped.
I know we are all relieved....
And I'm sure you are so relieved to know that what they say actually works.
Despite all the peeing....
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Helpful How-To: Putting Some Elbow Behind my Degreasing
It's been a little over a month since we moved into our little rental.
And life is good.
Not perfect, perhaps, but good.
But there are things that come with living in a rental that are never quite what you imagined them to be.
And one of them just happens to be cleaning up someone else's messes.
Not that I enjoy it, just that it came with this territory.
And today, of all days, I could take it no more.
Mostly because the grossness was getting to me.
Let me explain.
In our little rental kitchen, we have a little rental stove top.
And above that is a little rental vent hood.
From 1972.
But whatever.
It's fine from this angle.
But get a little closer and you might notice a dirty little secret this vent hood was trying to hide.
That's grease.
Underneath my vent hood.
Let's zoom out, shall we?
And that's AFTER I scrubbed it for a good 20 minutes.
It's disgusting.
But then I remembered a little something my momma told me.
Not to mention a commercial or two about Dawn dishwashing detergent getting the grease off of pretty much anything.
So I thought I would give it my best shot.
And literally, a couple scrubs and the grease melted away.
Lesson learned?
Sticky, greasy, hot messes really can be cleaned with just a little help from this magical substance.
The helpful how-to here???
Learn from my mistake.
Start out using it.
Don't wait until you are 20 minutes in with a ginormous preggo back ache!!!
Not that you would have a preggo back ache, but still....
And life is good.
Not perfect, perhaps, but good.
But there are things that come with living in a rental that are never quite what you imagined them to be.
And one of them just happens to be cleaning up someone else's messes.
Not that I enjoy it, just that it came with this territory.
And today, of all days, I could take it no more.
Mostly because the grossness was getting to me.
Let me explain.
In our little rental kitchen, we have a little rental stove top.
And above that is a little rental vent hood.
From 1972.
But whatever.
It's fine from this angle.
But get a little closer and you might notice a dirty little secret this vent hood was trying to hide.
That's grease.
Underneath my vent hood.
Let's zoom out, shall we?
And that's AFTER I scrubbed it for a good 20 minutes.
It's disgusting.
But then I remembered a little something my momma told me.
Not to mention a commercial or two about Dawn dishwashing detergent getting the grease off of pretty much anything.
So I thought I would give it my best shot.
And literally, a couple scrubs and the grease melted away.
Lesson learned?
Sticky, greasy, hot messes really can be cleaned with just a little help from this magical substance.
The helpful how-to here???
Learn from my mistake.
Start out using it.
Don't wait until you are 20 minutes in with a ginormous preggo back ache!!!
Not that you would have a preggo back ache, but still....
Thursday, November 10, 2011
Helpful How-To: Time to Start Thinking about Presents!!!
I have very little control over anything in my life right now.
So it helps to focus on the things I can control.
Like Christmas shopping.
And gift wrapping.
We all know how much I enjoy that part, right??
Well, thanks to Pinterest, this year I have so many new obsessions with gift wrapping....
And rather than giving you a tutorial, I thought I would picque your interest with the stuff that has been bouncing off the inside of my brain lately.
Enjoy...
And now, I am just anxious to get some gifts to start wrapping!!!
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
Helpful How-To: Prepping for Holiday Shopping
It's no secret that things might be a little tight for our Christmas this year, right?
If it was a secret before, let me blow it for you.
Things are going to be UBER tight this year for Christmas.
As in, there will probably be no Black Friday big ticket items this year.
But that doesn't mean that I am not Christmas shopping the most economical way possible....
Wanna hear what I'm doing to make the most of my money this year?
If not, you should probably stop reading now and go do something more useful with your time.
Like Googling "Kim Kardashian divorce" and join the rest of America in wondering if it was just a publicity stunt....
Or try to determine if Justin Beiber really did get a new puppy or not.
I have it on good authority he did not.
Wait.
What were we talking about?
Oh, right.
Christmas Shopping.
And my economic situation.
A.K.A. Being Scrooge with my pocket book while being Tiny Tim with my gift giving.
I know, I know, I don't really know what it means, either.
Just keep reading.
1. Swag, Swag, Swag.
People.
We've talked about it before.
Thanks to Swagbucks, I have managed to sock away almost $100 in Amazon Gift Cards over the last few months to help with Christmas shopping.
And for those of you who are like, "How on earth?" I'll tell you.
Referrals - when you post the link to Facebook and get referrals, you can earn some major Swagbucks.
Searching - I do alot of my searching at random times of day. Like if I wake up to go to the bathroom (that happens alot these days!!!) in the middle of the night. I have the app on my phone and will usually only have to search once or twice to win some bucks.
Surveys - Here's where I cash in the most. If you have access to a computer throughout the day, and you have time to check back at their site randomly, you can almost always find a survey or 2 that you will qualify for. (Hint: make sure you complete your "survey profiles" so you are almost always pre-qualified for the surveys that are available to you...)
Freebies - These are the random onesies and twosies that you can get throughout the day. Read the Swagbucks blog for free swagcodes. Fill out the daily poll. And finally, click through the No Obligation Special Offers every day....
2. Redeem Those Points.
For those of you who can be trusted with credit cards, you probably know that they can be major money makers for you.
Most credit cards offer some type of rewards programs.
And if yours is anything like mine, they occasionally have promotions (sales) on their rewards....
And if you are watching, you can earn yourself some really good deals when you hit those sales/promo's.
I.e., last week I scored $135 in free gift cards for Christmas shopping when my rewards program had some gift cards on sale.
Again, not alot of money, but momma can make it go a LOOOOOOOOOOOONG way.
Especially if I hit up some of my favorite stores....
Who happen to have amazing sales and (duhhhhhhhhhhhhh) COUPONS!
3. Take advantage of the saving sites.
You know what I'm talking about....
Groupon.
Living Social.
Eversave. (Today, they have a deal for a $50 Restaurant.com giftcard and a $25 Target gift card.... That's a really good deal!!!)
SaveMore.
In the past few months, I have gotten Amazon gift cards for half off, gift cards for free, as well as the Target deal that I mentioned above.
And I can only imagine that over the next few weeks, we will see an increase in discounted gift cards as suppliers are trying to ramp up for holiday sales...
Be ready to take advantage!
4. Shop the Big Sales!
I know, I know. It's a given.
But we are {eagerly} approaching one of the best season for sales all year long.
And some of the best sales are before Black Friday.
(I will never forget the year that Walmart offered laptops for $199 two weeks before Black Friday. My mom stood in line and bought 5 of them, then turned around and sold them on Ebay thus making enough money to pay for Christmas. Just saying...)
Just stay alert.
Keep in touch with websites like Dealcatcher and TGIBlackFriday to stay informed of the deals.
And yes, gear up for the big day.
You gotta be prepared if you are gonna get the best deals!!!
If it was a secret before, let me blow it for you.
Things are going to be UBER tight this year for Christmas.
As in, there will probably be no Black Friday big ticket items this year.
But that doesn't mean that I am not Christmas shopping the most economical way possible....
Wanna hear what I'm doing to make the most of my money this year?
If not, you should probably stop reading now and go do something more useful with your time.
Like Googling "Kim Kardashian divorce" and join the rest of America in wondering if it was just a publicity stunt....
Or try to determine if Justin Beiber really did get a new puppy or not.
I have it on good authority he did not.
Wait.
What were we talking about?
Oh, right.
Christmas Shopping.
And my economic situation.
A.K.A. Being Scrooge with my pocket book while being Tiny Tim with my gift giving.
I know, I know, I don't really know what it means, either.
Just keep reading.
1. Swag, Swag, Swag.
People.
We've talked about it before.
Thanks to Swagbucks, I have managed to sock away almost $100 in Amazon Gift Cards over the last few months to help with Christmas shopping.
And for those of you who are like, "How on earth?" I'll tell you.
Referrals - when you post the link to Facebook and get referrals, you can earn some major Swagbucks.
Searching - I do alot of my searching at random times of day. Like if I wake up to go to the bathroom (that happens alot these days!!!) in the middle of the night. I have the app on my phone and will usually only have to search once or twice to win some bucks.
Surveys - Here's where I cash in the most. If you have access to a computer throughout the day, and you have time to check back at their site randomly, you can almost always find a survey or 2 that you will qualify for. (Hint: make sure you complete your "survey profiles" so you are almost always pre-qualified for the surveys that are available to you...)
Freebies - These are the random onesies and twosies that you can get throughout the day. Read the Swagbucks blog for free swagcodes. Fill out the daily poll. And finally, click through the No Obligation Special Offers every day....
2. Redeem Those Points.
For those of you who can be trusted with credit cards, you probably know that they can be major money makers for you.
Most credit cards offer some type of rewards programs.
And if yours is anything like mine, they occasionally have promotions (sales) on their rewards....
And if you are watching, you can earn yourself some really good deals when you hit those sales/promo's.
I.e., last week I scored $135 in free gift cards for Christmas shopping when my rewards program had some gift cards on sale.
Again, not alot of money, but momma can make it go a LOOOOOOOOOOOONG way.
Especially if I hit up some of my favorite stores....
Who happen to have amazing sales and (duhhhhhhhhhhhhh) COUPONS!
3. Take advantage of the saving sites.
You know what I'm talking about....
Groupon.
Living Social.
Eversave. (Today, they have a deal for a $50 Restaurant.com giftcard and a $25 Target gift card.... That's a really good deal!!!)
SaveMore.
In the past few months, I have gotten Amazon gift cards for half off, gift cards for free, as well as the Target deal that I mentioned above.
And I can only imagine that over the next few weeks, we will see an increase in discounted gift cards as suppliers are trying to ramp up for holiday sales...
Be ready to take advantage!
4. Shop the Big Sales!
I know, I know. It's a given.
But we are {eagerly} approaching one of the best season for sales all year long.
And some of the best sales are before Black Friday.
(I will never forget the year that Walmart offered laptops for $199 two weeks before Black Friday. My mom stood in line and bought 5 of them, then turned around and sold them on Ebay thus making enough money to pay for Christmas. Just saying...)
Just stay alert.
Keep in touch with websites like Dealcatcher and TGIBlackFriday to stay informed of the deals.
And yes, gear up for the big day.
You gotta be prepared if you are gonna get the best deals!!!
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Helpful How To: Keeping Your Inspiration Going
To be honest, I am drained.
I don't know if you've picked up on that.
But being pregnant and moving and dealing with the almost-Terrible-Two's has pretty much taken everything out of me.
And then there's that whole - everything I own is packed into a metal room 30 minutes away from me....
All these factors lead to a lot less Helpful How-Tosing...
And alot less inspiration.
Please forgive me.
You know what makes it worse?
Techy and I have to share the laptop everynight.
AHEM. What that should say is that Techy gets the laptop while I sit on the couch with my iPad
Which refuses to do ANYTHING until it is updated with the newest software....
But Techy has the computer, so....
You see where this is going, right?
Rather than even attempt to keep up, it's usually just easier for me to go to bed.
Hey, I'm pregnant. It's a luxury for a couple more months....
So really what this is is a desperate cry for you to help me keep my inspiration going.
The fall season is upon us - Halloween, Thanksgiving and yes, even Christmas....
So many inspiring holidays...
And yet, I am pooped out because I don't have a house to decorate.
I can't wear a normal Halloween costume without looking MILDLY ridiculous.
And I honestly don't even know where we will be for Thanksgiving, much less if I will be cooking a bird this year...
But in the meantime, here are a few things, I am attempting to do to stay inspired...
Sunday, Kathy (my awesome friend that I am living with) decided she wanted to roast a chicken, but didn't have time.
And then we googled, crockpot roasting.
Let's just say that last night's dinner was AMAZING...
Sure, it's the untraditional way...
But so inspirational! And ready when you get home from work!!!
And then there's the inevitable home decor stuff that's going on....
Over the last few weeks, I have spouted home decor knowledge and ridiculousness so much that I now have my officemate, Dreek searching Better Homes & Garden's website for home decor inspiration....
So yes, what I'm trying to say is, I may be lacking in personal inspiration, but that doesn't mean that I'm not participating in other's inspiration.
Hopefully, you are doing the same!!!!
I don't know if you've picked up on that.
But being pregnant and moving and dealing with the almost-Terrible-Two's has pretty much taken everything out of me.
And then there's that whole - everything I own is packed into a metal room 30 minutes away from me....
All these factors lead to a lot less Helpful How-Tosing...
And alot less inspiration.
Please forgive me.
You know what makes it worse?
Techy and I have to share the laptop everynight.
AHEM. What that should say is that Techy gets the laptop while I sit on the couch with my iPad
Which refuses to do ANYTHING until it is updated with the newest software....
But Techy has the computer, so....
You see where this is going, right?
Rather than even attempt to keep up, it's usually just easier for me to go to bed.
Hey, I'm pregnant. It's a luxury for a couple more months....
So really what this is is a desperate cry for you to help me keep my inspiration going.
The fall season is upon us - Halloween, Thanksgiving and yes, even Christmas....
So many inspiring holidays...
And yet, I am pooped out because I don't have a house to decorate.
I can't wear a normal Halloween costume without looking MILDLY ridiculous.
And I honestly don't even know where we will be for Thanksgiving, much less if I will be cooking a bird this year...
But in the meantime, here are a few things, I am attempting to do to stay inspired...
Sunday, Kathy (my awesome friend that I am living with) decided she wanted to roast a chicken, but didn't have time.
And then we googled, crockpot roasting.
Let's just say that last night's dinner was AMAZING...
Sure, it's the untraditional way...
But so inspirational! And ready when you get home from work!!!
And then there's the inevitable home decor stuff that's going on....
Over the last few weeks, I have spouted home decor knowledge and ridiculousness so much that I now have my officemate, Dreek searching Better Homes & Garden's website for home decor inspiration....
So yes, what I'm trying to say is, I may be lacking in personal inspiration, but that doesn't mean that I'm not participating in other's inspiration.
Hopefully, you are doing the same!!!!
Thursday, October 13, 2011
Helpful How-To: Staging Our House
No, it hasn't sold yet.
But I still thought I would give you a little insight into what we have done to set it up for a long winter on the toughest real estate market in the history of mankind.
P.S. Anyone wanna buy a house??
Anyway, back to the house staging situation. (Does anyone feel like they are talking like a cop when they use the word "situation"...just me, right?)
In order to get the place ready to be abandoned to the cruel environment that is the real estate market, we followed the rule of 3 R's - Reduce, Repair, and Recycle.
1. Reduce.
We moved stuff off of counters.
We pulled stuff out of the corners.
Admittedly, in some rooms, the reduction went a little overboard....
Like when we pulled everything out of our guest bathroom.
I completely forgot to add towels.
Or decorations.
Or anything decorative.
FAIL.
But overall, the idea was to reduce the clutter in our home.
And that we did....
2. Repair.
See that far wall over there?
A few weeks ago it was more pock marked than a 14 year old boy's face.
And filling in those holes and sanding down the walls took more elbow grease than an oil change.
Yeah.
But that wall wasn't the only room that got some repairing....
The curtain rods and tie backs in the office were also in need of some serious help.
And the back yard?
If you were a Facebook follower a few weeks ago, you saw my desperate pleas for yard help.
Repair doesn't even TOUCH the work that had to be done there....
3. Recycle.
This is possibly my very favorite part of the house staging process.
The kiddy room wall art - from Goodwill books.
The bed in the master bedroom that used to be in our guest room.
I could also file this under the reduce category...since we used to have a king sized bed in our bedroom.
And the full sized bed was added a significant amount of real estate to our bedroom.
What you won't notice in this picture is the repurposed outlet covers - that were repainted to match the fixtures in this bathroom.
This once builder's grade cabinet got a makeover with a quick coat of "Polystain" in "Ebony".
And our back bedroom?
Well, you've already seen the headboard that was repurposed from some leftover plywood and a dropcloth....
But the desk was also a space holder in our basement...
That found it's home as a space holder in our guest bedroom.
It helps potential buyers envision living in the home and writing letters at that desk.
Does anyone actually write letters these days?
Well, other than my boss?
But you get it, right?
If not, I apologize.
I've given it my best shot.
At least you got to see my house, right?
And you got to read some cleverly alliterated steps to a ready-to-sell house.
What you didn't get to read about was my favorite room in the whole house...
My foyer:
Which really didn't need much work at all.
No reduction, repair or recycling here.
Who knew my foyer was so gorgeous, right?
You sure you don't wanna buy a house???
*WINK*
But I still thought I would give you a little insight into what we have done to set it up for a long winter on the toughest real estate market in the history of mankind.
P.S. Anyone wanna buy a house??
I know, I know.
But you can't blame a girl for trying...
In order to get the place ready to be abandoned to the cruel environment that is the real estate market, we followed the rule of 3 R's - Reduce, Repair, and Recycle.
1. Reduce.
We moved stuff off of counters.
We pulled stuff out of the corners.
Admittedly, in some rooms, the reduction went a little overboard....
Like when we pulled everything out of our guest bathroom.
I completely forgot to add towels.
Or decorations.
Or anything decorative.
FAIL.
But overall, the idea was to reduce the clutter in our home.
And that we did....
2. Repair.
See that far wall over there?
A few weeks ago it was more pock marked than a 14 year old boy's face.
And filling in those holes and sanding down the walls took more elbow grease than an oil change.
Yeah.
But that wall wasn't the only room that got some repairing....
The curtain rods and tie backs in the office were also in need of some serious help.
And the back yard?
If you were a Facebook follower a few weeks ago, you saw my desperate pleas for yard help.
Repair doesn't even TOUCH the work that had to be done there....
3. Recycle.
This is possibly my very favorite part of the house staging process.
The kiddy room wall art - from Goodwill books.
The bed in the master bedroom that used to be in our guest room.
I could also file this under the reduce category...since we used to have a king sized bed in our bedroom.
And the full sized bed was added a significant amount of real estate to our bedroom.
What you won't notice in this picture is the repurposed outlet covers - that were repainted to match the fixtures in this bathroom.
This once builder's grade cabinet got a makeover with a quick coat of "Polystain" in "Ebony".
And our back bedroom?
Well, you've already seen the headboard that was repurposed from some leftover plywood and a dropcloth....
But the desk was also a space holder in our basement...
That found it's home as a space holder in our guest bedroom.
It helps potential buyers envision living in the home and writing letters at that desk.
Does anyone actually write letters these days?
Well, other than my boss?
But you get it, right?
If not, I apologize.
I've given it my best shot.
At least you got to see my house, right?
And you got to read some cleverly alliterated steps to a ready-to-sell house.
What you didn't get to read about was my favorite room in the whole house...
My foyer:
Which really didn't need much work at all.
No reduction, repair or recycling here.
Who knew my foyer was so gorgeous, right?
You sure you don't wanna buy a house???
*WINK*
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
Helpful How-To: Packing Your Life Away
For those of you who were able to follow our move via Facebook, you probably saw this picture...
And to be honest, I may have posted it here, too....
But since my brain is completely fried, we are going to revisit this moment.
Because (other than the fact that my kid is stinking ADORABLE in this pic) as fun as it {doesn't} sound, it was seriously complicated to pack our short term possessions, vs. long term possessions AND stage our house to sell (anyone wanna buy a house??).
And it takes a lot of planning to make it happen just so.
But I thought I would give you a run down of what we did....
In case you should ever run into a similar situation...
Step 1. Decide what you can live without.
In our case, we left behind a house full of furniture and decorations that we won't be needing until (unless) we buy a new house here in Georgia.
Yep. It was painful to leave behind some of our prized possessions....
(Can we say $15 Bombay mirror anyone???)
But we knew what we could live without, and we both made painful sacrifices to make the move happen.
Step 2. Determine what you need sooner rather than later.
Because of the nature of our move, we had a Packrat (yes, we all remember my obsession, right?) delivered and our plan was to have it stored until we move into our someday (aka. Georgia) home.
That meant that the entire time we were packing, we had to pack with the mindset of, "Do we need this anytime in the next 6 months to year?"
Anything that was a NO went into the Packrat.
Anything that was a YES had to fit in my car or Techy's car along with a dog, a baby, and as many diapers as possible.
It was tough, but we packed our china.
We packed our silver.
We packed Little Man's toys.
We packed my skinny clothes...I'm pregnant, remember?
We packed Techy's wires....
And we packed every bath towel we have ever owned. (Stupid move, right?)
All in the Packrat.
Step 3. Divide and Conquer.
Once it came time to pack the items going into my car, I realized that I needed to determine a real plan for dividing our stuff up, while ensuring I could still see out of my windows.
And my secret?
And for $2.78 each, it cost me less than the cost of 1 suitcase to buy 10 of them.
The upside is that at a glance I can see what each container holds.
And any that were unused could easily get tucked anywhere to be used later.
Like when I am doing laundry at the laundromat at 2 am any random Saturday night.
All in all, we made it from Delaware to Georgia without any mishaps.
And with a buttload of stuff in the back end of my car.
And I know exactly where everything is....
If you believe that, I also have some oceanfront property in Arizona for you....
But I know where the important stuff is.
And that's all that really matters.
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
Helpful How-To: Some Things Speak For Themselves
Good methodology, right?
I am pretty sure that Techy wrote this.
I just wonder how my doctor's office got a hold of it??
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
Helpful How-To: Wall Art for Less
If you read yesterday's post, then you are already ahead of yourself....
Or probably have a good idea of where today's post is going.
Remember my CRAFT-TASTROPHE from this weekend?
Well, it's going to be wall art.
To help stage the little man's room for when we put our house on the market next week.
And it cost me about $4.25.
All you need is 2 picture frames. (Not pictured)
2 mats
And one of your favorite child hood books.
I got mine for 25 cents at Goodwill.
And as luck would have it, the inside cover happened to be perfect for the project I was working on.
The mats were white, as were the frames, and I wanted a little more color, so using some of the paint I had lying around, I painted the mats to match the colors in Little Man's room.
And viola!
Wait.
What's this?
My mat and picture don't fit the frame?
Ok, ok. So this project isn't done yet, but you can almost tell how it's going to come together, right???
RIGHT???
And all that for less than $5.
I say well worth it for Nursery Artwork!
Or probably have a good idea of where today's post is going.
Remember my CRAFT-TASTROPHE from this weekend?
Well, it's going to be wall art.
To help stage the little man's room for when we put our house on the market next week.
And it cost me about $4.25.
All you need is 2 picture frames. (Not pictured)
2 mats
And one of your favorite child hood books.
I got mine for 25 cents at Goodwill.
And as luck would have it, the inside cover happened to be perfect for the project I was working on.
The mats were white, as were the frames, and I wanted a little more color, so using some of the paint I had lying around, I painted the mats to match the colors in Little Man's room.
And once they were dry, I added in the pages from the books.
And viola!
Wait.
What's this?
My mat and picture don't fit the frame?
Ok, ok. So this project isn't done yet, but you can almost tell how it's going to come together, right???
RIGHT???
And all that for less than $5.
I say well worth it for Nursery Artwork!
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Helpful How-To: Weathering the Storm
If you live on the East Coast, you probably are completely aware of Hurricane Irene and the havoc she wreaked this weekend.
I personally think we were so lucky to have as much advanced warning as we had.
And overall, Techy and I were pretty prepared for this storm.
Thanks be to God for providing the technology that makes the national weather service happen!
I mean, we knew last Tuesday that something was coming and we needed to start prepping.
Which has led me to thinking...
Wanna know how we prepped for this giant storm?
Wanna know the things we did right? (and nothing about the things we did wrong?)
1. Safety First
There are a few things that Techy and I KNOW about our house - like the fact that just outside our bedroom window stands a very large oak tree. VERY LARGE.
When we made plans for this storm, we opted to play it safe and head out of the way of the very large tree and into our basement.
With our child. Lest you think we are terrible parents.
And to be honest, I am so glad we did.
Because at 10 p.m. on Saturday night, we had about 3 tornado warnings coming through our area at once.
And I would have HATED to rip Little Man out of bed at 10 pm to run to the basement and wait out the warning.
Nope. For the sake of all of our safety, we were not willing to risk anything flying through a window or falling on our roof and we opted to keep it safe (if not comfortable) in our basement.
(For those of you who don't have basements, you could just as easily have camped out in rooms or hallways to the the interior of your home that don't have windows and closed the doors.)
And at the end of the day, we made the right decision.
2. Know your area.
We live in Delaware.
Possibly the flattest state in the Union.
Ok, ok. So not entirely.
Northern Delaware does have some hills.
But we don't live in northern Delaware.
Where we live is extremely flat.
And our drainage systems are less than ideal for hurricane conditions.
And our backyard likes to take on water.
Sometimes.
Now, yes, it does drain away from the house, but based on the predictions we were getting last week, Techy and I were not taking any chances.
And with that knowledge, we took the necessary precautions to keep our house clean and dry.
Battery backup on the sump pump, extra insulation and gasketing over potentially leaky spots, cleaned out gutters, extended drains....
All very helpful for ensuring that we would stay dry.
3. Expect to lose power.
In a storm - any storm - the potential is there for you to lose power.
Go ahead and get ready for it.
Charge everything up - cell phones, lap tops, anything that has a battery - charge it.
Decide now that you will probably lose some food and keep a cooler handy with ice or ice packs for the things that you want to store as long as possible.
Not to mention those shelf stable foods. You want to have stuff you can eat without heating it up while the power's out.
And water - plenty of drinking water.
And my mom's rule for EVERY potential power outtage: fill your bathtub with water so you can flush your toilets.
BUT - if you have the option of getting a generator - DO IT!
Techy and I have had a generator since the year that Little Man was born.
Currently, we have fired it up just under a dozen times for random needs - whether it be a hurricane, winter weather, or an opportunity to power something where there is no power, you never know when they can come in handy, and personally, we think it's well worth the $1000 you might pay for it.
4. Be evacuation ready.
Let's face some facts, shall we?
If you are in a coastal area, there is always the potential to be evac'd from the area you live in during a storm of this kind.
ALWAYS.
Whether it is government mandated or family mandated for your own safety....
And you never know when you may have to get out.
So be prepared.
Fill your gas tanks before the storm hits.
And then fill your cars with blankets, water, and shelf safe food.
In case you get stuck in traffic.
Because these are the perils of evacuation.
5. Know your storm.
Techy and I have a distinct advantage, having lived in Florida for so many years.
We are well acquainted with the damage a Category 2 or 3 storm can do.
And we knew what was coming last week when they were still predicting that.
We were as prepared as we could be...
Only now we live in Delaware.
Not Florida.
Where the people, the terrain, and the general world around us is not equipped to hurricanes of that size or strength.
So although, we were ready for the storm and knew what to expect...
Roads were still going to flood due to inefficient drainage systems.
Trees were still going to blow over because of waterlogged rootbeds.
And lots of damage would be left in this storm's wake.
This is where knowing your area goes hand in hand with knowing the power and size of the storm system you have coming.
6. Consider your "loot".
If I were using pirate speak, I would have totally called it "booty", but then I figured you would think JLo and the last thing I need in my hurricane post is a JLo distraction...
But seriously.
Your stuff.
Your outside stuff.
We had to think about it.
Like our generator.
What if it was stolen?
Yes. It happens.
An ugly but true fact.
Here's the thing.
If Bubba Gump, or some other monster truck driving - not scared by a little wind and rain - dude gets all of his teenage Bubba Gump friends squeezed into his monster truck and drives around a few neighborhoods during a storm that everyone else is trying to stay INSIDE during, he can land some pretty sweet deals.
Like a truck-bed FULL of $1,000 generators.
Especially at 4 am when everyone is asleep, the power is out, no street lights are on and no one can see him or his Bubba Gump friends.
(hmmm, is that politically incorrect??? Should I apologize??? Ehhh, whatever. You get the point, right??? And you wouldn't get the point if it weren't partially true, right???)
What I am trying to say is, we had to consider Bubba and his buddies and plan for how to keep our generator secure.
And Techy, being a Bubba Gump-sans-monster-truck at heart, made a little fort with our cars -
Pinning our generator between the front wall of our garage and our cars.
Getting TO our generator was work.
Much less getting it out of our "corral"
The wagon train people would have SO high-fived us.
7. Don't Panic.
At this stage in the game, it does you little good to panic.
Whatever will happen will happen, and the best thing you can do is be prepared.
Which, if you have followed all the steps I have listed above, you probably are. (Cause I totally didn't leave anything out, right?)
Keep calm, keep informed (a battery powered radio sure does help...), and keep safe.
And when everything is said and done, if you managed to do that, you have a lot to be thankful for.
I personally think we were so lucky to have as much advanced warning as we had.
And overall, Techy and I were pretty prepared for this storm.
Thanks be to God for providing the technology that makes the national weather service happen!
I mean, we knew last Tuesday that something was coming and we needed to start prepping.
Which has led me to thinking...
Wanna know how we prepped for this giant storm?
Wanna know the things we did right? (and nothing about the things we did wrong?)
1. Safety First
There are a few things that Techy and I KNOW about our house - like the fact that just outside our bedroom window stands a very large oak tree. VERY LARGE.
When we made plans for this storm, we opted to play it safe and head out of the way of the very large tree and into our basement.
With our child. Lest you think we are terrible parents.
And to be honest, I am so glad we did.
Because at 10 p.m. on Saturday night, we had about 3 tornado warnings coming through our area at once.
And I would have HATED to rip Little Man out of bed at 10 pm to run to the basement and wait out the warning.
Nope. For the sake of all of our safety, we were not willing to risk anything flying through a window or falling on our roof and we opted to keep it safe (if not comfortable) in our basement.
(For those of you who don't have basements, you could just as easily have camped out in rooms or hallways to the the interior of your home that don't have windows and closed the doors.)
And at the end of the day, we made the right decision.
2. Know your area.
We live in Delaware.
Possibly the flattest state in the Union.
Ok, ok. So not entirely.
Northern Delaware does have some hills.
But we don't live in northern Delaware.
Where we live is extremely flat.
And our drainage systems are less than ideal for hurricane conditions.
And our backyard likes to take on water.
Sometimes.
Now, yes, it does drain away from the house, but based on the predictions we were getting last week, Techy and I were not taking any chances.
And with that knowledge, we took the necessary precautions to keep our house clean and dry.
Battery backup on the sump pump, extra insulation and gasketing over potentially leaky spots, cleaned out gutters, extended drains....
All very helpful for ensuring that we would stay dry.
3. Expect to lose power.
In a storm - any storm - the potential is there for you to lose power.
Go ahead and get ready for it.
Charge everything up - cell phones, lap tops, anything that has a battery - charge it.
Decide now that you will probably lose some food and keep a cooler handy with ice or ice packs for the things that you want to store as long as possible.
Not to mention those shelf stable foods. You want to have stuff you can eat without heating it up while the power's out.
And water - plenty of drinking water.
And my mom's rule for EVERY potential power outtage: fill your bathtub with water so you can flush your toilets.
BUT - if you have the option of getting a generator - DO IT!
Techy and I have had a generator since the year that Little Man was born.
Currently, we have fired it up just under a dozen times for random needs - whether it be a hurricane, winter weather, or an opportunity to power something where there is no power, you never know when they can come in handy, and personally, we think it's well worth the $1000 you might pay for it.
4. Be evacuation ready.
Let's face some facts, shall we?
If you are in a coastal area, there is always the potential to be evac'd from the area you live in during a storm of this kind.
ALWAYS.
Whether it is government mandated or family mandated for your own safety....
And you never know when you may have to get out.
So be prepared.
Fill your gas tanks before the storm hits.
And then fill your cars with blankets, water, and shelf safe food.
In case you get stuck in traffic.
Because these are the perils of evacuation.
5. Know your storm.
Techy and I have a distinct advantage, having lived in Florida for so many years.
We are well acquainted with the damage a Category 2 or 3 storm can do.
And we knew what was coming last week when they were still predicting that.
We were as prepared as we could be...
Only now we live in Delaware.
Not Florida.
Where the people, the terrain, and the general world around us is not equipped to hurricanes of that size or strength.
So although, we were ready for the storm and knew what to expect...
Roads were still going to flood due to inefficient drainage systems.
Trees were still going to blow over because of waterlogged rootbeds.
And lots of damage would be left in this storm's wake.
This is where knowing your area goes hand in hand with knowing the power and size of the storm system you have coming.
6. Consider your "loot".
If I were using pirate speak, I would have totally called it "booty", but then I figured you would think JLo and the last thing I need in my hurricane post is a JLo distraction...
But seriously.
Your stuff.
Your outside stuff.
We had to think about it.
Like our generator.
What if it was stolen?
Yes. It happens.
An ugly but true fact.
Here's the thing.
If Bubba Gump, or some other monster truck driving - not scared by a little wind and rain - dude gets all of his teenage Bubba Gump friends squeezed into his monster truck and drives around a few neighborhoods during a storm that everyone else is trying to stay INSIDE during, he can land some pretty sweet deals.
Like a truck-bed FULL of $1,000 generators.
Especially at 4 am when everyone is asleep, the power is out, no street lights are on and no one can see him or his Bubba Gump friends.
(hmmm, is that politically incorrect??? Should I apologize??? Ehhh, whatever. You get the point, right??? And you wouldn't get the point if it weren't partially true, right???)
What I am trying to say is, we had to consider Bubba and his buddies and plan for how to keep our generator secure.
And Techy, being a Bubba Gump-sans-monster-truck at heart, made a little fort with our cars -
Pinning our generator between the front wall of our garage and our cars.
Getting TO our generator was work.
Much less getting it out of our "corral"
The wagon train people would have SO high-fived us.
7. Don't Panic.
At this stage in the game, it does you little good to panic.
Whatever will happen will happen, and the best thing you can do is be prepared.
Which, if you have followed all the steps I have listed above, you probably are. (Cause I totally didn't leave anything out, right?)
Keep calm, keep informed (a battery powered radio sure does help...), and keep safe.
And when everything is said and done, if you managed to do that, you have a lot to be thankful for.
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