Can you see those two small teeth marks amongst the freckles and Irish Tan?
Until then, I'll leave you with this picture of their latest victim.
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Paying it Forward
Remember this post where we were all left feeling sorry for the little one with bite marks on her cheek? Well, fell sorry no longer. Olivia learned not to stay bit and has put two small boo-boos on my left shoulder.
Can you see those two small teeth marks amongst the freckles and Irish Tan?
Last night while she was being super snuggley giving me loads of sweet slobbery baby kisses Olivia chomped down on my shoulder and pierced the skin with her sharp little teeth. What a goober. When I said, "OOOOWWW! Olivia that hurts mommy!" she simply laughed and threw her head back in delight. My sweet babies are turning into relentless biters. Maybe they'll star in the next Twilight Movie as Vampire Twins...
Until then, I'll leave you with this picture of their latest victim.
Can you see those two small teeth marks amongst the freckles and Irish Tan?
Until then, I'll leave you with this picture of their latest victim.
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
Scary Mom Voice
Recently my newly-married friend Kate gave up her well-deserved weekend of quality time with her husband to visit me and my family here in Raleigh. Kate and I met as R.A.'s in college 10 years ago. We've seen each other through some of the most difficult and wonderful times of our lives, and our bond remains forever strong despite our very different lifestyles. A fellow blogger, you can check out Kate's talent for restoring forgotten furniture here.
Generally speaking, my children were on their best behavior for our guest. Joey was funny, entertaining, and energetic. The babies were cuddly, affectionate, and super adorable. After a late night on Friday, early rising and skipping a nap on Saturday, Joey was well-beyond "being a good listener" by Saturday evening. I was trying to wrap up the activity, get everyone seated, and get dinner on the table. I was also hot, tired, and already drinking beer. Joey was running through the apartment like a tornado destroying everything in his path. As he dumped over yet another bin of cleaned up toys, I reached my breaking point. I grabbed hold of him before he could run to the next area of destruction and demanded he clean up the mess he had made. I then shouted at my husband and guest to "EAT!" as they were waiting for the cook to be seated. Not my finest mom moment by far. Later when things were calmer I apologized to Kate for having to witness my ill-fated attempt to discipline my son accompanied by my scary mom voice. Her response was honest and hilarious:
Kate: Honey, I've heard that voice before.
Me: You have?
Kate: Yes. You had your scary mom voice long before you ever had children. It didn't just appear when you popped out a kid between your legs.
And to that I had no response. She is absolutely right. Kate and I had our share of squabbles back in the day. Chasing each other down the dorm room hallways with snow shovels and returning each other's stuff type squabbles. I've used my scary mom voice on Kate or in her presence probably more times than I should publicly admit. So that got me thinking. Do we all have a scary mom voice? Or only us scary moms? If you have one, now is the time to embrace it. I want to know... when did you last use your scary mom voice?
Generally speaking, my children were on their best behavior for our guest. Joey was funny, entertaining, and energetic. The babies were cuddly, affectionate, and super adorable. After a late night on Friday, early rising and skipping a nap on Saturday, Joey was well-beyond "being a good listener" by Saturday evening. I was trying to wrap up the activity, get everyone seated, and get dinner on the table. I was also hot, tired, and already drinking beer. Joey was running through the apartment like a tornado destroying everything in his path. As he dumped over yet another bin of cleaned up toys, I reached my breaking point. I grabbed hold of him before he could run to the next area of destruction and demanded he clean up the mess he had made. I then shouted at my husband and guest to "EAT!" as they were waiting for the cook to be seated. Not my finest mom moment by far. Later when things were calmer I apologized to Kate for having to witness my ill-fated attempt to discipline my son accompanied by my scary mom voice. Her response was honest and hilarious:
Kate: Honey, I've heard that voice before.
Me: You have?
Kate: Yes. You had your scary mom voice long before you ever had children. It didn't just appear when you popped out a kid between your legs.
And to that I had no response. She is absolutely right. Kate and I had our share of squabbles back in the day. Chasing each other down the dorm room hallways with snow shovels and returning each other's stuff type squabbles. I've used my scary mom voice on Kate or in her presence probably more times than I should publicly admit. So that got me thinking. Do we all have a scary mom voice? Or only us scary moms? If you have one, now is the time to embrace it. I want to know... when did you last use your scary mom voice?
Sunday, June 6, 2010
Covergirl ShadowBlast and ShineBlast Review
I was super excited to be invited to the Covergirl Blast Campaign through Bzzagent. A while back I was a part of the Covergirl & Olay Simply Ageless Campaign, and because of it I've been using the Covergirl foundation, blush, concealer, and corrector ever since. So when I received an invitation to try out the newest Covergirl eyeshadows and lipglosses through BzzAgent I was psyched.
The Covergirl Smoky Shadowblast is a great concept. It is 100% self contained, meaning no need for additional applicators. There are two colors, one on each end of the product, and instructions on how to apply it are included on the package. This product is sold in several shades, I selected the Onyx which is a silver/black combination. I loved the way it looked immediately after application. I felt that I could use more or less of the product to make the look more or less dramatic. It is acceptable for everyday use, but also could be used more liberally for a more drastic look suitable for an evening out (what's that?) or special event. My big complaint about this product is that after a short period of time the color started to fade, and made a cake-like dark line in the crease of my eyelid. I'm not sure if this is a result of the way I applied it (foundation on the eye vs. no foundation), the HOT North Carolina weather, or a flaw of the shadow formula that Covergirl is using, but I prefer my eyeshadow to go on, stay on, and last for hours.
As for the Covergirl ShineBlast Lipgloss, I have nothing but great things to say about it. It is a lightweight formula, lots of shine, and not super sticky as some lipglosses can be. It had just the right amount of color, and seemed to last for a while also. I tried the Sparkler shade, in case you're wondering. I'd love to try out something a little bit darker, it's a good thing my BzzKit came with a couple of coupons to use towards my next product purchase!
Without further ado, here are my before and after pics. Please ignore my slicked-back hairstyle in these. I sacrificed doing my hair for playing with makeup. This mom just can't find time for both right now...
The Covergirl Smoky Shadowblast is a great concept. It is 100% self contained, meaning no need for additional applicators. There are two colors, one on each end of the product, and instructions on how to apply it are included on the package. This product is sold in several shades, I selected the Onyx which is a silver/black combination. I loved the way it looked immediately after application. I felt that I could use more or less of the product to make the look more or less dramatic. It is acceptable for everyday use, but also could be used more liberally for a more drastic look suitable for an evening out (what's that?) or special event. My big complaint about this product is that after a short period of time the color started to fade, and made a cake-like dark line in the crease of my eyelid. I'm not sure if this is a result of the way I applied it (foundation on the eye vs. no foundation), the HOT North Carolina weather, or a flaw of the shadow formula that Covergirl is using, but I prefer my eyeshadow to go on, stay on, and last for hours.
As for the Covergirl ShineBlast Lipgloss, I have nothing but great things to say about it. It is a lightweight formula, lots of shine, and not super sticky as some lipglosses can be. It had just the right amount of color, and seemed to last for a while also. I tried the Sparkler shade, in case you're wondering. I'd love to try out something a little bit darker, it's a good thing my BzzKit came with a couple of coupons to use towards my next product purchase!
Without further ado, here are my before and after pics. Please ignore my slicked-back hairstyle in these. I sacrificed doing my hair for playing with makeup. This mom just can't find time for both right now...
Before:
After:
Shadow Blast Close Up:
By the way, I realize that lots of my posts lately have been reviews/giveaways/brand promotions. Our life has been busy and kind of stressful these days and I just haven't had a lot of time to devote to writing my usual family stories. I am not switching gears. The #1 focus of my blog will always be my children and the funny (or not so funny) things that they do. A faithful blog reader is a patient blog reader. If the content today is not what you were hoping for, don't fret. It will be more relevant again soon.
Friday, June 4, 2010
Pound For Pound Challenge & Kroger Gift Card Giveaway
I have been reckless with my food choices and lack of exercise for the several months. I've let my weight get to a higher number than I'm comfortable with, and while I've wanted to get it under control, I've been unable to motivate myself. Then I received an email from MyBlogSpark telling me about the Pound For Pound Challenge, as seen on 'The Biggest Loser.' If you haven't heard about it, here's the deal:
Hunger affects 1 out of 6 Americans today. To raise awareness about the fight against hunger, the Pound For Pound Challenge was created, in which anyone (that includes you) can pledge to lose weight while helping a local food bank or shelter of your choosing at the same time. Through June 30, 2010, for every pound you pledge to lose, the Pound For Pound Challenge will donate 14¢ to Feeding America® - enough to deliver one pound of groceries to a local food bank.
I couldn't think of better motivation to start my weight loss journey. Just the idea my small weight loss could help a family in need was enough for me. I pledged to lose 10 pounds by the end of the month. To make this a little easier on me, through MyBlogSpark, General Mills and Kroger sent me $30 in gift cards to the Kroger Family of Stores to purchase healthy foods for my family. And they have another $30 in Kroger gift cards to send to one of my readers who comments on this post. The Kroger Family of Stores includes Kroger, Fred Meyer, Ralph´s, King Soopers, City Market, Dillon's, Smith´s, Fry´s, QFC, Baker´s, Owen´s, Jay C Food Stores, Hilander, Gerbes, Food4Less, Pay Less Super Markets and Scott´s Food & Pharmacy.
To enter this giveaway, leave a comment on this post telling me one way that you *try* to stay healthy. While I'm encouraging you to take the Pound For Pound Challenge and pledge, it is not mandatory for entering the giveaway.
10 additional entries can be earned by doing some or all of the following: (leave an additional comment for each entry.)
(Disclosure: Kroger Family of Stores gift card, information, and giveaway were all provided by the Kroger Family of Stores and General Mills through MyBlogSpark.)
Hunger affects 1 out of 6 Americans today. To raise awareness about the fight against hunger, the Pound For Pound Challenge was created, in which anyone (that includes you) can pledge to lose weight while helping a local food bank or shelter of your choosing at the same time. Through June 30, 2010, for every pound you pledge to lose, the Pound For Pound Challenge will donate 14¢ to Feeding America® - enough to deliver one pound of groceries to a local food bank.
I couldn't think of better motivation to start my weight loss journey. Just the idea my small weight loss could help a family in need was enough for me. I pledged to lose 10 pounds by the end of the month. To make this a little easier on me, through MyBlogSpark, General Mills and Kroger sent me $30 in gift cards to the Kroger Family of Stores to purchase healthy foods for my family. And they have another $30 in Kroger gift cards to send to one of my readers who comments on this post. The Kroger Family of Stores includes Kroger, Fred Meyer, Ralph´s, King Soopers, City Market, Dillon's, Smith´s, Fry´s, QFC, Baker´s, Owen´s, Jay C Food Stores, Hilander, Gerbes, Food4Less, Pay Less Super Markets and Scott´s Food & Pharmacy.
To enter this giveaway, leave a comment on this post telling me one way that you *try* to stay healthy. While I'm encouraging you to take the Pound For Pound Challenge and pledge, it is not mandatory for entering the giveaway.
10 additional entries can be earned by doing some or all of the following: (leave an additional comment for each entry.)
- Be a follower of Thou Shall Not Whine (3 extra entries!) *Just click the little "follow" button on the right-hand sidebar, then leave me 3 additional comments stating, "follower #1, follower #2, etc."
- Follow my blog on Facebook (2 extra entries) *click on the networked blog button on the right-hand sidebar, then leave 2 additional comments stating that you did!*
- Grab my button and display it on your blog (2 extra entries!)
- Mention this giveaway on your blog with a link back to it. (2 extra entries!)
- Leave a comment on a non-giveaway post. (leave an additional comment here to count as your entry!)
(Disclosure: Kroger Family of Stores gift card, information, and giveaway were all provided by the Kroger Family of Stores and General Mills through MyBlogSpark.)
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
Sisterly Love
Can you see the marks on Olivia's left cheek in this picture?
You might be able to see it better in this one.
That's right folks, we've got a biter. A hair-pulling, knock-her-down, biting 1-year old bully. What started as a sweet moment of snuggles, giggles, and kissing twin babies ended with horrific cries from poor unsuspecting Olivia. The red marks appeared instantly, and lasted through the weekend. She's no worse for the wear, and being beat up on by siblings is a part of childhood. A sad part, but a part nonetheless.
You might be able to see it better in this one.
It was hard to photograph for two reasons: 1. she has very fair skin that glows when the camera flashes. 2. moving targets are always hard to catch. Regardless, do you have any idea how Olivia got these marks on her cheek?
From the title of this post, you can probably guess that it had something to do with this not-so innocent girl:
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