Digital Mom

Bookworm

Today is the last day of the summer reading program at our local library. We read Maya a total of... drum-roll please... 143 books in the month of July. Holy moses.

I am a huge, huge, huge advocate of reading, reading a lot, to children. Maybe it's because I am such a bookworm myself. Reading is a wonderful way to be close with your child, teach them about anything, foster their imagination, thinking skills, language skills. It helps with their attention span, and with any luck they will turn into avid readers themselves. I could on and on about the benefits of reading!

With Maya, It started when I was pregnant. Brian would sit there and read The Pokey Little Puppy to my bulging belly. To this day she loves daddy to read that book, it's their "special" book. From the time Maya was born I started the books at bedtime routine. Every night we read at least 5 books. Unless we happen to be reading a "chapter" book, like Charlotte's Web or Sideways Stories From Wayside School. She loves those, we read a few chapters a night sometimes.

Maya is not yet 5 and is the proud owner of her very own bookshelf, complete with hundreds of books, in her very own reading corner with a big comfy stuffed bunny chair. I'm a huge fan of used book stores, buying used books at garage sales, and yes I even splurge a lot on brand new books for her. Of course we also go to the library at least every 2 weeks.

She loves all kinds of books. Poetry. Science. Fiction. Non-Fiction. Books with pictures, books without pictures.

There's a grand prize for the kid in her age group that reads the most books, and maybe she will win, maybe she won't... It doesn't really matter because she has gained so much already in the process. And the funny thing is... we read that many books even when there isn't a "program" with prizes and treat coupons.

Ah, I love my little bookworm! :)

Is it Friday yet?

Not much going on around lately, other than I SUCK at Flylady routines. Maybe I can still get myself back into it, I mean, I'm really not that far behind... and yes, I am trying to convince myself more than you.

In honor of trying to see the glass as half full: the good thing about finding out I am indeed not pregnant, is that I was able to suck down the hugest most caffeinated Latte ever. Oh, and because I was feeling sorry for myself, I got my hair done. A PERM! And it actually turned out the way I wanted! How exciting. It's so, so cute. I swear I will post a pic soon. It's shorter and messy and curly and funky and so me. I also dropped some serious cash on corresponding styling products. Gotta have the shampoo specifically for curly/permed hair, as well as the conditioner and then there's the curl enhancer stuff... oy.

My dog? He. Is. So. Bad. I am so sick of cleaning up dog poop and my house always smells like some sick mixture of poop and febreeze citrus stuff that I've already been through 2 bottles of in 3 weeks because if there's one thing I can not stand it's a smelly house. He is still a puppy and I know things will get better. I just don't know when. Sigh.

The good news is, it's almost friday... stay at home moms value weekends just as much as working moms do, you know!! :)

Discovery

Yesterday we all watched The Discovery shuttle launch on television.

Maya was sooo excited... she is totally into space and anything having to do with space. She told me a while ago "I want to be an astronaut so that I can show everyone that aliens are really real." Heh. You should see her room... space stuff everywhere! When the shuttle was suppose to launch last time she watched all the pre-coverage and then was so, so upset when they scrubbed the launch. She is only 4!! It was really cool though. I would give anything to someday take the long trip to FL to see a LIVE launch IN PERSON.

Well, Bri is at the store buying a HPT right this very minute. So much for waiting till friday, eh? I swear, I am THE most impatient person on earth. Don't worry I'll keep ya updated! Negative. I am trying not to cry. I was SO sure this time! Now, what do I go by? If all these symptoms don't mean pregnancy, then what does, dang it? Sigh.

In My Head? Or, Something Else...

For the past 3 days I have been what I can only describe as "queasy" on and off. Mostly when I first wake up, or late at night. Mostly when I have not eaten in a while. Crackers helped this morning. It's very mild though.

I have had a headache on and off for the past 2 days.

I should be feeling PMS cramps right now, instead I've been feeling slightly bloated and crampy in a different way... I can't explain it. Little "twinges" of pain and a general "full" feeling. Kind of.

I gagged and thought I was going to throw up the other day when I got a stringy peice of chicken in my mouth... something I think is gross but doesn't usually effect me like that.

I gagged while brushing my teeth this morning. But, this does happen to me for no particular reason every so often.

I LOVE ranch dressing but the thought of it is grossing me out right now.

The other day I was peeing a lot. That seems to have subsided now, though.

I. Am. So. TIRED.

I'm waiting for Friday to test, so you'll have to be patient till then...

Kennywood and Flylady

First things first, we went to our local amusement park, Kennywood, and of course I have photos! You know the drill... click on the thumbnails to see the whole photo!

Well, tomorrow is Monday, and tomorrow I start trying out my new Flylady routine. For those of you not familiar with Flylady, you should check it out... I have read many, many great things about this, awesome testimonials and so forth. So starting tomorrow, I give it a go. I have adapted her plan to meet my needs and the needs of this household, and I think it will work quite well. I have monthly "zones," weekly duties, a weekly checklist, and morning and evening routines all planned out. Who woulda thought, ME being ORGANIZED! I am starting a new "Flybaby" category to help me out. She suggests keeping a "flying" journal but I'm just gonna use my blog! Is anyone else out there doing this, or anyone else tried it? Let me know what you think!  :)

A Few New Photos

Wow, 2 posts in one night! I think that's a record for me! I had to share these new photos, though. As usual, click the thumbnails for full view. Enjoy!

Housewife's Prayer

By: Sheila Gosney

Thank you dear Lord
For things to do,
Tasks to complete
That are never quite through.
Thank you for the laundry
That piles up so fast,
For the tub I just cleaned
Though I know it won't last.
Thanks for the toys
That litter my floor,
For the mud-caked shoes
That sit by the door.
Thank you for the fingerprints
On once clean glass,
Thanks for my carpet
Now covered with grass.
Thanks for the kitchen
That never stays clean
For the skillets to scrub
That lay in my sink.
These things in my life
Just prove I am blessed,
God gave me a family,
I can live with the mess.

Inspiration

As part of my new outlook on life... don't ask, I will get into that later... I have decided to not only start noticing things that "inspire" me, but to start photographing and writing about them, too. This way I have a place to look for those monents I could really use a huge dose of "feel good." By inspire I mean many things. Thhings that make me feel good, things that make me think or wonder or dream, things I really love... you get the picture. I'm starting a new category on here for this, and here is my first post... complete with photos! You can click on all the thumbnails in this post to view the full photo, too.

I have to start with my daughter and my husband. My daughter is amazing, and all I have to do is look at her smiling, and everything is ok. Unless, of course it is one of those "oops I just painted the dog bright red with my finger paints and then he jumped up and got it all over the couch but I will smile this sheepish grin in hopes of not getting yelled at" smiles.. hehe. Seriously though, her smile lights up the room. The sparkle in her eyes... If that isn't inspiring, I don't know what is. Then there's my husband... the greatest dad I know, his relationship with Maya is amazing, as is the relationship we have together. Ok Ok I won't get all mushy on ya, you get the idea.

Maya's art work. I doubt there is much of anything on this planet that is more inspiring than a child's art work. To have the imagination and creativity of a child again! To be able to paint and color and create, to enjoy the process as much if not more than the outcome, it's amazing. I truly believe you can learn a lot about a child by examining their art... it's a peek inside their soul, and children are so uninhibited when it comes to creating.

Nature. Clouds, sunsets, storms, even simple things like green grass and autumn leaves. We have a butterfly bush and it really does attract butterflies, as you can see from the photo. Butterflies are so beautiful! Flowers... these orange ones in my front yard, I could look at them all day long. I know this all sounds so incredibly corny, but really, have you ever taken the time to look.. really look.. at things like this? We take things like this for granted all the time, and we really shouldn't. Not to be a complete cornball but life really is better when you stop and smell the roses!

These are just a few of the things I come across in my day to day life that keep me smiling. I also have a lot of really great quotes, poems, and short stories... stay tuned!

So Much to Tell...

...So little time. First of all for anyone who is curious, there are some photos in my new photo album showcasing some highlights of our new house. I love it here so much. There are kids around, Maya has made some new friends. I love being able to walk to the library...  we joined the summer reading program. There are 3 playgrounds in walking distance, too. Our next door neighbors have 5 kids and one on the way, and would you believe they have a little girl the same age as Maya and her name is Maya! Crazy.

Oh and please send good vibes our way... Brian had an interview today at work for a higher position in the company and the position pays a lot more and well, it would be awesome if he got it.

The new puppy is a handfull but he is getting better every day. It was really, really bad the first week or two, but he is improving. I love having him around... right now he is snoozing at my feet as I type this.

I plan on trying to publish a photo as often as I blog, kind of like a photoblog thing, so make sure you check my photo album every once in a while, too! Also keep in mind this new blog is still sort of work in progress so, expect changes and additions and what not. Hope everyone in blogland is doing good and I can't wait to catch up with everyone! :)

Guess Who's Back?

Well here I am again, back in the world of blogging... starting all over again, really. I'm still getting this thing up and running smoothly... Decided to go with typepad this time because, well, it's easier and life is crazy haha. So, I don't have as much control on how creative the blog is, whatever. Expect a photo album by tomorrow sometime. I will also get around to getting all my links up and finding all my old blogging friends again. So much to do!

We are all settled in at our new home and I LOVE it! You can expect lots of pics! Another change... we got ourselves a puppy. Adopted him from the humane society. Well I'm off to continue fooling around with this thing and get my day started here at home... I leave you with a photo of our newest addition, Rascal...