tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-110147256376198572024-03-12T21:22:43.607-07:00Super Mom BlogSuper Mom Blog
An honest and raw account
of motherhoodSummer Dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01495339309669727536noreply@blogger.comBlogger97125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11014725637619857.post-73473599956912476592020-04-17T14:48:00.001-07:002020-12-13T15:45:16.156-08:00Homeschool Hell<span style="font-size: medium;">We have began a new chapter in the Carney family, Home-school...<br />
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Scarlett and Ava hit the ground running and seem to have mastered this new concept of distance learning. Willa on the other hand, has turned into a sassy, argumentative, Tasmanian devil. This is an example of a typical morning.<br />
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7:00 am - Willa wakes up and has a fit because she cant watch t.v before she starts school. She cries, yells, screams, tells us we are the meanest parents in the world.... No t.v. in the morning is actually a <i>consequence</i> from the major meltdown she had yesterday about refusing to turn the t.v off to start school.<br />
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7:30 am - She refuses to get dressed, no big deal its home-school!<br />
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8:00 am - I ask her what she wants for breakfast, she replies Waffles and then says "I want waffles because it's hard for you to make... <i>real sweetheart huh?</i><br />
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8:30 - After a full belly Willa is ready to work. After watching half of her 10 minute math lesson and refusing to watch the rest and starts the assignment. She claims she doesnt need to watch the actual lesson as she already knows how to do it. <i>(I let her win this one)</i> She stops a few times to *wrap herself in warm laundry * try on 2 different sweatshirts that she claims smell bad *finds one that does not smell bad *cuddle our dog Silver *finds a hurt bee and makes a home for it and then finally finishes the math assignment...<br />
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9:30 - Hallelujah! Willa has turned a corner and decided to cooperate and get her work done. But mutters things like "<i>C</i><i>an you write it for me? How about you write one part and I write the other? Do I really have to do all of it?"</i><br />
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10:00 - Must stop and jump on the trampoline, tell me all about her new favorite horse show, play with the cat, then the rats, sharpen her pencil many times, then more work.<br />
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11:00 - Lunch time, snuggle dogs, wander around the yard finding flowers for the bee, then more work. She is starting to burn out but the end is in sight!<br />
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1:00 - Still more work to do. I try to explain to her that it would have been done by now if she just did it without all the dilly-dallying.<br />
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This 4 hour day could have been done in 2 but sweet Willa doesn't role that way. Some days are like this, others are smoother, and some are worse full of drag our screaming fits that must make our neighbors think we are performing an exorcist!<br />
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I sure appreciate our teachers, they are superheros and I cant wait for school to open in the fall! Were only 3 weeks in and 7 more to go, wish me luck!!!</span>Summer Dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01495339309669727536noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11014725637619857.post-68987762104721504892018-09-25T17:26:00.001-07:002018-09-25T17:26:12.483-07:00Bye Bye Boobies, Hello Itty Bitties! It all started 8 years ago when I began this journey and decided to get breast implants. I wanted big boobies and after nursing 2 kids I wanted to turn my deflated water balloons into ripe melons! I wrote a blog about it which you can find <a href="http://www.supermomblog.com/2011/01/my-new-tatas.html" target="_blank">here</a>. I went from a 32B cup, having nursed 2 babies, to having a 32DD, <i>quite</i> a difference.<br />
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It definitely took some getting used to and for a while I felt I went <i>too</i> big. I am a bit conservative and don't necessarily like showing them off but over time they became the new normal. I got used to not being able to find bras that fit and would just wear jog bras all the time. I had to buy large bathing suit tops and extra small bottoms. I got used to being at the beach and getting hidden glances at my chest.<br />
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Fast forward 6 years... Last August I noticed my left breast becoming very hard. After a couple visits to the doctor I learned that I had a capsular contracture. This means my body was forming a capsule or covering of scar tissue around the implant. The ultrasound could not detect <i>why</i> my body was doing this but I needed to have surgery to either remove the implant and capsule <i>or </i>remove the capsule and replace the implant. I was on the fence on what to do but I finally chose to remove and replace the implant. Surgery day arrived and everything went smoothly. The surgeon found out the reason my body formed this capsule is because the implant completely ruptured, spilling silicone into my chest cavity, ewe!!<br />
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This past March 2018 I noticed my right slowly hardening and being as this was not my 1st rodeo, I immediately made the appointments for the MRI, which confirmed there was a slow leak in the implant. I could not believe that this would happen to me of all people! I'm a pretty natural person, don't shave my legs or wear makeup so the fact that I got implants in the 1st place is pretty wild! And then they <i>both</i> leaked. I know plenty of people that have implants and this has never happened.<br />
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I immediately knew what I would do and that was to remove both implants completely, which thankfully was covered by insurance. I decide to do the elective procedure for a lift as well because having implants in so long was basically like nursing for 7 years straight. I figured if I was going to go through all this I wanted to be happy with the results.<br />
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The day before surgery was so strange, I could not imagine how it would be without boobies even though I used to be <i>in</i> the "itty bitty titty club." I tried to be positive but honestly I didn't really know how to feel. I kept reminding myself to not be petty and be thankful for my 2 healthy boobies and how I want to set a good example for my 3 daughters.<br />
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Surgery came and went and I was so happy it was over. Recovery was surprisingly fast. The worst part was those nasty pain meds they prescribed.<br />
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I am honestly surprised by how happy I am to have them out. I truly thought I would miss them or feel less sexy. On the contrary I absolutely LOVE my itty-bitties! I am truly excited to get all the perks of having small tatas, and believe me there are a ton. I cant wait to go running, go bra-less, buy a bunch of cute bralettes, and wear teeny sporty bathing suit tops.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">2 days after surgery, drains and all<br />
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After!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Going into surgery<br />
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Summer Dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01495339309669727536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11014725637619857.post-36638124315186282922018-09-18T14:18:00.000-07:002018-09-18T14:18:03.522-07:00Naughty Willa...Willa has a knack for breaking the rules without getting in trouble.<br />
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When she was 3 she wrote her name <i>in pen</i> on the back of <i>both </i>of the front seat headrests in the van. She did a great job and that was the 1st time I saw her write her name. Her name is still there today, a bit faded but still there...<br />
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She is learning to read and write in 1st grade and exploring phonics on her own. Its amazing how quick she is learning how to read and write. She added a few items to our grocery list and dinner recipe. I noticed that her spelling is also impeccable for a 1st grader.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjf2I1Cx5QF2Un13HUbjWZUATSSu7oaEEvgQXoj9NXTzWY-o6LB5C_dZ5uyqS5ajFagRLkHH0kkV5AWSZ1_HMWUDBMjvMtFdELtul1aeIxg1mfayNcGybAeHHvX54yH8UCL6AtJ0mi73bs/s1600/willas+recipe.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjf2I1Cx5QF2Un13HUbjWZUATSSu7oaEEvgQXoj9NXTzWY-o6LB5C_dZ5uyqS5ajFagRLkHH0kkV5AWSZ1_HMWUDBMjvMtFdELtul1aeIxg1mfayNcGybAeHHvX54yH8UCL6AtJ0mi73bs/s320/willas+recipe.jpg" width="240" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1SCx3uzCRsWThGQwZMXr7gsbb7Myq-HDCqJ18ArliZb2IerVoAk9XzJiOwfvmIo3xh8Y0YosMv7o7FdJ_PrKYt7hQNDU8HUaVaDwn-ohPhI4FnWD4_kxhHjt9QoREVigigfJGufgObH8/s1600/willas+grocery+list.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1SCx3uzCRsWThGQwZMXr7gsbb7Myq-HDCqJ18ArliZb2IerVoAk9XzJiOwfvmIo3xh8Y0YosMv7o7FdJ_PrKYt7hQNDU8HUaVaDwn-ohPhI4FnWD4_kxhHjt9QoREVigigfJGufgObH8/s320/willas+grocery+list.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
Summer Dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01495339309669727536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11014725637619857.post-76361498911830544312018-09-15T14:40:00.000-07:002018-09-15T14:40:20.677-07:00Hot Springs, Lakes, Rivers Oh My!!We recently visited an amazing new place called <a href="http://www.monohotsprings.com/" target="_blank">Mono Hot Springs Resort</a>, located in the south western Sierras. We teamed up with another super mom Ashley and her 3 daughters. We booked a walk-in tent stocked with camp beds. This place also had a spa with baths and hot tubs fed by natural hot spring water.<br />
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Picture this, high sierra mountains, river,lakes and hot-springs, oh my!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwdsOPa5DcaoykBGQnpkmpV-7Mhrryq5sOLSHABQ3nyjvuH4_gacYBEkPYD4gBaltYF8eFv7pz3X2Wh1Yk25nsHhBhdpOEUkw8M-CRyhRGvm7RF-98smvC3Y6fGgiulJLIgBQboeONNhc/s1600/mono+hot+springs+map.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="541" data-original-width="486" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwdsOPa5DcaoykBGQnpkmpV-7Mhrryq5sOLSHABQ3nyjvuH4_gacYBEkPYD4gBaltYF8eFv7pz3X2Wh1Yk25nsHhBhdpOEUkw8M-CRyhRGvm7RF-98smvC3Y6fGgiulJLIgBQboeONNhc/s320/mono+hot+springs+map.JPG" width="287" /></a><span style="font-family: inherit;">We wake early for our 1st adventure. At 8:00am the heat is already super intense. Not your average heat but the kind you cant get away from, causing you to move slow mixed with high elevation. We left camp early to hike to the closest lake called Doris Lake. According to the map this lake is<i> super</i> close. We packed a bunch of water, snacks, and floaties, drove to the trail head to start. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Their website states<i> "</i><i>Doris Lake is an easy one mile hike from the resort and a
popular swimming hole for decades." </i>We figured it would be a perfect hike for the little ones. <i>NOT!</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">It was extremely HOT so we had to go slow, especially with two 6 year olds. We were sweating faster than we could drink. The trail started to get quite obscure which was worrisome. When we saw the sign to Doris Lake telling us to go left, we went left. About 30 minutes later the kids were over it and us moms were questioning the route. We ran into another couple who informed us we were head</span>ed to Tule Lake, the wrong lake!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Taking a break in the shade</u></td></tr>
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We did an about-face to try to find the correct lake. At this point we were conserving our water, sweating bullets, and poor little Reagan fell down and was crying. We pretty much dragged the kids along until we got back on the correct trail and 15 minutes later made it to Doris Lake, hallelujah!<br />
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The lake was amazing, a true hidden Sierra mountain lake surrounded by large granite boulders, a cliff jumpers heaven.<br />
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After playing a bit in the water and having lunch, we start to hear thunder. We were warned by another hiker that it may be a good idea to head back before the storm comes in. Sadly, we cut our trip short and started packing up to make it back before the storm came in.<br />
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Sierra storms are unlike anything we experience in Santa Cruz, purely amazing. We hiked back in our bathing suites and it started to dump, I'm talking<i> huge</i> fat raindrops, sheets of rain which was soon followed by hail and a ton of thunder and lightening. What a change from 100 degree weather to freezing hail! Ashley and I are pulling little Willa and Reagan along while the bigger girls hurried ahead of the group to make it back to the car. <br />
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Upon arriving at the car we see the windows were open and everything was soaked! Instead of heading back to camp we decided to go hang out in the hot tub fed by natural hot springs. That was a day of firsts for many of us, 1st grueling hike, 1st hike in a thunder storm, 1st hike in a hail storm. What an epic adventure, cant wait to go back next year!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Home Sweet Home</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFtxHrlzb8JNQEy7r1dNf8CfUTAjQg8W_QhMXslwDHwZS3RNA0WdEwG851WClEMFcO7duUJdgGB6SrmxW37VDsA4Q5Ir02whzxccbLqEjbsK4NlQnyfnTla0oPKR36OZw3Xy952SX24Hc/s1600/IMG_7571.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFtxHrlzb8JNQEy7r1dNf8CfUTAjQg8W_QhMXslwDHwZS3RNA0WdEwG851WClEMFcO7duUJdgGB6SrmxW37VDsA4Q5Ir02whzxccbLqEjbsK4NlQnyfnTla0oPKR36OZw3Xy952SX24Hc/s320/IMG_7571.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Made it to Doris Lake!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8FkZppYLz1PGITGnwfj-kuEXEZCYdRNoBAKmelFu44vZ9UqWVtqS5E-trzZiipr2bOC5c0Oi7ywDXRt0Itv672GHOTfq_Hke5HEEwaG7WbVuyhJWE46XqWE_TqdnRjMhePeqd3m3SbZg/s1600/IMG_7591.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8FkZppYLz1PGITGnwfj-kuEXEZCYdRNoBAKmelFu44vZ9UqWVtqS5E-trzZiipr2bOC5c0Oi7ywDXRt0Itv672GHOTfq_Hke5HEEwaG7WbVuyhJWE46XqWE_TqdnRjMhePeqd3m3SbZg/s320/IMG_7591.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hot Springs on the river</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBSOCuA-3oN_MQCrd-fbeCPTMFBzBWHe5cGP-h1ZrN1f1mRXtHNlYvHAjl4_HFfyJXlAmMnlTxjC0WQ8awI2VvZ5TJN7WNOs_uw7FN98RGAbBKZPsoJKhP4eiP2sUgcJUeWoorFlhr7EI/s1600/IMG_7584.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1203" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBSOCuA-3oN_MQCrd-fbeCPTMFBzBWHe5cGP-h1ZrN1f1mRXtHNlYvHAjl4_HFfyJXlAmMnlTxjC0WQ8awI2VvZ5TJN7WNOs_uw7FN98RGAbBKZPsoJKhP4eiP2sUgcJUeWoorFlhr7EI/s320/IMG_7584.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mud Mask!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyzsbqRVMAxPSOcja0A7ZhQULIiH9Q5dNO33i5fMI2pwk8zgbd8V_Pmcu74wHshVMRkMENDw2OeNX1NlEKhZASOFLciUSLEFAYK6cYeMgPVZsI2fJJuoYGIvw5mIe2Z0rXQvSj6JB1T2s/s1600/IMG_7601.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyzsbqRVMAxPSOcja0A7ZhQULIiH9Q5dNO33i5fMI2pwk8zgbd8V_Pmcu74wHshVMRkMENDw2OeNX1NlEKhZASOFLciUSLEFAYK6cYeMgPVZsI2fJJuoYGIvw5mIe2Z0rXQvSj6JB1T2s/s200/IMG_7601.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Natures Spa</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLZV2w4tF10eiba73y4GeKxncI7C-gVr19x2ECz7NByXVzWWeUO7NMQ5dR0ysmCUXkWeNM0VALYtxB-ubotx5e_Co0qtR5hkd59KLU6TPGe2mw2d5bZ24wni07tG2ieorMKunGW-CxXJc/s1600/IMG_7577.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLZV2w4tF10eiba73y4GeKxncI7C-gVr19x2ECz7NByXVzWWeUO7NMQ5dR0ysmCUXkWeNM0VALYtxB-ubotx5e_Co0qtR5hkd59KLU6TPGe2mw2d5bZ24wni07tG2ieorMKunGW-CxXJc/s320/IMG_7577.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hot Springs</td></tr>
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<br />Summer Dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01495339309669727536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11014725637619857.post-29023262818693326862016-09-24T18:23:00.001-07:002017-04-24T08:01:30.713-07:00Lost in the Woods!<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoyDmjhPmmUKhzwssdb4AyiC2Y0eqBs-U9CdWMtcZ0vpF6px84mOIo6ZmG3h7FFZm_tItT19UzU16TrB1tPiOk5uF5rF9XQPu9dH_Mih336WSBUjWXliqCbcXLiCqM9c5NZc0k-yjFgXA/s1600/Henry+Cowell+sign.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoyDmjhPmmUKhzwssdb4AyiC2Y0eqBs-U9CdWMtcZ0vpF6px84mOIo6ZmG3h7FFZm_tItT19UzU16TrB1tPiOk5uF5rF9XQPu9dH_Mih336WSBUjWXliqCbcXLiCqM9c5NZc0k-yjFgXA/s320/Henry+Cowell+sign.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Big Rock Hole Trail</td></tr>
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One sunny day we drove to Henry Cowell State Park to meet up with some friends who were camping there. They told us to meet them at the river and to follow the Big Rock Hole trail to get there.<br />
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We start the hike at 12:30 and I bring a stroller for Willa, 3 bottles of water and a few snacks. We park at the visitor center, find their campsite and then start on the trail which is right next to their site, easy peasy.<br />
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We hike out of the shade of the forest and into the chaparral where the sun beats down raising the temp to about 80+ degrees. We make it to the observatory platform and ditch the stroller as it is too sandy to take it any further. The trail splits and we continue on Big Rock Hole trail for quite a while taking a few turns as there are a <i>ton</i> of side trails at this park.<br />
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Its really hot and Scarlett & Willa are wearing bathing suits and bad hiking shoes. I thought this would be a short little hike to the river so I let Willa wear her princess rain boots and Scarlett chose her new school shoes.<br />
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We make it to the top of the grade, have a quick break and thankfully the trail starts to head down into the shade of the forest. Were in about 2 miles in at this point.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB5iZ9Ks2VH4ZbXdbKLDTOOt7J_CdWIskePySxZt9UjNM-2iWRGUVqfCbqhv5BohY5zV_n9KVzFc7l9km2XIAvWyQ-APY7c5th9sKxxAZQRJKo1sB8MUGeGyUlfhn0lOyaKuJJl7JBLMI/s1600/Henry+Cowell+Willa+is+hot.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB5iZ9Ks2VH4ZbXdbKLDTOOt7J_CdWIskePySxZt9UjNM-2iWRGUVqfCbqhv5BohY5zV_n9KVzFc7l9km2XIAvWyQ-APY7c5th9sKxxAZQRJKo1sB8MUGeGyUlfhn0lOyaKuJJl7JBLMI/s640/Henry+Cowell+Willa+is+hot.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Willa taking a break in the shade</td></tr>
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We continue down, down, down for a long time and in the back of my mind I am thinking how this means we will have to return by going up up, up... I am also surprised that our friends hiked this far to the river as they are not big hikers. Luckily my girls are used to me dragging them on hikes so they are hanging in there.<br />
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Finally, we hear water and make it to this beautiful hidden river with no one to be seen. I figure we missed them and they must have left already. We take a break and play in the water for a few minutes and eat our snacks which consisted of watermelon taffy and nuts. I make the kids save the last half empty bottle of water and rush everyone along to get back before dark as its around 2:30 at this point.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2MLOZhBxkV1ZEt8T4hg4WkKl4R9DLD8O1QsanovsgZ3KNIUfeuUFpkHIPoD_bX7xuv6XSqgQW1SBTe4GYVtRPR2RZl1RHOY0wTVrguv_vxGe7_xx2A-ET9n5sYybBxJdfdlsk2qbSVG4/s1600/Henry+Cowellprivate+river.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2MLOZhBxkV1ZEt8T4hg4WkKl4R9DLD8O1QsanovsgZ3KNIUfeuUFpkHIPoD_bX7xuv6XSqgQW1SBTe4GYVtRPR2RZl1RHOY0wTVrguv_vxGe7_xx2A-ET9n5sYybBxJdfdlsk2qbSVG4/s640/Henry+Cowellprivate+river.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our very own beautiful private river!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyZKpZxqHI5tWCG-39tI-MfcbFvqzosxgLMZ_6QBls3XihqtkQpGqWTjmmLUaS0H4C-Gq2gnRQAgIKVc8EamtlCJmEEF_45cxoe1BYfBg9cN_gvlkL4WkHpLkruaCjchrh_uD8JE40ydc/s1600/Henry+Cowell+Willa+and+stick.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyZKpZxqHI5tWCG-39tI-MfcbFvqzosxgLMZ_6QBls3XihqtkQpGqWTjmmLUaS0H4C-Gq2gnRQAgIKVc8EamtlCJmEEF_45cxoe1BYfBg9cN_gvlkL4WkHpLkruaCjchrh_uD8JE40ydc/s320/Henry+Cowell+Willa+and+stick.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Willa starting back up the hill</td></tr>
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We start the hike back up the steep hill and its tough going. I carry Willa for much of it and poor Scarlett drags behind, both girls hiking in their bathing suits because it was so hot. Ava has a head ache but isn't complaining which is a big help. I think she knew I was on the edge. By the time we reach the top we are out of water and pretty tired.<br />
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We make it to a 4 way split and I <i>wish</i> I would have paid more attention on the way down. I quickly rule out 2 paths and am really not sure on the other two. I was pretty turned around.<br />
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I see a girl walking our way but when I ask her for directions she doesn't speak much English or Spanish for that matter. Luckily I see someone else was walking up the trail and I am about to ask him, when I see he is shouting something while holding a sign on a stick which says "911 was a hoax" The girls just stare and he keeps rambling. At this point I quickly choose the trail in the <i>opposite</i> direction that the weird guy went and we head down the hill.<br />
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About a mile later I have an idea where we are and it is nowhere close to where we need to be. You see, Henry Cowell has 2 different entrances and we came in through Graham Hill and we were now headed toward the highway 9 entrance which is where the main ranger station and store is located. My new plan is to get to the ranger station and get water as we are all out and extremely thirsty. At this point we spoke to a fellow hiker who confirmed we had about 1 more mile to go and was kind enough to give us his water. 1 more mile, that's nothing, but it seemed so far away.... I was so tired and shed a few tears at this point and possibly said a few cuss words as I couldn't imagine carrying Willa one more mile. <br />
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Finally, we made it to the ranger station and the kids plopped down and drank water. I asked the woman in the store for a ride to the other entrance where our car was. She said no, the rangers can't do that, and so I called our friend Leanne who happens to live 5 minutes away. She dropped everything and came to our rescue, driving us back to our friends campsite and even walked with me to hike <i>back up</i> to the place where I left the stroller.<br />
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I figured we hiked between 7 to 8 miles! Once we met up with our friends we realized they meant for us to go to Big Rock <i>River</i> which is different than the Big Rock <i>Trail, </i> Woops! They made up for it by cooking up some hot dogs for my ravenous kids and poured me a nice cold glass of Chardonnay. <br />
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I'm now way more familiar with Henry Cowell trails and this was a cool bonding experience that they will remember forever, not to mention a great story. Now, whenever we go on a hike the kids say, <i>is it as long as the hike when we got lost in the woods? </i>Summer Dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01495339309669727536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11014725637619857.post-72746565764484525582016-09-21T11:20:00.000-07:002016-09-21T11:20:09.569-07:00Sisterly Wisdom<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7OCV2lUb4Ute7I5V5dlTzKiQUW0nGMAcNj6daZ-H91SSJLrAwvSSgA_0xYW-Rgz5RV3tOGgwYYDQjTCh1VrEF2HmZVzoNTbIRtEOVJRozlDBs0aQ2Y4V0CQbbHqDhnBd86oMQpGap5Xc/s1600/Up+Above+Down+Below+Cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: right;"><img border="0" height="311" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7OCV2lUb4Ute7I5V5dlTzKiQUW0nGMAcNj6daZ-H91SSJLrAwvSSgA_0xYW-Rgz5RV3tOGgwYYDQjTCh1VrEF2HmZVzoNTbIRtEOVJRozlDBs0aQ2Y4V0CQbbHqDhnBd86oMQpGap5Xc/s320/Up+Above+Down+Below+Cover.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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This is one of my favorite picture books. It explores scenes above and below the ground and has great illustrations and tons of conversation points. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcNEFfS5Bdin1QDdu6iyvNLY_emPatRlpvv40X9qM29Q41c_ji2aHYN8svIkygLau-IOm22GjQ-AOWvWtda4ad2HSz0nfKNHTjMyiAXPh9BkEWtq2DTLtB3-zWlMGpuABSVMGV96Ltaa8/s1600/Up+Above+Down+Below+Cellar.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="324" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcNEFfS5Bdin1QDdu6iyvNLY_emPatRlpvv40X9qM29Q41c_ji2aHYN8svIkygLau-IOm22GjQ-AOWvWtda4ad2HSz0nfKNHTjMyiAXPh9BkEWtq2DTLtB3-zWlMGpuABSVMGV96Ltaa8/s640/Up+Above+Down+Below+Cellar.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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I was reading this page to Willa which says: <i><b>Early in the morning families buzz 'roud the house. while down in the cellar sleeps one tiny mouse.</b></i><br />
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I asked Willa if she knew what a cellar is as we do not have these in California.<br />
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She pointed at the mouse in the right corner and said <i>Yes its full of... </i>and then she paused. I said <i>yes they do often have mice in them </i> to which she replied <i>No, they are full of dead bodies...</i><br />
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I asked her who told her that and she replied <i>Scalrett, </i>who will seems to believe to a fault.<br />
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When I asked Scarlett about bodies in the cellar she started laughing. Who knows what else she has told Willa.Summer Dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01495339309669727536noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11014725637619857.post-69821550176520366422016-03-11T21:15:00.001-08:002017-04-24T08:01:38.713-07:00Our Toilet is Glowing!Kevin ordered the craziest contraption, a toilet light! Did you even know such a thing exits?! This is no ordinary toilet light but a color changing one at that. It rotates between 4 colors and is motion activated[. At first I thought it was a weird unnecessary item but that was before I learned about the logistics involved when guys pee in the dark. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijV5IpC2yIv-LwKaEn-4OfmTpO3YTXqbKeQRWjZ3ORq8PZI_tjkrUBj3Qj_Oh0-sRcDLKVs8HbYepF0CmISsicor1O6B1-57M9q7KRQslVONVqrc0m_TYGuf1fJoEtwpJLccyqYPHz8S0/s1600/glow+toilet+3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijV5IpC2yIv-LwKaEn-4OfmTpO3YTXqbKeQRWjZ3ORq8PZI_tjkrUBj3Qj_Oh0-sRcDLKVs8HbYepF0CmISsicor1O6B1-57M9q7KRQslVONVqrc0m_TYGuf1fJoEtwpJLccyqYPHz8S0/s200/glow+toilet+3.JPG" width="200" /></a>Because this house is full of girls (and Kevin) I never thought much about what is involved when a guy has to pee in the dark.<br />
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When I go pee in the wee hours, I'm always half asleep so I sit down with my eyes closed and then shuffle back to bed. I now know that guys have to not <i>only</i> keep their eyes open, but also have to aim at the target. If you miss you get a mess and then there is the matter of trying to pee quietly, aiming for the edges of the bowl rather than the middle. Who knew there was an actual strategy to peeing in the dark?<br />
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The 1st night the toilet light arrived, the kids went nuts. They literally had to come watch me pee so they could see my pee change colors as it streamed into the bowl. I had 2 little girls hovering over me while I sat on the toilet, talk about no privacy! Scarlett is still waiting for a nighttime poo so she can see what the light does to poop! Sadly for her we are all morning poopers...<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic_7nYkRqeyFlhgIkosfFVa3TB23Ipl_N3vcQp1hbi73EMVjAAEjnt4O0PcXLBAEj3DSwSzgHGAIiPShN9YLL4a9bmng_yo8rPfTt9sTplYehgLc8N0oI_YlUcWpNcGwYg_kMh3e7adQQ/s1600/glow+toilet.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic_7nYkRqeyFlhgIkosfFVa3TB23Ipl_N3vcQp1hbi73EMVjAAEjnt4O0PcXLBAEj3DSwSzgHGAIiPShN9YLL4a9bmng_yo8rPfTt9sTplYehgLc8N0oI_YlUcWpNcGwYg_kMh3e7adQQ/s320/glow+toilet.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ava's BFF Ella also love the toilet light! </td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO2LQB5bKhhFHNhg_jl7tF1PL1OIY4IQrhgVUcquPdgXLwbmFG5kFq6BLiz_hsS7Cb8WEQ5QYMaHHZHKQf3aAzzIZIk5UhdnzJLzviWXE63eiimPOy_teq6mGGTnjFZTEAW2m2GqKxyOU/s1600/glow+toilet+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO2LQB5bKhhFHNhg_jl7tF1PL1OIY4IQrhgVUcquPdgXLwbmFG5kFq6BLiz_hsS7Cb8WEQ5QYMaHHZHKQf3aAzzIZIk5UhdnzJLzviWXE63eiimPOy_teq6mGGTnjFZTEAW2m2GqKxyOU/s320/glow+toilet+2.jpg" width="240" /></a><br />
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<br />Summer Dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01495339309669727536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11014725637619857.post-8305988876275595962015-12-08T20:00:00.001-08:002015-12-08T20:03:32.459-08:00You Did What?!We were having a little Bar B Que when Ava asked me if she could dye her friend Tommy's hair with food coloring. I figured that was a safe non-permanent way to color hair so said "sure". You would be surprised how well it worked, Tommy had perfectly pink hair. Scarlett was adamant that she was next.<br />
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Scarlett joined Ava in the bathroom and I peeked in to see how it was going and it was crazy! It looked as though a paintball gun went off, pink <i>everywhere</i>! I honestly do not understand how it got on the walls! I told her to quickly clean it up before her dad saw it.<br />
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You see I am the one who lets the kids do things that <i>seem</i> like a good idea at the time and Kevin always errs on the side of caution. More often than not, he ends up being right. I did not want Kevin to come in and see the explosion of pink and say "you let the kids do <i>what</i> with food coloring?!"<br />
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Ava's friend Ella showed up for the party and I ushered her into the bathroom, handed her a bottle of 409 and told her to<i> please</i> help Ava clean up the mess. The 3 girls got to cleaning and a few minutes later I came in to see the progress and was speechless. Let me set the scene...<br />
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Scarlett is stark naked in the shower, dripping red, being sprayed down with 409. Thats right, <i>409 with duel action grease fighting power. </i>I asked Ava if she truly thought that it is OK to spray your sister with chemicals that we lock up under the sink?! She said "The bottle says it is an all purpose cleaner" I was so mad I told the girls to get out and I took over.<br />
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As I am washing Scarlett with soap and water she tells me that they not only sprayed her body but her feet and under her armpits too! As if there was food coloring under her arm pits, <i>really</i>...<br />
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20 minutes later I had a squeeky clean Scarlett and a semi clean bathroom.<br />
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I learned 3 valuable lessons that day:<br />
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1. Food coloring is an effective but extremely messy way to color your hair</div>
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2. Smart kids can do really stupid things</div>
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3. I hate to admit it but Kevin is most often right (<i>most, <b>not</b> always...</i>) </div>
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Summer Dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01495339309669727536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11014725637619857.post-63103063283927722812015-09-29T21:59:00.000-07:002015-09-29T21:59:10.643-07:00Who needs a door anyway...You know that sound of a slamming door followed by a screaming child? You get that icky feeling in your stomach while your mind starts thinking of the awful smashed finger stories you've heard in your life. You run to see if your kids still have all their fingers and breath a sigh of relief to find 10 intact digits. Well, we not only have doors but also a big sliding glass door which have strict rules <i>not to slam</i> and it inevitably happens anyway. The slider is like the big daddy of all finger munchers, especially after the annual maintenance when it slides nice and smooth.<br />
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Whenever the girls slam their door, Kevin threatens to take the door off the hinges. Well, today he finally followed through with this threat. Scarlett slammed the door to keep Willa out of their room and it hit Willa in the face. So Kevin grabs his tools and takes the door off the hinges all the while <i>both</i> Scarlett and Willa are crying that they <i>need</i> their door. Ava just rolls her eyes and said "Who needs privacy anyway?"<br />
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The girls finally calmed down and we tacked up a shower curtain we had which ended up looking super cool! The girls are all excited about their new room decor and the lack of door somehow makes the room look bigger which is a plus as it is similar to an overcrowded dorm room. The best part is that I can rest assure that the girls will be able to keep all their fingers!<br />
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<br />Summer Dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01495339309669727536noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11014725637619857.post-71481628263993326562014-03-04T17:44:00.000-08:002014-03-04T17:44:09.927-08:00Neen!!!!I love breastfeeding! I have breastfed all 3 of my children. I nursed Ava until she was 2. I only nursed Scarlett until she was one, she was too busy to make time for the tit. Willa is still going strong and defiantly a major booby lover, just like her dad.<br />
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I love nursing for so many reasons:<br />
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1. It makes me sit my busy butt down and relax. For those of you who know me, this is virtually impossible. Or if I get an important work call, I pop it in the babes mouth and ahhh complete silence.<br />
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2. Its super cozy and special to look down in my babies eyes as they suckle away, I love these moments, not much can beat this.<br />
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3. Its a great way to calm a crying baby, instant pacifier!<br />
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4. A fail proof way to get my babies to fall asleep. (I know eventually this will bite me in the butt...)<br />
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5. Oh and its very healthy too, that's just a big bonus to all the other good stuff.<br />
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Willa will be 2 in April and my friends politely ask me how long I will nurse her, to which I often reply "Until she is 10" You see Willa is getting big and she speaks <em>really </em>well. She says <em>Momma, I want neen. Pleaseeeeee </em>When I say no, she bargains <em>Just a little bit, pleaseeeee momma, its special and its so sweet</em> At that point I almost always give in.<br />
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Sometimes its not so special. For example, in the middle of the night when she is not so polite and almost every hour repeatedly yells<em> I want neen!!!</em> When I don't give it to her she thrashes and kicks.<em> </em>I know I have created a mini titty loving monster. <br />
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I have truly evolved from a controlling, militant mother that regulated nursing to bedtime to throwing the rules out the door and popping it out whenever I hear the word neen. I know Willa is my last baby so I have let so many rules slide. I am amazed how much I have changed from baby #1 to baby #3.<br />
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So how long will I nurse? I'm not sure but I do dread the day when I decide my tatas are closed for business. I don't think Willa will be in favor of this shutdown. Until this day I plan to enjoy every second of it!<br />
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Summer Dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01495339309669727536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11014725637619857.post-11325993428643363662014-01-31T18:18:00.002-08:002014-01-31T18:18:26.634-08:00Youth is Wasted on the YoungI have no regrets (well maybe a couple) but for the most part I don't regret any part of my life. However, if I could go back in time I would do <em>a lot</em> differently.<br />
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1. I would have a lot more sex (protected of course). I was such a good girl in high school and college that I missed out on a lot of that raging hormone sex. Don't get me wrong, I had a boyfriend all through high school so did not miss out completely but I wish I would have been a bit more promiscuous when I was in college. I went to UCSC for goodness sake! If I could do it again I would experiment more with girls, threesomes, foursomes, toys, places, you name it, if I could get a do-over I would try it at all least once. <br />
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2. On a similar note, I would have had <em>way</em> more sex with my husband before having 3 kids. After baby number #1 it was pretty easy to find time. Even after baby #2 it was somewhat possible. Once baby #3 came along its next to impossible to find time and more so, a place where there are no kids. Having 3 kids in a small 2 bedroom only leaves the backyard so we really have to <em>want</em> it to venture into the great outdoors!<br />
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3. I would go to college, get a degree in science and then a nursing degree so I could get a job right out of college. Instead I got a <em>useless</em> degree in environmental studies and became a professional student <em>almost</em> getting my teaching credential, nursing pre-recs, computer classes, and Spanish. Now I'm 36 and on a 5 year long waiting list to get into nursing school (2.5 years in). You do the math, I will be at least 40 by the time I can even <em>apply</em> for a nursing job. Really? It took me all those years to figure this out, uggh! After all this schooling I finally have a cool job that does not require ANY of that (except Spanish) <br />
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4. I would save money. I used to have way more money and very little expenses and I would blow it by going out to the bar, to dinner, buying crap I did not need. I wish I would have just saved a little bit every month so now I would be able to buy a house instead of living month to month in a itty bitty house. <br />
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5. I would not drink copious amounts of tequila, ever. But that's a story for another blog.<br />
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6. I would have spent <em>way</em> more time in Costa Rica learning Spanish, or just studied Spanish more in college. Maybe do one of those language immersion programs, that would have been amazing!<br />
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7. I would have stranded that looser drunk boyfriend of mine in Grass Valley when he cheated on me on Christmas eve rather than taking him back to Santa Cruz, I promise one day I will tell this story too, its a good one! <br />
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8. I would have stuck with guitar.<br />
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I could go on and on... The saying "Youth is Wasted on the Young" is <em>so</em> true. Maybe I can impart some of my life experience on my girls so they make a few better choices than I did. But I'm not sure I want to encourage them to be promiscuous, so I will keep that one to myself.<br />
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Summer Dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01495339309669727536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11014725637619857.post-17103325508711661372014-01-28T19:21:00.000-08:002014-01-28T19:21:48.675-08:00Santa Gives Candy at Church?I have to admit that I have not done the best job teaching my children about religion. I was raised as a Jewish girl who celebrated Christmas, we were not very religious. Sadly I have never been to church, ever.<br />
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This past Sunday I was driving the girls to the store and we passed a fancy family walking to church. I jokingly said "guys, do you want to go to church?" Ava said "no thanks, its boring" Scarlett said "What's church?" To which I replied "Church is a place where people go to talk about God and pray" Scarlett said she wanted to go and it sounded like fun. Ava said "Scarlett no, its <em>not</em> fun its <em>boring</em>." Not like she would know because she has never been.<br />
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Scarlett said "Will there be candy? Will Santa be there?" I was a bit confused by her question but told her that Santa will not be at church and they do not give out candy. Scarlett said "But Louisa (pronounced as Oooisa) took me one time and Santa was there and we got candy."<br />
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I was thoroughly confused and then realized Louisa did take Scarlett to the Christmas <em>parade</em> where Santa did make an appearance and gave out candy. Ava and I then explained to Scarlett that to pray is not the same as a parade. She said "Darn, I wanted to go to the parade..."Summer Dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01495339309669727536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11014725637619857.post-44789155870420625222014-01-23T19:15:00.000-08:002014-01-23T19:15:54.486-08:00Girls and Their Gines...As a mother of 3 girls, there is a lot of talk about vaginas. Some days its hairy ones, stinky ones, bald badgers, leaky ones, owie ones, pokey ones, you name it, it has been discussed here at the Carney house. <br />
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I swear, every day there is something I have to deal with that involves vagina care. Weather its applying diaper cream or assessing flaming owie lips on my 5 year old from her <em>limited</em> wiping skills, its a daily topic in my home. <br />
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Willa loves to climb under the bathroom sink and abscond with my tampons. It doesn't help that Kevin bought me the super cool fancy ones that come with neon pink, blue, and green wrappers. She loves to take them apart. Yesterday, out of the blue, Scarlett said "Mommy, can I take your tampon out?" To which I replied "NO WAY, and I'm not even on my period!"<br />
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Willa loves to pull down my undies and poke it and say "Gina!" or "Spider!" depending on the current landscape. She too has seen the book that has a spider whose mandibles look <em>just</em> like a hairy yonie as mentioned in an old blog called <a href="http://www.supermomblog.com/2010/12/spider-has-vagina.html">Spider Has a Vagina</a> Its true this spiders mouth can easily be confused for a hairy gine. Whenever I neglect my maintenance down there Willa reminds me that the forest needs a mowing by calling it a Spider, thanks Willa. <br />
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And now that I'm on the topic, Scarlett coined the term "Poop Octopus" I dare you to guess what this refers to... Ill just tell ya. You know those awful messy diapers where the poop is literally up the puss? Well one day I yelled "Help get me a bag, its crazy, poop up the puss!" Scarlett ran in the room with a bag yelling "POOP OCTYPUS!!" The term stuck...<br />
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My poor husband...Summer Dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01495339309669727536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11014725637619857.post-17496227573150699242013-08-01T16:47:00.003-07:002013-08-01T16:47:20.675-07:00Hike gone BADI planned a wonderful outing for the day. Ava had a new friend over and I was determined to get out of the house and do something fun. I took my brood and dog to Delaveaga park which has hiking trails and a golf course. I was excited to do something different and was ready for a new adventure. Taking all my kids and dog <i>anywhere</i> is in adventure in itself.<br />
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Our journey started on the wrong foot as the main road was closed, so I figured we would enter through the other side of the park. We found a parking spot, got out the double stroller, snacks, water, kids, dog and went on our way. We had a map and <i>even</i> checked in with a woman at the help kiosk who showed us how to get to the nature trail.<br />
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We were on the trail for about 3 minutes when Ava screamed "Owe!!" She pulled up her shirt and grabbed what I thought was a spider and then realized it was a wasp. She threw the smashed wasp and began to scream <i>way</i> too loud. As I was trying to calm her down I heard Scarlett scream and start crying. I then realized what was happening as I looked up and saw all these little insects flying swarming us. Angelina yelled its a wasp nest and Ava began screaming <i>even louder</i> followed by Scarlett's cries to which I yelled "RUN!!"<br />
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Angelina started to run back the way we came and I yelled "not that way" and she did an about face and ran followed by Ava, Scarlett and Daisy. I attempted to run the jogger on the skinny root infested trail and poor Willa was getting bounced around like a rag doll. My girls were crying and after 40 yards began to walk when I yelled "Keep going their chasing us!" The Wasps were following us, I felt them banging into me. The girls kept running and I did my best to follow with the wide double jogger on the teeny hiking path. The path was so bumpy and full of roots I had to go backwards for some of it because I couldn't manage to push it over the rough path and there was a big drop to my right. Somehow Daisy got off her leash and took off at a full sprint.<br />
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Willa was fussing as the jogger was bouncing crazily down the trail and Scarlett was crying and wanted to get into the jogger but I could barely push it at my running pace so I began to walk. At this moment Willa lets out a big owie scream. I tell the girls to keep running and stop the jogger and pull Willa's jacket off. I see the broken wasp stuck in her neck and pull out the stinger and she cries uncontrollably. Sadly I cant stop to comfort her but take off running after the rest of the kids as she frantically cries and tries to pull herself out of her harness.<br />
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After a few minutes of running we start to walk with the goal of getting <i>off</i> this trail and finally find a slope we can clamber up that drops us off at the green on the golf course. We immediately meet a golfer who warns us to watch our for balls, the green is not safe and we should <i>not</i> be walking there. I tell our story and he backs off and points us in the direction of the road. We head off at a run through the green, happy to face a rogue golf ball over a wasp nest. About 4 irritated golfers later, we make it off the green to the road and finally return to the car.<br />
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Scarlett had 3 stings! Ava and Willa each had 1 and luckily Angelina and I lucked out, no stings. Not sure how this stuff happens but this was definitely a nature hike gone wrong. We high tailed it out of there and went and got ice cream.<br />
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<br />Summer Dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01495339309669727536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11014725637619857.post-51662365488452934492013-06-10T21:28:00.000-07:002013-06-10T21:28:15.521-07:002 Minute Clusterfuck4:10 pm: We are in the back yard and it is a beautiful day. The sun is shining, and Scarlett is sitting in my lap eating macaroni and cheese. Daisy is playing with a doggy toy. We are watching cute naked Willa playing in the water. It is one of those<i> perfect</i> moments.<br />
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4:11 pm: Willa is toddling toward the stairs and does the cutest pee. If you have never seen a naked baby pee, it's like a moment of discovery. Willa looks down and seems to say "Wow! look what I can do!" Scarlett and I laugh, there is nothing cuter than naked babies taking a pee break. Then it happens! She does a big long poo! I grab Daisy because she cant resist poo. I tell Scarlett to run and get some baby wipes. As Willa is running into the house with poopy on her butt, I plead from across the yard for her to stop. All the while this long poo is hanging out of her butt swinging around.<br />
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Willa turns and books it up the stairs and drops the dooky on the deck. I chase after her with the dog in my arms, and see another chunk falling on the carpet as she runs inside the house. I put the dog in the kitchen which has a gate to keep her away from the ewey poo and wisk up Willa as she tried to sit her poopy booty on the carpet.<br />
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4:12 pm: All the while, Scalrett comes flying over the <i>other</i> baby gate with baby wipes in hand and the macaroni & cheese flies everywhere. I grab the wipes and clean the kaka off Willa's butt and grab the poo off the floor. I take a breath and notice Kevin left the <i>other</i> baby gate in the kitchen wide open. This gate keeps the cat food safe. Shoot, I just locked Daisy <i>in</i> the Kitchen! Daisy is happily chomping away on Fancy Feast. I jump over, grab the dog, too late the cat food is gone which means I get to clean up more runny poo later.<br />
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4:13 pm: Kevin walks in the house as I have a naked baby on my hip, mac & cheese all over the floor, poopy baby wipes and a dog with cat food breath.<br />
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Amazing how much can happen in 2 minutes!<br />
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<br />Summer Dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01495339309669727536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11014725637619857.post-72663240626146510892013-05-27T17:09:00.000-07:002013-05-27T17:09:05.346-07:00Nanny 911Back in the day when we used to have 1 and 2 kids, we would watch Nanny 911 and marvel at parents inabilities to raise well behaved, respectful children. I viewed parenting as black and white. When there is an unacceptable behavior, provide a consequence and <i>always</i> follow through. Easy as pie!<br />
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Fast forward to life with 3 kids and I am officially Nanny 911 material. On a typical day in my home you will find Willa our 1 year old sitting <i>on</i> the table, coloring on herself, or eating erasers off pencils. She never has matching socks or unstained clothes, often avocado in her hair. Her favorite thing to do is grab the dog treats and share them with the dog, gross! You may think, put that shit up! She happens to be an <i>excellent</i> climber.<br />
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I am guilty of holding Willa whenever she wants, which is <i>all</i> the time. I have had people say "cant you put her down?" No I cant, she will cry, heavens forbid.<br />
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When the kids are playing in the baby pool I have been known to bring out a bottle of soap and call it bath time. This is ingenious, 3 kids clean at the <i>same</i> time! When they complain about the dirt and grass floating in the pool, I say "deal with it."<br />
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Scarlett has a few daily freak-out fits, yelling screaming things like "I know everything" or "I love daddy more than you" Back in the olden days I would have addressed each fit appropriately, warnings, followed by a consequence, but I'm just too tired and have too much to do. Positive parenting is for parents who are way cooler and more rested than I am. I cant believe how much I let her get away with, she walks all over me. I have been guilty of warning "If you do that, no TV for the rest of the day" 20 minutes later she has turned on the TV and is parked on the couch. I figure, at least she is quiet.<br />
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I often will be out and about with the kids and notice no one but me is wearing shoes and wonder, did anyone brush their teeth today? Then I notice the rats nest in Scarlett's hair and cant remember the last time I untangled those unruly curls.<br />
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Ava is the only one that actually does what she is supposed to you, we did all our awesome parenting on her and then ran out of juice as the years went by. Sometimes I look at my life and just have to laugh at the craziness of it all. I wonder how in the hell did my organized, tight ship turn into a crazy episode of Nanny 911?<br />
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<br />Summer Dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01495339309669727536noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11014725637619857.post-37415183686177347682013-03-05T20:40:00.001-08:002013-03-05T20:40:35.364-08:00Hiding in the darkScarlett is a what many would call a "spirited" child full of piss and vinegar. She makes an art of having a fit and has truly perfected it.<br />
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You never know what will set her off or more like what wont set her off. There is no avoiding it, she is like Old Faithful, she cant help but erupt at regular intervals.<br />
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I have developed many coping mechanisms to deal with this. My old standby is just telling saying goodnight and heading to bed to let Kevin deal with it. Sometimes I hide in the backyard. Tonight I hid in the corner of the dark kitchen and it worked!<br />
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Oh Shit here she comes I gotta run and hide!Summer Dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01495339309669727536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11014725637619857.post-24421641682807566052013-01-29T20:58:00.000-08:002013-01-29T20:58:29.692-08:004th child = Crazy MammaAt the end of the day I look at my family and love them. I kiss my sleeping children in their beds and feel so lucky. I think about a 4th child and it sounds like a great idea. I feel sad when I think I will never have another baby.<br />
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In the morning I am exhausted from nursing all night. I rush to get everyone to school, breakfast, pack lunches, break up fights, try to squeeze in my work and realize this is such a ridiculous notion.<br />
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I'm sure once my husband reads this he will punch himself in the balls...<br />
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<br />Summer Dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01495339309669727536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11014725637619857.post-91755264766145590642012-09-20T18:29:00.000-07:002012-09-20T18:31:40.516-07:00Raccoons will eat your face off!Scarlett mostly sleeps through the night but every blue moon she wakes up and gets freaky. Last night she woke up angry and yelling. I tried to calm her down which just made her get louder. She was crying, kicking and thrashing in her bed.<br />
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I then realize the raccoons are in the house so I go shoo them out. They come in through the cat door and reek havoc in the kitchen. I return and Scarlett is still wailing away and I tell her to be quiet or they will come in her room. My scare tactic backfired causing her to cry even louder. She thought I was bluffing. What did I do? I went and took a picture of the raccoon, showed it to her and said "If you don't stop crying the raccoons will come and eat your face off." I know, totally below the belt.<br />
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She looked real sad and said "Mommy I want to tell you something, I heard a witch in the bathroom saying "HaHaHaHa" Then I felt really bad. I explained to her its not a witch but our annoying neighbor across the street who has a super loud, drunk ass laugh. He actually sounds <i>allot</i> like a witch. She thought that was funny and calmed down.<br />
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I told her I made it up and the raccoons only eat cat food and stuff in the kitchen, they wont come in her room. Boy did I feel like a meany!<br />
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<br />Summer Dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01495339309669727536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11014725637619857.post-30870618510807427522012-07-06T17:30:00.002-07:002017-04-24T07:45:43.105-07:00Carney SlangI have been known to make up my own words<br />
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Tubby - bath<br />
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Clapper Grabbers - tongs (Ava made this one up)<br />
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Gobey lobeys - gross stuff<br />
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<br />Summer Dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01495339309669727536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11014725637619857.post-74730722658633781402012-06-15T17:28:00.000-07:002012-06-15T17:28:48.925-07:00Gina Strawberry<br />
We were eating strawberries and Scarlett found one that was shaped like a vagina. She saved her special "gina" berry and Ava ate it. Scalett began to cry hysterically that Ava ate her vagina! You would think someone ate all her candy by the way she carried on and on about her special vagina strawberry.<br />
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I was able to find one that looked like a butt to replace the gina and she calmed down.<br />
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Scarlett then picked up a blackberry and proudly showed me how the top end looks like a butt hole. She then began searching the blackberries to show me all the little butt holes.<br />
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<br />Summer Dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01495339309669727536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11014725637619857.post-10940517084790757162012-06-08T21:51:00.002-07:002017-04-24T07:45:43.064-07:00I am a CowI was not sure how nursing would go after getting my new tatas, but they still work! Mostly...<br />
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I am sitting here writing this blog entry as I nurse Willa on my left and pump on my right. You may wonder how I do this. I cut a hole in a sports bra so I can put the pumper through, hands free! Picture a dairy cow with the little pumpers attached to her udders.<br />
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Normally I would be extatic to have all this sucking and tugging going on, but my poor tatas have had enough for a while.<br />
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You see, much of my day revolves around nursing, pumping, massaging, exfoliating, and taking a handful of supplements to ensure I make enough milk for sweet Willa.<br />
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When Ava was 8 months old, my right dried up. When Scarlett was 4 months, it happened again. Now Willa is almost 2 months and I am doing everything in my power to keep making milk. I take 9 pills of fenugreek, combined with 4 pills of Domperidone, and a ton of water. <br />
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My day begins and ends with nursing and pumping. Once again my life revolves around my boobs but this time in a completely different way. I feel so in touch with my inner cow and can truly relate to my bovine cousin, moooooo...<br />Summer Dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01495339309669727536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11014725637619857.post-22425704974790762512012-05-14T22:22:00.001-07:002012-05-14T22:22:47.316-07:00Scarlett Amazes Me...I was laying in bed in the early morning hour and I heard Scarlett wandering around the house. I pretended to be asleep hoping she would just crawl into bed and not wake us up. She never did and I fell back asleep.<br />
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When Kevin got up a bit later I asked him if Scarlett was awake. He found her sleeping soundly in her bed. I figured I dreamed it.<br />
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When Scarlett awoke she came and told me she found a dead rat in her bed and she cleaned it up. I asked her to show me where she put it. I honestly thought she was making up a story or had a weird dream. She took me to the hamper and showed me a yucky hairball wrapped in a washcloth. She said it was on her bed so she cleaned it up.<br />
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My little 3 year old, woke up, got a washcloth, cleaned up a gross cat puke and then went back to bed. I was shocked!<br />
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She is the most stubborn "do it myself" kind of girl, which at times drives me nuts. She is also so capable and never ceases to amaze me with her clever wit and determination.Summer Dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01495339309669727536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11014725637619857.post-12746259134192178902012-04-20T17:18:00.001-07:002012-04-20T17:18:31.777-07:00Willa Dawn's Birth StoryI checked in at Sutter Maternity at 7:30am on April 2 to be induced. It was surreal to arrive at a scheduled time to have a baby as both my girls came when they were ready. I chose to induce one day after my due date because I was <i>over</i> being pregnant and I felt all my body needed was a little push.<br />
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Kevin went to drop Scarlett off at school and would wait at home with Ava until I called him to come to the hospital. These things can take all day so I figured no rush.<br />
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At 8:30am, my midwife came and said "Are you sure you want me to break your water?" To which I replied "Absolutely". She briefed me on the possible complications that can arise from inducing a labor, such as the need for pitocin if contractions dont start on their own. I was ready to get this adventure started and Leora broke my water and then gave me this awesome diaper to wear. I was dilated to 3cm which I had been for the last 2 weeks. I spent the next 10 minutes taking pictures of the coolest birthing center ever.<br />
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My best friend Louisa arrived and we hung out waiting for something to happen. My contractions became more frequent but not painful. Around 10:00am I texted Kevin and told him to come on down as things were getting going. My contractions were starting to feel uncomfortable and I sat on a yoga ball and breathed through them.<br />
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Kevin and Ava arrived at 10:10am followed shortly after by Serena, my other best friend. Both Louisa and Serena were at Scarlett's birth. At 10:30am Maggie, my nurse checked my cervix and I was dilated to 6 cm. This is when it started to really hurt and I could not get off the bed. She called my midwife to come on over and get this party started. Leora arrive shortly after and checked me again and I was 8 to 9cm.<br />
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Ava says I was making cute sounds through my contractions. I remember it hurting <i>so</i> bad. I had forgotten how much labor hurts. I started to feel like I had to poo and said "I think have to poo a little, or a lot" and then couldn't help but push. They all said no, thats not poo, thats your baby! You see I never had the urge to push before as my first 2 babies were posterior, faced up. Babies are MUCH harder to push out when they come out like that and I pushed for 2.5 hours with Ava and 1.5 hours with Scarlett.<br />
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I was on my back, legs held back by Louisa and the nurse and they told me to go for it and push, which I did. And go figure this little girl came out in 3 pushes, hallelujah she was face down! She came out screaming, with one eye open. They put her on my tummy where she continued to wail. Ava cut the cord like a professional cord cutter. The time was 11:12am, less than 3 hours after my water was broken, less than one hour of intense labor. I guess as far as labors go, 3rd times a charm!<br />
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She continued to cry, more like <i>scream</i> for an hour. It was an <i>owie</i> kind of cry, not the typical newborn cry. The nurse had a pediatrician come to make sure she was ok, and she couldn't find anything wrong with her. After a couple hours of intense crying she finally fell asleep. I was concerned something was hurting her but when she woke up later that day, she was not screaming anymore. I guess being born can be pretty traumatic...<br />
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We were thinking of naming her Juliette, but after seeing her and having her come into this world like a whirlwind we decided to name her Willa. Kevin picked her name which is fair because I got to name the first two. Willa is the female version of William, Kevin's fathers name who is one of the nicest people in the entire world, very deserving of a namesake. Second, a williwaw is a type of windstorm on the ocean and she arrived fast and furious like a wild wind.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My Sexy Diaper - 9AM</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Screaming Willa - 11:12am</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Emma is jealous of Willa</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px;">Daddy, Ava, & Willa</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Scarlett & Willa</td></tr>
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<br />Summer Dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01495339309669727536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11014725637619857.post-28132155420408126742012-03-29T13:28:00.000-07:002012-03-29T13:28:11.116-07:0039 weeks 4 days and Over it....I am extremely pregnant and <i>so</i> over it. This baby feels like it will never come out. I know I am being impatient and I should relish these days with only 2 kids, but I dont<i> do</i> patient.<br />
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I cant go from sitting to standing without a ton of effort. I cant breathe, have constant heartburn, and puffy swollen feet. Sleeping is a bitch. I lay in bed waiting for a reasonable hour to get up.<br />
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The baby is so low, and I am 3cm dilated so I can reach in and feel her head (she has no hair like baby Scarlett). I know it sounds weird but all you full term mammas should try it, its super cool! Tip - do it in the shower in a squat.<br />
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I dont have much else to say other than "Come out Baby!!!!!"<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">39+ Weeks Pregnant</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Summer Dawnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01495339309669727536noreply@blogger.com0