my sister's keeper review

so i was kind of excited to see this movie. it seems a bit controversial, but a good story line none the less. and cameron diaz was in it. i kind of like her. and have been told i look like her, so i watched myself on screen. :0) right. anyways. cameron diaz did a great job playing a 'crappy mean mom' roll. but it also made me kind of not like her either.

okay. so to the movie. the plot is this. a couple's daughter is sick. no one matches. only way to get a match 'for sure' is to scientifically make a baby to have the exact match. that is what they do. fast forward eleven years. eleven year old, anna, doesn't want to do it. she gets a lawyer to become medically empancipated from her parents. lawyer totally agrees. her parents don't. then her dad sort of does. and her mom, who is conviently a lawyer herself, fights the case. in the mean time they do a flash back of a lot of stuff. on the outside sounds like an okay movie huh?

no. there was A LOT of swearing. and swearing to just swear. doesn't make sense to me. i can usually over'look' the common swear words. but then they have to go take god's name in vain and it bugs me. say the f-bomb all you want, just leave my god out of it. is how i feel. and THEN the sex stuff. seriously why does hollywood think sex helps sell something?!? i do not get it. at one point katie looks at her boyfriend and says she can pay him back in sexual favors. (she's fifteen btw) i THINK it was just to embarrass him in front of her mom. but seriously. IF MY 15 YEAR OLD daughter EVER said anything like that. i think i'd flip a lid. a fifteen year old should not even know that there are sexual favors TO give! then at another point there is a 'prom' type thing for the sick kids. katie and taylor (her bf) sneak off from the dance into some hospital room. i thought they were just going to talk. really. i did. the next scene shows them in bed. naked. at 15!??!?!?!?! SERIOUSLY! no. that does not happen. okay i know it does happen. but it does not NEED to happen. and the movie would not have been any less of a movie if it didn't.

first off i totally believe that sex should be saved for marriage. that's that. plain and simple. do you really want to go around sleeping with all these guys? i mean really. then get married and your husband knows how you slept with all these different guys. it totally would bug me to know that shaun did those things with another girl besides me. it's something that is so special. and so intimate, i do not want to share those feelings with anyone besides my husband. and secondly the girl was 15. to me it shows that it's okay for any 15 year old to go out and sleep around or 'do stuff'. (( in the movie kate says that they did it. then she says not it IT but stuff. but still... )) maybe in the world it's cool to be doing stuff, i do not know. all i know is that i'm glad that i can raise my girls with the knowledge it is NOT cool to go out and do stuff or it IT with any random boy. and to save themselves for their husbands. will they have free will? yes. will they do it anyways? maybe. but i rest in the fact that i will raise them the best way i know how and that they can be confident in the choices they make.

i know i've said this before, but some of you may not know, and i don't want to come off with some 'higher than thou' attitude. shaun and i waited til our wedding night. BUT and i hate this but. i was not saved nor was shaun when we started dating. and shaun wasn't for awhile after me. something we always talked about was waiting for marriage for sex. we talked about it way early in our relationship, something that i think helped only because it wasn't an issue already. but i'm not saying it was as piece of cake. or easy. we struggled A LOT. before we were saved the other 'stuff' didn't matter at all. because we weren't doing it IT. then i got saved. and it was a big struggle. a huge struggle. heck there are NO words to describe how hard it was to not do stuff (besides kissing) at all. we struggled with that. a lot. i'm thankful i was at college for most of that! just talking on the phone makes it easier. then shaun got saved. i'd like to say it was way easy then. but i think it got harder. only because now the enemy had two of us to tempt. and that he did. shaun and i prayed together and committed to each other again to wait. and wait we did. we struggled a little bit. but we did it. we waited. for FOUR and a HALF YEARS we waited. easy? no. worth it? totally.

sorry to go off on that tagent. but i think it's important to share. and i like to be real.

so to the movie. leaving out the swearing and the sex stuff. it would be an okay movie. there is some conversation about death and what happens and what not. being not a christian movie, obviously the message wasn't shared about what DOES happen when you die. and where you will go when you die. but it'd be a good jumping off point to share with someone. so in that aspect a good point.

for those of you who've read the book. it doesn't end the same way. at all. i never read the book. but my sister told me the ending. i had prepared myself the whole movie for that ending. then it didn't happen. i don't know which ending i'd prefer better. either way i was totally shocked.

i did cry in the movie. i think i cried because i placed myself in their shoes. like going to the beach for the last time. knowing it will be the last time you spend at the beach together as a family. then i put myself into shaun's shoes watching it. was he remembering the last christmas with his dad. knowing it was probably going to be the last christmas together as a family. and the last time his dad would be at home. for those of you who don't know it was. his dad went into the hospital and didn't come home. (his dad had cancer)

so watching the movie made me realize that we don't know things most of the time. the next time we go to the beach could be that last time. we need to remember that our days ARE numbered. god has a day planned that we will not pass by it. we do not know what day that will be. so live your life like it is the last day. live with no regrets. that also doesn't mean, go do whatever you want and live recklessly either. just live it real. don't be fake. don't pretend to be something your not. be real. be you. and more importantly...live with jesus in your heart. live for him. and that way if today IS your last day you'll KNOW you're going straight to be with him. and when you stand before god to receive your judgement, we all will. JESUS will stand in your place and say I TOOK IT ALL. i took amanda's sins and she's washed clean. and then i get to go to heaven. for eternity. so looking forward to that. :0)

so in the short run. i wouldn't tell anyone to see the movie. not worth it. in the long run. i wouldn't tell anyone to see the movie. not worth it. so the long AND short of it. not worth it.

wow. all of that just about a movie!! it opened up a lot for me to share i guess. and as you all know i'm pretty much an open book on my blog. believe it or not, not so much in real life. i guess it's just easier for me to type and type my feelings than actually TALK about them. but if you get me going i'll share. :0)

we had a fun weekend though regardless. and yesterday was a busy day. caitlyn went to the dr. she has impetigo. geesh. so i have an antibiotic and salve to put on her. she loves to take medicine so it's all good.

and i want to give a big THANK YOU! to all of you who've helped support my wildtree business this past month, with prayers or purchases. i sold a little over 1800 dollars!! i surpassed my own goal by 600 dollars. :0) i really appreciate it. A LOT!!

i also want to ask if any of you are interested in your own party? there are some of you around me who could do home parties. and if you're not around me. i could send you a few samples and some books. you could get five friends to order and have a book party. i have two home shows and one book party in july. i'm looking to book two to three more parties for the month. please let me know if you're interested. :0) and also anyone who has a party for me in july gets free shipping for their party AND a chance to go in for a drawing to win any oil of your choice. :0) i don't want to seem pushy, so if i am, SORRY!! i just figured the most i can do is ask. and the worst that will happen is you'll say no. if i don't ask...i don't know!! so let me know if you're interested. as a hostess you get 20% of products in free. my average parties have been between 3 and 4 hundred dollars which means about 60-80 dollars in free products, and half price items etc...

i also want to say that i've lost weight!! i've been cooking more and more with the wildtree and eating out less. and i've lost about five pounds. i've been working on my wii fit for the past few days as well. i only have about 8 pounds to lose and i'll be down to what i was when i had amelya. :0) so not only is this good food, but it's good for you food too.

okay enough rambling. i'm hoping to get on the computer during nap time today and to get caught up on your blogs! i've been slacking at commenting, but i have been reading. :0)

{{creative, fantastically awesome title}}

happy saturday!! i didn't think i'd have time. but i do. sooooooooooooooo. last night we had a super great date!! we ate out at fuddruckers, which is my new craving of places to eat at. then we went mini-golfing, i lost by THREE!! pfft. and then we went to culver's for ice cream. i had a banana split. yum-o!! then we picked up the girls and dustin...i'm so used to saying just girls. lol. and we came home. and went to bed. ;0)



today it's a lounging around day. and a lazy day. and i saw this fun husband/couple thingy on ms martha's site. so i thought i'd copy it. AND i will say this too. THANKS to all of you who have blessed me with awards over the past few months. i truly am REALLY bad at remembering them and putting them up and passing them out. i'm SORRY! it really blesses me when YOU think I DESERVE an award. so i will just say thank you thank you thank you. so so much. :0) thanks. here is the husband/couple thingy. :0)



1. WHO IS YOUR MAN? Shaun.

2. HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN TOGETHER? we've been together TEN YEARS! and married FIVE AND A HALF!! crazy. :0)

3. HOW LONG DID YOU DATE? we still date. :0) we went out three times before officially becoming 'a couple'. and then we 'dated' for four and a half years before we 'tied the knot'.

4. HOW OLD IS YOUR MAN? 28.

5. WHO EATS MORE? hmmm. depends. shaun when i'm not pregnant. and me when i am pregnant.

6. WHO SAID I LOVE YOU FIRST? shaun. first he said "i like you" then "i like you a lot" then "i LOVE you". i whispered back "i love you" after he said it.

7. WHO IS TALLER? he is. he's like six foot. i'm five seven-ish.

8. WHO SINGS BETTER? we're probably both equal.

9.WHO IS SMARTER? we're both smart in different things. that's how/why we balance each other out so nicely.

10. WHOSE TEMPER IS WORSE? i let mine show a lot more. when shaun's temper shows, that means he's really mad and probably has a good reason to be. i've truthfully never seen his temper really flare. he's gotten mad, but not temper flame flaring mad. and i'm okay with that.

11. WHO DOES THE LAUNDRY? i do most of it. he actually washes his work clothes a lot. he's always told me i don't have to do his work clothes because of the stinky farm/diesel/oil/fill in any stinky smelly smell awww. isn't he sweet.

12.WHO TAKES OUT THE GARBAGE? him. we burn the trash so he's in charge of that.

13. WHO SLEEPS ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE BED? he says i do. i say i do. so i guess i do. :0)

14.WHO PAYS THE BILLS? i write them paying with shaun's hard earned money.

15. WHO IS BETTER WITH THE COMPUTER? for sure me. he just checks the crop prices. he doesn't have any desire to be better with the computer either.

16.WHO MOWS THE LAWN? him. remember yesterday i said i'm not even sure how to start it.

17.WHO COOKS DINNER? we both do. i'm actually doing it a bit more since i actually LIKE doing it and trying out wildtree products. ((which by the way we deep fried our french fries in grapeseed oil today... yummy. and less greasey. and well...yummy. salted with the rancer steak rub. also...yummy.))

18. WHO DRIVES WHEN YOU'RE TOGETHER? shaun. i don't like driving that much. but will when i have to.

19. WHO PAYS WHEN YOU GO OUT? well either way it's 'his' money. but sometimes i use my check card and sometimes he uses his. but it's all the same.

20. WHO IS MOST STUBBORN? me. hands down.

21. WHO IS THE FIRST TO ADMIT WHEN THEY ARE WRONG? probably him. i will. but he's faster at it!

22. WHOSE PARENTS DO YOU SEE THE MOST? both equal.

23. WHO KISSED WHOM FIRST? he says i kissed him. i say he was looking at me and wanted it. so i guess me. :0)

24. WHO ASKED WHO OUT? he did. first prom. and then 'as a couple'. annnnnnnnd

25. WHO PROPOSED? then to tie the knot.

26. WHO IS MORE SENSITIVE? for sure me. but i also will say he is the most sensitive guy i know. and it's one of my most favorite traits about him. real men cry. and real men love jesus and aren't afraid to show it. :0) both are traits he carries well..

27. WHO HAS MORE FRIENDS? i'd say me-but really...who cares.

28. WHO HAS MORE SIBLINGS? shaun has two sisters and a brother. i just have a sister. and a dog brother.

29. WHO WEARS THE PANTS IN THE FAMILY? him. and that's how it should be. :0)

30. HOW DID YOU MEET? hmmmm. he saw me at my job. asked around about me. then he danced with his cousin, who was my friend, who said that he wanted to dance with me, who then came over and told me, and we danced. it took TWO months. he asked me to prom. and ten years later i don't have any regrets dancing with a guy i'd never met, much less seen!! :0)



hmmm. so i guess i'm a sensitive stubborn girl. lol. and pretty forward with kisses. :0) i just love filling those things out. :0) and reading other people's. so if you decide to do it too, let me know. so i can come be all nosey and read it. k? k.



alright. i've also been asked about my pictures of the kiddos on the left side bar. aren't they adorable?!?! yes. they are. of course i think so because i'm their mommy. you are under no obligation to think so...so here is what i did to their pictures in photoshop elements. first i 'lassoed' them and deleted the background, coloring it in black. THEN i used the 'brush stroke' feautre of sumi-e. i have no idea WHAT it is. i just liked how they turned out. if you need more detailed instructions let me know. :0)


okay. so i'm done. it's taken me forever and a day to get this typed up. i'm off to join my hubby and amelya outside...before it rains. which i hope it does....rain for the peas would be perfecto. have a great rest of your weekend. we may be going to see my sister's keeper tomorrow. i'm sure i'll cry.

frazzled on friday.

i'm frazzled. it's been a long week. but i'm also glad that it's friday.

summer has arrived for sure in wisconisn. it's been way hot and humid here the past few days. i'm so thankful for the window a/c we have in our downstairs. upstairs a different story. HOT and STICKY. we have fans going in both bedrooms, so it helps a little.

yesterday the girlies played in the pool. shaun's aunt gave us a hard plastic kiddie pool. it's so nice. we had a blow up one. but then you have to, you know...blow it up! the plastic one works better for me. no work involved!! i put their little tykes slide with it and they loved having a water slide too!! even caitlyn went down. proving my theory of liking the water not the sand at the beach. (i think i'm going to try to find some of those water shoe thingys for her)

it was so fun to see them playing together. i love how close they are. not in age, well i love that too, but just in life. they're close to each other. and as much as they fight, they also look out for one another and show things of love even more than fighting. last week i was washing breigh's giraffes (the cuddly things she sleeps with) i told her i was washing them and she could have them when she got up from nap. she was cool with it. then amelya came over and said, breigh you can sleep with my bunny!!! i seriously almost cried. amelya's cuddly thing she sleeps with is her bunny. yet she was willing to share it with breigh so she could sleep with it. it blesses me so much to see that. especially out of my four and three year old kiddos!!

today i have to pick up my house. it usually becomes a friday thing. i did some yesterday. today i hope to finish up. when it's so hot i just don't feel like doing anything!! shaun is off this weekend so it'd be nice to not have to pick up tomorrow and spend time as a family. although he usually does yard work and such on his weekends off. which our lawn does need some mowing. it takes a good two hours to cut the entire lawn. we have a nice sized yard. plus there is grass and stuff behind the barn. i'm not so sure shaun cuts that everytime though. once the kids get bigger i can cut the lawn during the week. but with little ones, it's a bit hard to cut the lawn. and truthfully i have NO idea how to start it. lol.

this afternoon i have to close my wildtree show from monday night. the girl is actually considering starting wildtree herself. so we'll see where that goes. it's funny because it the girl who I always started selling stuff under. if she starts she'd be 'under' me. i think 'under' is such a funny way to describe it. so how about she'd be on my team. or something. whatever. doesn't matter!

i've been cooking a lot this week with wildtree stuff. we tried the taco seasoning. YUMMY. the spanish rice seasoning. YUMMY. (shaun likes the cilantro lime rice seasoning better, i like the spanish rice better, but they're both...YUMMY!) at my party the other night i got to try the chocolate mousse. i'm not a huge chocolate fan...but that was SO good. i also got to try the pound cake. mmm. YUMMY!! and the jalapeno pepper blend. that was pretty good. you know in a burn your mouth and throat kind of way. if you like HOT you'd like that. :0) if you're interested in any more wildtree info/stuff check out my button on the left sidebar.

guess what!?! tonight shaun and i are having a date night. :0) i am not sure what we are doing yet but he wanted to take me out on a date. so that's what we're going to do. i'm sure we'll eat somewhere. and then who knows. maybe mini golf or something. it's always fun to have that time together!!

so i'm off. wait before i go. i want to share something i read this week that really spoke to me. in galatians i was reading and a verse that stuck out to me was in 2:6--god doesn't play favorites. sometimes i feel like 'they have it better' etc etc etc. and then i realize those are thoughts from the enemy not from god. because god doesn't play favorites!! he does all things for the good. the good of his kingdom. yay that.

okay. so now i'm done rambling. hope you all have a great weekend!! i know i'm excited for date night and no 'work' for shaun weekend!! woo hoo.

hat winner and such.

so should i start out with the winner of the hat and butter grapeseed oil or the and such? :0) i'll do the hat winner i guess...but i'm really lazy today and will just tell you the numbers and commenter. i used random.org to pick the winner. it picked number 51 out of 71 valid comments. and number 51 belong to:

HOLLY over at JESSIE'S GIRLS
holly and jessie have three adorable girlies all 'close in age' like our kids are. it's always nice to relate to another mommy of three girls, and one who's girls are also close in age! you should go check out her blog and see the humungo bug they saw on monday!! it's a huge one!!
holly you have 48 hours to respond. :0)

speaking of 48 hours. i had to repick the applecheeks diaper winner. the original winner didn't respond to me. sorry!! so the new winner is: number 87 belonging to....

STEPHANIE over at THE HANES FAMILY
stephanie is someone i've been blessed to meet in real life! she has a cute little sweet pea and is expecting a baby boy!! it's been so cool to meet someone in real life you met 'through blogging'. people's reactions are always fun!!
so miss stephanie 48 hours to respond. :0)

now some and such stuff. :0)
we took advantage of the super hot, hasn't been this hot for THREE YEARS, weather and went to the beach yesterday. amelya and breigh and dustin LOVED it. caitlyn hated it. well hate is a strong word. she more or less does not like the sand on the bottom of her feet. she sits down and holds her feet up in disgust! even in the water she doesn't like standing and putting her feet on the bottom. which means she wanted to be held. which means it was a bit difficult for me. i took the kiddos alone, but shaun's aunt and cousins and sister and another friend were all there as well and helped as much as the could. so that was nice. i know that i will never go to the beach completely by myself for a few years. i missed shaun being there with us too. he had to spend the hot day at work.

he's becoming an insurance liability at work. yesterday he ran into a pipe and has a partial black and blue eye. he for sure knows the pipe is there and it isn't moving! :0) his finger is looking okay. actually it looks quite nasty. but is becoming less and less painful so that is good! poor guy.

i got a teensy bit sunburnt yesterday too. today it hurts a little, but nothing i'm going to complain about. besides i didn't put sunscreen on. THAT is what happens when you don't where sunscreen, you get burnt. it's just my shoulders and my neck, so not really that bad at all.

so yeah. not much going on here. i feel like i'm boring myself. which mean you all have to be asleep by now. so i'm going to let you go. my post below this is more interesting. so if you missed that just go read that one instead. have a happy wednesday. (yay already wednesday two more days of work for shaun and it's the weekend!)

where's the mailbox?

yesterday i was blessed to be able to do children's church!! i think you go into it looking to teach the kiddos. yet they teach YOU. i didn't have a huge lesson planned for yesterday. i just wanted to talk about father's day with them. but to also remind them that GOD is our father! and he loves us the 'mostest' (in the words of a little child.) then we were going to make their daddies some pictures. and god.

that's where the question came in. as i was explaining how we could make something for god. "M" asked me this: where's the mailbox? hmmm. where is the mailbox?!?! it got me thinking. and i told him how god is everywhere and he doesn't 'need' a mailbox because he sees everything. that answer was suffice for him. good thing! because i didn't know what else to say about god NOT having a mailbox. but it also got us talking after church how we could make a mailbox for god for the children's church. so if they want to make something private/special for god, they have a place to put it.

but now it has me thinking. where is OUR mailbox. not the one on the road. but in our hearts? is it open to receive mail...ALL the time? or is it open to receive mail when it's the mail we WANT to get? do i read ALL the mail? or just the stuff i WANT to read? to i get the mail EVERY day? or only when i WANT to get it? see a trend?

god is not a 'when you want him' god. he's not a god of 'convenience'. yet i think that's how we sometimes put him. we set him aside when we don't want to read what he wants to tell us. we set him aside when we think we can do it ourselves. we just plain don't make time for him.

yet he stays?! seriously. for myself, i know that i don't treat him as a good guest all the time. he is a guest afterall. one I invited INTO MY LIFE. yet I the HOST treat him sort of crummy sometimes. YET he chooses to stay. he's always there. doesn't leave. he paitently waits until i decide to make time for him. i stand in awe at the faithfulness of him. because i know if i were somewhere and was getting ignored i'd totally want to leave. yet he doesn't. he's waiting ever so paitently for me to return to him.

i can only imagine his paitence for those who've totally walked away from him. he sits. and waits. and waits. and waits. lovingly waiting for his son or daughter to return to him. what a father. an awesome abba father.

the love of god is something i feel. i know. yet i do not understand it. nor can i describe the peace that comes from it. until you, yourself, know that same love of god you won't understand how i can't describe or understand it.

my mailbox is probably a bit overflowing from god. there are probably some moldy letters in there because i didn't want to read them. basically because i didn't want to read what they have to say. so i challenge myself to open my mailbox. everyday. not when it 'works' out to do it. but everyday. i check my email about a bajillion times a day. how often do i check my mail from god? not anywhere near a bajillion. yet what god has to say is so much more powerful than some junk email for some money sitting in a bank for me in kajdjioeqjoijdkjieidlkjtchwan. today. tomorrow. and every tomorrow. i am going to open that mail from god. so i can make room for more things from him. because he has things he wants to tell me. wants to show me. i just need to want those things.

god is truly my father. he's my ever loving father. when we were making the pictures for god i asked each of the children to tell me their favorite thing about him. it was fun to hear their answers. they loved that HE loves us, that he protects us, that he does stuff for us...out of the mouth of babes.

i look forward to doing children's church again. it isn't for awhile now. we have about eight super fab ladies who are willing to teach it. so it's about once every two months for us to have to 'miss' church. we get a tape after to listen to and there is a speaker downstairs. but like yesterday, i didn't miss god speaking to me at all. i may have missed what mike's message was to church, but i didn't miss god speaking to my heart. sending me an urgent letter to MY mailbox.

all i had to do was open it.

announcing...

well...not too much. just the winners to my diaper giveaways. don't care about diapers? then go on and enter the hooked on you HAT giveaway for the friday freebie. :0) not interested in hats? go check out the super cute video of my kiddos in the post below this one. not interested in that? then why are you here? lol. :0)

i'm still up at midnight. so i figured why not just pick the winners!! so here goes::

the applecheeks is first::

comment 132 belonged to::

HLMP has a blog over at Bunny Munny. she is a pretty new blogger. and has a great cloth wipe recipe up on her site right now!!!

and the smarti pants winner::

comment 112 belonged to

AMANDA over at Among the Mess. she has one son and two daughters and a really cool name. ;0)

so ladies email me with your color choice and address! ((you have 48 hours to get back to me))

i want to say THANK YOU!! for all entering the giveaways. i wish i was a bajillionaire and i would totally buy you all a diaper. but i'm not. so i can't. sorry!!! but i can tell you all to go enter the handmade hat giveaway a few posts down!

thanks again to all of you who newly followed. i'm going to try this next week to head on over to your sites and check YOU out as well. have a super great weekend. i'll be taking a bloggy break for the weekend. so i'll see you all on monday!! :0)

a video of my kiddos!!

hopefully this works. i 'embedded it' from my facebook. they're so adorable. amelya and i totally hung out during naptime playing memory and just chillin'. sorry i didn't get to commenting. because after naptime we did this:: and if you haven't be sure to enter the friday freebie!! :0)

FRIDAY FREEBIE!!

we got our hats in the mail!!! whoo hoo. please go enter the friday freebie post below and have a chance to win your very own hat!!


i just thought this picture was funny!! lol.

they LOVED their hats.

seriously. the first picture i've gotten of all four of them sitting and looking!! and how cute. ;0)

caitlyn usually rips hats off as soon as you get it on. she loved her hat and smiled for pictures with it!! so darn cute!!

breigh loved her hat too!! adorable.

of course amelya loved to pose and loved her hat!! she was so excited.

okay. i have a lot of dustin. he sat still the longest. imagine that, the one who can not crawl or walk sat still!! and he was just so cute!!

this was the last picture i took of him. i love the look on his face!!

FRIDAY FREEBIE!!

hey!! guess what!?! heidi sponsors friday freebie every friday. BUT i get to do it this week. she likes to share the freebie love!! and btw her son just had surgery this week and there are some issues. so 1. go to her blog and give her some love 2. keep him in your prayers.




she hasn't posted about the freebie thing being over here at all yet either, so hopefully everything is going well and all the regular freebie wanters find it!! so you wanna know what it is don't you!!




i've got TWO things for you....well one of them could be for your son/daughter/niece/nephew/granddaughter/grandson or for you. i'll start with that.


a sweet friend i've recently met, veronica, well we've never met, MET but we talk a lot through email. make the most adorable hats. and made a hat for little baby harper (yk, kelly's baby?). little did she know how much it's turn into. she now has her own little hat makin' business!! another sweet friend i have met in real life ordered a hat for her sweet pea. i saw it. and thought it was so cute. and emailed veronica the next day asking if she'd help sponsor this freebie. guess what?!?! she said no. lol. just kidding. why would i talk her all up and then tell you she said no!! geez!! she of course said she'd love to. my hats for the kiddos should be coming TODAY!! so i'll just share a picture of the hats amelya and dustin are getting::


sorry amelya's is turned. i'm too lazy to change it. just turn your head. it works doesn't it?! :0)

dustin will look ADORABLE!! well he already does. but even more so. and those blues will look so perfect with his baby blue eyes!!



i got to pick out the style i wanted. and the colors i wanted. and how fun is it that there are BOY hats! i absolutely love hats for my kiddos. and the cuter, the better. i love these hats!!! and how fun you can order a hat for yourself if you want. i like that option. most of the time cute stuff is just for kids!




so you want to know what you get don't you!! well veronica told me to tell you to tell...wait just to tell you. that if you want to order one, two, three, or heck fifty hats that she'll give you 10% off your order!! just be sure to mention this really super cool bloggy buddy amanda. or just amanda will be fine. ;0) she is also doing FREE shipping on all orders. so 10% off and free shipping. what a deal.






but THAT'S not all folks. she's also giving ONE OF YOU any HAT in your choice of SIZE, STYLE AND COLOR!!!! so head over to here to check out the styles. once there and you checked those out, click on the color options button and pick out which color(s)!!






then leave a comment here with the color option you like! it was SO hard for me to pick!! i loved all the colors. and i'm glad i got four hats. so i could get all the colors i wanted for the girls. plus i got them all in the toddler size so they can hopefully just share them all.





and now for part two of my giveaway. for those of you who do or do not know. i sell wildtree. you can click on my button on the sidebar. for some crazy reason i have like a bajillion bottles of the butter flavored oil. and because i want to share the wild love...i'm giving that to you as well. so in addition to your hat you'll get to try out wildtree's butter flavored grapeseed oil.

this is one of the most versatile oils. use it to brush on chicken or something before grilling. use it in your potatoes for a butter flavor. got a stir crazy? make your popcorn using the butter flavored oil. i now 'grease' all my pans with the butter oil instead of cooking spray. go here to read more about the butter oil. you can basically use the oil anywhere you would use butter!!



if any of you all would like to place an order with wildtree i will give you five dollars off of your order!! if you're interested in ordering go check out my site and then email me with what you would like. i will then email you with your total with the five dollars off and the cost of your shipping!!




so let's get down the nitty gritty details::

1. go to veronica's site and pick out your color of hat and leave that in your comments here. (required entry to win)



2. follow me and i'll give you an extra entry. follow miss veronica's blog and i'll give you another.



3. blog the giveaway...get another entry.



4. follow me on twitter and tweet the giveaway and yep...get another!! (be sure to include @amandap22 in your tweet)



5. purchase anything from either of us before the end of the giveaway ((that is also when the discounts will end!!)) and get THREE EXTRA ENTRIES!!

feel free to leave all your comments in one comment. or many. i don't care. i'll figure it all out before i pick the winner!!

the contest will run until MIDNIGHT ON TUESDAY JUNE 23rd CST!! i will announce the winner on the 24th via random.org. the winner will have 48 hours to reply back to me. or a new winner will be picked.

are you as excited as i am!?!? ;0) and remember for you cloth diapering mamas i have two cloth diaper giveaways that end TONIGHT at MIDNIGHT. so go enter those if you haven't yet.

so this is all from me today folks. i'm off to enjoy this nice day. well before the storms roll in of course!! i'm hoping to get caught up again on my blog reading during nap time!! because right now it's breakfast time and dustin is asking for more cheerios. well not really asking, but his tray is empty. :0)

great deals.

have i told you all how much i love rummage sale season?!?! i'm sure i have. today i was in town at a friend's house. and on the way home i hit up some great sales!! woo hoo. i also found a super cute little tikes alligator 'teeter totter' thingy for only seven bucks!! it replaces the cheapo one i ran over with the van last summer...oops!! it fits three kiddos and all three girls were on it right away!! they loved it!!

i also found dustin some nice clothes at a sale. and amelya got some more. i think she is pretty well set for the rest of summer!! and i think i have some wintery clothes in a tote for her of size five too. so we're doing well on that end. i love rummaging and finding clothes for a portion of the full cost. i did buy caitybug and breigh a few things...because they were way cheap! i've been doing really good at not buying for them. only because i already have a ton of things in their sizes. my kids, well the girls for sure, probably have what some would consider 'too many' clothes. but i love variety. and about 80-90 percent have probably all been bought at rummage sales or once upon a child. or on clearance!! i love clearance sales too.

i had a wildtree party last night. it went pretty decent. and everyone who was there booked a party!! :0) it was only one person...don't get so excited. :0) but i will take it. and my friend has some friends who couldn't make it but wanted to order. so it's all good. i have another party on monday. so i'm excited for that too. i had a 'goal' to hit 1200 in sales by july 2nd and have four shows of at least 200 turned it. if i hit that goal i earn a rolling tote to carry my show stuff in. welllll my sales are at 1211!!! so all i need to do is submit the two more shows and i'll get my tote! i'm super excited. because right now, i carry all my stuff in a bright pink BARBIE suitcase. lol. it's the only hardsided tote we have. plus it has wheels. and i had the goal to earn the one and didn't want to go out and buy anything. i also earned some oils too because i had 500 in sales in my first 20 days! (( i also want to give a shout out to all my blogging buddies who've made purchases as well!! thanks so much: veronica, christy rose, and rebecca!!))

if you're new here i'll fill you in. i sell wildtree. i have a button on my left side bar that will take you to my wildtree site and you can look around at the products. i haven't tried anything that i don't like!! and it's all super healthy for you!!

tonight i made the cilantro lime rice. it's a seasoning you add with oil and water and then boil. then add rice. simmer for 20ish mintues. and it's DONE! i bought a rotisserie chicken from wally world. some cheese and added it all to a tortilla. yum-o!! it's actually more cilantro-y than it is lime-y. but it's perfect. i am going to have to take stock in it pretty soon!!

the other night i made the kidz cheeze added it to some noodles. threw in some hamburger. and that was so good too! i need to buy some more of the cheeze though!! we have almost used up the entire jar. the cheeze is good to make and then use it as a chip dip too. or on top of broccoli or something. but i don't eat broccoli. but i have a customer who did that and her kidz loved it!! (yes i know i'm using a 'z' instead of an 's'. it's how it's spelled in the book. :0) ) after supper that night amelya asked me this: mom can we have that every night? awwww.

i am not a good cook at all. in fact until i started selling wildtree i didn't even like to cook. but it's been real fun trying out the different products and loving them. we've been using the rancher steak rub as our meat seasoning, and we will not go back to lowry's!! it's THAT good.

okay enough about all of that stuff. i just wanted to tell you about some of my favorite products this past week. :0) and besides it's my job. so it's just like talking about my job.

oh wait. one more fun thing. i went to the rummage sales you know? well one girl asked if i was amanda so and so. well she really said my last name...so and so just sounds 'funner'. i said yes. she said i'm invited to so and so's party. and i'm so excited. i am going to try and make it. but i was thinking i might do a party for you!! ummm. okay!! super excited. then i go to a different rummage sale and the girl asks how my wildtree parties are going! i say good. ((btw thanks chantae for mentioning it to her...)) and then she randomly says, that may be a fun party to have! ummm. YEP!! it would be. :0) so i'm really excited at the prospect of maybe two future parties!! it's always good to get into different cirlces of people besides family. because family can only have so many parties before they start getting worn out. so any of you out there around my neck of the woods and would like to let me into YOUR circle...let me know!! okay. enough now. before you all get 'wild' on me.. he he he.

shaun is still working. and it's nine thirty!! boo hoo. he had to go in at five this morning. he told me to set my alarm to help wake him up at four. because he had a hard time yesterday morning getting up at four. so i set my alarm. well it went off. i woke up. and then i told shaun: it's time to get up, shut the alarm off. he says: i know. i just told you to shut it off. because it was MINE going off. on MY side of the bed. :0) good thing he woke up because apparently i'm pretty much useless at four AM!! ;0)

guess what!?!? i'll wait....guess....shaun just called. he should be home in a little while. in
shaun-ese that means somewhere between a half hour and and hour. :0)

i have something exciting to tell you all tomorrow!! i'm super excited. no. i'm not pregnant. :0) but it involves a giveaway of some cute stuff. i'm also hoping to get a package in the mail so i can show off the cute thing i get to giveaway!!

and if any of you cloth diapering mama's out there still haven't entered the cloth diaper giveaways be sure to do that before tomorrow at midnight MY time. of course it's also a portion of the midwest's time as well...CST. :0) i'll announce those winners on saturday. i also want to thank all the new followers for following me. now maybe you just followed to get the extra entry, which is totally fine...but i hope you stick around to hang out awhile too!! :0) i love to meet new blogging buddies!!

saturday we have a graduation party for my cousin. it makes me feel 'old' to have her graduate. she is the first cousin of mine i can remember being born. well not being born being born, just born. i was not there or anything, and probably if i was would've become a nun seeing all that. lol. i in fact get grossed out watching the 'birth stories' you watch in school and during lamaze. i don't need to see another woman's wa-ho.

i know during one of the kiddos' births my doctor asked me if i wanted to feel the head. no. i don't. it just seems weird to me. i didn't want a mirror either. i have no problems with all you all doing that. i just couldn't/can't. if i'm blessed enough to be pregnant again i don't think i'll change my mind either. sorry. amelya and breigh's births were taped. but not from THAT angle. tammy stood in the corner of the room and you can see them right after they're born but not the exact milisecond they are born. so our videos are PG-13ish. and i would totally feel comfortable having you watch them. maybe. i actually get irritated watching them because i laugh A LOT and i do not like my laugh on tape. some people 'laugh their way to a better marriage', i laugh my way to a better labor...ha ha ha.

we videoed caitlyn and dustin as best we could by ourselves. because we choose to do the births 'ourselves' with those two. after having done it both ways, i don't prefer one way over the other. i enjoyed having a huge room full of people and i enjoyed having the special time with just shaun.

tomorrow is a stay at home day. i'm way behind on wash. so it's wash and wash some more and some diapers too. i'm glad we have a decent stash. i haven't washed since monday!! ;0) we've been busy. and i've been lazy. but the diapers are starting to pile up and because summer has decided to finally show up here in wisconsin...they may start smelling soon!!

well. i've really gone on again haven't i?!?! that's what happens when i'm gone for a few days. shaun should be home soon. so i'm off to wait for him. actually he just called. seriously. if i knew it take blogging about him coming home i'd do it much earlier in the night!! :0) he had to get off the phone with me though. because his favorite song was on and he has to listen. lol. also please keep my hubby in your prayers. he was hitting something with a sledge hammer today. and that something was his finger. well he didn't do that on purpose. but he hit it. he thinks he broke it. but because they really can't do anything for a broken finger he's just going to come home and take some asprin/tylenol/ibprofen/whatever to make it feel all better. :0) so just pray it heals up nicely and that the pain goes away. he's very 'tough' and only says it hurts when it really hurts. **for example when he was crushed under the chopper a few years ago i don't think his pain level went above like a five!! serious!** so it must hurt. :0)

okay i'm done. and i really need to stop being so :0) about things. i probably do that a bajillion times. sorry!! :0) hope you all have a super great evening/morning/you know whenever you read it. :0) there i go again. and it was just habit!! i was trying to NOT do it. my fingers are brainwashed...nighty night. tiredness is setting in...and we all know what happens when THAT happens....

don't send out the search party!!

:0) i am alive. we've been way busy and i haven't had time to blog!! so beware...this one will be a doozy of a long one. hang on for the ride!

first off THANKS! for the prayers for my litte dustin. his fever broke on saturday after hitting 103. he took a nap. and woke up drenched in sweat. so he broke it himself. and saved me the copay too. i think he may be teething. he's been sleeping kind of crummy since friday and has a big spell of crabby time in the afternoon. i was so thankful to be at my mom's yesterday so we could double team it all!

saturday we went to a local nature park. it was so fun! and it's FREE!! shaun took the girls to the top of the tower. all three of them. i stayed at the bottom with dustin. and i was so relieved that i had an excuse to stay down they enjoyed the tower and going all the way up. i am also uploading pictures to facebook as i type this. SO that means because i don't have a lot of paitence today...i'm only loading them once. and will give you the link.

do any of you do this too? email, blog and facebook at the same time? i do it all the time!! ((add to the list...eating ice cream. strawberry cheesecake. yummy!))

okay sunday. sunday was my breigh breigh's birthday. she was three. well she still IS three. and on amelya's birthday i posted her birth story. and said i'd do it for breigh. so here's where the post gets long. but truthfully I LOVE hearing birth stories. so that's why i'm sharing mine. if you don't love hearing them...skip over this part!!

a few weeks before breigh was born i had a growth ultrasound done. we decided to induce on June 14th. ((for those of you not familiar...amelya was a NINE POUND FOUR OUNCE BABY)) shaun's sister volunteered to watch amelya for us so that worked out well. i think my mom took her home the first night, and then shaun's sister the second night. shaun stays with me and the baby the entire time we're at the hospital. well he goes home to shower but only when someone is there with me. i LOVE that. i don't make him stay, it's just never come up that he'd go home. so he must want to stay then. plus we get that special time together with the newest member of the family.

as with amelya's birth we had a whole crew with us. calling them the 'popp-eratzi' our last name is popp. shaun's mom and other sister. my mom and sister. and shaun's aunt were all there to welcome our baby. shaun's aunt actually did the video taping.

when we got to the hospital they put the gel stuff on. and i had to sit for an hour. well not even sit. lay. for an hour. that's a long time. especially when there's a whole room of people free to walk around as they please!! one thing that really surprised me though was that the gel worked. within fifteen minutes of application...i was contracting!! i know that is the point of the gel, but with amelya it didn't do anything. i was expecting it to do nothing again!! so all of a sudden i was thrown into labor mode.

i know i walked around for awhile. then once contractions started hurting more i layed in bed. i don't remember what time it was, but i got a dose of nubain. it helps me relax. and i can rest/sleep between contractions. i have not ever choosen to go to the epidural. so the nubain works for me. :0) around noon my dr came and checked me. i think i was about 5 cm. she said it'd probably be after lunch time and we'd have a baby. ummm. nope. in about fifteen minutes i went from five to COMPLETE. i actually had just asked for some more nubain and with the next contraction i said i have to push. shaun's eyes got humungo and said...wait til the nurse gets back. i didn't know this but my mother in law got my nurse. and my sister had to go down to the cafeteria and get my sister in law and shaun's aunt. they figured they'd go eat since it was going to be awhile!! i feel awful they had to send fresh strawberry shortcake down the trash!! because i was in labor!! really i feel bad!!

so they rushed up. my dr. was surprised as well...and didn't even have time to get fully dressed for delivery. wait. she WAS dressed. just not in her delivering clothes. i think i pushed like three times. and plooch. out came our little breigh mayann. seriously it was SO easy. in fact. it's on video me saying "i just farted her out". yea i'm classy like that!

breigh was 7 lbs 10 ounces and 20 inches long. she was born at 12:47 pm on June 14th 2006. breigh was a name we just liked. mayann is a combo of my mom's middle name (mae) and my middle name and my mother in laws middle name (ann) so mayann. i like it. and it fits nicely. breigh has a name you really can't make a nick name out of. (btw it's pronouned like bree, just in case you didn't know...) but we always call her breigh breigh. lol. in fact if you ask her, her name she says breigh breigh most of the time!!

i can not believe it's been three years since she was placed on my belly!! it's flown by. and she's grown up so much. i love you my breigh breigh!!

sunday we went to the beach for breigh's birthday. that is until it stormed and we had to leave!! look at the link of my facebook pictures for pics from that. yep still lazy. at least i put the ice cream away!! so when we left the beach we went to a local pizza joint and finished up the festivities. shaun's one sister is taking her to build a bear for her birthday for her present. she's excited to go to the mall. she got a creepy baby doll from shaun's mom. seriously. the thing makes crying sounds talking sounds and giggles. and if you don't feed it or give it a nuk it doesn't stop! plus the eyes open and shut all crazy. and it 'breathes'. it's insanely life like. but breigh does love it. it sleeps next to her bed every night and goes with us everywhere!

overall the day went well. i was disappointed in a few things, but things i have no control over and refuse to let them get to me. i guess when you have kids and it's your kids your kids that can/could have their feelings hurt it bugs you more. well at least me. but like i said i can't control it. at all. and leave it all up to god to help me work through that. :0)

yesterday was busy as well. breigh had her three year check. she's doing great. and did great at the doctor. i also found out their doctor is getting married. and will have a step son. so that was exciting to hear too!! when we saw him at the mall last week he said that his fiance's son always has to stop there as well...for cookies. she looked like a nice lady. didn't get to talk to her...and i don't know why you all will care about this. lol. some of you may. ;0)

today i'm blessed to get to do some early rummaging at two rummage sales. they're setting up for the sales and said i could come early!! whoo hoo. i LOVE that! especially because i won't get to go during the city wide sales. plus between these two i should get a bunch of stuff, and shouldn't "need" to go on friday anyways!

hmm. oh yeah. you'll have to look at my pictures to see the 'proof'. but you wanna know why i LOVE our church? well one of the reasons! because our pastor can teach in his swimming shorts and no one cares!! i love that. god does not look at our clothes and say if we can or can't come into church. he looks at our heart condition. he wants our hearts to be right with him most importantly. i'm not saying it's okay to come all hanging out to church either! lol. there is a happy medium between it all. what i am saying is there is not a need to get all fancied up for church. just bring your heart ready and willing to hear.

does anyone else notice that on sundays when you're trying to leave for church everything goes haywire!?!? ugh. that enemy. this week we had to give dustin a sink bath at 935 AM. church starts at 10 AM. my theory is that it's better go late than not at all. but we made it there just in time and it was all good. i think it's important to realize how the enemy is going to try and get you away from church though. and to battle him, and not let him win. it's so easy to say oh my nose is runny. my head hurts. my kid is crabby. but if you're doing that for a few weeks in a row or something...the next week when everything is okay it may be easier for you to just skip church because you feel like it. so just beware of that tricky enemy. he'll try to sneak in whenever he can. if you give him a little, he'll probably try for a lot next time. so don't even give him a little.

okay. i need to shower yet. so i don't look like a slob at the rummage sale pre-sale. hmm. i like how that sounds.

i hope this post makes up for my lack of posting since...FRIDAY! lol. :0)

quick quick quick.

all i have time for right now is the giveaway winner. it's MEGAN from Newly Wed, Newly Bred. i picked it with random.org and it picked number 48. and because dustin is up. and not feeling well, i didn't post a screen shot.

so with the winner announcement i also ask for prayer for dustin.
he's been abnormally fussy since yesterday. shaun said last night he was fussy all night too. this morning, he woke up the same and has a fever of 102. the dr. said to keep him comfy and call back if he gets worse. which i'm fine with. i don't want to spend the copay for them to tell me he's fine. but i also wanted to call the dr. to see what they said.

because there isn't a whole lot in this post. please read the one below this one. i wrote it at one am and a bit tired. so if nothing else it's a good laugh. and way more funny than this!! ;0)

it's one AM do you know where your kids are.

what!!? geez. i'm tired. BUT to save me some time in the morning...wait it IS morning. well okay to save me some time later...i thought i'd blog now. that and my friend and i are emailing back and forth and it's too fun to go to bed.

it'd probably be easier to pick up the phone and call. but emails are so much more fun.

oh and yes i know where my kids are. in bed. sound asleep. so is shaun. in fact he was in bed before i got home from my mom's party. usually he's asleep on the couch. i guess he figured he knows me well enough and i wouldn't get back anytime early. which i was home a bit after ten. what can i say, get me around some women and i talk. :0) you never would've guessed that would you have?!

quite honestly i am not a big talker until you get to know me. then you can't shut me up. well you probably could, you know if you put a paper bag over my head. well i'd probably still talk, it'd just be more muffled.

seriously. i should probably not blog so early in the morning! my 'goofy' side really comes out in the early morning. at a sleepover in middle school we stayed up all night. at some point we tried to fly. and broke the air mattress we were supposed to be sleeping on. oops. middle school sleepovers. hmmm. do they have mommy sleepovers. you know. where we stay up all night and talk and laugh and eat and just be silly?

that'd be fun wouldn't it? i think so. funny thing is. since being a mommy i rarely stay awake all night. except the past few weeks. i'm up til late and not tired. like seriously who stays up til one am?! me i guess. i'm sure that there are more of you as well.

my mom's party went well tonight. and it was my first time doing an actual demo. so i was a bit nervous and could kick myself for as many times as i said 'um'. or played with my hair. not like twisiting my hair valley girl like, but keep tucking it behind my ears like. okay. like. ;0)

valley girls. that reminds me of saved by the bell. i used to watch that show every morning before school. i didn't like the jr high ones. but the high school and college year ones were okay. now if i watched them i don't know what i'd think i guess. i just was happy that kelly and zach got together. lol. i really was. i remember being so excited to see their 'wedding'. it was like a big deal friday night thing too.

full house remains my all time fav. i have all eight seasons on dvd. did you know a different guy was slated to be danny tanner? i can't imagine anyone BUT bob saget being danny. they have the original pilot on the season one of the dvds. it's interesting to watch.

speaking of tv shows. anyone watch wipeout!? seriously. WHY? do people do that to themselves. we saw it a bit last week and shaun was channel surfing and amelya saw it last night and got all excited because it was her favorite show!! lol. it was funny. it is funny to see people falling all over and stuff...but i would never be doing that. put me on amazing race or something instead. or wait. don't. they have to eat gross stuff sometimes and go bungee jumping. i'll stick to my house!

what reality show would you go on? if any? i like reality tv. except that celebrity get me out of here or whatever. THAT was just lame. yep. lame-o. i don't know what i could be on. i would love to be on wheel of fortune. which yes i realize IS not reality but a gameshow. i just LOVE that show though. when shaun was crushed under the corn chopper i was supposed to go to the tryouts for that show. he took first to that though. so i missed them. maybe next time.

so my friend went to bed. i should follow suit. whatever THAT means. if you're so interested be sure to check out my TWO cloth diaper giveaways. and later today i'll announce the winner to my rgnaturalbabies store giveaway. because i am tireder now. and my contacts are drying to my eyes. ouch!

so off to bed i go. which i am sure you're thankful for! i hope some of this post made some sort of sense.

why yes..it's another cloth diaper giveaway!

here it is yet another giveaway!! whoo hooo. get all excited. do the happy cloth diaper dance. wait?! is there a happy cloth diaper dance? i know i have a happy diaper dance when i get one in the mail. so yes. there is. i may be the only one dancing...but hey...who cares! :0)




so we've been cloth diapering three in diapers for about five months or so. until this past week i had not tried a one size diaper. i know can you believe it!?




i was so excited to find smarti pants diapers!! they are fabulous. and one size. and they sent me TWO diapers to review. in two very cute gender neutral colors of course.




first off. the prices on these dipes are great. you can buy three for only 36.95!! that's a great price for a one size dipe. you can get girls, boys or gender neutral packs. or white. but hey why get white when you can get colors!?! :0)

there's the diaper. i will say at the smallest setting it seems 'big' for a newborn baby. but because i don't have a newborn i can't test that theory. lord willing we'll have another newborn and i can try it out.

i used this diaper on the smallest setting for dustin though. and it fit him fine. he's like i said in my other post 18ish pounds. i try the dipes on him first because he's my biggest wetter. figured that's the best way to try it out!!

one thing unique about this dipe is that you don't HAVE to remove the inserts. the dipe is made with like a 'tunnel' you put the inserts in. open on both ends. and then in the wash they come out. what a brilliant idea. or rather 'smart' idea. :0) which is probably why the call it a smart sleeve huh? :0) lol.

i will also say i was hesitant about the open ends on both ends. i figured it would leak. guess what. it didn't. not for dustin at all. and fyi: he was in the diaper at least three hours. so there was an opportunity to leak. :0) the snaps are also super nice. and stay snapped. actually they're kind of tough to pull open. which is a good thing in my book. because my caitlyn LOVES to de-diaper herself!!

i must say i am a one size diaper lover now. at first i thought it'd be hard, having three in diapers and always switching the snaps and what not. but really. it's not a big deal at all. so i'll continue to use the dipes i have and rotate the one sizers between the three of them. which i am hoping will be soon two. breigh is three on sunday. time to hit the potty. at least i'm hoping.

and i mentioned this in my other giveaway, but because breigh was the only one using these, and i'm trying to de-stash, i have 16 contour kissaluvs in the larger size if anyone is interested let me know. :0) i like to give blogging buddies first dibs and a good deal. :0)

the smarti pants one size diapers are great. i will plan on buying some soon. because i am too in love with this diaper. oh the love keeps growing for my kiddos and their fluffy bums! my wildtree parties have taken off very successfully and i'm sure my profits will be either spent at rummage sales or buying cloth diapers. lol.

so you want one too don't you!?! i thought so. so here are the rules my friends.

1. required of you is this: visit the smarti pants site and tell me what color you'd pick for YOUR free diaper. don't they just have the cutest names for the colors!?!

2. follow me and get another entry. woot woot.

3. follow me on twitter (@amandap22) and tweet the giveaway for yet ANOTHER entry. woot woot woot.

4. blog about this super rockin smarti giveaway and get yet another entry. woot woot woot woot.

isn't that just SO fun!?! thought so.

okay. the giveaway will run til JUNE 19th at MIDNIGHT my time...which is CST in case you wanted to know. i don't have my own time zone or anything. the winner will be announced the 20th. the winner will have 48 hours to get back to me. so you best be sure you have an email attached to your blogger account. or leave it with your comment. because i'd be so sad if i had to repick another winner!

and if you have not entered my other cloth diaper giveaway. what are you waiting for!? go do it. :0)

another diaper giveaway!?!? applecheeks.

hey. here is one post of two for diaper giveaways. woot woot.




last week i got an applecheeks diaper in the mail. i also got with it a hemp insert and booster along with a bamboo hemp insert and booster. i was so stoked to try both kinds out.




guess what!?! i love the diaper. i really like the elastic on the front and back of the diaper. so nice and stretchy. and i LOVE the colors. we got a st. lucia. such a pretty blue. makes me want to go on vacation just staring at it. serious!!




they have loads of other fun colors too. the diaper is considered an 'envelope' diaper.

there's a nice detailed pic of it. the opening is nice and wide and you can put the inserts in very nicely. i like that you can fold up the insert and add the booster and be able to smooth it all out easily. i used the hemp and the bamboo. they both worked great. i had no leaks with the diaper at all.

they have two different sizes. i got a size two which is for 18-40 pounds. i used it on dustin and it fit him nicely. maybe a bit big, but he's only about 18ish pounds. but because him and caitlyn are in the same size of diapers i figured it made sense to get one they both can share. which sort of stinks, because then i have to get boyish or gender neutral colors all the time. sometimes i just want a pink diaper. lol. who would ever think i'd get so excited about diapers. something that gets peed and pooed in.

speaking of. well not really. but the diaper. is SO soft. and it stayed SO soft after washing. i loved that about the diaper. so cuddly. a diaper. is cuddly?! you can tell it's late and i'm tired. ;0)

so what to know. 1. the diaper makes me want to go on vacation. and 2. makes me want to cuddle. and 3. i love applecheeks diaper!

which brings me to more dilemas...buying more diapers. :0) i have a huge stash, but love adding to it. so when i save up some more fluffy money you can bet your baby's cloth diapered bum i'll be buying some of these beauties. yep. the diaper is a beauty. :0)

i also want to mention. i'm trying to 'de-stash' my huge stash. and i've sold a few of you some dipes already...thanks. :0) but i have 16 of the larger sized contours from kissaluv. let me know if any of you are interested. i want to offer them first to my friends, before selling them to a stranger on craigslist.

okay BACK to applecheeks. because that is what this is all about!! i LOVE the diapers. i don't have a preference over the hemp or bamboo. both worked SO nicely. and dustin is a heavy wetter. so no leaks was a biggie. and i'm sure you want one too don't you!?!?

well guess what ONE of you GET ONE!! you get to pick out a diaper of your choice of color and you will get a hemp insert and booster AND a bamboo insert and booster!! how incredibly fun is that?!? very. i know. you're jumping up and down...well you probably are sitting. but still you ARE excited!! :0) so here are the rules::

1. this is required my friends...go to the applecheeks colour chart (they're in canada, so they spell color, colour. doesn't it look prettier that way?!) and pick out your favorite color/colour. :0) and let me know what you'd pick.

2. follow me for another entry

3. follow me on twitter (@amandap22) and tweet about this rockin' giveaway and get your happy self another entry

4. blog about this super fun giveaway and get yourself and get an even funner entry. yes i know funner is probably not a word. my blog. my words.

this contest will end JUNE 19th at MIDNIGHT in my timezone. not mine mine. but CST mine. okay?! the winner will have 48 hours to get back to me. after my announcing the winner on the 20th. so be sure to have an email linked to your blogger account or leave it in your comment!! :0) thanks so much and be sure to enter in my other cloth diaper giveaway. i mean if you want to that is!

'whew'

so it's been a busy few days. i have a bit of time to sit this morning. which is nice. my house is clean yet. yay. i like getting it really clean and having it stay that way for awhile. ;0) it always ends up messy again, but super nice clean is nice for a bit. not that it's spotless by any means. i didn't even have time to dust! lol. actually i just realized that now that i didn't dust. oh well. people came to eat not to stare at my shelves.

my party went well last night. i had a house full!! our house is not huge by anymeans but it isn't tiny either, but last night it felt that way. but it's all good. for those of you who got to come i'm so glad you did!! :0) my mom is having her party tonight, so i'm excited about that as well. last night was just open house style come and eat and talk. tonight i'm going to do a demo type thing. so i better get figuring that out i guess!! i've sold candles and jewelry before, those were super easy to talk about and such. food is probably the same. i hope!! :0)

shaun got to try more of the food as well. he really liked the dill dip. i really like it too. except i don't eat many veggies, especially raw. (i don't like the crunch) so i dip the bread in it. and it's all good. i call it bread, technically it's called 'beer bread'. but i don't make it with beer. so bread works. or sprite bread. that's what i made it with last night. i've made other breads before with more flavored sodas, then it flavors the bread a bit too. like grape soda, orange soda, etc. i should try that with this....

my giveaway ends tonight. so be sure to enter that if you so desire. i'll announce the winner tomorrow. i will also announce the cloth diaper giveaways tomorrow. :0) i have two different ones to do.

speaking of cloth diapers. i bought some of the pre production gro-baby diapers. i must say. i like them! i don't have extra inserts so i've been changing the entire diaper each time. where if i had extra inserts i could just change that and use the same cover. but really it doesn't matter much to me! i'll keep you in the dark about the other two dipes i've tried the past few weeks..you'll find out tomorrow! ;0) speaking i should start a draft of those posts so i don't feel so rushed. yeah. i say that, but that usually does not happen.

ohhhhhhh remember when i said about my sunglasses!! and how i had a story about them!?! well i do. a sweet blogging buddy read my post and said that she had a pair of sunglasses she didn't wear/like anymore. i could have them. isn't that so nice! so she sent me an adorable pair of coach sunglasses with a case. so now when i take them off they go in the case and hopefully i won't lose these!! basically i won't let my kids play with these. :0) that's the key i guess. so thanks so much sara! and speaking of sara she's having a giveaway on her blog for a jumpstart three month membership. i got to give one away awhile back and was given a year subscription for doing so. we love the jumpstart online stuff. so go enter at her blog. or if you don't want to enter you should just go visit her. she's super funny! and super sweet. thanks sara!! :0)

because i'm too lazy to go to the van and get them to take a picture you'll have to wait. and besides that i'm still in jammies and have bed head. not a sight you want to see!!

i've also fogotten to mention this week is breigh's birthday. SUNDAY. SUNDAY she'll be THREE. THREE!?!? years old. i can't believe it. she knows her birthday is in june, but if you ask her now when her birthday is she says sun-ay. she's adorable. and i can't believe she's three already. which also means i should plan something huh? i'm not all into having big honkin' birthday parties with all those decorations and such. we usually just have the grandma and papa and nana and aunties and uncle come. small. easy. and nice. :0) for breigh's birthday we usually do two seperate things though. because her birthday is usually on father's day weekend. so next weekend we'll do the party with my parents on father's day. and we have to think of something for shaun's family yet.

last year at this time we also found out dustin was a boy. i can't believe that's been a year either. i look at his seven month self now and think it's crazy he was all in my belly at this time last year. caitlyn was also super sick at this time last year. puking all over. blech. we also went to a waterpark hotel for breigh's birthday. that was fun. i feel bad it's not feasible this year. but it's summer sometime hopefully. and we'll get to the beach. so it's all good. besides that breigh calls the beach a waterpark anyways! i also need to get her a gift!! i have no idea what to get her! i'll have to talk it over with shaun and see what he says. the girl loves flip flops and baby dolls. i know my sister is getting her flip flops and some baby doll stuff. because i told her about the flip flops. maybe i'll get her some other colors. shoes are fun. :0)

not much else to say. well i really could say A LOT about the whole you know what scam blog thing. i'm not going to. i've been staying 'on top' of it mostly. but i also just want the truth. but really at this point who knows if the whole truth will come out. either way a LOT of people were hurt and misled. but GOD is good. and thankfully he's the judge of us. not me or you or her or him or whoever...GOD is. we'll all be judged one day and PRAISE JESUS that i have the blood of JESUS to cover my sins!!

and if you don't know the you know what scam blog. be thankful. i'd rather not say what it is only because i don't want a whole bunch of searches coming here looking for more info. i don't have any. ;0) okay let's move on.

and that means i must as well. dustin wants some breakfast. he's talking to me in the bouncy seat. so i'm off to feed him some cheerios.

so....CHEERIO. in a british accent of course.

and again...i will apologize for not being around much the past few days. i hope to get caught up on my blog reading and will try to comment as much as possible!! :0) i hope you understand. :0)

no song in your head monday.

so. this has to be short. it's five fifteen now and i have some dipes to wash and some supper to start. and i promise to try not to get a song stuck in your head today...867-5309...just in case you need to get a hold of me...he he he he.

we had a super busy weekend. hence the lack of posting and commenting. today was a super busy day as well. we just got home about an hour ish ago. the three little ones are napping and amelya is practically out on the couch.

me. i'm tired. thanks for asking.

BUT i'm excited too. i got some new diapers in the mail today. and this weekend i did too. i even get to give some away soon!! so keep your eyes peeled for that. well not all of you will care, but some of you may care about some diapers. exciting stuff i tell you! i'm currently test wearing them. wait. not me! dustin did today. and caitlyn will next. they're a one size diaper, so i want to see how they fit on the kiddos. i suppose breigh may as well. either way day one: i love them. i'm not telling you which ones they are yet. but you'll find out soon enough.

wanna know what i learned at church yesterday? too bad. i'm telling you anyways.

god doesn't only give us strength. he IS our strength. he is all we need. all of it. every single bit of it. just trust in him. his strength. and it is all so darn good!! now i guess this is nothing 'new' i learned. but it was something that spoke to my heart personally. i absolutely LOVE that god speaks to us each personally. how fun is that. he wants US.

i also want to remind anyone to go enter my giveaway if you want to win something fun. it's a 20 gift certificate to a pretty cool store! a store that even sells gro-baby diapers. if you win you could buy a gro baby for FIVE bucks. now THAT is cool my friends!! i just may be offering up my other giveaways after this one ends. so now you know. look forward to friday. that's when i'll announce them....ohhhh...ahhhhh.

so this is a random mess. but seriously when is anything i post not random! :0) i'll apologize now for my absence over the next few days. i'm busy getting stuff ready for my wildtree parties this week and getting all that good stuff in order! go check out my button on my left side bar. oohhhh aaahhhh. :0) okay. done.

late night diaper washing.

well i've been a slacker in my diaper washing this week. i think the last day i washed was monday! which means i NEEDED to wash today. because we had a busy day i didn't get them started til nine. which means. you get me. late. and tired. when i'm tired. i'm goofy. i'll try to not be too goofy.

our day started out uneventful. the usual. breakfast. diapers. play. lunch. and then we went to town. and then to some rummage sales. where i hit the jackpot. i got TONS of clothes for amelya in size five. {she's still in size 4T but has enough in that size, so i'm trying to get ahead of the game, and really she may hit five in winter...no rummage sales in winter! so if you have some size five clothes you need sorting though...i'd love to come over and buy them off your hands.} speaking of buying...thanks to two blogging buddies for buying those cloth diapers i listed for sale awhile back! totally appreciate it! :0) i have been trying to de-stash our stash. 1. because there are diapers i don't always grab for and they just sit there. 2. i'm getting more diapers and don't need them all. so i have seven size medium bumkins AIO's if anyone is interested. just email me. if i don't hear from you by monday...or tuesday...they're going on craigslist.

okay. after the rummaging fun...in the super nice day outside!! we went to town and to subway, in our walmart, for a snack. yum-o double chocolate chip cookies. breigh had garden salsa flavored sun chips. amelya and caitlyn had chocolate chip cookies...and dustin had some of theirs too. (he's been eating more and more table foods. hopefully in a few weeks it all be table food. he loves cheerios) we did our shopping. and it was dustin's first time sitting in the cart. usually i bring his car seat in. but he has mastered sitting up so now it's time to sit up in the cart! the stupid strap buckle thingy was broke. but he did so great! that is until we had to checkout. then this happened.

see that by his eye. yep he tipped in the cart and has as nice little cut by his eye. amelya totally freaked out and almost started bawling because she was so concerned over dustin. so i had to calm her down. try to hold the paper towel the cashier gave me on his eye. and then of course pay. and answer the manager when she asked if he was buckled. i said no. then i had to fill out on incident report thingy. and i said, if it matters the buckle is broken. i don't want to look like some irresponsible mom for not buckling him. i could've switched carts. but seriously he did great the entire time! and i had three out of four kids IN the cart already. so we did it. dustin's fine. he quit crying with in a minute. and now he's the focus of my blog for a bit. and don't mind the dirty nose he still has. i didn't notice it til i took the picture.

speaking of taking pictures. a few weeks ago. christie had a contest to see who could leave the most comments. i won. i had 500 comments. what really happened is that it turned into a great chat thing and i met and got to know a few other bloggers a lot better. it was so much fun!! she didn't reveal her prize that she was giving away. so i figured i'd better post it when i got it!! here it is.there was some super yummy smelling lotion and shower gel, with two 'fluffers' (that's what they're called in our house!) some stationary, pens, sticky notes, picture frame, a casserole cook book, a nail file that looks really fun, and some jelly bellys. (i got the package when we left to go to the doctor. i ate the entire package on the way to the dr. they were yummy!) AND to top all that off...a 20 gift card to walmart!! geesh. that was so worth the fun commenting!!

and an even longer time back i won a cute little head band on jess' blog. here's a picture i promised to take of one of my girls wearing it. i had amelya wear it. mainly because she sits still the longest...isn't it cute!?! i like it. although i feel it may look silly ON me. :0)
breigh wanted to pose too...so here's the both of them.

the other day at the mall amelya was funny. here she is. wearing my sunglasses and 'talking' on my phone. at least i got my phone back! but i have a fun surprise to share about some new sunglasses...but that's for a later date. i'm so excited!! :0)

well i've posted a picture of three out of the four kiddos. caitlyn is the least cooperative out of them. so i don't have any from the past few days. but here's a funny one of her from the other weekend.

have i ever said how much i love those kids. they are so much darn fun. i mean really. they make me laugh and smile more than any other human i know. just today breigh touched my boobs and said..you have big boobs. i couldn't do anything but laugh! and say thanks breigh. or yesterday when amelya said, that sure smells good. today it was, breigh absolutely not. who teaches them that!?! lol. probably me! or when they both are singing...jesus loves me. jesus loves me. the bible tells me so! brings tears to my eyes almost every time! caitlyn has been talking SO much lately too. yesterday she found her shoes and walked up to me saying shoes. then when she wanted more cheese instead of pointing she SAID cheese. it's always so crazy to me when they start talking. it still amazes me. dustin has mastered sitting up. hopefully crawling isn't for at least...i dunno a few months? i may be dreaming there. amelya crawled at six and a half months. breigh and caitlyn were between nine and ten months. i think dustin will be sooner than that. he already rolls all over to get to things and has started reaching and twisting and turning to get to it. so i'm sure he'll be moving soon.

and then. there are the two babies in heaven. who in their short lives taught me so much too. like don't place my trust in the plans I have, but the plans GOD has for their lives. i think what makes losing a baby the hardest is that you already have their little lives all thought out. what you might name them. what they'll be. who they'll look like. and then. god decides to take them home with him before you get to know all those things. and then. you remember they're HIS and HIS gifts to us. that they're HOME with our savior. and in his arms. and then. it makes me feel just that much better. and then. i just keep on keeping on. because really, it's the only thing to do. keep on living for christ. keep on hoping in him. trusting in him. loving him.

yesterday my appt with my doctor went well. i had the single stroller with caitlyn in it. dustin in my moby wrap and the older two girlies walked. they were SO well behaved. i'm so blessed to have them behave and listen so well. that's what makes it so easy to take them with me. i know that they'll 97.903 percent of the time be very well behaved. there is that little bit of chance they won't be. but i correct the behavior right away and it's all good again.

my doctor then surprised me though. i thought she wouldn't need to do anything with me. i was wrong. so i took caitlyn out of the stroller...she'd been saying out anyways (whew). put dustin in there and then had her check me. with four pairs of eyes staring at me! lol. if i had known she was going to do that i would've had someone watch them. after she left breigh asked why she checked my butt. lol. anyways my dr said i'm down to normal and everything feels/looks/whatever that sounds emabarassing...fine. so that's good. she also said she reccomends waiting a month to start trying. so we'll see how that goes. because it's my blog and i pretty much share everything anyways, and because i'm also sure my dr doesn't read this!, we weren't using anything since the miscarriage. i also know that god's in control. and even if we are using something and HE wants us to have a baby we will. my dr also thinks that the baby was measuring small and that my dates weren't off, but that they baby wasn't growing at what it should. which means...we got pregnant using something. so see. at any rate, god's in control. AND we've both decided we want to have another baby. AND today amelya said that the baby boy can go by her. so we'll see if she's right. that we have another baby and that it'll be a boy. i did question her asking if she meant dustin, she said no, another baby boy. :0)

tonight is our last night with my sister in law's dog. after monday he's done so well!!

and shaun keeps calling him my shadow! isn't he cute though!? his name is oliver. in case i haven't told you all that already. he's been doing well and loves sleeping with us. we don't let our dog sleep with us even. only small little dogs get to. because i've already loaded eight nine thousand pictures...i'm not going to load one of oscar. so til next time. sorry.

hmmmm. my diapers are on their last wash cycle. i have about forty minutes yet. i do not think i'll blog for forty more minutes. geesh. your eyes are probably going buggy with all this nonsense already!!

have you entered my giveaway yet!?! no!?!? why!??! you MUST go do that. now. okay? okay. it's for a fun gift certificate to a fun store. and who doesn't like fun?

last night for supper i made sloppy joes. i used the sloppy joe blend from wildtree. yum-o! the spices/seasonings are just perfect and shaun really liked it too!! i had a snack of 'beer' bread and garlic dipping oil before. even more yum-o. except i have bad breath. good thing shaun went to bed a while ago, he doesn't have to worry giving ms. garlic USA a kiss good night. :0) i wish i could rename the 'beer' bread though. i don't use beer to make it. i use sierra mist. or any soda you want really. we don't drink. and i don't feel like wasting my money on beer for bread. so we use soda. it should be called something like 'quick and easy made with a beverage of your choice bread'. but that'd probably be too much and they'd have to redo the packaging. oh well. one of my blogging buddies totally surprised me with an order last night! it was so fun to see an order on my site. thanks again rebecca!! i love that she lives across the country from me. but could place an order right from her home and have it shipped there. so nice. i love that aspect. so if you need some yummy food to munch on...head on over. it's listed on the right hand side of my blog. i highly recommend the strawberry cheesecake and brownies on wednesday!

alright. it's officially tomorrow. first time i've ever blogged from one day to the next in the same sitting!! so when do i post it as...from when i started? or finished? hmmm. i'll do finished i guess.

and that's what i am. finished. peace out. and good night. or good morning. good afternoon. whatever it is make it good!!