French Roast Coffee and Fern Gully

Does anyone else remember watching this movie as a kid? I'm pretty sure I watched it around 1000 times, and yet I still don't remember what happens. *sigh* Its official, I'm old. Emma happens to be really into it right now, and I'm glad because I was not planning on her waking up this early. I was hoping to drink some coffee (again pants-less, without crack head interruption, see yesterday's post to fully understand that comment) and play on Facebook a bit before I have to do chores. Ew, I hate cleaning my house. I wish someone would do it for me, for free, because I'm broke. Maybe I could have someone stay in my spare bedroom and just be in charge of all of the cleaning, cooking, and laundry. That would be so awesome.

So a little education for today.... This one's for the ladies, men feel free to just skip ahead. (*snort* guys don't read this) Today's lesson boils down to this : Store bought tampons and pads are bad, mama cloth and diva cups are good. Ready to hear why? k.

So perks to the Diva Cup

It can be worn for up to 12 hours at a time
Accommodates women's changing flow
Latex/Rubber-free
Made of top quality silicone
Clean, comfortable and convenient
No leaks
Economical-- one purchase lasts for years!
Chemical free!

Perks of Mama Cloth
Cheaper! You would save about $125 a year
you would save all of those disposable pads from the landfills
Cloth is softer on your skin which is especially important for the postpartum stage
cloth doesn’t have any chemicals used for absorbency, just great fabrics, so no toxic exposure to a very sensitive area;
cloth is easy to care for, you don’t have to worry about having to hand-wash, you can just throw them in with your cloth diapers, or run a small separate load.
and they come in cute colors and designs!!!! (because there's no harm in making your period pretty)

Risks of Tampons and Pads

Toxic Shock Syndrome

Toxic Shock Syndrome (TSS) is a rare but potentially fatal disease caused by a bacterial toxin.  It has been associated with tampon use.  TSS continues to cause serious illness, sometimes fatal, with symptoms including high fever, sunburn-like rash, nausea, diarrhoea, headache, sore throat, and achy muscles.

Toxins in conventional pads and tampons

Women’s genital tissue is highly sensitive, and chemicals are easily absorbed into their bodies, causing irritation, discomfort, and serious health problems.  We already live in a toxic, polluted environment.  Wherever we can we need to reduce our exposure to toxins.  It is very easy to reduce our exposure to the toxins in menstrual products. 

Dioxins and Furans

Dioxins and furans is the abbreviated or short name for a family of toxic substances that all share a similar chemical structure.  Most dioxins and furans are not produced intentionally, but are created when other chemicals or products are made.

Dioxins are toxic by-products of the chlorine bleaching process.  Non-organic fibre production such as cotton, is sprayed with pesticides that release toxins, including dioxin, into the environment, leaving chemical residue in the fibre eg cotton. Dioxins have been found in tampons and pads.  Once it is in the environment is cannot be removed.  It accumulates in the fatty tissue of humans and animals.  We are all susceptible to dioxin contamination through our diet and the environment, but there is no logical reason why women should be subject to the additional exposure from their menstrual products.
The chemicals in these products can actually cause heavier periods and more cramps!

If that isn't enough to change your mind.....Maybe this will

"A woman recently went to use a Kotex brand tampon and fortunately was a little clumsy getting it out of the packaging and discovered patches of mold growing all over the product that was seconds away from being inserted inside her. She wrote to the manufacturer and was horrified to discover that this is fairly common and received nothing more than a cookie cutter apology and some coupons to buy more of their products."

How many of these have we used?! Anyone terrified?!

Okay so moving on....




I've noticed I don't have many friends (shocker right?) I'm sure a lot of it has to do with my "determined nature" (shut up, thats what I'm calling it) and I'm sure I could regain a few of those friends if I would just shut my mouth and pretend to be blind like the rest of the sheep (bahhh)

Yeah, thats not me. So I guess I'll continue to lose old friends and gain new ones, because I refuse to silence that (sometimes annoying) opinion of mine. I refuse to sit back and watch bad things happen. I'm an advocate remember?

Crunchy tip for the day (sorry, I know I missed a few days and it was just KILLING all of you haha)

Making simple things around the house when you run out is not only better for you and the environment but also for your wallet! So for the next few days I'll post a homemade recipe for something simple!

bubble bath for kids
bottle for the soap
1/2 cup castile soap
3/4 cup water
1/4 teaspoon salt
essential oil (or not, its just smells good lol)

We need to move...

 Isn't it possible to sit around and drink coffee without pants on anymore? It's hot outside, I don't want to wear pants, and yes I drink coffee when its hot. I have some of the most annoying neighbors ever, and then some of the nicest ever too. Sheesh. There's a reason I hide in my house people. I'm tired of crack headed kids asking me for a cigarette. I'm pretty sure I told them like 15 times that I quit smoking. STOP KNOCKING ON MY DOOR!!! Unless I like you just don't even step on my porch. I don't really trust many of my neighbors anymore considering someone kicked my door in when we were out of town. I have a circle of friends, and thats it. I totally sound like the grumpy old lady right now but I don't care anymore.

*sigh* Anyway.....
We went to a farmers market yesterday, I didn't buy anything but I will be produce shopping next week. Just waiting on our paycheck. I'm excited, I love fresh produce. I will seriously eat everything in my kitchen after I buy fresh haha

Today is a pretty lazy day, going to be cleaning and doing some laundry. Thats about it, oh and sitting around drinking coffee WITHOUT PANTS ON and will not be answering the door when the crack heads want a cigarette. Ugh I want to move so bad. I  love my house, its old but I don't care. I like it. I grew up here, and now I'm buying this house. (its a trailer) So I'm hoping we can buy our own land and move it soon. I really don't like this trailer park, or my landlord for that matter. I've known her since I was a kid, but she's still just as rude as she's ever been. For instance the other day she was mowing the empty lot next to me and put a rock through DeWayne's car window.....Didn't even own up to it...Amazing!

So I'm off to eat lunch, left over zucchini pizza, yummm. I'll leave you with a few pics from our trip to the Aquarium (it was my mothers day thing)

Yay for education!!

I have like 9 knocked up friends right now. I'm jealous. So I wrote a paper about a month ago on the dangers of RIC (routine infant circumcision) and gave the info to basically everyone I know, along with posting it public on facebook. Unfortunately, I don't think ANYONE but maybe three people read it.. This really upsets me. Not just because I worked so hard on it but also because people are parenting without education! How do I know they didn't read it you ask? Well if someone read it they wouldn't circumcise their kid..... I mean who in their right mind KNOWS these things and still circumcises?
 

Its painful for the baby during and after surgery.(they can't put a baby to sleep, they wouldn't wake up)

Babies don't have an immune system and you want to put an open wound in a diaper?!

It doesn't make them "cleaner" ( a shower makes you clean, not cutting off part of his penis.)

It doesn't stop them from getting STD's (condoms do that....)

1 in every 100 babies die from circumcision, most of which bleed to death.

over 56% of men these days are left intact, which means no he wouldn't be "different"
Even if dad is circumcised, they still won't "match" due to puberty, buy them matching shirts instead, its cheaper.

No medical association (including WHO) recommends it.

It interferes with their ability to breast feed.

and most important of all ITS HIS PENIS! What makes you think you can change it for absolutely no good reason?!

What I'm saying is if they had read my paper they wouldn't do it. I mean why cut off part of your kids penis? Its dangerous, painful, and not medically necessary. Who says, "hey my son is perfect, except that little piece right there, lets cut it off for no good reason."

Why do I care so much about someone ELSE's penis? I'm a child advocate. That's just who I am. I've been this way for as long as I can remember. I have this undying need to protect them. I don't know why I am the way I am but there's a pretty good chance that I'm not going to change. So my advice to you is this, get over it or get out. Yup that's pretty much it. I will speak up for what is right, no matter how many friends I lose. I just can't overlook someone intentionally harming their child.

Who in their right mind would do this to a child?

What you don't think that's what happens? Check out a video of it, you'll change your mind.

I hope its safe to write again

Sorry for being MIA for such a long time.....I had a crazy stalker.....It's a long story....

So anyway let me catch you up....

DeWayne graduated from college.

My parents moved from Dayton to Baytown.

Emma speaks in full sentences now.

and I'm still not knocked up.

That's pretty much it lol.

Emma celebrated her 2nd Bday a few weekends ago with a Caillou themed swimming party!

Wana see? OF COURSE YOU DO!

Cute right?! I made all of the decorations myself, thanks to Pinterest......How did I function before Pinterest?

So she now has lots of clothes (which she needed) and lots of toys (which she didn't need...)

I pulled out some art supplies yesterday that she got for her birthday. I kinda thought it was going to be a crazy mess because it was playdoe....but no she was sooo into it! She never tried to eat it either!!! It was so cool! She made a bunch of weird little animals and shapes. It was extremely educational.....I'm beginning to think I CAN do this "unschooling" thing :)

For those of you wondering what the heck I'm talking about here's a rundown....children will learn what they need to know when they are ready and want to learn it. So basically no she will not being going to government schooling, and she will not be homeschooled (to an extent.) We will learn through playing, reading, exploring, etc :)

Even though I normally hate Wikipedia, I like the way they explain it lol

Unschooling is a range of educational philosophies and practices centered on allowing children to learn through their natural life experiences, including play, game play, household responsibilities, work experience, and social interaction, rather than through a more traditional school curriculum. Unschooling encourages exploration of activities, often initiated by the children themselves, facilitated by the adults. Unschooling differs from conventional schooling principally in the thesis that standard curricula and conventional grading methods, as well as other features of traditional schooling, are counterproductive to the goal of maximizing the education of each child.

For my fellow mommy/daddy friends..... Check these out

I found them and I love them :)
http://creativewithkids.com/100-ways-to-be-kind-to-your-child/

http://www.littleheartsbooks.com/2012/04/28/tots-to-teenscommunication-through-the-ages-and-stages/

Seriously read them.

So today Emma and I are going to visit my sister. She loves her Aunt Lisa.

Oh that reminds me....I forgot to tell you the great news.

Everyone's pregnant but me lol No really, they are.....

4 girls from high school

A girl I used to baby sit

My best friend Molly

and my baby sister Lisa

Yeah, the universe is cruel and like screwing with me.....

I try to remind myself of that statement a lot...

For my fellow readers... I'm currently smack in the middle of a Dr. Sears book "Parenting the fussy baby and high need child"
I love Dr. Sears, and his wife. Seriously you have to read at least ONE of their books....OH and Ina May Gaskin because she's 9 kinds of awesome.

Well I'm off to make breakfast and convince Emma that clothes ARE necessary when going in public. I'll leave you with my crunchy tip for the day (haha you thought I forgot...)

Garlic is a natural immunity booster! (and its yummy) If you swallow whole garlic cloves it can do wonders for your immune system when you feel yourself getting sick, or just to keep you from getting sick! If you're unable to stomach whole cloves of garlic, you can buy garlic capsules at the store, but they don't work as well.

 

I

my jokes are much funnier at 2 am

Terri and I stayed up pretty late on my porch in the middle of the night talking. We talked about her crazy babies, about methods of parenting, about our pasts, and even made jokes at her husbands expense (back when he was nerdy and in jr high lol.) It was late and I was tired but it was totally fun. Then of course I couldn't fall asleep after that, and Emma wanted to get up at like 7am lol. Terri is supposed to take the babies outside as soon as she wakes up and play with them ALLL day until she has to go to work. I'm hoping this will help them chillout a bit. I really think my KamKam has just been missing his mommy. He doesn't understand why we have to work :/

Oh here's something I read on natural news this morning. check it out. I think you'll freak like I did...
http://www.naturalnews.com/035185_Australia_sterilization_children.html#ixzz1oXfvMIG5

I got some pretty sad news this morning from a good friend :( I won't exactly say what, but can yall just send some good thoughts/prayers/vibes her way please?! She's a really amazing person that shouldn't have to go through this :/

So I WILL have my house completely spotless soon. Amanda has promised to spend practically a week at my house helping me organize, clean, and take care of babies. It seems like as soon as I get one room perfect and move on to the next, the kids have destroyed that first room. By destroyed, I don't mean threw toys on the room and left clothes everywhere. I mean holes in the wall, blue marker all over white cabinets, food smashed into TV's and dressers.....THAT kind of destroyed lol THAT is why my house is messy. So for anyone that complains about it, either shut up or come do it yourself.

On another note, today is payday :D Which means I get to go grocery shopping at Whole Foods!!!!!!!! But unfortunately hubby stole the credit card >:( I'm not happy about this. We have NO food and I was sooooo looking forward to going shopping for yummy organics, and maybe even doing my hair.....Grrrr..

Random Fact of the day. The largest number of children born to one woman is recorded at 69. From 1725-

1765, a Russian peasant woman gave birth to 16 sets of twins, 7 sets of triplets, and 4 sets of quadruplets.

CRAZYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!

and People think I'm nuts for wanting 5 kids....

Holy CRAP!!! Alright so here's a little eye candy for you that I just ran across on pinterest. Good grief I forgot to breath........ http://pinterest.com/pin/33214115971829602/ 

Alright We're about to start cleaning the kitchen over here. So here's our
Crunchy Tip of the day

Got soap scum in the shower? I have the recipe to magic in a bottle. Really I do.....Heat up some vinegar (I used a cup of vinegar and nuked it for 2 minutes). Then pour it in your spray bottle, add an equal amount of blue Dawn (the website comments were pretty specific about getting the blue kind), shake gently, and voila! Spray on and leave for 30 minutes then wash away! My shower is the ONLY thing clean in this house!

Caillou, Caillou....THAT'S ME!

That little boy has taken OVER this house! For those of you without kids I'll update you. ^That was the ending of the theme song. Its a cartoon about a 4 year old boy, his 2 year old sister, and their family. Absolutely nothing special about it at ALL. Its not even all that great to look at, the whole show is in primary colors. MY daughter is OBSESSED with it. Which means we'll be having a Caillou birthday party in May. oh yay! I've already found ideas on Pinterest (yay for Pinterest!!!) Check it out :) http://pinterest.com/amorvant/bday-ideas/

So Miss Emma is sick today :( We've been battling this horrible snotty nose, achy body, fever monster for a few days. I hate when she's sick, she's so grumpy and it makes me sad :( She even slept in til 11:30 today!!!

I think we're going to learn about the letter D today. I'm thinking things like "daddy,dog, dirt, dark,  and dolphins." Maybe we can paint some dolphins in the tub with our bath tub paints, and go drive the neighbors dogs nuts in the dirt :)

Oh here's a fun link via CDC that is worth reading about vaccines....How to know if you SHOULD vaccinate or not http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/vpd-vac/should-not-vacc.htm

I'm just full of links today apparently, well hell while I'm at it
http://vaccineinfo.net/exemptions/index.shtml
www.vaclib.org
www.NVIC.org.
Don't know why those aren't clickable.....

So my crazy babies just got here. Kam is asleep in bed and Taryn is beating up on Emma again.... I'm going to cut this one short to make some lunch and contain the drama queen lol

Crunchy tip for the day

Astragalus
Native to China, astragalus has been used for centuries in traditional Chinese medicine. In the U. S. the herb gained popularity in the 1980's. There are actually over 2,000 species of astragalus; however, the two related species Astragalus membranaceus and Astragallus mongholicus are the ones primarily used for health purposes.

Used for
in combination with other herbs to improve and enhance immune system
chronic hepatitis
as adjunctive therapy in cancer
prevent and treat common colds and upper respiratory infections
heart disease.

Think preggo thoughts, and send them THIS way!!

Just as a little FYI; this is the last week to get pregnant and have the possibility of a 12-12-12 baby. My husband has been using that as a method to get me to have sex with him like 9 times a day. It's working lol.
So I'm supposed to meet with my midwife Darlene today. I'm super excited! Husband stole me car, and my mom has to get my brother off the bus around 4 so I'm not sure how I'm getting there at 3 lol Hopefully she lets me move it earlier or later! We're going to be talking ways to make a boy. Don't give me the "that doesn't work" crap, I can dream okay?!

So you wana hear about my idea on this birth? Of course you do! No dr's, no interventions, no c sections, no epidurals, no drugs, no inducing or pitocin, Just my midwife, my family, my birthing pool, myself and baby! We're having a water birth at home :) Also leaving the cord attached after birth, breast feeding, and NOT vaxxing. No Dr's to rush in and take baby away to go bathe, starve, and poke them! Also no circumcising if it's a boy!!!!!! There will be no unnecessary cutting of my poor little boy.  I will NOT be tied to monitors and stuck on my back starving to death. This birth will be perfect and I refuse to let ANOTHER Dr steal something as precious as birth from me again.

Oh and just thought I'd throw this out there....http://healthland.time.com/2010/09/29/no-such-thing-as-too-much-love-spoiled-babies-grow-up-to-be-smarter-kinder-kids/. <---Yeah check that out!!! That's right, spoiling my kid makes her smarter. HAH!

So I wish you could see Emma right now. She's sitting on the floor with two marker board markers, coloring on a piece of paper, my floor, and her WHOLE body. lmao Did I mention the markers match her cloth diaper? black and red haha

OH! I found a group in Victoria, TX that home schools! That's only two hours from us! yay!!! We want to home school but I want to make sure she stays in sports/groups that help her make friends. This home schooling group will help a LOT!

Alright I feel like I'm rambling. I'm starving and freezing lol So I'll leave you with our crunchy tip of the day


top 5 ways to naturally sweeten baking and cooking recipes(and coffee and tea) and avoid using sugar or artificial sweeteners.

1. Honey

The benefits:
- Honey has vitamins: B6, thiamin, niacin, riboflavin, pantothenic acid and certain amino acids.

- Honey has minerals: calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, potassium, sodium and zinc.

- Honey contains antioxidants and is cholesterol and fat-free.

- Honey’s sugars are gradually absorbed into the bloodstream which results in better digestion.

2. Unsweetened Applesauce

The benefits:
- Applesauce contains dietary fiber which keeps your digestive system moving regularly.

- Applesauce can contain as much as 80% of your daily vitamin C needs.

- Applesauce lightens the caloric density of baked goods.

3. Cinnamon

The benefits:
- Cinnamon lowers cholesterol.

- Cinnamon reduces blood sugar levels.

- Cinnamon protects against heart disease.

4. Vanilla Extract

The benefits:
- Vanilla helps to prevent memory loss.

- Vanilla balances the secretion or hormones.

- It reduces inflammation and hyperactivity in the major body systems.

5. Coconut Oil

The benefits:
- Coconut oil increases immunity.

- Coconut oil speeds up your metabolism.

- Coconut oil is antimicrobial, antioxidant, antifungal, and antibacterial.