Have you heard of House Party?

Who doesn't love free stuff? Late last year I was googling free samples and other freebies online, when one of the links I came across brought me to House Party I said to myself "hey this looks interesting" so I signed up, and here I am about to host my 7th party next month. Like I said, it's all free, all you do is sign up, pick a party or as many parties as you want, apply fill out the host screener, confirm the application and wait! They also give you a rough estimate as to when they are going to start choosing hosts! I've been given the chance to host a variety of parties, From Underwriters Labs "Safe and Bright" house party where we made Christmas Wreaths and chose to donate them, to the newest one being Rubbermaid's Reveal New microfiber spray mop where I get a free spray mop to show guests, give them a chance to try it along with other goodies.


Out of the one's I've hosted so far my favorite is the Febreze party we had at the end of June! That was a blast! The kids have even been able to get in on the fun! We've had Hasbro's family game night, Bicycle's what's your game, and even one geared  towards my toddler, with Pullup's Potty Dance! It's an awesome experience and you don't always get picked, for instance I wanted the PlayStation 3 party and the DJ Hero party, but I'm just as happy with the one's I've been lucky enough to host! So what are you waiting for? Head on over and sign up! It's free! What have you got to lose?

Where did this insomnia come from?!

Oh geeze for the past few nights I've not been able to sleep more than a few minutes at a time, staying up most of the night and day. How I'm able to function chasing around a toddler and an almost 9 year old, you may ask, well I have no clue!

We did get to spend some time with my sister today. She came for a visit from out of town for the week. It's nice to see her and hard to believe that in 20 minutes she is going to be 19! :shock: Sadly I remember helping change her diapers as an infant hehe!

On to other things, this week I found out I won a weight loss competition, losing a total of 58 pounds since we started in February! That was a nice surprise, though I didn't win any prize, I did win my health back! I've also started adding more excercise into my daily life along with throwing out the 3 pound weights and getting new 5 pounders! I'm not sure how I feel about that, but we'll see tomorrow. I bet my biceps start screaming at me in no time flat!
In other news, I broke out the hot glue gun today, and tomorrow I start gluing crocheted flowers to hair clips. I hope this turns out right haha! Well that's it for this post! Be on the lookout as I just created my first flower pattern today and I plan on sharing it soon!

.....and Brodie says HI!

Tantrum Tuesday!

Yes today in the Lawson household it is offically Tantrum Tuesday! My poor toddler, not only has he been working on cutting those canines for the past couple months, a few days ago I noticed that he is now cutting his two year molars as well. I feel so bad for him, he's chewing on everything in sight, he's crabby, has a bad habit of biting his older brother, and the worst part is the horrible nasty diapers! *sigh* Here's to hoping he gets some sort of relief soon.

On a creative note, I did manage to come across a hat I thought was absolutely adorable, but it's creator hasn't published a pattern for it yet as she is currently out of town. Anyway I figured I'd give it a go and see if I could make something similar just by looking at her pictures, and by George I did it! I did make it bigger though so that way it would fit my toddlers head, and even tho it's a strawberry and probably more suited for a girl, he took another one for the team and posed as mommy's model, Cheeto face and all!





I also think it's time to hit my dear husband up for a new camera, mine still works, it's just not that great, the brighter colors tend to bleed out when I use it. Until next time....

Breastfeeding is awesome!

Today I thought I'd share a little on my experiences as a breastfeeding mother! I have successfully breastfed both of my children past the age of 12 months. The oldest went to 22 months, and Brodie, my baby is almost 18 months and showing no signs of weaning!

It's been an amazing experience, one that I wouldn't trade for anything else in the world! I've bonded with both my children, and have been able to give them something no one else can. It has also helped me to bond with my own mother who is also pro-breastfeeding. We live in such a small town far away from the hustle and bustle of city life, so if it wasn't for her I don't think I would have made it past the first few weeks either time! If you are or have breastfed then you know what I am talking about, those first 6-8 weeks can be so trying, but are so worth it if you can "tough" it out!

I honestly didn't think I was going to be able to nurse Brodie, he was born at 37 weeks 3 days due to severe pre-eclampsia, and was in the NICU for the first week of his life. He had a heart murmer and excessive fluid due to being a c-section birth. He was also a chunk weighing in at 10lbs 4.2oz! Anywho, He didn't eat anything for the first 3 days of his life, finally on day 4 they started allowing him to eat, but he wasn't allowed to nurse, they went against my wishes and gave him a bottle. Finally when he was able to come to my room, he wouldn't latch on, he only wanted the bottle, and I being exhausted both physically and emotionally caved and let him have it, swearing as soon as we got home he would only have the breast as I didn't own any bottles. They day we came home was the day my milk came in and the first time he finally latched on, and we've been going strong ever since!

I do hope that if we are blessed with another that I will be able to nurse him/her for as long as I have both my boys! It's truly an amazing experience and if you are able to do it, at least give it a try. I'm not trying to cram my beliefs down your throat, just throwing my experience out there!

Yay a giveaway!

If your a cloth diapering mama like myself, you might be interested in this one! I came across this blog from a post on Rockin Green's Facebook page. From what I've heard this all natural detergent is the bee's knees! I've read hundreds of great reviews over the past few weeks, and regardless if I win this contest or not, I'll be purchasing some later this week. I can't wait to get and get started! I've had to temporarily switch back to disposables because the stink is just so bad with our cloth inserts :( I am really hopeing that Rockin Green lives up to all the great reviews I've read. So anyway, now that I'm done rambling, go enter the contest! What have you got to lose?! Just click the link below, it'll take you right to her blog!

Breastfeeding Momma

I'm off to a bad start aren't I?

I'm new to this whole blogging thing if you haven't figured that out yet....I need to get in the swing of keeping this updated!

This past week has been interesting to say the least, my eldest still hasn't cleaned his room :insert eye roll here: and my youngest seems to be counter productive to my house cleaning ha! I have managed to finish a couple very cute crochet hats though, and I am busy working on more, well not right this second, I am blogging after all, but they will be done early this week.

I also created my own fan page on Facebook, and had my first real giveaway on there. I'm stoked that people seem to like what I make. Most of the designs are not my own, I do have to give a lot of credit to "Inner Hooker" Scotti O. her patterns are simply amazing and adorable, and I'm thankful she's chosen to share them with us.

I'm feeling all around pretty good, and hope that this productive streak lasts, tomorrow is deep cleaning day around here! Until next time!
 

......and so it begins!

After years of swearing off Blogs, I've finally broken down and created one! As you read along you'll get a glimpse inside my head and family. Every last boring bit of it! Well we're not completely boring, my children are hilarious and it's so neat to see the little one try to follow in his big brother's footsteps. That being said, I really don't have a lot more to say other than welcome to my crazy world, I hope you enjoy the ride as much as I have!