Pink!

The singer, P!nk, that is. Her "FUNHOUSE" album, to be exact.

Madeline LOVES P!nk. I don't know what it is that makes her love her songs, but it's the ONLY cd I can listen to all the way through in the car. I have a 6 disk cd changer in my car, but have only gotten to listen to the other cds in the changer when she's not in the car with me.

If she's in a good mood when I put her in the car she'll tolerate another cd, or radio station, for a little while... but after about 20 mins she's OVER it. If she's in a bad mood from the get-go she won't tolerate anything else.

And I'm not joshing you, guys. Literally, she'll fuss and whine at me. I hit the button for the #4 slot and when P!nk's "FUNHOUSE" cd starts playing the fussing stops. She's quiet. I swear, I see her feet kicking along to the beats. alright, maybe not... but her feet ARE kicking, and I can pretend it's to the music, ok?

It's like magic. It's a good thing I like that cd, otherwise I wouldn't be very happy while driving around town. However, I would like to find other artists/albums she likes because the same 12 songs are getting kind of old.

Photo Editing

I wish that 1.I really knew how to edit photos 2.I had money to buy nice photo editing software 3.I had/took the time to teach myself how to edit photos using said editing software.

This was edited using the Pixler Grabber/Editing software. It's a free editing program, but seems to be able to do more than, say, Picnik and the grabber feature lets you right-click and edit anything you come across on the internets... pretty neato if you ask me!

Doesn't ^that^ editing make my Maddy Jo look artsy and so cool? Yea, I thought so too. ;)

Here's the original photo for comparison:

Here's to new adventures!

He did it. He passed the tests. I knew he could do it!

After the holidays we'll be moving to Colorado.

Gulp. Now it's real... bum bum BUMMMMMM!

And, for the record, as much as I loathe Las Vegas I really and truly love my friends and I will miss them terribly. Ever since I found out he got the job, when I think about saying goodbye to my friends I've gotten a huge lump in my throat.

Colorado is where I want to be. But, can't I take my friends with me?

Colorado

Colorado is my happy place. I seriously can't think of anywhere more wonderful. Sure, there are places that are more exotic, interesting, historical, or whatever... but for me, there is nowhere more beautiful. The weather, the scenery, the wildlife, the landscaping, the people... everything about it makes me happy. Sure, there are ugly parts/things about Colorado... but "Colorado ugly" isn't the same as "Las Vegas ugly", or "Orlando ugly" and I'd gladly take "Colorado ugly" any day if it meant I was finally out of Las Vegas.

Right now, as I type this, Jeff is in my Aunt and Uncle's guest bedroom in their home in Colorado - hopefully sleeping - in preparation for the final test to see if he qualifies for an operator position with the county's roads and bridges department, that's set to take place tomorrow at 8am MST.

I know he's sssooo nervous, but I'm a pretty even mix of nervous and SUPER excited! The nervousness comes in to play because of what that job will mean financially. In Las Vegas, construction workers are CRAZY overpaid... and that is really nice in a good economy. But, just because you make good money hourly doesn't mean you make good money over all if you're only working 10-20 hours a week. The job working for the county in Colorado will pay him about $10 less per hour (GULP), but will be steady work. And if he puts in his time there, eventually it'll pay off by way of promotions, job security and a retirement fund. He's been completely unappreciated at the company he's been at for the last 10 years and it's time that he leaves and tries to better himself professionally.

Anyway... I don't want to talk too much about it, because I don't want to jinx anything.... but I'm just so antsy with anticipation that I had to say something!

I know he's going to do great and am SO proud of him for going and trying to do this to get us to where we want to be to raise our daughter.

And if he gets this job, and we move... even if we're struggling money wise I know we'll make it work........ Colorado is my happy place, after all... how would it NOT work out? Impossible.

seriously, flowers like these just grow along sidewalks in CO, what's not to love?!

Scentsy

Have you heard of Scentsy? I'm finding that a lot of people haven't yet heard of Scentsy, and I ask to show them how awesome it is.

I've always wanted to be a candle person. You know who I mean... a candle person... they have a beautiful home and every time you walk into their beautiful home a new, inviting, smell hits you and makes you feel welcome and comfortable. Yea, THAT'S a candle person. But first, in high school, I wasn't allowed to light candles in my room since my mom didn't want me to forget about them and burn the house down. I have friends like that now, candle-people-friends ahem! Holly, Fancy... and I'm totally envious of their beautiful homes that ALWAYS smell delicious. But even now that I'm allowed to burn candles I don't. I set the rules now, but I'm still afraid of leaving a candle burning and coming home to a pile of smoldering ashes where my house once was. I buy candles with the intention of burning them and just don't. I forget and they just sit there collecting dust.

Scentsy is a company that makes wickless candles. They make wax burners that don't use a flame of any sort. You don't use a little tea light candle to warm the wax. No, the warmer plugs into the wall and a little light bulb warms the wax. As the wax melts, the aroma of whatever scent you put in the top fills your house and instantly you get a little closer to becoming that Martha Stewart-y lady with the delicious, inviting, home.

The warmers are pretty cute too! They have about a million different designs to fit your decorating style, or the current holiday - even your favorite college football team, or the branch of military you wish to support. You actually want to have the warmers sitting out on your counter to be seen and enjoyed by your guests. They're not only a way to make your home smell good, but also a way to help decorate your home.

They now also make good-smellys for your car, locker, to bring with you when you travel, etc. Scentsy is quite the company, and they offer quite the selection. Honestly, what ever your style/taste they have something that you'd love.

Which is why, despite my crippling fear of speaking in front of groups of people, I've signed up with Scentsy to become a consultant. I'm already a customer who believes in the product, and it wouldn't suck to earn a little bit of extra money here and there.

So, whether you're that person with the delicious smelling home, or you know someone who is please consider Scentsy for a gift idea. I promise you, you will not be disappointed. The quality of their product is unsurpassed, and you'll be hard-pressed to NOT find a warmer/scent that you don't just fall in love with. They make great gifts for the holidays and I can hook you up with bundling different items together so you get a great deal and get you the most bang for your buck. Ask me how you can take care of 7 - SEVEN!- people on your Christmas list for only $150!!

I never thought I'd be someone who sells a product as an independent contractor - outside of all those Girl Scout cookies I sold year after year - but I really do believe in these products and I really do buy them to use in my own home already, so it's not a hard thing to wrap my head around. I'd love it if I could introduce you to Scentsy so that you can enjoy it as much as I do.


Click here to contact me to learn more!

Election Day

Today was election day.

I actually voted early, yipee, because I didn't want to have to stand in line today.

Being that I live in Nevada it was a pretty serious election. Reid or Angle. Harry or Sharon. It seemed like the whole country was wanting to know who'd win.

I'm not going to say who I voted for, because some people are unable to separate politics from friendship and I'd hate to rub someone the wrong way just because of my political beliefs.

BUT! I will say that I think voting - educated voting - is important. I don't really care which side you identify with; Red or Blue, but I think that educating yourself on the issues and candidates and going out and voting is important.

If you're unhappy about the way the country is being run, then you need to vote in a way that you think will make it better. If I hear you bitching I'll want to know if you voted. If you didn't vote, please shut your mouth. Even if the person you voted for didn't win, at least you voted and you can complain all you want. If you didn't take the time to vote, I don't want to hear you complaining.

So many countries don't have the right to vote and have to take what they're given... at least here we have the chance.

I voted. I got the sticker to prove it. I hope you rocked the vote too, peeps!!

Bath Time

Madeline has a love-hate relationship with the bath. Although lately, it's been more hate-hate.

When we first brought her home from the hospital she HATED the bath. My friend Angi suggested we put a warm, wet washcloth on her belly while in the tub to keep her warm; we did and VIOLA! she no longer screamed bloody murder during bath time!

I tried to incorporate bathtime into her bedtime routine, but quickly found that the bath would wake her up too much and then I'd have to deal with an overly tired, but not ready to sleep, baby for hours on end. I nixxed the bedtime bath and replaced it with a middle of the day bath.

That plan was working just fine until I noticed that the bath was seriously drying her skin out. "Just put lotion on her afterward." Is probably what you're thinking, but my girl is not a happy camper once you take her out of the bath. She doesn't like to be cold, and no amount of towels keep her warm enough. She screams and cries when you take her out of the bath and the ENTIRE time you're getting her diapered and dressed after. So, while I TRY to put lotion on her it doesn't always happen, and even when it does it's done half assed and she's left with ashy shins.

So, because babies don't really get dirty I cut her baths down to once or twice a week depending on how busy we are out of the house during the week. I use this heavenly, all natural, lavender bubble bath from California Baby and try to make bathtime like a spa-time. She seems to enjoy it, and it seems to calm her down.

Finding the perfect water temp is tricky, though. If it's too warm, she freaks out. If it's too cool, she freaks out. She's almost 3 months old and I still can't seem to get the temp right. When the temp is wrong and you put her in it she does this silly gasping for air, eyes wide in disbelief, arms flailing all around bit that I can't help but laugh at - but then feel bad about once she starts crying. Which is inevitable. But, it usually stops as quickly as it starts and then she continues to enjoy the aromatherapy of the bubble bath and the relaxing body and scalp massage I give her while washing her.

Today, however was a different story all together. Today she screamed, nay shrieked, at the top of her lungs for nearly 20 mins. At first I pulled her out of the tub to try to console her while I had Jeff try to adjust the water temp. She did not calm down, but she needed a bath so back in she went. With every cup of water over her head or body the crying got louder. With the application of the shampoo the daggers being shot in my direction flew faster. It didn't stop her ENTIRE bath. Nor did it stop after her bath. Or during the getting-dressed-after-the-bath. OR when I gave her her bottle. She actually cried during the first ounce, or so, of her bottle. Then about another ounce later she PASSED OUT asleep and proceeded to sleep for an hour and a half.

Geeze Louise! Just because you're tired doesn't mean you have to act a fool, Bean!

My mom has many pictures of me as a baby/toddler where I'm completely red faced screaming in the tub. Supposedly, I liked the bath but DID NOT like my hair being washed. I fear that her outburst is genetic. What goes around comes around.


This is me, circa 1986 melting down in the bathtub.

I guess we'll have to wait and see when I bathe her next. *sigh*