If Elisabeth can do it, why can't I?

Make sure and read my edit below if you
haven't already....it is also in red.

Today on "The View" Elisabeth Hasselback showcased her favorite baby items. It got me thinking and I thought I would blog my favs. Hey, baby sis....this one's for you!

P.S. IF YOU ARE A BOY, YOU MAY NOT WANT TO CONTINUE READING....BRAS ARE MENTIONED :0)

I nursed Sam for 6 weeks. I was so ready to be done. It hurt so bad, I swore I would never do it again. Of course by the time Ethan was born, the "nursing guilt" had taken over and I tried again, but with a horrible spinal headache, it just wasn't happening. I was a lot more gung-ho to nurse Gabe and did so for 8 weeks but since Greg left for Iraq 12 days after he was born it was really hard and he was hungry all the time, so I just couldn't do it. So far Joel has been my nursing success story, I'm at 12 weeks and all though many days he nurses every 2 hours, he does sleep through the night so I have no plan to stop nursing. I credit my success to really good nursing bras and a sweet husband who will buy my any baby item I think I need.

During the day I love the Bravado nursing bra. This bra is SUPER comfy and its design allows for easy access. It goes over your head, kind of like a sports bra and it's super easy to wash. I just throw it in with the boys clothes and it's ready to wear again. This bra is a must for nursing success.

(10/24) In regards to my below comment about the Madela pump....I'm not saying it's a bad pump, I'm saying that had I known that the only piece that actually touches your skin/milk is a $6 part, I would have purchased one much cheaper off of Ebay or borrowed a friends.....It is a nice pump.

One of the reasons I hated nursing in the past was having to wear a bra at night. Well no more! The Medela nursing bra is so comfortable. I got a size bigger then I actually needed and I barely feel it at night. It is just enough to hold my pads in. LOVE IT! Now while we are on the subject of Medela....Greg bought me one of their super duper pumps. WHAT A RIP OFF. Don't get me wrong, it works just fine, but why in the world does it cost almost $300?? Everything on the box talks about how it should only be used by one person, WHY? Sure there are a few pieces that actually touch your skin, and sharing those would be GROSS, but those parts cost about $6 to replace or could easily just be boiled!

My latest favorite baby accessorie is my hotsling
I LOVE this thing and so does Joel. You can wear it a lot of different ways, it is way cute, and super comfy. I don't know if I will ever again wear that oh so uncomfy Baby Bjorn! Oh and get it off of ebay, I guarantee you will get it for a lot cheaper (like 50% off)!

Greg and I debated for several days about getting this item, but I am so thankful that we did. It is the Phil and Ted's sport double stroller. It is the best stroller I own, and trust me I own a ton of strollers. The best thing about this stroller is that you can buy it when you only have one child and then go back and buy the "double kit" when you get preggars again. This stroller is pricey, but worth every penny. Be warned, you will get a ton of crazy looks and tons of questions, but Brooke Shields and Gwynth Paltrow both have it, so it must be cool, right?! (For some reason the picture got cut off, check out the link for better views)

If I continue to nurse, I won't need this product with Joel, but it was super handy with Gabe. Now I know you are asking yourself, why would you want to feed your baby hands free....? Well, I didn't use this unless I was desperate, but with 3 kids who were 3, 2 and newborn and Greg in Iraq, I needed HELP! I drove to KY from KS by myself a couple of times while he was gone. I really didn't have time to stop and feed Gabe so this thing was so handy! I got so good that I could actually make him a bottle and hand it to him while I was driving, YIKES, scary now that I think about it! I saw another brand that had a strap so you could attach it to your car seat and keep it standing up. That would be a good addition to this particular one.

I got this fav from my dear friend Connie. I haven't been able to use these handy labels yet, but as soon as I need a cup labeled with Joel's name they will be very useful. Thanks Connie!

My last favorite for tonight, was also on Elisabeth's list. The snack trap. This one speaks for itself! I often forget to use it, but should whip it out more, Gabe is still super messy!


Well I hope you have enjoyed my favorite baby items. I guess I'm back to killing my blog by constantly talking about my kids/kid things, but then again it's what I know!

Off to bed....Joel sleeps through the night, but 6:30 comes early!

Out of the Mouth's of Babes V

My children, make me laugh. I genuinely find them very funny. The older they get the wittier their comments become. Today my conversation went something like this:

Sam: "Mommy, I have GOT to learn the parts of a chicken"

Me: "Why is that Sam?" (very confused)

Sam: "So I know which parts NOT to eat" (as he held up that random boney/gristly/jointy end part of a chicken leg)

I laughed out loud, poor kid he just dug right in to that chicken, bone, gristly parts and all!

On a side note, Ethan is now officially a preschool drop out. He didn't like the program, they didn't teach him anything and his teacher frequently used double negatives, YUCK! In a desperate attempt to find something to do with the boys during the day while also preparing Ethan for kindergarten I stumbled upon a fantastic website called Hubbard's Cupboard. They have preschool type lesson plans, to include printouts, games, songs, etc. We have had a great time the last two weeks learning about Creation. I highly recommend this site if you are looking for something to keep you busy this school year!

Rain Drops on Roses and Whiskers on Kittens.....these are a few of my favorite things.....

Well, I am totally stealing this from another friends blog (Darby and Erika, just remember imitation is the highest form of flattery) but I thought today would start my favorite things blogs. I have so enjoyed getting ideas from their favorite things, and I hope some of my faves will inspire you!

I once read if you want to quickly kill a blog then constantly blog about your children. If this is true then my blog clearly needs CPR! So here goes on something other then my oh so wonderful and beautiful children (P.S. I've heard seven is the magical favorite things number, oh and these are in no particular order).

This week will be my favorite stores!

Gatherings on the Prairie, Junction City, Kansas

If someone had told me, in 2001, when we moved to Kansas that there would be an amazing home decor store in the heart of Junction City I would have NEVER believed them. When I first went to check it out I was skeptical. Surely anything called Gatherings on the Prairie would carry kitchy sunflower crapola and little else, boy was I wrong. Rob the owner of the store has an amazing sense of style, combining old with new. The items he chooses for his store are beautiful, unique, inexpensive and have nothing to do with sunflowers! Last February I went back to Kansas to visit some friends, and visiting "Gatherings" was on the top of my list of places I just had to go. While there I bought, beautiful pictures and Easter decor. I even carried a life size bunny on the plane. You should have seen him going through security, the guards were a little taken aback when he went through the x-ray machine! I love this store, this picture by the way does not do it justice! If you are ever on I-70 between Kansas City and Colorado make sure to stop by this store! (I don't know what the other two items that aren't showing up are supposed to be, there was only one picture, so who knows)(Now there is 3 of the same post....I think this blog may have "issues")



Okay, who doesn't LOVE IKEA!! Even my kids love IKEA, okay maybe that's because they have a kids area, where they get to play without Mom and Dad and without ever actually shopping, but that is beside the point! Why didn't I know about this store when I first got married?! The items at IKEA, while at times seem rather modern, have a spot in any house. I will miss IKEA when we leave DC!

I used to really love the GAP. Now I just "like" the GAP for me, but for kids clothes I still love them. When we first moved to Kansas the GAP had amazing deals. Every Monday night GAP would do mark downs, every Tuesday morning I would shop online for super cheap clothes! GAP allows price adjustments for up to two weeks after purchase. The manager at the GAP in Manhattan, KS, knew me so well that he allowed me to call and get price adjustments over the phone, instead of having to drive all the way there! We had amazing wardrobes back then. The deals aren't quite as good as they used to be BUT they were the first company to come up with the adjustable waist pants for kids. My children, who are all rather slim, wouldn't be able to keep their pants on if it weren't for this nifty little creation! My latest favorite thing about the GAP has been their newest "fit" option for children. Most of their pants now come in Slim, Regular and Husky. The Slim pants are the first pants Sam has ever been able to wear without any adjustments. They fit him so well and look very nice on him. I just ordered four pairs online for him. OH and get a GAP card! For every $200 you spend GAP will send you a $10 gift card. With four boys to outfit, it doesn't take me long to spend that kind of dough!


Need I say more? This place has awesome clothes! They come in petite, regular and maternity and if you catch them on sale, they have great deals. LOVE IT!


Greg and I love Costco! Sometimes I wonder how I ever lived without this store. We walked in the other day and I asked Greg if he thought you could get away with only ever shopping there. They have everything; electronics, food, clothing, shoes, jewelry, glasses, tires, plants, Christmas trees, etc. Sometimes we go there just to feast off of the "tastes". With a $.55 soda you can make a meal off of their samples. Oh, and did I mention their photo processing, they have fantastic deals on enlargements and photo cards. The best part of Costco is their return policy. They will return just about anything for just about any time frame. I like that kind of costumer service. If you haven't joined the "club", but want to, make sure you get an Executive Membership. Every year you will receive 2% of your annual purchase price back in the form of a gift card (does that make sense). Last year we were members for six months and received almost $100 back (don't figure out how much that means we spent, it's scary!). I love Costco, it is definitely one of my favorite stores.


If you love Nordstrom you will love the Rack. The Nordstroms around here are not very big, so they have very little room for sale items. When things do need to be marked down they get shipped off to the Rack. They have a huge, amazing selection of expensive name brand items at great prices. I've never seen so many shoes in one place. I just discovered that they have a petite section so I am even more in love with this store. Now if I could just figure out how to get down there more often without my children!


Woodbridge, VA has a Nordstrom Rack, a Costco, an IKEA and an ULTA. It is a great place to shop. The reason I love ULTA is not because of their products (I could get them almost anywhere), it is because of their coupons and reward card. I'm not exactly sure how they work the program but I do know that I now have enough points to get a free eye brow wax (I didn't have to buy much to get this either)! A couple times a year they have triple points so your purchases get you free things even faster. I love free things, so this store rounds out my favorite stores!

I hope you enjoyed my list of favorite stores. Sorry if the blog is a little disjointed, I've had a lot of interruptions, imagine that. Stay tuned for more favorites, and be sure to share yours on your blog!

Heather

Joel...the ladies man...

Joel and Jillian sittin' in a tree.....K-I-S-S-I-N-G....

Joel....not so sure about this older woman...


Jillian: "Stick with me kid, I'll teach ya the ways of this world!"

And lastly a picture of my three lil' stooges!


Hope everyone has a great week!!

Out of the Mouth of Babes IV

Last night we had a YUMMY pasta dish that included spinach. Recently the boys have been fascinated with old school cartoons and really like Popeye. I finally managed to get Ethan to eat all of his dinner. As he was walking away from the table he turned and told me every so sweetly "Mommy, I'm so glad I ate my spinach, now I can smoke like Popeye". YIKES!! Not exactly what I had hoped they would learn from watching Popeye, Big muscles yes, lung cancer, no....


While we we are on the subject of Old School children's entertainment, let's talk about ET. Last weekend we were at a car dealership wheeling and dealing for a new Suburban (the dealership pretty much just laughed at the quote we offered, so no new car for us for now!). At this dealership they had a kids area with a TV and ET was on. All Sam and Ethan saw was the last ten minutes but they were intrigued and we promised to rent it for them. Well, Greg and I are pretty conservative about what the kids watch, and they have seen very few PG movies (we kind of figured that this one was made in the 80's how bad could it be). On Monday afternoon we set them up with popcorn and drinks and popped the movie on. Greg ran upstairs to check out Focus on the Family's movie review site and came down to tell me that they used the word Shit twice in the movie. We were pretty sure the boys wouldn't notice so we let the movie continue, that was until ten minutes later the boys came running in laughing.....

"Mommy, Daddy, Mommy, Daddy, they said
Penis Breath, they said Penis Breath"

Let's just say that movie went right off!! I guess we will wait a few more years before we unearth the PG movies. Really, what's the hurry?! They only get to be innocent for a short time.

Post Baby Hair Chop

Okay, I rarely post pictures of me, especially since having Joel, but I just had to post this one. My sister jokes that it is my usual post baby hair chop, I think she may be right!

Lately I had been hearing about a gal on post that would come to your house and cut your hair. I wasn't sure what to expect but knew I needed a hair cut so I called her up and we set up an appointment for today at noon. At 12:30 she called and said she was on her way. At 1:00 when she finally arrived (she lives 5 minutes from my house) I was a little nervous. Well three hours and a mere $30 later, I have a fancy new hairdo and the boys have handsome styles as well. Yes, that's right, that is four hair cuts for $30 (I gave her $35, because I felt guilty)!!! I think I'll keep her! She was well worth the long wait. Thanks Melissa!!

Make sure you scroll down for all the posts I made today!

Sam Riding his Bike!!

Well after much weeping and gnashing of the few teeth he has, plus a bribe for any ice cream treat from Dairy Queen, Sam learned how to ride his bike. We are very proud of what he accomplished in just one day. Like his Uncle Gregory, he enjoys riding with his tongue out. I keep telling him to get it back in, that he might bite it off if he fell, but really, with almost no upper teeth it really might not be a problem.

More Fall Fun

This weekend we headed down to Spotsylvania county to a FABULOUS fall festival on Belvedere Plantation. It was so nice to leave the craziness of DC and head out into the country. It's refreshing to know that people really are nice somewhere in Virginia! Here are some pics of our day.

The tractor pedal cars.

Gabe with a pumpkin' face painting.

Sam LOVED the zip line!

Ethan pushing Gabe on the lil' boy zip line.

The petting zoo.

Before the Corn Maze.

In the middle of the Maze. At this point I was ready to be out of the Maize Maze!

Making a scarecrow!

The Spencer Fam with Fred, our scarecrow! We got our $20 worth for sure,
Greg stuffed that poor scarecrow to the gills!

Chim, Chiminey, Chim, Chiminey.....

See any resemblance? WHY?!! Need I say more? Might as well embrace it.....Chim chiminey Chim chiminey Chim chim cher-ee! A sweep is as lucky as lucky can be
Chim chiminey Chim chiminey Chim chim cher-oo! Good luck will rub off when
I shakes 'ands with you Or blow me a kiss And that's lucky too

(Nancy, this post is for you!!)

Loudon County Apple Picking

Sam Climbing a tree.

I love this picture, it just looks like Fall!

Ethan

Amazingly he really can eat apples, while missing four front teeth.
That's what I call determination!

Gabe eatin' an apple.

Some of our loot!

Last weekend we all loaded up and went Apple Picking in Loudon County, which is about an hour away. Just a little trivia, Loudon County is the richest county in America, you should see the houses, WOW!! We went with some neighbors who go to our church and who's kids are almost the exact ages of ours. Surprisingly, all though I'm not sure why, the actual act of picking apples doesn't take very long. Fortunately the kids enjoyed climbing trees and exploding somewhat rotten apples against fence posts. It was a great time and we have about 50 apples just waiting to be made into my famous (stolen from Good Morning America) Apple Pie.

Tornado Hair?

One night I was making beds while the boys were in the bath tub. They called me in because they wanted to show me their "tornado hair". Nice, huh?! Are they obessesd with tornadoes or what?