What a beautiful Sunday!

On Friday evening I dropped of Lil Angel at my older sisters house. My sister has a 10 year old daughter, and 2 boys ages 5 1/2 and 3. All of her kids just love Lil Angel. We are going to pick her up just after dinner and I can't wait to hear what she did. I know they went go cart riding, we have never done this.

My husband and I took Monkey and Pumpkin to a local hotel and the girls went swimming. A good friend of mine built a relationship with this hotel and they do some things for our Autism community. The girls had a great time! I did hear Pumpkin talking to a sibling of anther child who has Autism and they said they were exhausted. That was so nice to hear! They will go to bed early and sleep good tonight and that's a huge plus.

Monkey could hear her echo at the pool so she squealed happily the whole time. She squeals when she can hear her echo, it gets annoying but boy does she love it! She splashed like crazy the whole time and I had to laugh when one of the other kids splashed her and she yelled at him. Monkey didn't really play with the other kids but she did have fun. When she was done swimming she wanted a towel, then she walked around the pool and complained she was cold so I had her sit down and I put another towel on her lap. After more complaining I asked her if she was done swimming, she said yes so I took her to get dressed.

I hope you all had a great weekend too!

Beautiful Day

It is supposed to get up to 39 degrees today! That is just exciting for those of us who live in the mid Atlantic area because a few weeks ago we got a ridiculous amount of snow and today will melt some of it. My husband was traveling for work all week and last night he safely flew in from Oregon, thank you God for getting him home safe and sound! Because it's going to be so nice out today I am hoping to go out for the day. Lil Angel is spending the weekend with my older sister and her kids so I am ready to enjoy a somewhat calm weekend. It's interesting, I find that when you take one of my kids out of the house it really changes the dynamics. For clarification go back to my Blizzard and Nor'easter blog post.

Skin MD

http://www.skinmdnatural.com/index.html


I like this lotion because it isn't thick like some other lotions but it isn't so light that you barely notice you put in on. I think this lotion would be good for people who must wash their hands frequently like moms of young children and moms of special needs children who are not potty trained. Initially you need to apply every 2-8 hours then when moisture level improves then you apply the lotion every 12-48 hours.

I apply the lotion in the morning and because I am so busy I forget to apply it again as the directions suggest, but in the evening I can still feel that my hands are soft. With other lotions when I wash my hands I can feel that it washes away, by three hand washings later I need to reapply it. I don't have that problem with Skin Md's Natural lotion. Once I apply it I can feel throughout the day how soft my hands and face are.

I think I have Rosacea and I never put lotion on my face because if I did my face would break out and get red. I did apply Skin Md's lotion on my face because I wanted to put this lotion to a test. So if my face broke out then I know that it isn't a good lotion. Well, I found that not only has my face not broken out but the lotion has left my skin soft and to my surprise I noticed the red is a lot lighter. I will make several other posts about Skin Md's lotion as the week goes on and I will keep you updated.

I also like that this lotion has no animals products or testing. Therefore because I am so happy with this lotion I recommend it. Not only do I like that it makes my skin soft but I am thrilled with how it is taking the red in my face away. A bottle costs $18.00. Don't let the cost scare you away, if you have to wash your hands regularly, have Rosacea, or other skin problems then this is a must have product!


http://www.skinmdnatural.com/index.html

I'm exhausted

My husband is traveling for work, he left on Tuesday and wont be back until late tonight which means the kids and I wont see him until tomorrow morning. I am just exhausted being on my own this week. It's not so bad when he is away for 2 or 3 days but 5 days I feel like a single mom. God bless single moms especially those moms who have autistic child(ren) my heart goes out to you and I will start praying for you because this is NOT easy!

Yesterday my fibro went nuts, I think it was due to getting the blood work done, I just love needles, and having to go to the store. There is a reason I stay at home a lot. I get so tired too when I have to drive around it's weird how it takes so much out of me. But today I am feeling much better I think staying on top of the med schedule helps.

This week has been really hard on Monkey, I think having her daddy away most of the week hasn't helped her but last Friday she came home from school saying she was screaming for mommy. She said she spent some time with the discipline lady at her school and this woman told her to think about it. Monkey NEVER tells me anything about school so I was very upset. Monkey has no clue what she is supposed to think about so I think she remembered what happened because she got so upset. Her teacher sends home daily reports of how she does each day and I was not happy to see he wrote she had a great day! Plus no report on what happened. I wrote a note back what she said and his response was it wasn't a big deal. I told him I want him to keep me updated on what is going on. Then yesterday and this morning Monkey told me she doesn't want to go to school and she was screaming and crying. I have to send her to school, this is where she gets her therapies. I am homeschooling Lil Angel and having Monkey home to it would be impossible for get anything done with either of them. I don't think pulling Monkey out of school is a good solution.

Anyway, I am working on a product review for Skin MD and I am planning on having it on my blog sometime today. My husband reads over my reviews so not having him home is really set me back.

Can you say pain in the but? I can!

I got a letter in the mail yesterday from my Dr it was attached to a order for blood work. The note said that my Dr wants to recheck something. I'm just thrilled because I really hate needles! At an appointment a little over a month ago my Dr wanted to check all the fun stuff when you get older like Thyroid, diabetes, etc. Then last week I got sick, I had a really bad ear infection and the whole side of my face swelled up pretty bad, I had blood word done again. So what can they possibly need to recheck? I'm calling the Dr in a little while to ask and going in around 9 to have the blood drawn.

On a positive note we went to bed early last night and Monkey woke up in a really good mood. Then Pumpkin and Lil Angel came downstairs smiling and ready for a big hug. Now I need to finish up my morning email, Facebook and blog check then I need to jump in the shower and get Lil Angel and Pumpkin ready to go to my Dr's office so I can have blood work done. Then I have to go to the grocery store to pick up a few things then I can relax for the day, that is until Monkey gets home from school.

Just wanted to re visit my post about the Journals Unlimited

http://journalsunlimited.com

If you are looking for a new journal or even a daily chart like the one I mentioned in my review for Journals Unlimited I hope you visit the website for Journals Unlimited. I love mine and I know you will love yours too!

What to do with Pumpkin?

Pumpkin is artsy fartsy, what do I mean? This kid can dance, sing and she is into crafts. I'm sure when she is older she is be a drama nerd. She is already practicing. Anyway, I am not creative at all. I mean I LOVE photography but when is comes to creating I am not any good. I hate art because there is always something to clean up. Don't ask why I had kids, sometimes I wonder that to. So the question is what am I supposed to do with a very creative 6 year old?

Some giveaway's

Hello Everyone,
A friend mommy blogger has some giveaway's on her blog and she needs people to enter! I told her I would make a post for her because
1) I do not have a baby
2) I don't have a boy
3) I am not running a business

I feel bad that I can't enter any of her contest. I don't know her rules to enter so not sure if she wants you to have a blog or not BUT, I have seen some of her giveaway's from the companies and they are nice quality products. So, what are you waiting for? Go to her blog and enter now!!

http://jylasthreeofusgiveaway.org
I have a list of the products she is giving away.

Bummas Product Review and Giveaway

Uprinting 500 Business Card Giveaway

Hasbro Star Wars Episode 1 Qui-Gon Jinn Toy Giveaway

http://jylasthreeofusgiveaway.org

Can you say Blizzard then Nor'easter 2 days later?

Well, everyone in the Mid Atlantic can! We live in Delaware, on Friday into Saturday we had the Blizzard of 2010. I think our total snowfall was well over 20". Monkey doesn't go outside if it's cold, and that's the end of that conversation with her. Me, "Monkey do you want to go outside and play with your sisters"? Monkey, "NO"! Lil Angel's best friend, we will call him J came over to play on Monday, his Dad had to work and his older sister went out so he spent the day with us. My girls LOVE J so they all went out to play including Monkey to my surprise got her lil butt outside! They played in the foothill that was across the street in our neighbors yard. She came in about 15 minutes later freezing, that was the end of her playing in the snow.

Then on Tuesday into Wednesday we got the Nor'easter of 2010. Luckily Delaware didn't get the brunt of it but we did get about 15" more of snow. We are watching another snowstorm that looks as though it is coming right at us!

The kids have off school all week. Ya want to know what I did all week? I intervened in about 100 battles in our house. Oh it was great fun this week. Monkey is on 2 medications and I had the hardest time getting them into her, she wanted nothing to do with it. Monkey has decided lately that she loves Pumpkin! She loves her so much she grabs her out of the blue and gives her what she calls a hug, Pumpkin calls them the hug of death because Monkey squeezes the heck out of her. You have to wait a second, tell Monkey it's so nice she loves and is hugging Pumpkin and force her to let go. Let me describe to you what this looks like. Monkey grabs Pumpkin, I have to run over to pull Monkey off of her while Pumpkin screams as loud as she possibly can! I finally pry Monkey of her so she runs for our living room. Monkey make a wild dash at the living room so I grab her and we both crash onto the floor. Monkey gets a gentle bump because I land on my back. Somewhere in this my glasses fly off of my face. I am gently trying to calm Monkey so I can let her go meanwhile she is flailing at me. Have I mentioned that 2 weeks ago I had surgery on my nose? Well I did, and it doesn't really hurt unless you bump it! So I am trying to sooth Monkey while trying to protect my face at the same time. Monkey finally seems calm so I let her go. She runs into the living room and I grab my glasses and run after her and I find her sitting on the sofa sitting next to Pumpkin calmly watching on of their TV shows. My heart is beating out of my chest. Seeing them both calm I push my glasses on my nose, they are loose and I put off getting a new pair because I know it's just a matter of time before Monkey smacks them off of my face again.

It's so exciting, they have off of school again on Monday for Presidents day and they may have off a few more days if it snows again!

Product Review on Journals Unlimited

http://journalsunlimited.com

I want to add that Journals Unlimited is running a FREE NOTEPAD promo on their website. Check out JournalsUnlimited.com for details.

I received a sample from Journals Unlimited so that I can write a product review on one of their journals. I chose the Day Planner because I felt that it was something that I can use.

I LOVE this journal because I am able to keep track of my day. The pages alternate. You have a notes page and a day planner page for every day. Further, the date is left blank, so if you want to skip some days, you can without wasting paper like you would in a pre-dated journal. As a mom to 3 children (and homeschooling my oldest) it's fair to say that I am a busy mom. I was having difficulty keeping track of what needed to be done, Dr. appointments, etc. I was using a refrigerator calender, but I found that it couldn't keep track of everything that I needed it to. And I can't really take the fridge calendar with me; the journal is portable, which is a must for a mom on the go!

The cover is sturdy. It's not flimsy like a notebook that you buy from the store. You can shove it in a drawer and the cover will not tear and break easily. I love that this journal is going to last me a long time!

The Day Planner pages have preset times starting at 7 AM and goes all way to 8 PM with two lines per hour, room for plenty of notes. My journal starts with 7:30; I get Monkey out the door on her bus at 8. I then sit down and relax till Lil Angel and Pumpkin wake up at around 9:00. I get them breakfast and let them watch tv till about 10:00 then we all get dressed for the day. Pumpkin gets on her bus at 12:50 then Lil Angel and I come in have lunch then start school. On the journal I write in times of what we do for example 1:30 will be math, I have her do a few pages then I talk about how we use math in real life. Then we work on English, history, etc. The journal helps me keep track of how long we are working and what we are doing each day. The next page has notes/lists/priorities so that I can write out more information that may not fit on the first page.

Journals Unlimited 55 journals to choose from! Some examples of their selections are Hiking - The Hiker's Journal, Horses - A Rider’s Journal, Lighten up - A Weight Control/ Workout Journal, Birthday - The Birthday Journal, The Blank Journal, Boating - The Boaters Journal, Books I've Read - A Reader's Journal, Camping - The Campers Journal and many more! They also have a blank journal where if you love to write this journal gives you plenty of room to write.

http://journalsunlimited.com The “Write-it-Down!” series is printed in the USA using soy based ink on acid-free recycled paper. This is great, I know most of us moms want to be green. I highly recommend these journals.

****I want to add that Journals Unlimited is running a FREE NOTEPAD promo on their website. Check out JournalsUnlimited.com for details.****

Just a quick post

There is a movie on HBO called Temple Grandin " My life in Pictures". Unfortunately we don't have HBO. I am hoping to get my hands on this as I would love to see it. I have seen youtube clips of her speaking to parents of children who have Autism and professionals who work with our kids. She is just amazing because as someone with Autism she speaks so well, she can come across to an audience and really reach you with what it's like having Autism. As a parent you have no clue what is running through our kids heads and to hear one person who has Autism describe what it's like is just amazing!

If you have HBO please watch this movie, if you do come back and tell me what you think!

Here is a link the movie info http://www.barnesandnoble.com/u/Books-Autism-Aspergers-Temple-Grandin-Thinking-in-/379002056/

Update on surgery and my 1st product review info

My surgery went well and I am starting to feel less and less pain. I had the splints and stitches taken out yesterday and that helped a lot. But it kinda hurt and I freaked out so my Fibromasia went CRAZY last night. I am still hurting but doing much better since the splints and stitches are out.

I bought a beautiful pin from a company called the Autism Shoppe so sometime in the next few days I will post a review about it. So keep an eye on my blog for the review!