Surviving in Style: Free Lymphedema Sleeves Thanks to Susan Niebur

I've found that when someone is a giver it is very hard for them to accept--let alone ASK--for anything from someone else. My friend, Susan (that's her on the right), is a giver. And, I'm sure that even as she has battled cancer, and the effects of cancer, time and time again, it has been very difficult for her to accept the kindness of others.

The thing is, that when you allow someone to give to you, you really are giving to them. You are giving them the joy, the satisfaction, the happy heart that comes from giving to others.

And so, even as her body was being ravaged by the effects of chemo, Susan was thinking of others. Even as she was feeling the pain of her lymphedema (very painful arm swelling that happens to many breast cancer survivors--or warriors, I like that term better, don't you?--because they had lymph nodes removed and therefore don't have lymph nodes filtering our the yucky stuff) she was thinking of others who were battling lymphedema.

You see, Susan, like my mom, purchased her oh-so-stylish lymphedema sleeves from LympheDIVAS. Luckily, they were both able to afford them, despite the little or no coverage their insurance provided. These sleeves help keep the lymphedema under control and their cool designs tend to elicit compliments instead of rude stares. For many breast cancer warriors, a sleeve and/or gauntlet is a medical necessity, but too often insurance doesn't cover their steep cost (around $100 for just one sleeve!)

And so, Susan (being the giver that she is!), with the help of another giver (and friend!), Sue (that's her on the left), has arranged an amazing partnership. LympheDIVAS is now working with Crickett's Answer to Cancer to provide lymphedema sleeves and gauntlets FREE to those who need, but can't afford, them.

Most people assume that once the hair grows back (there's my sister, mom and me--wasn't she a beautiful bald warrior?--during her chemo) and a few scans come back clear, breast cancer is over. But, for many, the long-term effects are real and painful. Thanks to Susan and this partnership, many more warriors will survive in style and with with less pain.



And one of the best parts is that every time someone posts or Facebooks or tweets or just picks up the phone and calls a friend to tell them about this amazing act of giving, Susan is feeling the joy, the glow, the happy heart that comes with giving to others. And for that, I am especially grateful.

Here are the specifics:

Read about this project directly from Susan, leave her some comment love and then share her post with everyone you know (the share options are at the bottom of her post). Read more about it from Sue. Check out the awesome designs at LympheDivas and read about the co-founder and inspiration behind the company's continued mission, Robin Troxell.

Then, click over to Crickett's Answer for Cancer and be inspired by Crickett then download the enrollment materials here and write in "lymphedema sleeve and gauntlet" on page 2. Or, forward, e-mail, snail mail or fax the forms to someone you know who needs one. Better yet, just tell everyone you know about this, because who knows who might know a warrior who continues to suffer because they can't afford a lymphedma sleeve.

And then enjoy the joy, satisfaction, and happy heart of giving!

Original post by Smiling Mama. Thanks for reading!

New Year's Resolution

Happy New Year!

I have SO much to catch up on, blog-wise, not the least of which is a report on Lucas's fun birthday party and a post in honor of him turning five.

But, in the meantime, I wanted to jump on-line for a quick second to post my New Year's Resolution. Although generally I'm not a fan of resolutions, this year I hit upon the perfect one and I very much look forward to keeping it: spend more time with my friends!

2010 was an incredible year but between the birth of Nathaniel, my run for office, then dealing with the loss, I pretty much focused on my self all year.

And how I missed my dear friends!

So, let's plan lunch, drinks, dinner, brunch--or, all of the above!

Either way, I look forward to seeing more of you in 2011!



Original post by Smiling Mama. Thanks for reading!

"Hi," she said quite sheepishly, "I've missed you."

Hello there, dear readers. I presume the only ones to get this will be those who have me in a feed or some sort of reader. I mean, when someone hasn't posted in almost two months, you kind of stop checking, right?

Well, I'm back. For today. No promises about tomorrow or next week. But, for today, I'm back.

And, I'm going to let you in on a big secret. Well, not a secret, really, but something I haven't shared with you, my dear readers: I'm running for office. Yes, that's right. I have yard signs (and even get to see them when driving down the road, which is very strange), campaign literature, a website and even a few endorsements. I was given a passing mention on a prominent news site and subsequently a prominent blogger was outraged on my behalf (and on behalf of the other even more amazing women who weren't mentioned either).

I'm running for School Board in our county and campaign season is in full swing. Every. Single. Day. I have campaign stuff to do, usually more than what I can possibly finish in a day. And, of course, it's summertime and Lucas and Nathaniel are both home with me all day (ya' know, cuz I'm also a stay-at-home mom!) and so life is insane. But, also really, really exciting. Abel is 110% on board with this and so incredibly supportive. (Thank goodness, because, if he wasn't? None of this would be possible.) When I don't feel like I can do One. More. Meeting. or knock on One. More. Door. He pushes me to do it, to go, to smile, to knock, to talk, because we believe in this effort and we know that it is worth it. Worth it for our sons and their future. Worth it for all the children in our county. Worth it.

But, now that my "secret" is out to you, friends, I'll be even more honest. It isn't just being busy that has kept me from blogging (but it is being too busy that has kept me from reading and commenting on your blogs, however, and I truly am missing you!), it's also a feeling of being too exposed.

I am putting myself out there, publicly, and asking thousands of people to either vote for me or against me. To say: yes or no. To me. And, even though I have not ever blogged anonymously, and I do think it is a very good thing that voters could google me and come here and learn more about me than literally any other candidate on their ballot, it is also a little scary. Because it's me. Yes or no to me. And, damn, does that cause some major writer's block!

But, with the wonderful encouragement of my dear friend, Dr. Blondie, I decided to come back, let you in on my adventure, ask you to cheer me on (and if, by God, you live very near to me, I ask you for your vote!), and support me in my cozy corner of the world here on Smiling Mama. A corner I hold near and dear to my heart and a corner that I have been missing very much.

Original post by Smiling Mama. Thanks for reading!

The Letter Project

Friends, I am so excited about Sue from Laundry for Six's new project. She's calling it Letter Project and the idea is to write one letter a week for an entire year--52 weeks totaling 52 letters. She'll be writing about her own letters and offering readers a prompt each week for their own letters.

And I'm totally in!

I have stacks and stacks of letters from friends and family, the large majority of which arrived when I was in college. I was a prolific letter sender during those years as well. I only knew one person with e-mail during our freshman year and honestly, I didn't understand it at all! I eventually got e-mail maybe during my sophomore or junior year but still rarely used it. Instead, I wrote letters! I have long letters from my then teenage sister and short chicken scratch letters from my dad (he was the best care package sender ever!) and my grandparents. During summer break, my college girlfriends and I wrote to each other with actual letters as well. What wonderful prized possessions those letters are!

And of course, this project will be the perfect excuse to fuel my love of stationary--especially my love of finding cute stationary on sale! (Though, truth be told, I have boxes of cute note cards this very moment!)

I am not starting this project from scratch, actually, I imagine that I still write--and actually mail!--more written notes than the average person. I know what a joyous thrill it is to receive a real live letter or even a note that isn't a pre-printed card in the mail and so make an effort to send notes on a regular basis.

In honor or Memorial Day, Sue's first prompt is to write to someone in the military or someone who is deployed or living overseas. And I actually participated without even realizing it because I sent a care package and note to my sister whose husband is in Afghanistan for a year. (Sarah--check your mail!!)

I'm looking forward to next week's prompt! Won't you join me?


Original post by Smiling Mama. Thanks for reading!

Happy Valentine's Day! (with gifts for you!)

Happy Valentine's Day to all my wonderful Smiling Mama readers!

Abel and I will have a quiet Valentine's Day this year. No grand romantic gestures on this, the 10th Anniversary of our first Valentine's day together. And yet, at home with our wonderful two boys, it seems like just the perfect day.

I have a few Valentine's to send your way this year, dear readers...

First, over the past few days, I've posted some great indoor activities to help your family survive Snowpocalypse 2010 over at Out by Ten. Usually I just post about local activities but anyone, anywhere trying to keep sane while snowed in or just looking for some fun new ideas to do with your kids should go over and check it out.

Second, I have a hot tip for you about an amazing Valentine's Day giveaway at Tech Savvy Mama. I've written about her amazing site and incredible giveaways before but these Valentine's Day prizes really take the box of chocolates! I want every single one of them! For example, I was just telling Abel and my mother-in-law about the Toshiba Digital Frame, I think I could get Lucas to do almost all our cleaning if I won the Dyson DC31, and as the days slowly (oh so slowly but spring is on its way!!) get longer, I think the Good Nite Light would help us get Lucas to not pounce on our bed earlier and earlier every day. And those are just a few of the amazing prizes. So, go enter, and if you win, consider it my Valentine's Day gift to you!!


And, finally, I've got a fantastic recipe to share! I've taken this to two pot lucks recently and multiple people have requested the recipe. It is easy and delicious. Enjoy!

Nicole's Thai Noodle Salad

(I have no idea who Nicole is, but the person who gave me the recipe called it this and I feel the need to continue to give Nicole credit!)

Sauce:

1/4 Cup smooth or crunchy peanut butter (I've always used smooth)
1 Tablespoon minced garlic
1/2 Teaspoon red pepper flakes
3 Tablespoons sugar
3 Tablespoons sesame oil
3 Tablespoons salad oil
1/4 Cup Soy Sauce

Salad:

10 oz angel hair pasta, cooked and drained
1 Tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro
3 Tablespoons julienned red pepper (steamed or raw)
2 Tablespoons julienned carrot (steamed or raw)
3 Tablespoons chopped green onion

Combine sauce ingredients in a small bowl. Add noodles to a large bowl and coat with sauce. Add remaining salad ingredients and mix well. Chill before serving.

Notes: I'm always very liberal with the cilantro, red pepper and carrots. Also, the most recent time I made this, I also made chicken satay to go with it. I just doubled the sauce, cut two chicken breasts into small pieces and marinated them in a few tablespoons of the sauce, then I cooked them and served a few more tablespoons of extra sauce on the side for dipping. This also left me with probably about 1/4 batch additional sauce to use on the noodles. I can't get enough of this yummy sauce so liked having some extra for the noodles.

I hope you enjoy all these "gifts" and have a wonderful Valentine's Day and enjoy at least one piece of delicious chocolate!


Original post by Smiling Mama. Thanks for reading!

Lovely Gifts

This year for Christmas Abel and I decided not to exchange gifts but rather to purchase a flat screen TV for our bedroom. This was a fact that I confirmed with him several times. But, I should have known that he'd have something up his sleeve!

You see, although his gifts are often purchased at the very last minute, Abel is an excellent gift-giver. He consistently gives me things that I would never in a million years purchase for myself, things that I wouldn't even think to desire. But also, that almost without fail, I end up loving.

He did it again this year. Apparently at least a month ago, he saw somewhere that a "hot" gift this year would be a shawl/wrap with three buttons so it could be adjusted to wear in several different styles. Thinking of my pregnant belly--and love of wraps--he tried to purchase one for me, only to find out that because it had been featured on whatever show, it was completely sold out. Not to be deterred, he apparently contacted my dear friend and knitter-extraordinaire, Katie, to knit one for me. Below is a (bad) picture of the final product (we are away from home and lacking the proper cord to upload real pictures so this was taken on my phone). I absolutely adore it! Not only is it completely lovely and useful, I love and appreciate the fact that Abel did so much work and planning to make this happen and that he and Katie worked on this together as a top secret project.
(And, Katie, my entire family is agreed that you need to start selling these. Might I recommend opening an etsy shop?)

As a second surprise, Abel got me Senator Kennedy's memoir. I have thought to myself on several occasions that I'd like to read this book but don't think I ever mentioned that out loud to Abel. Also, I most likely would have borrowed it from the library but am very happy to now have it in my permanent collection. I just started it and am already enjoying it a great deal.

Unfortunately, I was not as thoughtful as my husband was this Christmas: I didn't have any surprise gifts for him. I feel kind of bad about this, but not too bad as the TV really is for him. I've always vowed that I'd never have a TV in my bedroom but am soon to become the proud owner of one.

I hope you received some lovely and thoughtful gifts as well!

Original post by Smiling Mama. Thanks for reading!

Nickelodeon ParentsConnect's World's Biggest On-line Baby Shower

The total bummer about baby number two being not only a boy but a boy born in the same season as Lucas is there's absolutely no reason at all* for anyone to throw me a baby shower. I mean, we've got the stroller, the car seats, the pack 'n play, the clothes...everything is blue and is up in the attic just waiting to be used again.

So, I was uber-flattered when the oh-so-lovely Jessica over at A Parent in Silver Spring sent me my very own personalized invitation to the most amazing-sounding baby shower ever! Seriously, how sweet is she? Guess what? You're invited, too!

Okay, okay, I confess, this shower isn't being thrown just for me, but there's no reason why you and I can't pretend it is being thrown just for me, is there? (Seriously, if you have no need for any of these prizes then you should still log-in and try to win some for me! I mean just because I have the necessities up in the attic doesn't mean there aren't tons of extras I'd love to have!)

Here's the scoop...

TOMORROW, Wednesday December 16, Nickelodeon ParentsConnect's is hosting the World's Biggest Online Baby Shower. The interactive online event is taking place on the ParentsConnect Message Board from 10am -8pm. They'll have shower games, parenting advice and tons of awesome prizes. (And I mean TONS of AWESOME prizes!)

You can jump in and out anytime throughout your day--they'll be doing giveaways on a regular basis all day long!

Take a look at the stuff they'll be giving away - an UppaVista Baby Stroller ($699 retail), a bloom fresco loft highchair ($500 retail), a Medela Freestyle breast pump (brand new of course, $379) that weighs less than one pound!, $300 Diapers.com gift certificate, Britax car seats and tons of stuff more like bouncy seats, jewelry, edible treats, baby monitors, kids' books, baby carriers...the list goes on.

The online party will be hosted by The Shower Diva Susan Newton, the guru of baby and bridal showers that are actually a blast...because you know we've all been to some that, uh, aren't so much of a blast.

So my dear readers, here's how you can join in the fun:

1) Log In or Register for ParentsConnect. Visit: http://www.parentsconnect.com/me/registration/index.jhtml

2) Head over to Pingg, RSVP "Yes!" and then use the "Share Invite" feature to invite everyone you know! The person with the most guests wins a $650 stroller! RSVP here: http://parentsconnect.pingg.com/babyshower

3) Come to parentsconnect.com on December 16th anytime between 10am - 8pm ET for all the fun stuff about baby showers - the gifts! the games! - without any of the suck! Visit: http://www.parentsconnect.com/connect/boards/bootcamp/baby_shower/chat_it_up.jhtml

I'll can't wait to see you at my (la la la...still pretending!) baby shower! I'll be logged on as smilingaimee.

*But, actually, I felt incredibly lucky that some of my wonderful friends in town did throw shower for Abel and me and totally hooked us up with some amazingly generous gift certificates to get us started on our adventures in cloth diapering (yeah, call us crazy!).

Original post by Smiling Mama. Thanks for reading!

Favorite Things Friday: Tech Savvy Mama's Holiday Gift Guides

In my personal opinion, one of the most fun times to be a blog reader is during the holidays. It seems like almost everyone is writing about holiday gift ideas and holiday craft ideas. Even thought I know I'll never get my act together to hand-make an amazing advent calendar or bake most of the amazing recipes I come across, just reading about what others are doing inspires me to step up my game a little bit and gets me into the holiday mood.

And then there are the holiday gift guides. Who better than a parent of a child who is a little older than yours to suggest great gift ideas? There are many, many gift guides out there but one of my absolute favorites is the one put together by Leticia over at Tech Savvy Mama. I'm already a huge fan of Leticia's blog and of Leticia in real life (it's a crazy coincidence that we actually knew each other and worked together in what seems like a previous life before we reconnected as DC Metro Moms!) but I'm an extra-super-duper-huge fan of her Holiday Gift Guides!

Seriously, you have got to check them out. Not only will you get great ideas for every person on your holiday gift list, you can enter to win many of the gift ideas! I will admit that I happen to be incredibly lucky in that I've won a few several numerous prizes from Tech Savvy Mama in the past and now I'm crossing my fingers and my toes for pretty much any of the amazing items included in her Holiday Gift Guide giveaways.

So, here are the links. I highly recommend you check out every single one of them, but at the very least, look at (and enter to win!) the gifts matching the demographics of the people on your holiday gift-giving list. (I'll link to the final guides as they go live, please check back or add Tech Savvy Mama to your reader so you don't miss out!)

Tech Savvy Mama’s Holiday Gift Guide for TODDLERS

Tech Savvy Mama’s Holiday Gift Guide for PRESCHOOLERS

Tech Savvy Mama’s Holiday Gift Guide for TEENS & TWEENS

Tech Savvy Mama’s Holiday Gift Guide for ADULTS

Tech Savvy Mama's Tech Gear Gift Guide

Tech Savvy Mama’s Holiday Gift Guide for TEACHERS

Tech Savvy Mama’s Holiday Gift Guide for DVDs

Tech Savvy Mama's Holiday Gift Guide for CDs

Original post by Smiling Mama. Thanks for reading!

Fun Fall Activity: Hot Dog and S'mores Roast

We had a fun gathering with neighbors on Saturday night--a hot dog and s'mores roast! It's the perfect time of year for an event like this and it was so easy to throw together.

My brother and sister-in-law got us one of those free-standing fire pits a few years ago for Christmas and we've really enjoyed using it several times each season to make a nice little campfire. After I proved my mad fire-making skillz to Abel earlier this summer, he readily agreed to put me in charge of building the fire this time. It turned out great!

We made hot dogs on the grill and the rest of the menu consisted of chips, pretzels, french onion dip, celery, carrots, animal crackers and baked beans. See, totally low key! Friends brought over a yummy squash dish and Portabello mushrooms to grill for the vegetarians in the group. (Yeah, overall the entire concept was a bust for vegetarian friends who also don't eat marshmallows. Oh well!) We had beer and soda in one cooler and juice boxes in another. Then, of course, we had the marshmallows, chocolate bars and graham crackers for the s'mores!

We asked friends to come dressed warmly and bring an extra folding chair. We also put out several extra blankets. Everyone enjoyed hanging out around the fire and the kids had fun roasting their marshmallows (and were also quite content to simply pop a few unroasted ones into their mouths as well!).

There's absolutely nothing like sitting next to a fire while looking up at the stars on a chilly evening!

Original post by Smiling Mama. Thanks for reading!

A loss

I already wasn't sure what to write about today. I knew I didn't want to do a buy-reusable-bags-use-reusable-water-bottles-change-your-light-bulbs Earth Day post. But I didn't have much to say, especially after posting here and over at DC Metro Moms yesterday.

But then I got an e-mail that really put me at a loss for words.

Two dear friends of mine, sisters, lost their father today. They are all I can think about. I just keep thinking that I hope they know they are loved and supported. And I just keep thinking that I can't imagine what it is to lose a parent. I realize that this is the natural order of things. That it is worse for a parent to lose a child. And, yet, that doesn't lessen the grief, the difficulty of losing a parent. It is something I pray I won't experience for many, many, many years.

My friends and their mom and their brother and all their loved ones are in my thoughts and prayers as they suffer this loss.

And, I ask you to keep them in yours, too.

Getting Lucky

I've written before (and here) about my fantastic luck. And, I have to admit that I do seem to win more than the average Joe. But, I also think that part of it is that each time I win something, it increases the opinion (mine and others) that I am lucky. But, every time I don't win, those opinions are not diminished. I think there's some sort of law about that in science. I'm not really one for science, though, so have no idea what the name of that law might be. Anyone?

Speaking of laws of science, the one that I will always fondly remember, though apparently not fondly enough to recall the actual name, is the one that says if you look at a measurement from any angle other than straight on, the measurement will be incorrect. The reason I remember that one? Well, my physics teacher used the example that when the person in the passenger's seat looks over at the speedometer from the side they will see a reading that is a few MPH higher than the actual speed of the car. I pulled that little factoid out many, many times when driving with my dad. He always thought I was going too fast. Probably still does.

So anyway, what I'm trying to say is that maybe I'm not really more lucky than the average Joe but that the perception is that I am. My family certainly perceives this. Case in point, when I was a child, my aunt--who lived in another town--would regularly put my name on raffle tickets. (Hmmm...she never did share any prizes won with my name and my luck! Humph!)

All this is to say that I have gotten lucky thanks to the Internets recently. So here are some belated thanks to...Jessica at A Parent in Silver Spring Reviews for some lovely, lovely Skinn lip gloss; Leticia at Tech Savvy Mama for System Mechanic to help my PC run faster; and, Stacy at The Fabulous Miss S for the Milk Bank breast milk feeding and storage system.*

So, am I right that winning those three contests increased your perception of my luckiness? If you knew that there were several more I entered but did not win would that diminish your opinion?


*OMG seriously. The babies are on the mind.* Not only did I enter this contest for a breast milk feeding and storage system, I also purchased a little pink tutu on clearance at Target. Like this one but pink and only $2. I totally justified the tutu with the fact that, well it was only $2, and also, I know several people currently pregnant who could have girls who I could give this tutu to. (Why didn't I buy 2 then I could have written these two tutus to. Ha ha!) But, I probably won't give it away. It is just so freaking adorable and I am going to hug it and squeeze it and wish on it. Because I do so want a girl. I am unabashedly admitting it.

*ON the mind, not IN the belly, people. Not yet anyway.

Old Friends

I had such a wonderful time in Boston this weekend. I feel so lucky to have such wonderful girlfriends--I've known Katie for 8 years and Jill for 14 years. Wow. 14 years. Incredible. You know those people you have enough history with, enough in common with, that you just "get" well enough to have a wonderful conversation with even if it has been a year since the last one. I am lucky that Katie and Jill are each that kind of friend for me. I am certain that these two women will be in my life forever and that is a wonderful thought.

Lucas. Oh my gosh. This kid seriously grew up a few years while I was away. How did that happen? I think the difference was particularly striking because last week I was home with a not-feeling-well-and-quite-whiny little boy. By Sunday evening he was back to his old self. At dinner, in between bites of grilled cheese, he looked directly at me and said, "And how was your day, Mama?"

Oh, hello there young man, nice to meet you. But, what, perchance, but what did you do with my toddler?

I left on Friday feeling that I was going to owe Abel big-time for allowing me to go on this jaunt. I know I had a free ticket with a very close deadline but he could have asked me not to go. Instead, he was totally fine and I literally didn't give any thought to how he and Lucas would do for the weekend. I left no lists or instructions or meals or anything at all. Because I didn't have to. Katie's husband asked who was watching Lucas this weekend and I replied, "His father is parenting him!" I know I am lucky to have in Abel a spouse who is a true partner in parenting.

But, I'm off the hook on owing him because he shipped Lucas off to my parents! My mom had gone a few weeks without seeing her grandson and Lucas was especially missing his grammy, too. So, Abel and my parents met half way on Saturday afternoon for the hand-off then again on Sunday afternoon for the pick-up. This gave Abel some nice time to himself, too, which I know he enjoyed.

So I'll leave you with Lucas's favorite (only) knock knock joke. A joke, mind you, that I shared with Jill's pediatrician husband. He laughed and said it was the "perfect" knock knock joke for a three year old. Which, of course, translated in my mommy mind to mean "in my professional opinion as a pediatrician who has seen thousands of children, your son is a genius"

Knock. Knock.
Who's there?
Lucas.
Lucas who?
Can I come into your house?

(Translation for my non-mom readers: 3 year olds are very literal. I mean, why else would you be knocking if you didn't want to go in?)

Improvements

Yesterday's post was pretty bleak. I was feeling bleak. But, today is a new day. Lucas slept last night. Actually he slept with us and so we could comfort him and get him back to sleep immediately whenever he woke up coughing. He woke up at 7am and somehow miraculously both he and I went back to sleep until 8:30. EIGHT THIRTY. Wow. I showered (an improvement over yesterday), we played, etc. And, he is currently napping (another huge improvement over yesterday). Also, the coughing is significantly decreased. All in all things are looking up.

I'm thinking of my packing and am going to try to pack as light as possible. One benefit of seeing two friends independent of each other is that I'm planning to re-wear just 2 outfits (!) and so need to figure out the perfect combinations. I'll definitely be including my inauguration-purchased long johns! The only thing holding me back from not checking a bag is my contact solution. But, at $15 each way, it will be significantly cheaper to just buy a new bottle in Boston. Crazy, right? I heard a rumor that the FAA is going to change that pesky 3ozs of liquid rule. Wouldn't that be great?

There's Lucas stirring.

May I ask you a favor?

I have a favor to ask of you, dear readers. It's easy and fun: don't worry!

First, some background. A dear friend in real life and in the blogosphere, Amy of Organized Living by Amy, is pregnant with her first child (a girl!!) and due in just over a month!

Wonderful wonderful news! Yes!

And! No!

What?

Well, that the dear girl, who has many, many close girlfriends here in the DC metro area, just had to move down South leaving us, her friends, so so far away.

We realized we couldn't all fly down to Nashville to throw her a shower. And, we couldn't expect a very preggers Amy to fly up to DC for one either.

So what are good friends to do?

Why throw her a "Week of Well Wishes" shower from afar, of course!

Her week began earlier this afternoon with flowers and a somewhat-vague-note to telling her to enjoy her "Week of Well Wishes". She has no idea what else is coming (and I can't reveal that here, either, as she's an avid Smiling Mama reader).

But doesn't this sound like fun? Like the kind of fun you just have to get in on?

Of course!

Here's how you can help make Amy's Week of Well Wishes extra-special: head on over to her blog and leave a comment wishing her well. Or, drop her an e-mail.

Thanks! You're the best!

(To thank you, after Amy's week has concluded, I'll post some ideas about how to throw your own baby or bridal shower from afar!)

Wrap up

What a week.

I went into work Monday then was home the rest of the week because Lucas caught a stomach bug from his one day back at daycare. At least three of the kids started puking between 6-8pm on Tuesday night. Isn't that bizarre? Anyway, it was rather strange around here, too, because he only puked at night or wee hours of the AM and seemed mostly fine all day (though extra snugly). So, it was kind of like a 3rd week of Christmas break but we stayed quarantined. I wasn't ready to go back to work anyway and he's now healthy for lots of weekend activities so all has ended well!

Lucas tends to get a little dictatorial when he's sick (probably because we do pretty much jump at his every whim when he's so pathetic) and he had the funniest line earlier in the week (the actual day eludes me). He was on his potty and wanted a puzzle which was about 2 feet away. He wanted me to get it but I told him he could wait until he was done. He looked at me, pointed at the puzzle and commanded, "Mom, do your job!". I guess I should add that to my resume: retrieves toys for those on the potty!

In other news, I finally joined the ranks of the tweeters on twitter. You can find me @smilingmama. I'm been avoiding joining but was convinced when Design Mom said, "Twitter is like status updates on crystal meth." I'm a bit obsessed with Facebook status updates now that I can do them from my new phone device. So, I joined the fray on twitter, too.

I received the nicest note from the folks over at pingg after my Favorite Things Friday post. They will be adding the pot-luck-type-menu as well as many more features in just a few months. Yay!

We've got a double-date planned with our good friends tonight over at a wonderful new DC restaurant: Founding Farmers. My mouth is watering from looking at the menu on-line. Not sure how I will choose!

Hope you are enjoying your weekend!

A Wedding Weekend

We drove down to Greensboro, NC this weekend to attend the wedding of my good friend Stephanie and her now-husband Will. It was wonderful!

We stayed at the Proximity Hotel, the only LEED Platinum rated hotel in the country! Not only is it incredibly luxurious, it is incredibly green. The water is heated by solar panels on the roof, almost all the materials came from local sources and--how cool is this?--the elevator captures energy going down to use to go back up!

Oh and did I mention that my parents were watching Lucas for the weekend?

So the hotel and weekend alone were nice, but of course, the best part was all the wedding-related festivities. A fun girls luncheon, manicures, rehearsal, rehearsal dinner...then of course the actual wedding and reception on Saturday.

A few fun things I wanted to share...

• Be careful leaving the husbands and boyfriends of the bridal party alone in the back of the church during the rehearsal. They might just end up putting together an under/over bet on the length of the ceremony.*
• I did a great job with my reading. In fact many people came up to me during the reception to tell me what a great job I did. One person, a cousin of the groom, told me that the reading and the way I read it "made me rethink the importance of my own wedding vows". Wow.
• Perhaps I should offer my reading services for hire!
• There was a band at the reception and it was so fun! They did a great job of getting people out onto the dance floor.
• This is the second reception I've been to where someone ordered pizza to be delivered. Come one people, seriously.
• The reception ended with a really awesome Slovak tradition (from the bride's family). The women form a circle, lock arms and dance around the bride. The groom tries to break through while the women hold him off. Eventually, of course, he breaks in, scoops up the bride and carries her off to everyone cheering for them. It was a really awesome way to conclude the celebration!

*Abel won! The ceremony was well under 37 minutes in length!

Sick

I came home from my girls weekend in North Caroline to a sick little guy. He'd had a cold when Abel took him to my parents on Friday (yes, I got a weekend away in North Carolina and Abel got a solo weekend at home) and ended up with a pretty bad cough. He ran a fever Sunday night so Abel stayed home with him on Monday. I'm home with him, as usual, today. Poor little guy! He's just miserable. He slept with me last night (Abel escaped to the guest room) and we were up about every two hours all night. I think that was the most night wakings he's had since he was about 4 months old. I honestly didn't mind it, though. It was so nice to be able to cuddle and soothe my little guy.

The funniest thing happened, though. About 4am he turned into a little dictator. First, he didn't want the blanket, only the sheet. Then he wanted his pillow a certain way. Then he wanted my pillow a certain way. He was so serious about it all. Honestly, I think he was just a bit delirious.

We're having a cuddly little day--with too much TV. I don't think Abel will be able to take another day off this week, so most likely I'll be home with him again tomorrow. I'm thinking I'd better get out to Target or Safeway tonight or I'll start going a bit delirious myself!

Girls Weekend

I can't remember the last time I had such a great time as this weekend. I flew down to North Carolina--solo--for my friend Stephanie's bridal shower and had such a fabulous time.

Stephanie picked me up from the airport around 4:30pm Friday afternoon. We went straight to the mall, specifically Banana Republic, where I helped Stephanie pick out some wonderful outfits for her shower and rehearsal dinner. (How fun is it to get to pick out great clothes but not spend a dime!) We went to her house to drop off my things and pick up her fabulous fiance. Off to a wonderful restaurant in downtown Raleigh for great food, great wine and wonderful conversation. Poor Will, he just zoned out a bit at dinner while Stephanie and I talked and talked and talked. He was a great sport!

The next morning we were up bright and early for our drive to Charlotte for the actual shower. Our friend Claire hosted at her beautiful home. The whole thing was just lovely. The best part is that things moved along at a good pace and after the presents and dessert the guests didn't linger. That left the hostess, the bride, the bride's sister, me and two other bridesmaids with the afternoon to talk and catch up.

After a few hours of conversation we headed downtown to a fabulous, modern and trendy restaurant for a delicious dinner, then back to Claire's home for an evening of...bachelorette fun! We stayed up into the wee hours of the morning and woke up fairly early--by about 9am for more talking (and laughing!) before we went our separate ways.

With the exception of the bride's sister, the rest of us are fellow alumnae of the women's college we attended as undergrads. The bride and I were friends in college but didn't become really close friends until after college. I knew and was friends with the other girls, but not really close friends. Now, here we are almost 10 years out of college, with Master's degrees, fabulous careers, husbands (all married or soon-to-be- except one) and two of us have preschoolers. And we talked and talked. Talked about life and love, marriage and husbands, sex and money, kids and family.

At our college we were all leaders--involved, told we could have it all. We went out, degrees in hand, and truly did have it all. We conquered the world. Six master's degrees among us, amazing career accomplishments. The one thing we didn't learn in college, in this women's college where women empowerment was a constant theme--was how to have it all and balance it all. Yes, go out and conquer the world, but what about the husband and the kids? How does that all fit in?

We talked about our struggles with losing our identity. Yes, I'm still working, but since having Lucas and by working part-time I've definitely put the brakes on my career and remained on a plateau--if not even taken it down a few steps. And I know that is my choice and feel grateful to have that choice. But, sometimes in the mind-numbingness of playing trains, again, or wiping a butt or making my millionth PB&J sandwich, I just want to shout out to the world: "This isn't all I am, I have an MBA!"

It was awesome to hear these women, these smart, funny, amazing women, voice the same problems, the same challenges. To get advice on some issues and give advice on others. And to drink. And to laugh. It was amazing.

To sum up: No men. Much laughing. Much talking. Much support. (Much drinking.) Yeah, this girls weekend was just like college!