Things I learned from organic Gardening.

I haven't been growing things in my yard for a very long time, but in the past 6 months, I have learned quite a lot from it.

A few of my tomato and bell pepper plants

1. Organic is not hard! When I first started, I expected quite a bit of work, research and on the spot problem solving since I wanted to grow everything organically. I mixed up a spray bottle of organic pest and weed control (turns out, its just vinegar and water) and put it with my gardening tools. I have never once used it. The only pests I have come across are my dog and toddler. They eat my stuff all the time, but the only bugs I find near my plants are just chillin'. They don't eat the fruits of veggies, they haven't compromised the roots of stems at all and only occasionally i will notice some of the leaves have tiny holes in them.

2. Organic veggies taste WAY different than what you buy in the store. Did you know bell peppers can be juicy? Cucumbers have much more rich taste. Broccoli is sweet and turns the most brilliant green when cooked.  Strawberries are incredibly sweet. They are like candy. Some are sweet, some are sour. At least my mini berries are. I haven't gotten my first tomatoes yet, but I'm so ready for them!

3. Leaves are the best mulch. Also they are free.

4. When I have used weed killer (in a different flower garden) it had horrible results. It killed a few weeds, but it also damaged my flowers quite a bit. They no longer look healthy, and I still have weeds.

 5. It is very good therapy to work in the garden. There is something about it, the dirt, plants, bugs, worms, water, all working together so naturally that is very soothing and pleasing. I like knowing that I am not only doing something new and learning, but I am giving something back to nature as well as helping to feed my family. I guess that doesn't make much sense, but anyone who has worked in a garden will know what I am talking about.

My strawberry plant that was naturally planted from a half eaten, dropped berry courtesy of the dog

 So.... Why isn't everything organic? I don't get it. It's not much harder. It's less expensive, not harmful to the soil, our bodies, our air, our water, or our energy crisis. I thought it must be super hard if no one was doing it, but it really isn't! I guess if you have 5,000 acres of GM corn, it might be harder.... but who wants a country of nothing but corn? We have a fuel shortage coming. How are we going to sustain a whole country on corn that is hardly edible (its grown to make into high fructose corn syrup, corn starch, corn meal, or cow food for the most part)

...that's good and all, but what do YOU think?
Have you learning anything from gardening? 
What is your favorite mulch and fertilizer?
Is pulling weeds worth it? 

Babies are so special

When my first born was a baby, I couldn't wait for her to grow up and do cool things like crawling, walking, jumping, talking... I couldn't wait to stop breastfeeding her, I couldn't wait for her to eat her first meal on her highchair, and then I couldn't wait till she sat at the table.

Emma as a baby

It's not that I didn't cherish her babyhood, I was just cheering her on and loving watching her progress so much, I forgot how great babies are. Well, they are a ton of work, and i wouldn't want to take care of a baby for the rest of my life or anything, but they are so gosh darn special and full of squishy love. 

Babies have eyes for only you, or you. It doesn't matter if its mama, or the guy behind you in the grocery store, when a baby is looking at you or smiling at you, you are the coolest most interesting thing in the whole world! It's a stark contrast from the toddler mentality of "do it myself"

Babies want to be with you all the time. This particular trait is quite bothersome when it's time to get things done, but in general it is nice to have a cuddly monster always wanting hugs and kisses. Maybe it is just because of my longing the attention I'm used to getting from my husband, but I think its very nice to have someone who would sit and cuddle with me literally all day and night.

Babies are enduring. I haven't met a baby yet who wasn't a charmer. They are just so darn cute and they are so interested in everything and so in the moment, that you can't help but ogle over them and remark about how cute they are... even if they really aren't all that cute in a picture, all babies are cute in person because of their personalities.

Babies can't disobey. they can't really obey either, but still the lack of defiance is nice. Emma is a great listener, but she is still a toddler. She still wants what she wants and she wants it NOW! No matter how strange a request, no matter if I have the ability to give it to her or not... the whining can wear on anyone. And then I look at the baby who is just sitting there completely immersed in her little duck toy that is unremarkable in every way and I wonder why I didn't appreciate that more when Emma was that age.

Its all of the cute, and all of the love without any of the tantrums, anger, hitting, or spitting.
But then again, Emma has plenty of toddler antics that make me laugh and bring a bit of silliness into my life. I wouldn't change her for the world. I guess its true what they say. You can't love one child more than the other. Because they are so different and unique, you can't compare your love for them.

One thing is for sure, those girls have my heart. And they have my husband wrapped.

...that's good and all, but what do YOU think?
What is the best thing about babies?
What age is your favorite? 

Yoga Booty

I feel like I'm bugging my friends about all my yoga stuff, so I'm now going to bug the most awesome bloggers in the world about it....hint: you can skip this if you aren't interested. Thats the beauty of it.

I've been doing yoga for about 3 years now. I would love to say those years are consecutive, but really its more like 6 months, 2 months, 4 months, now. I loved yoga, and I knew it made me feel better, but I never had much direction in my practice. I just found a teacher or video and did whatever I felt like that day.
Now I am doing a different kind of yoga. It's called Astanga. For those of you wondering there are tons of different kinds of yoga. They all would seem pretty similar to most people looking in, but to yogis, the differences are obvious and extreme. I wouldn't call myself a yogi, but I can definitely tell that this new Astanga thing is way different and full of awesome. It is the most ancient form of yoga that we know of and it is very disicplined. It needs to be practiced 6 times a week (not on monday for some reason?) and is pretty seemingly simple at first. The poses that I was in during my firs session were so simple, I thought "this is for beginners, I can do way better stuff than this!".... ha... the next morning I woke up with fire in every muscle of my body. FIRE! The next time I practiced it was harder. And then i learned that there are "bandhas" you are supposed to be engaging (kinda like keigels and stomach tightening) in conjunction with the special yoga breathing, while maintaining your poses, calm mind, relaxed muscles and flowing graceful movements...... I have some practicing to do.
But for now, I am very sore, and energized. Oww.


... that's good and all, but what do YOU think?
Have you ever wanted to try yoga?
What is the most appealing part of it to you?
What is your favorite exercise? 

Cloth Diapers verdict

After a month of using the new diapes, I feel like I have a reasonably knowledgeable conclusion about them. I love them! For a few reasons...

• They hold a lot! The only issue I have noticed with leakage is that when Molly is sleeping on her side at night, she will start to leak pee-pee if I don't give her a change half way through the night. Other than that, no problems as far as holding it's contents.
• They are easy to use. They work just like a disposable diaper. No inserts or covers to worry about. Just stick it on her booty, snap it around her waist and check to make sure it fits correctly around her legs. After it is soiled, I open the snaps, wipe her booty with a cloth wipe and roll them up and throw them in our wet-bag that is hanging on the side of the changing table. (Pictured above.... Isn't it pretty?) Then every other day, we take the whole bag and throw it in the washer...we take the diapers out first. I set the washer on "sanitary"which uses very hot water and an extra rinse cycle. Then we throw them in the drier and they are ready to fold back up and put upstairs.
• They are still cute. We got plenty of colors. 
• Molly seems to like them. i.e. no diaper rash and no nighttime diaper changes
• I never worry about running out to the store for diapers (or the dog chewing them up and leaving me with a huge mess)

When she starts eating solids, I will have to spray them off before putting them in the wet-bag, but since she is breast-fed, there is no need yet. The diapers come out sanitized and ready for use, but sometimes they remain a bit stained on the inside. I don't mind so much if the INSIDE of the diaper isn't crisp white. But I have heard that if you lay the diaper out in the sun, the yellow tint goes away pretty magically. I haven't tried it, but I that is what I have heard. The washing doesn't phase me in the slighest. I do at least one load of laundry everyday. On the diaper days, I just throw them in after my first load. It's so easy, we are doing cloth wipes too!

The only negative so far is that they are harder to carry in a diaperbag. I used to cram 5-6 diapers in my bag. Now its a stretch to get two cloth diapers in there. It hasn't been a big deal so far, but I do have to keep track of the contents of my diaper bag a lot more than I used to. For on-the-go changes, I just keep a smaller wet-bag in my diaper bag and stick the dirty one in there to take back home and wash. It's not incovienant in the slightest... unless you count the ladies who crowd around to ask questions and observe how I cloth diaper Molly. I get why people gawk. The diapers are pretty nifty, and definitely way different and easier than the older kind.
My mom is pretty shocked that I am still using them. She thought I would give up in a week because they would be "soo hard!" Imagine her shock when I told her that they are comparable to disposables as far as difficulty and time consumption.

What do you think?
Have you ever wanted to try cloth diapers?
What stopped you, or made you take the leap?
Are you happy with your decision?


UPDATE: We did our first road trip with the cloth diapes. It was a success. It was only a three day trip, so I just took the clean diapers and the wet-bag, did my normal thing and washed them when we got home. Easy peasy.

Sleeping babies

Molly will be two months old tomorrow and so far she has not slept in her own crib. This needs to change soon. I know of two methods to get babies to go to sleep, but I'm torn between the two. The cry it out method worked well for Emma, but for some reason, I have my reservations about using the same method with Molly. Maybe it is because every time Molly make a peep Emma says "OHHH NOOO!!!! MLANI!!! MLANI CRYYYING!!!!!" Or maybe I am noticing the difference between the two girls, or maybe I have just gotten used to Emma crying only when she really needs something or is scared.

But whatever the reason, I don't feel as capable of doing the standard, 3min, 5min, 10min, 15min, 20min thing with Molly. It seems kind of...mean this time around. But at the same time, I don't want Molly to not learn how to self-soothe. I don't have to have to rock her to sleep and hold her hand every night. I want her to be a good sleeper, like Emma was and still is. The thing is, I know the reason Emma was such a good sleeper, is because I stuck to the cry it out method so well.  I could tell the difference between her cries and would only respond if I could tell she really was hungry, or uncomfortable or scared. When she was crying because she just didn't want to go to sleep, I tuned it out. And she was a still is the BEST sleeper. She went down easy, stayed down until she was hungry and woke up happy in the AM.

I researched the "no cry" method a bit. It seems like a lot of work. Although I guess it would be worth it if it worked. Trouble is, I don't know if it will work. Especially for the long run.  The only parents I know that couldn't stand to hear their daughter cry, have had trouble putting her to bed ever since she was a baby. She is almost the same age as Emma and it is still a three hour affair for them to get her to bed and stay in bed. I guess the "no cry" method didn't really work for them so well.

After writing this, I guess its a no-brainer which method I have more trust in, and which I think will be best in the long run... Maybe by the time Molly is actually ready for sleep training it will be easier to tell her cries apart and it wont be so heart wrenching to hear her cry. Jacob should be home by then too so maybe that will make it easier.

What do you think?
If you are a parent, what sleep technique did you use with your child?
If you are a parent in training, what technique do you think you WOULD use? 

LOL at normal people!

My husband and I have been together on and off since we were 16. We went to different schools, both had jobs and our parents didn't approve. If we got to see each other once a week, it was exciting. That was when we lived in the same town. A year later he moved three hours away. That would have been bad enough if he wasn't also going to a school which forbid him from contacting girls from back home.... that ment me.

The day we got engaged. (Yes, I was already severely pregnant) 

I saw him twice that year. Not for more than an hour or two. I was connected to him through a few forbidden texts back and forth every few days. When he finally quit that school and moved back home, things weren't much better. So much so, that he didn't see the harm in moving three hours away again! Yet another year of rare visits, but at least we could call.... are you noticing a pattern. This type of relationship went on all the way until we got married (which happened during the two days in between his basic training and AIT)



Even when we moved in together in our first house, he was so exhausted after he got home from his physically demanding days starting at 5am, that he was pretty much asleep as soon as dinner was finished.  It wasn't until the middle of our second year of marriage that we actually could spend time together.
I never relish time away from him, but I have gotten so used to the away time, that after a few months of lots of time together I started to wonder when he was going to be leaving again. I hope that doesn't sound cold. I think its a case of "absence makes the heart grow fonder". I love my husband with all my heart, and I would rather have him here at home where he belongs, but him being away gives me times to appreciate how much he means to me, and how much easier he makes my life. It makes the little things seem so insignificant and it makes us want to FIX the big things instead of shoving it under the rug. It works for us I suppose.
But I can't help but chuckle when I hear other couples lament over spending one.. maybe two weeks apart.  I have actually laughed out loud about it before. And I think people usually realize how silly it sounds to me, even if I manage to keep a straight face,  (after the words have already left their lips). They do one of those embarrassed and sorry pressing their lips together things.
 I understand that the feeling of dread when a separation is upcoming is "normal" for people. But maybe it shouldn't be.

Or maybe my relationship with my husband is just THAT strange. Who knows. It works for us. Different things work for other people. But I still can't help but LOL.

What do you think?
Does absence make the heart fonder?
What are the advantages, drawbacks?
What is your experience with separation?

Deployment Success vs Managing to not kill yourself

Army wives often say "it takes a certain kind of person to be able to live this life" but I dissagree. Anyone can marry a soldier and "live this life". At least for a while. And most people can keep breathing while their husband is deployed. I say "most people" because there is a very high suicide rate in the military for both soldiers and spouses.

Instead of saying "it takes a certain kind of person to live this life" I say "it takes a certain kind of person to be able to live this life with SUCCESS"

What success means is different for everyone, but I think there are a few things that most people can agree on.
The home front spouse as a support to their soldier.
The soldiers need to stay focused on their job and their mission---NOT the troubles back home.
here are the no-no's in my book.

1. Cheating! I dont think anyone would argue that if you feel the need to seek comfort in the arms of another as soon as your spouse is gone, you have not succeeded in being a support on the home front. If you are cheating or have cheated on your  spouse while he or she is away... well... ya.... thats not exactly supportive. I don't think anyone can argue about that.
2. Neediness. It is way different to miss your spouse of wish he were home than it is to NEED him and let him know it. I can only imagine how horrible it must be to be deployed in a war zone and when you finally get to call home, you hear about how horrible it is without you and how you need to come home. What is point of guilt tripping your soldier for fighting for his country? Like they really need one more thing to worry about.
3. Giving up. In any way shape or form, giving up is never good when you have become the backbone of  your family unit. Giving up on your kids. Sending them away to relatives, abandoning your family home, discontinuing all efforts to keep a clean home...  giving up doesn't equal success.
4. Substance abuse or addiction- Picking up an addiction, wether it is shopping, alcohol, drugs... depending on something that is unhealthy is not an ideal way to spend a deployment and again is not a mark of a strong individual conquering a difficult time.


While some of these things are much worse than others, all of them are selfish and do not support the soldier or put his mind at ease. No matter what has happened during a deployment, marriages can always be saved, things can always be fixed and forgiven. I am not trying to condemn anyone.
 I just get sick of observers saying things to certain spouses like "I don't know how you do it, you are such a strong woman" when I know full well that spouse is getting by with alcohol or by abandoning their responsibilities, or by finding a man to replace her husband.... fill in the blank. Of course not all wives are like that.
 There ARE plenty of army wives who really ARE amazing and strong and are not only surviving but thriving. Getting their degrees, learning new skills, loosing weight, being awesome parents.... examples are everywhere! And I'm happy to report that there are MANY more strong and thriving wives than there are.... well I don't wanna say "weak" because its insulting but at the same time, the wives who are causing their husbands to not be able to do their jobs and consequently putting other men at risk... well maybe they deserve to be insulted.
 If something happens to my husband because the guy who was supposed to have his back was stressing over his wife's cheating.... well I will have some much stronger words for that woman.

Anyways, don't assume that every person who has a spouse in the military was made for this life, or can survive and thrive in this environment. Strong spouses and parents are definitely out there, but so are the weak ones.

What do you think?
Have you met any exceptionally strong military spouses?
Have you met any that are coming apart at the seams or has used an unhealthy crutch?