Identity theft stinks

Back when B and I had just started dating, somehow his debit card info was stolen and there were a lot of purchases made in Alabama. It was pretty frustrating for him, as it was his only checking account and it had essentially been emptied.

A few years later, my wallet was stolen at a splash park (of all places). It was annoying to get all new cards, and even to remember what was in my wallet, let alone make sure everything got cancelled and alerts were posted with the credit bureaus.

After the incidents we decided to enroll in a credit watch service through one of our credit cards, thinking that this would at least alert us if someone attempted to open an account in our names. Well, we applied for and got a mortgage and the credit watch did not catch it- so clearly- it was not worth the monthly fee we were paying.

We were also concerned again, as we had gone for years and just assumed all was well. What if it wasn't? Identity theft protection seems like an extraneous protection, but with so much of our lives being spent online and revolving around credit scores, you can't look out enough for it.

Identity theft is a pain. It can prevent someone from obtaining a job, a mortgage, a car, so much. Protect yourself.

Self-Care is not selfish

(photo credit lulumon athleta)
Moms and women as a whole are typically very quick to jump to help others but not so fast to take time for themselves.

There is a prevailing belief that taking care of ones-self is selfish and not to be done.

Well that is a pile of crap. Especially when women then whine and complain about burnout. I get it though. This has been me, so so many times.

I have had to learn, painfully, and slowly, that self care is not selfish. Self care is necessary. If I do not take the time to care for myself everyone suffers.

When I get burned out I get crabby and snappy and generally just mean.

Until recently my time was pole dancing. As that is not possible now, I had to go through a meltdown to again realize that I needed to take a time to invest in myself.

So for the past three weeks I have been 'investing' in my personal needs by participating in The Daily Method Classes.

Yes, I have to take time away from my kids. I even leave the kids in the care of a non-family member (gasp) but I need to (this is one of the best things about The Daily Method- the childcare room onsite). I am refreshed. Stress is released from my muscles via the work out. I get to see other adults! I get to talk in sentences! Yay!

Personally, I know so many women who fall into this trap- the women/mother/martyr. If a class is unattainable ask someone for a babysitting swap, I would be all over that, and I often am!

As women though, we have got to stop it. We have got to stop putting everyone before ourselves. We have got to start investing in ourselves. We have got to care about ourselves and take care of ourselves, if for no other reason, than we will then be able to care for others better.

Holiday Cards

This year I am going to buck my holiday tradition and attempt to join the responsible grown-up world and send out , ideally before the holidays.

In years past, I have started with the best intentions and purchased cards, even signed them, but actually mailing them? Not something that happened. Apparently the walk to the mailbox is a lot farther than it appears.

This year, Shutterfly is spurring me on a bit. They invited me to take a look at their cards and tell my readers about them, and then give me 3 codes to give to readers for 25 free cards. YAY!

...and I have not had photos taken of the kids in a year....(I will schedule this, I swear)...

Ok, so I started looking. There are a lot of ! One big issue for me is that I have friends and family who are not religious and sending a religious-y card to them is weird to me, so that eliminated a lot of the cards. Then I needed a card that either has 5 photos on it or one photo- though this may vary depending on how pictures turn out- but I started with that.

I really liked this one:

I also liked:


Maybe I'll even feel really ambitious and make a photobook for the grandparents or something, I made one once- a few years ago- for my grandmother and she loved it!

So.... first three commenters who have an email associated with their profile, or leave it for me will each get a code for 25 free cards... ready set.... go.

Are you a blogger? Want a chance to win 25 free cards? Register here

What a happy messy baby!

Beware: Breasfeeding post below

I am a devoted breastfeeding mom (I dislike the word breastfeeding though. Intensely dislike).

In my mothering adventures I have run into a quite a few people who have indicated that they were not intending to breastfeed. Some said they were uncomfortable with the idea, some had no interest, etc. I am genuinely curious why? What makes you uncomfortable about it? Why does it not interest you?

In a culture that is so head over heels in love with doing what is best for babies all of the time, shouldn't breastfeeding be kind of a no-brainer? This is the only normal food for a baby to eat, anything else is substandard. No parent would consider giving their child a substandard start by any means, so why is substandard food okay? This is not to say that women who truly do have an issue should feel guilty about not breastfeeding, but why willingly opt to feed your baby something less than standard?

Before you jump all over me about guilt. I get it. And you know what? I can't make anyone feel guilty. If someone feels guilty, that is on them, not me. Maybe it says that they should be doing something else if they feel guilty.

Yes, some people cannot nurse for one reason or another, but statistically that number is what 5%? Either I know the most unlucky 5% in the world or people are giving up too easily.

Full disclosure. I started nursing my first in the NICU. I had absolutely no intention of breastfeeding her until the NICU experience. I was completely uneducated about breastfeeding, and after learning I was sold. No nursing was not easy for me. I had a baby in the NICU and I had to learn to feed her, at the same time she had to learn to eat, breath, maintain temperature, and grow. It was hard. We did it. Until my milk dried up. Then I tried every darn herb, pumping, and trick I could before switching to formula. If I had been aware of it, I would have looked for donor milk, but at that point, I did the best I could with what I had.

Pregnancy Smell Aversion Strikes Again

The smells of truly innocent things have been making me vomit. Spaghetti and Meatballs? Banned. Anything involving garlic, banned.

That is okay.

The pregnancy super sense of scent has now forced me to abandon cloth diapers. I just can handle the smell. Hopefully soon, I will be able to get back to cloth dipes, but for now we are back to disposables and even those end up with me gagging most of the time.

Seeing as I am in the 2nd trimester, I should be past this soon right? Right? Give me some hope here.

All joking aside, I feel guilty. Cloth is so much better for my baby and the Earth. It isn't even that much work- I have to do laundry anyway, what is a couple more loads (especially loads that I do not have to invest massive time in folding!?)

Hopefully. Hopefully. Soon we will be back to cloth.

My first Daily Method

Since I can't take my normal and awesome pole dancing classes, I decided I would try a Dailey Method class. A few friends rave about them and figured that I did need to do something

On the whole- I enjoyed it. I even signed up for more classes.

However, it is not the same as pole dancing. There was not the emotional aspect that I have with pole.

Pole is like therapy for me. The Dailey Method- while not therapeutic was fun and I loved the workout. I appreciated the empowering and nurturing atmosphere, the helpful people, the great class, but I lacked the sensual release.