Introducing 'Cents and Sensibility'!

Hello my lovely followers! I need to write up my current In My Mailbox, only got a few books so no big deal. I'll try to do that tonight. Any who, I'm posting today to let you know that I've created a new blog! Yes, reading is my passion. But do you know what else I enjoy doing? SHOPPING! Trying the  newest and coolest products! Therefore, I decided to create a Blogger blog dedicated to just reviews of products (read: anything that can be bought and used) I've used, either by purchasing, borrowing, or promotional copy. Cents and Sensibility is up and running. I went back to some of my Amazon.com reviews and copied them over. I have a bunch more product reviews to transfer over but it's been slow going. I also have quite a few recent purchases I want to feature too. Today's review is of Trend Micro's Titanium Maximum Security software. I'd be honored if you'd hop on over there, read a review or two, comment, and follow me via Google Friend, Twitter or even Facebook, all 3 would be amazing! I don't have a blog button yet so please follow the below link!

Visit Cents and Sensibility!

My Baby Boy Riley

I realized that I haven’t posted about my little man for quite a while now!

He’s 5 months and 2 weeks old today.

Thought I’d compare the last 3 months of pictures, even if he’s not smiling!

Such a cutie!

Here are some from yesterday!

I’ll be working on my current In My Mailbox post shortly! I’ve been slacking.

Back to work and daycare!

Well it's officially that time: back to work.

I've been home since April 13th, delivered Riley on April 25th and will be returning to work on June 20th. Riley will be 8 weeks old!

I'm so grateful to the time I've had to stay at home getting ready for his birth and now the 8 weeks of watching him grow. I'm sad to have to leave him with strangers, even if it is at a very nice daycare.

The tasks we'll all have to overcome this week seem monstrous at the moment.

Me: Leaving my baby boy and little girl! Pumping! Working! Driving! Waking up (and staying up) early! (with NO coffee)
Riley: No mama for a whole day! Bottles?!!? (he still isn't taking one!) New people and a new place.
Madison: Making new friends and meeting new teachers.

The reward of picking them both up on Monday is going to be phenomenal. Only to have to turn around and do it again on Tuesday.

Riley is really going to have a terrible time if he doesn't buckle down and accept a bottle. I've been trying most of this past week getting him to take the ones I bought (Breastflow -- good for switching back and forth between breast and bottle) but I'm thinking I should have started a lot sooner or maybe I need to buy a different brand. He acts like the nipple is too firm. I'm going to look at different brands today to see if he'll accept something different.

I just hope he accepts one on Monday!

Madison is super excited about going to Noah's Ark. I have no doubt that this transition will go smoothly for her. She has a field trip the very first day! She gets to go to the pool every Wednesday and even a trip to the Antietam Dairy this Thursday!

Riley has his 2 month check up this coming week as well. I'm excited to see how much he's weighting now. He's such a big boy!

He'd been having fits every night for the past few weeks. Right around 7-8 pm he'd get super fussy and eventually vomits all over me. I've stopped drinking coffee this week and so far it seems to have helped. He hasn't vomited for the past 3 days. I was getting headaches w/o the coffee but that seems to have stopped just today. I miss drinking it so I may grab some decaf while at the store today.

Wish us luck for this week! We'll need it!
Until next week....

I’m back and Riley’s here!

Goodness it’s been forever since I’ve updated you guys! I have a few reviews written, they need formatted, so I’ll be sure to do that soon. I have at least one blog tour coming up and a giveaway so stay tuned!

Riley’s Birth Story

12:17 a.m., April 25, 2011

7 lbs. 9.3 oz.

21 1/4 inches long

Obviously by the title of this post you’re here to see some pictures of my newborn son, Riley Shane. He made his appearance just minutes after Easter Day. My water broke around 11:30 am on Easter, April 24, but we had a whole day’s worth of awesome to attend to and I wasn’t having contractions, nor was I Strep B positive so we went about our day.

Some people, mainly women that have had children before (mother-in-law Kim) thought I was crazy for not going to the hospital ASAP but I knew I wasn’t progressing and from my first birth knew it would be at least 6 hours before anything major happened and that it was safe to just hang out with family and friends before heading to the hospital.

So, on to my sister’s Easter Egg Hunt we went. Madison had some fun, we had a few bites of food, well hubby and Madi did, I was holding out for dinner with hubby’s dad’s family. :) We left there and I was comfortable, dripping a bit but comfortable. We dropped Madison off with hubby’s mom because we knew we’d proceed to the hospital from the dinner.

The dinner was great. I told myself to not eat too much because I knew I’d probably get sick at some point of the labor, and I did, but it wasn’t terrible.

We arrived at the hospital at about 5:00 pm. I was given Pitocin because I wasn’t contracting and they start to get worried if you’re not in labor within 6 hours of your water breaking. At about 9:00 pm I was in some pretty bad pain and they started to get me ready for my epidural. I requested some IV drugs to hold me over until the epidural was given. Stadol is my new friend.

I have no idea what time the epidural was actually given. I remember being so hot right before it was given and sweating profusely, so much so that the EKG pads wouldn’t stick to my chest and spray adhesive was used on those as well as the sticky tape that holds the epidural in place. The epidural was amazing. It worked so well that I couldn’t feel my entire right leg. I couldn’t move it to save my life. I had to ask several times during pushing for them to adjust it, the nurse was holding that leg and would put it down during contractions in the stirrup things but I could feel it wasn’t in there right. Any who, I only pushed through 4 contractions and Riley was born at 12:17 am on April 25, 2011. He weighted 7 lbs. 9.3 oz. and was 21 1/4 inches long. He cried so much when they were doing all they do to newborns I felt so bad for him!

It was such a great experience compared to my first labor and delivery. It’s amazing how much kind nurses, awesome doctors, and amazing drugs will do to make a situation so much better that you’d actually think about doing it all again. Only not really. ;)

Without further ado here are some of my favorite pictures. Please feel free to see the rest of Riley’s pictures in his Facebook album. And I just took this video a few minutes ago. He’s been doing a lot of grunting and throat clearing, or something, yesterday and today so I tried to capture the moment but instead I got him getting the hick ups, which he hates. Enjoy!

 

Riley Shane–1 Week Old

In My Mailbox: Week 7

In My Mailbox is hosted by Kristi of The Story Siren.

Here’s what I got this week! And some baby stuff too!

Review

What Happened to Goodbye by Sarah Dessen 416 pages, Viking Juvenile, (2011-05-10) $11.75 (Amazon.com)

And I already have an author signed copy of this one, so look for a giveaway soon!

Where She Went by Gayle Forman 208 pages, Dutton Juvenile, (2011-04-05) $9.99 (Amazon.com)

 

Free Kindle Editions

Retro Demonology by Jana Oliver St. Martin's Griffin, (2010-12-13) (Amazon.com) A Demon Trapper’s bonus story.

Baby Stuff

I told you last week that I ordered some things from Old Navy, well they came! I ordered 3 sizes of the middle outfit because I LOVE it!

We also picked up his furniture and spent all day Saturday putting it together. I LOVE it. I can’t wait to buy some accessories to finish off his room. We have a few final touches to do: install closet doors, paint touch ups, paint the mural, install new ceiling fan/light combo, install new blinds, buy a soft rug for the middle of the floor and paint the door white. (Click image for larger picture.)

Kitty Cookie Monster approves. We’ve caught her sleeping in the crib several times already. The other cats have been checking this out too.

I’m 30 weeks pregnant today. I’m hoping to delivery the week of April 11th, but not the 14th cause that’s my birthday and I want him to have his own special day; so about 6-7 weeks to go! I’m so ready for him too!

What did you get this week?

In My Mailbox: Week 6

I got a few books this week! And a few baby things too!

As always In My Mailbox is hosted by Kristi of The Story Siren.

Review

Bloody Valentine (A Blue Bloods Book) (Blue Bloods Novel) by Melissa De La Cruz 160 pages, Hyperion Book CH, (2010-12-28) $8.99 (Amazon.com)

Angel in My Pocket by Ilene Cooper 288 pages, Feiwel & Friends, (2011-03-15) $11.23 (Amazon.com)

Gift

A signed copy of this showed up on my door step with 5 little pins too! Thanks so much to Razorbill and Beth Revis!

Across the Universe by Beth Revis 416 pages, Razorbill, (2011-01-11) $9.89 (Amazon.com)

Free Kindle Editions

Raising the Dead by Mara Purnhagen pages, Harlequin Teen, (2011-01-17) (Amazon.com)

I pre-ordered this one:

How To Marry a Millionaire Vampire with Bonus Material by Kerrelyn Sparks 384 pages, Harper Collins, Inc., (2011-02-22) (Amazon.com)

Baby Stuff

I took a trip to Target and got a few frog themed items. I’m afraid that the things I see available for purchase now will disappear before people buy us anything for him. So, yeah, I’ve spent quite a bit on some clothes. Just last night I ordered a lot from Old Navy because, I <3 Old Navy, and they have some adorable frog outfits! Here’s what I got at Target:

See? Too cute! I’ll be sure to post the Old Navy purchases in next weeks IMM!

You can see our current baby registries. We have one on Amazon as well as Target. Both are pretty much the same but Amazon has some other items because they have the Universal Wish List option, where you can put items from any website on your list. I like that feature. Plus Amazon is usually cheaper than Target.

 

We also picked up his changing table from JCPenney yesterday but haven’t put it together yet. We were supposed to take home his dresser too, but it arrived damaged so we asked them to ship it back and try again. They were really great to work with and gave us 10% off the replacement dresser. I wasn’t there to see the damage, I was busy taking a 3 hour Glucose Tolerance Test, which sucked and ruined my day. I planned to paint his room but I had NO energy to speak of after I got home from the test. So, we’ll be trying to paint his room today. :)

What did you get this week?

Help Out a Little Girl!

The Story Siren, a very well known blogger, has posted about her cousin, Kaylea, who was just diagnosed with leukemia.

Please go to Krisit’s blog post about her cousin and see if there’s anything you can do to help this little girl. Just sending her a card I’m sure would make her day!

I wrote her a little letter and I ordered her Why, Charlie Brown, Why?: A Story About What Happens When a Friend Is Very Ill. I hope it helps them cope through this tough time.

Why, Charlie Brown, Why? by Charles M Schulz 64 pages, RAVETTE PUBLISHING, (2005-10-06) (Amazon.com)

Adorable Booties! And a baby update!

I haven't done much of a personal update about my pregnancy for a while but I just ordered some of the most adorable booties I've ever seen and I must share them!

I found this Etsy shop via a Pregnancy blog I follow, which is Pregnancy & Newborn: Baby Buzz.

Bison Girl Shop hand makes these adorable baby booties and I just had to have a pair. So I ordered these:

And then I saw that she also makes custom pairs too! So, I had her go shopping for some cute frog fabric, we picked our favorite and she went right to work! Here are the custom froggy ones:

Discount!

Erica (Bison Girl Shop) has offered 10% off her shop for my readers! Just enter COZYREADER11 before February 1st! Thanks so much Erica! She was such a breeze  to work with and I can't wait to order more of these! (psst... they're only $20!)

Our nursery theme is frogs and we already have a few froggy outfits so these will be  perfect additions.

You're probably wondering about our theme and thinking...hmm, frogs and blue and green are awfully boyish things. That's because we're having a boy!

We've already picked out his name: Rylie Shane (Shane is my hubby's middle name).

We're so excited about his arrival. We've started to transform our 6 year old daughter's, Madison, playroom into her new room. We've started painting and should have it done this weekend. Then we'll start on Rylie's room. We've ordered the bedding:

Click picture to see close ups.

We also ordered the matching crib mobile as well as the mural pattern as seen in this picture.

We also love the furniture in this picture so much that we tracked it down and hope to either order it ourselves or hope that maybe the grandparents can help fund the purchase. We have our old furniture but we'd love to get this dark wood as well as the advancement in safety this crib has to offer.

We had our 20 week anatomy ultrasound just before Christmas. Obviously finding out he's a he, we got a few great pictures.  Here are just a few:

To see the rest, feel free to check them out on my Facebook album. It's public so no worries about having to sign in or create an account.

All is well with little Rylie, however, my amniotic fluid measured in one point above normal so they want to double check it at 28 weeks, which will be February 7th. We're hoping to get another peek at Rylie. I'll be calling to find out if that's possible, otherwise I'll want to schedule a  private 3D/4D ultrasound with StorkVision, which we did with Madison and would hate to not have one for our son.

As of right now I'm 24 weeks and 2 days. I've been feeling good, definitely feeling pregnant. I've been sleeping pretty good since I treated myself to a maternity pillow. I haven't gained too much, about 10 lbs., so I don't feel like a whale quite yet. I gained 70 lbs. with Madison. I'm really hoping to get no where near that!

He is so active it's crazy! I've been able to feel him move since about 14 weeks and it's like he hasn't stopped since! He's so active I thought maybe there was something wrong but the doctors insist that it's not a bad thing when they move regularly, even if it's forceful, but to worry when they aren't moving enough. I'm glad that's one thing I don't have to worry about right now. :)

I'll be sure to update you with any more cute purchases as well as  updates from our next ultrasound.

Technorati Tags: baby booties,booties,Etsy,Bison Girl Shop

Oh Baby!

Thought I’d fill you all in on the topic of our household!

We’re expecting baby # 2! After 3 years of hoping for another baby it’s finally happened.

We went for our first appointment yesterday. All is well!

Baby is measuring in at 9 weeks, has a strong heart beat and was moving around a lot.

Our due date is technically May 3 but with the early measurements being above we're told it could be as early as April 29th.

I’ve been really tired and not doing much of anything except eating and sleeping. I’ve been reading a bit but not too much more than before. I can’t wait for a few more weeks to go by so I can get my energy back!

I hope you all are doing well! I’ll keep you updated as we go along.

Where I’ve been: WoW Addiction

I’ve been MIA because hubby and I have gotten sucked back into WoW (World of Warcraft).

We reactivated our accounts for Christmas, right before Christmas, and haven’t stopped playing until today when hubby had to return to the land of 9-6. :(

I went from level 70 to 80 in a matter of days and I’m running heroics daily to get my badges of Triumph to get better gear.

I’m dual specked holy heals and shadow dps. I prefer healing but use the shadow spec to run around questing. Gotta get my rep up. :)

Do any of you play WoW? Here’s my info:

 

If you play on our server let me know!

I hope you all had a great holiday season. I can’t wait to get caught up on my blog. I’ve updated the layout theme but I have a ton of reviews to write!

Up next is my In My Mailbox post! Stay tuned!

Happy (belated) Halloween!

I know, I know, I’m SUCH a slacker! But in my defense my wireless camera card stopped working so I’ve had to resort back to the old fashioned manual uploading of pictures. :(

Here’s a slideshow of Madison dressed up for Halloween!

She went as a pretty witch!

She even ran into a random black cat while out trick or treating!

Picture 4 is the BEST! :)

We hope everyone had a great time on Halloween!

My New Niece! Cadence Mariee (with 2 “e”s!)

We welcomed a new niece on Friday, November 6th.

Cadence Mariee

(my middle name and her daddy’s mom’s middle name, hence the 2 “e”s)

November 6th, 2009 at 7:42 am

8 pounds 4 ounces

19” long.

She’s a super cutie! She looks a lot like my daughter Madison when she was born! :)

Here are some pictures of her from just this evening.

Mom, Jennifer, my sister, and Cadence

 

Me, Madison (my girl) and Cadence.

Patrick, my hubby, and Cadence.

Isn’t she dear?!