New York, New York!

I love New York City! I love theatre, fashion and culture. You find this all when visiting the big apple. We took a family vacation and this was our first stop. We stayed in a very old hotel which has such an awesome contemporary style to it as well. It was only a block from time square and was located in the theatre district. This was Corey's first time ever to NYC. He drove into fearless and didn't believe the "stories" of how crazy busy it is! Lets just say he was surprised.

Our first day there we went to an amazing restaurant "Babbo's" There is such a difference in real Italian food compared to Olive garden. It was delish! If you ever in NYC, I highly recommend this restaurant! It very simple and elegant. Just a small location with a beautiful curtain when you walked into the door.

Our second day there we were able to catch the ferry over to the statue of liberty. I have always wanted to see it. It was such a beautiful island. We toured the inside of the statue and climbed up her to see how beautiful NYC looked. It was so breath taking! They have a small museum at the bottom where they have all the facts about it which was very interesting. After done touring we just stayed on the island for a little and relaxed under the shade tree and let Kerhia run around. It was very relaxing and enjoyable!

You would think that we came to NYC to only eat.. well we kinda did. We had dinner at the "The Maze" Gordon Ramsey's restaurant. Yes, the mean guy from Hell's Kitchen. Another amazing meal. We ordered the chef's pick for the night which is a five course meal. I can't even explain how good it was! Kerhia enjoyed her butter noodles and we enjoyed amazing gourmet food.

On the third day we spent the day shopping. Who goes to NYC without a full day to shop! We also got to do something very special with the girls. We took them to American girl to purchase their first American Dolls! Not only did we do that but we had the dinner with your dolls. I seen it on "Jon & Kate plus eight" when they were a thing still.. So sad! But anyways, I saw it on there and promised I would take the girls one day! It was such a fun experience. Even at age one Kerhia enjoyed it! They made it so.. GIRLY! They had hair bows to take home as napkin rings and of course they brought out tea for your doll to enjoy as well. I will for sure be taking the girls again when they get older.

That was such a fun trip weekend in New York City. P.S. don't even try the subway. We did and lets just say we walked right out and got a taxi! (haha)

Corey says he will never go back because of how busy it was.. but I know that won't happen cause I can't wait to return to visit!

xx.

Wait, is it actually quite!

Hello everyone! Your long lost friend is back. Yes, four months later! I finally got the girls on the exact same sleeping pattern! They nap and go to bed at night together. Yippee!

So much has happened. We of course had Mia in April, we moved into a new home in Vienna at the end of May, we were vacationing from the end of June-July and now it's almost the middle of August! Woooah! Goal for fall is slow down. I want to just enjoy this fall/winter.

Here is the family update..

Mia is doing wonderful! She is now four months old and weighs 12lbs. She is such a happy baby always cooing and smiling. It is amazing to see her face light up when Kerhia sits to play with her... well really Kerhia gets in her face and yells but Mia loves it! We had a little scare because she is having problems with her bowel movements and they are going to run some test just to make sure that there is nothing wrong. Which I am so grateful that her pedi cares enough to look even though it doesn't seem to be affecting her weight gain or health. I think she has some allergies going which isn't to surprising when we live in "pollution city", but please continue to keep her little behind in your thoughts! (haha)

Kerhia Ann Stacy... oh where do I begin! She is such a joy! She has such a little personalty that you can tell she will never know a stranger and I love that about her. Can you believe she will be two in two months! I know everyone says "It feels like yesterday I was having her". Well it does! She is such a healthy little girl. When we moved to West Virginia I had to start birth-three which is a program where they come in and make sure that your kid is up to date on their learning if they have a reason to be watched. She has had someone coming in since she was such a little early bird. They did a speech eval and she qualified to have a speech therapist. I am so excited to start Monday working with her. Kerhia has a very small vocabulary of words but she can sign like crazy! I honestly believe with a little pushing she will be talking in no time and not shutting up! (haha) For goodness sakes she can't say many words but she will say "Spongebob". I think she is holding it all in to surprise us all one day! She also will have an OT come out to eval her for a sensory delay on Monday as well. That is a whole different blog post that I will do!

Corey Dene.. where to begin.. Yes, you all know that his little handsome self crossed the stage at OVU to graduate with a B.A. in Business! Well April fools to us.... we came to find out that he didn't. He still needs 3 more semesters of school! I know, I know.. I want to cry! He will be going back to school this fall! Wish him luck. Other than that he is doing great!

ohhh... me... let's see. I just basically told you my life! Well I am now on the board of MOMS club and I am having such a fun time! I love having the chance to meet such great mothers.

Be prepared for many more posts to come to catch up with things.

Yes, I am back!

xx.

I have not forgotten you!

I know, I know.
I have not been able to blog. Life has just really been a trip. I have so much to write about that I don't even know where to begin. I have stories to share about Mia, Kerhia, vacation, our new house and Corey's schooling.
Hoping one day I will get a chance to type away.

Nantucket Nights

I have not had much time for reading but once I started this book I just couldn't put it down. I love the writing style that Elin Hilderbrand. Her books are so easy to read and stay with the story even if you get interrupted every once awhile by a hungry child or crying.
Nantucket Nights is about three women who have been friends now for twenty years and have such a great relationship that they don't ever think that something could go wrong. They are completely different woman. You will meet Kayla who is your average stay at home mom who worships the ground her kids and husband walks on. She is insecure, has no time for herself and doesn't exactly know who she is other than a mother of four. Val is a lawyer who everyone in their small town thinks is a B***h. She wears designer clothes, drives an expensive car and is in an unhappy marriage. Antoinette is the strange one loves to dance, drink wine and live the life of being alone. They all have an agreement to meet at the end of summer every year to share their secrets and be there for one another. Well this summer their friend Antoinette ends up missing while swimming out in dangerous water and is believed to have drowned. With her disappearance brings out all the secrets that will forever separate but connect the women in all new ways. Kayla's life comes crashing down and the who island of Nantucket is there to hear about it.
I highly recommend this book if you are looking for a great read that you can't seem to put down!

Another member to our growing family..

Mia Alexandria Stacy was born.

6lbs. 0 oz. 19 inches bundle of joy

April 9, 2010

We are excited to welcome a new beautiful little girl into our family. I went into labor April 8th, 2010 due to red raspberry leaf tea! I had been having contractions but they were not staying consistant enough to go into L&D. So after some reasearch Corey and I went out to Mother Earth's food to purchase this miracle tea. I did not have too much faith in the tea working to help progress my labor. We went there at 4:30 p.m., then came home to start drinking some tea and was admitted into L&D at 7:00 p.m.! Labor was not an easy one. After 18 1/2 hours, Mia decided that she would go ahead and come out into this world. She is in great health and such a great edition to our family.

What kind of Discipline..

"Discipline is a symbol of caring to a child. He needs guidance. If there is love, there is no such thing as being too tough with a child. A parent must also not be afraid to hang himself. If you have never been hated by your child, you have never been a parent"

  As a new mother I am trying to learn ways to discipline Kerhia to raise her into a nice young lady with great manners. We are learning the methods that work and don't work. One thing that I have realized as a parent is that you have to be open to new ideas. I always find myself reading other mom blogs to see what they do in a situation and how it works out for them. I love to read books on how to raise children and ones that others mothers write just about there everyday life. It makes my life seem normal!
  A big question recently came up with my discipline. Kerhia is going through the wonderful stage of hitting people. I will give you a little background on Kerhia's personality. She is very outgoing, doesn't seem to ever meet a stranger, loves attention and will do everything it seems to push your buttons. One thing that I have started to learn with Kerhia is that time out does not work yet, yelling doesn't phase her and light spanking will grab her attention for me to get her to listen to me. She was playing at the hot dog "MOV's kids playground" and she loves the frog they have there. Well another little girl came up and touched the frog. Kerhia then decided to smack the girl as hard as she could to get her to not touch the frog. I picked her right up and she went into a tantrum and wouldn't focus her attention to me. So then I gave her bottom a little tap just enough to let her know I was serious I needed her to listen to me. Well another mother had the nerve to mumble "She wouldn't hit if she wasn't hit at home!" She is lucky that I just walked away I could have shared some unfriendly comments on that one! I do see her point that it maybe confusing her a little but what do you do when that is the only way to grab your daughter's attention? I can't have her hitting other children or me!
  I would never ever spank my kid where there was a mark. I think that is excessive and should not be done. I don't think that a child should be spanked so they feel pain or have fear. I think it should be controlled to a point of them knowing you are serious. All I am wanting to do is raise a well mannered christain child.
Obviously, the mother who said something to me does not have well mannered children because just her statement to shows the lack of respect.

Everyone loves a Giveaway!

Another mother's blog that I follow is having a giveaway on her blog! I truly follow this mother's blog and love to read what she always has to say!

When I read about this giveaway I knew I had to participate. She is giving away the Deluxe Edition- "The Jesus Storybook bible". Corey and I have been trying to find a great way to begin to introduce the bible to Kerhia. Grabbing a child's attention on something so serious I believe needs to start at a young age. After reading her blog entry I knew right away that this way a must have in our household! She sold the book to me perfectly! Corey is now working a job that doesn't always allows Sundays off so we barely get to attend church which a big deal to me, I have always wanted church to be a big part in raising our kids. So hopefully with prayers Corey will be able to find a job that will better allow us to give our girls that opportunity.

Well back to the giveaway, if you are interested in finding a book that better explains the bible to a young child, I would definitely read her blog post about this book and have a chance to win it! I know if we are not the winners, I will purchase the book to give it a try! http://danaelaineellis.blogspot.com/

Must "haves" for a newborn.

Here are a few things that I think are a must have now for newborns that aren't on the lists when you google. I would love to have feedback on this post on what you think is a must have in your household. With Mia's arrival approaching soon I want to make sure I am prepared to be a mother of two beautiful little girls.

1. Bobby pillow: is a horseshoe shaped pillow that has multi-purposes from birth to about the age of one. It is great for nursing so that it is relief on a mother's back and arms. You can also lay the baby on his or her stomach to give them time to work on holding their head up and work the muscles needed. It is machine washable and dryable! Tons of slipcovers to pick from as well to change up the style.

2. Hooter Hider: For nursing mothers this a great solution! No more worries about the blanket falling while breast feeding and everyone seeing what you were trying so hard to cover. They come in all kinds of different designs and don't look like a big bulky cover up. It is made with a light-weight material so overheating for the infant and you are not a concern. You can also use the light- weight hooter hider for a blanket or sun cover up when needed.

3. The baby sling: Is used from newborn-toddler aged children. No worries about buckles or any loops. It is all material, so then again you have so many beautiful patterns to choose from. Easy way of getting a baby in and out. Helps support weight of a child to help mothers carry with out back and arm strain. Has ways of keeping a newborn close to the body so that they still have the snug feeling as before. Easy to move around while shopping instead of pushing a stroller through aisles.
4. Mommy hook: With all the bags you have to carry after having children it is a complete pain trying to get your purse, diaper bag and shopping bags in and our without dropping something. With the mommy hook you can hook your bags onto it and easily snap on to the stroller. When getting back into the car you unsnap the hook and all bags stay on hook for easy carrying into the house.
5. Crib rail protectors: We bought the 3 in 1 crib for Kerhia and thought that was the best idea ever. Except we did not know Kerhia would eventually become a little beaver and chew the rail of her crib like crazy. So now the rail of her crib which will one day be the foot board of her bed is now a chewed up mess! So with Mia we invested in a teething cover for the crib.



These baby items make my top 5 list. What do you think is a must have newborn item in your home?

Daddy was MAD!

Mothers' know when we take our kids to the park or a playdate that there is a chance that someone is gonna get hurt, cry, hurt someone or just ruin the trip. Of course, our kids are never bad and would not hurt another kid, Right! Well Corey doesn't take Kerhia places often with his schedule.
 Yesterday, we took Kerhia to the famous MOV hotdog in the mall. There was another kid there I'm guessing about 2 1/2 years old. He continued to follow Kerhia and just playing like a boy does. It was clear as day that there was a lack in parenting. You expect that when going somewhere, it's sadly becoming the normal child. There is going to be a kid that has parents that don't have the same parenting structure you do and you can not avoid it.
 Kerhia began to follow him cause he was showing her attention and she thought he wanted to play. Well the little boy turned around a full forced pushed Kerhia down. As a mother of course I run to Kerhia see if she is okay and then take her to the other side to go play. I leave it at that, the mother did come get the boy and put him in time out. I didn't have to approach her for the benefit of my sanity. My husband was furious! I am talking about steaming mad!!  What is it that makes mothers and fathers different in that situation??

"Mommywood"

I love reading and thought I could add this to my blog. I am going to post a little review on every book that I read and then that can give you some idea if you want to read the book as well. I know as a busy stay at home mom, my reading is my time!! I love to get caught up in a book and forget about all the laundry, cleaning or feeding that needs done for a little bit.


I just finished reading "Mommywood". I picked this book because I was a huge 90210 fan. I also enjoy reading books that are written by other mothers'. I love getting new advice and ideas that other moms do.
Well Mommywood isn't as good as I thought it would be. It had it's funny parts and was an easy quick read. Being a mother of a girl she talks about the problem of dirty diapers going up the vajayjay. She has a phrase that really tells it all "Poo up the Pus" kinda diaper! I about died laughing cause I know that I have had million of those moments! I really couldn't relate to a lot that she had to say about raising her kids.. Maybe, cause I am not a millionaire would be my guess. haha. She did though want to live the normal mom life and I really agreed with her on that. She wanted to live in a small neighborhood where everyone knew each other and kids played all summer long together. I know as Corey and I are getting closer to buying our final home that it is on my list of musts! Her personality did seem to remind me of myself some. In the book she talks into details about how she is scared of everything and anything pretty much. Not a lot of people know that but that is totally me! I can come up with a scary situation for everything. If Kerhia is doing something that looks harmful and is having fun, I could list you all the ways she could get hurt by doing it more than looking at the fun part. She is such the party planner as well and that is something I love to do! I would host something at my house every week if I could come up with things to do. She has the goal of making birthdays a big event for her children and that is something I always wanted to do as well. She had live monkeys at her son's first birthday bash.. Sorry, kids I don't think there will ever be any monkeys on our guest list!
That is my review on the book "Mommywood" hope my blog was any help to you about reading the book or not.

Can I be a SuperMom, please?

Yes, I need some classes! I am wondering how you all do it!! Being a mom is so rewarding and I love every second of it. As we get closer to the toddler stages I have realized that it only gets crazier but what I have realized about those crazy moments.. they will never be forgotten!!

I have to tell you all about my adventure last night! All day I was excited to get out of the house to go to family night that was held at our local mall. It was going to be a great night. Daddy had to work and it was going to be a girls night out! Plus it gave me an excuse to go to the mall, hehe. I was all set and ready for a fun night. We got there a little early so I went in and changed Kerhia so I wouldn't have to worry about a dirty diaper while we were having fun. We decided to stroll around and do some shopping. Daddy wasn't there to say "NO".. Well Kerhia got a very serious look. So I knew right away I should check her diaper. Guess what, there was no poop in the diaper..but all outside the diaper!! How did this manage to happen??! I didn't have a change of clothes with me and it wasn't like it was a mess to clean up then throw her in the car and go home! It had to be taken care of! So, let me remind you I am almost 8 months pregnant! RUNNING with a child covered in poop into JcPenny's trying to get to the kid's section to buy an outfit. I had no choice!! So I get into JcPenny's and realize that all their summer/spring wear is out! They had one little clearance rack with some winter clothes.. of course none of them were her size! I had no choice but to buy a shorts outfit with a cute little shirt. I bought the outfit and ran to the family bathroom and spent over half an hour in there trying to clean up. I got her nice and cleaned and in her new summer outfit. She looked to cute, except for the fact it is still the middle of February! I was now determined after all that work that I was going to take her out there to have some fun with the other kids. So now here I am with a 17 month old little girl in the middle of winter in a pair of blue shorts and plaid tank top! I looked like a horrible mother and I know every mother passing by me was thinking "That poor kid."

Well we finished the night having a good time! Kerhia got her face painted into a little kitty cat (her favorite animal). I will never forget about our night out to the mall together now.. All though it was one of the most stressful nights I have had.. I realized that is what motherhood is about. All though I will never be a supermom.. I will have memories that I will get to tell her about when she is a teenager and we are out shopping for a pair of shorts.

Two things that I can't live without..

As a SAHM these are the two things that I have realized that I can not live without.

Bounce Dryer Bar-
The scientist who created this had to be a stay at home mom! No dryer sheets. No more finding dryer sheets around your house after a day of doing laundry. The clothes Smell so fresh that it is unbelievable. I didn’t believe in this little magic bar at first. Now I will tell everyone and anyone I know to buy it! They even tell you when it needs replaced, so you don’t have to worry about trying to remember when you purchased it! It is a must have in our home product!

Deep Covered Baker- This is a Pampered Chef stoneware. As any wife or mother, you know that their stoneware is AMAZING! Well this tops it. The deep covered baker can make a chicken in the microwave in 30 minutes! As a consultant, I didn’t even believe that it would work and it does. No one even realized that it was done that way either. The moisture of the chicken amazed me. Also my other favorite recipe for it is a pasta meal done in 16 minutes! As a stay at home mother we don’t always feel like cooking a huge full course meal after dealing with kids all day! Well the deep covered baker saves us, our husbands think we spent all evening slaving in the kitchen when we really only spent 30 minutes or less! It is both safe for the oven and microwave. I have a ton of recipes for it. From soups, dinners, desserts and more!! We love having a variety of meals!

Just thought I would share with you the two things that I can not live with out in my home! What is it that you can not live without?