Can I Get an Amen!?!

While checking out some crafting blogs tonight, I came across this article from CRAFT Magazine's blog:

CPSIA lead-testing law is delayed

This law, though well-intentioned, had me very nervous. For those of you who don't understand what it means, the gist of the law is that all products, from toys to clothing, that a baby or child (under 12, I believe) might use have to be tested for safe levels of lead. As mentioned, the law has good intentions. No one wants children to suffer the consequences of lead poisoning, and this is a wonderful step in the right direction of protecting children.

However, as written the law is very broad and written in vague terms, and because of this the law would adversely affect people for whom it was not intended. It was written mainly to target large scale producers of children's products, mostly overseas (China), who had been producing items with an exorbitant amounts of lead, which forced numerous recalls. Because of the law's vagueness it was to be applied to all producers, from giant corporations to small mom-and-pop ventures and parents who make handmade goods.

The lead testing would not have been a huge deal to a large company like Mattel who has enough money to cover the costs and still make a huge profit. It would be a huge deal to a small establishment like, say, a stay-at-home mom making children's barrettes in her spare time to supplement her income. The cost of testing each and every component of her product (which, as written in the law, is a requirement) would be far too expensive for this type of producer and would far outweigh and even eliminate any profits that stood to be made.

I do not at the time produce any sort of goods of this nature for sale, nor do I purchase a lot of handmade goods for my daughter, but I would like to increase the amount of handmade goods for Livers in the future. The things lovingly produced by smaller companies and indiviuals are far more unique and have more character than the mass produced ones of larger companies (in my opinion), and I wouldn't like this option removed for myself or anyone. We are a nation who believes in the American dream, and this law would have squashed that for A LOT of people.

The law is by no means repealed, but time has been bought for the handmade movement to see possible modifications to it that would still make the choice to go handmade profitable and possible for those who go that route.

As an aside, I have been spending more and more time recently on Etsy, a large handmade site, for ideas of things I can do and for things I can purchase for myself and family, and I was starting to see things like this creep up:

CRAYON LISTING ON ETSY


In case the above link is removed:


"Beginning February 10th, 2009 the Consumer Product Saftey Improvement Act (CPSIA) will require that each and every item intended for children under the age of 12 be tested for lead and phthalates. Congress is enforcing the belief that ALL children's items are toxic until proven otherwise. This includes clothing, bedding, toys, jewelry, car seats, etc.

The cost of this testing is astronomical and will decimate the handmade/small business community unless the act is reformed. We believe in protecting our children. With a few small changes this law can be effective AND practical!

♦This adorable set of 6 crayons (composed of 4 regular crayons each) is broken down in the following way:

24 components x $70 = $1680 for Lead testing
24 components x $350 = $8400 for Phthalates testing
Cost of original set: $4.95
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Grand total: $10,084.95

Please help save handmade! For more information visit: http://www.handmadetoyalliance.org/

♥~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~♥
Based on availability you may receive six of the following: Reds, Oranges, Yellows, Greens, Blues, Purples, Browns, or Black/Grays.

Each crayon:
♦ Is made with 4 Crayola® crayons
♦ Can be made in any color combination!
♦ Measures approx. 1½" x ½", the perfect size for little fingers!!

Your set will arrive packaged in a clear cello bag ready for gift-giving, or for the perfect rainy day treat for your little one!

These would also be prefect as a healthy alternative to candy for school valentine's! Simply use a contrasting color to write each child's name on a crayon. The possibilities are endless!

♥If you would like your order customized in any way please contact me! I am happy to individually wrap each crayon for a nominal fee. Larger quantities are available.♥

Each crayon is handcrafted, actual product may vary slightly! Children under 3 should be supervised to prevent choking."

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Though this looks like a joke--who would ACTUALLY pay $10000 for a bunch of handmade crayons?--if the law had gone in effect on February 10th as intended, this would be the price the producer would've HAD to have charged for his product in order to have made a profit recouping the cost of lead testing.

My sincere hope is that in the next year lawmakers can spring into action and make the necessary adjustments to this law that would allow it to still target corporations who produce shady products while protecting the small-scale producer (and consumer).

Budding Personality: Livers at 2

As sad to me as it can sometimes be to see my little baby slowly growing up, it is also amazing to see this once teeny tiny newborn developing her own personality, opinions and tastes. I always wanted a little girl. I'm not a girly girl at all, really, but I love the idea of having a little girl like me running around. Well, she certainly doesn't look much like me. Just see her dad if you don't believe me. However, her personality is in many ways mine, from our loud voice to our love of music, books, rainbows, and strawberries with whipped cream. I'm sure that she has picked a lot of her tastes up from watching me, and that's just fine. She's done the same with her daddy, hence the love of anything techie, football and basketball games, and the Food Network. It's so neat to watch her grow into this real little person with her own likes and dislikes, quirks, sayings, and sense of humor.

This is a snapshot of Livers' tastes at two:

1. The outdoors. She loves to go to the lake and pick up rocks, shells, and little treasures we find on the ground. If she'd not put them in her mouth she'd get to keep them. :) Tomorrow we're going to have a little Mother/Daughter day, and she requested we go there. How cute!
2. Playing with blocks. I must hear, "Mama do some blocks" a half dozen times during the day. She absolutely loves tearing them apart and making new things and telling me what she thinks she's made. We make an awful lot of mailboxes, leaf blowers, and crosses.
3. Puzzles. I don't know which she likes more, this or blocks, but it's a tight race. And I have no idea how good a 2-year-old is supposed to be with them, but she's quick. We'll probably need to pick up a few more on our M/D day tomorrow.
4. Painting, particularly watercolors. I probably need to do this with her a whole lot more than I do, because how will she ever get to express her creative side if I don't let her? It's fascinating to see some of the color combinations she comes up with by dipping her brush in all 8 paints and to watch her budding technique. I probably end up hindering her by hovering to make sure she doesn't dump all of her water out (or drink it) or eat the paint (which she does).
5. The Wiggles. All I have to say is let this be a passing phase. Don't get me wrong, the songs are far more tolerable than some stuff for kids out there, and the show is definitely cute. But not when she wants to listen to the soundtrack to Racing to the Rainbow all.day.long. I can only listen to "Here Comes the Chicken" and "Chew Your Food" so many times without going nuts. It is cute to listen to her sing the songs, and kinda funny when it gets stuck in HER head. :)
6. Dress up. This is new to our list. She had been just taking any clothes she left around and putting them on. I even got her a cute dress-up dress for her birthday which she completely ignored. Then last week Daddy put it on her, wings and all, and she has been wanting to wear it a lot. It's a little big, but she doesn't mind at all. She wanted to wear it on our walk around the block today but I thought it a bit much. :) She also LOVES to wear sunglasses. Whenever we're in the car if the sun gets the least bit in her eyes she requests my huge pair.
7. Reading, and subsequently memorizing the books. She loves to read, and as a result we have read a lot of books so many times that we can recite them. She's on a bit nursery rhyme and I Love You Because You're You kick right now.
8. Cooking. One of her favorite things, like many kids, is pretending to cook. Earlier today I found a frying pan in her oven, and she had set salt, syrup, and a lemon in it to cook. I don't know what she was intending to make, but at least it's creative!

It'll be interesting to see if she still likes the same things at three of if these are just a passing phase on her path to figuring out who she will become.

Mid-week Musings...

1. Why is it that the mornings where you are actually sleeping really well are the ones that you HAVE to get up early?
2. I like the smell of Indian curry...when I'm going to be eating it soon. Not when it's the first smell to greet you when you walk in your kitchen in the morning.
3. Cloudy rainy days make me sleepy.
4. J thinks I'm weird because of this, but when the temperature outside doesn't match the season (aka 70 degrees in the middle of January) it makes me depressed. However, I'm less so when it's unseasonably cool in the summer.
5. I'd like to move to my in-laws but only for the snow. No offense to my family, but western Ohio is kind of boring otherwise
   
6. Society has it coming to them if they call Jessica Simpson fat. I hope I do a good enough job raising Livers to love herself for herself rather than focus in on her body image the rest of her life. I could've saved a LOT of time and tears if I'd gotten over myself years ago.
7. I'm way too addicted to my computer. For poor Livers' sake I need to learn to stop.
8. Not all baby feet are cute.
9. There is something so peaceful and calming about a sleeping baby on your chest, even if it isn't your own child.
10. New LOST tonight. I'm giddy with excitement!
11. Why are babies such magnets for dog hair? I'm waiting for Livers and Little Man to crap out a little black dog. Really.
12. Why do delivery people have to schedule things during nap time? Mama's tired, too ;)
13. Wet dog smell is the worst. Especially in my nice, clean office.
14. The best? Your daughter calling out, "Give Mama kiss," to you as you lay her down for nap.
15. There's just something about Nancy Pelosi that makes me want to punch her in the face. I don't know why.
16. The voice that comes out of Rick Astley (aka "Rick Roll") astounds me to this day.

OK, that's enough randomness for one day. :)

P.S. Tonight's LOST was A-W-E-S-O-M-E!!! I can't wait to waste some time on Doc Arzt's Lost Blog or Lostpedia tomorrow! (If you're a LOST-nerd like me, check them out.)

Week in Review

As writer's block stretches into another week, I figure that one way to get some sort of idea out into the world might be to write one of my favorite types of posts: lists. I think one cause of my writer's block is not having a whole awful lot of importance to write about, and rather than make every post like a Seinfeld episode I'll just do a brief "Week in Review."

1. To celebrate a good friend's passing of her teaching National Boards we went to the Grove Park Inn outside of Asheville, NC, for brunch. Let me tell you, that is some seriously good food. Minus the way-too-strong-for-Sunday-morning mimosa of which I had approximately one sip. I told J that I need to come back here the next time I'm pregnant to really get my money's worth, because there's so much food and so many options that you end up making yourself sick trying to get it all in. Really. And it would be really fun to watch a pregnant woman shovel it in. :) Here's a shot from inside of the restaurant. More might come :)
2. I paid for the gluttony of Sunday morning well into Monday afternoon. At least it was the King's birthday and J had to day off to help watch Livers.
3. I didn't have to babysit Little Man, which was nice because I wanted some down time at home anyway.
4. I spent approximately 25,000 hours on Etsy looking at things (mostly rainbow-, jewelry-, and cute hat-related) I would like but really can't afford. I did, however, purchase an "I'm having a horrible hair day" knit hat and a shirt I've wanted for months and months.
5. I watched two movies that I liked, one more than the other: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (loved, loved, LOVED) and The Duchess (also loved, but not in the same way). I love myself a good period piece, and J was gracious enough to sit through it with me. TCCOBB (I'm not typing that twice) was spectacular, and my favorite movie by far of this short year. Last year my favorite movie was watched early on (Juno), and it might be the same in 2009.
6. NOTE: I need to post my 2008 Movie Rankings sometime soon. Just a little bit of anal-retentiveness on my part, but it is interesting to look back over a year's time and see what you thought was wonderful and what just sucked. Juno, Into the Wild, and Atonement: rocked. 1408, Smart People, and the Strangers: sucked. It's also neat to look back and see just how many movies I've watched.
7. We FINALLY get our new couch. We've been slowly making J a Man Cave in the basement, and we ordered a couch for it the day after Thanksgiving and it's coming on Wednesday. Just in time for a new LOST! As we've taught Livers to say, "Dude, that is sweet!"
8. I got to go out for my first girl's night out in forever. I don't have a whole lot of gal pals (that's a post in and of itself), but it was so much fun! We went to a really nice sushi/Japanese style restaurant and were there for 3 hours. I had some really good food, like a Soba Noodle Salad, which seemed questionable when I saw them bring it out but was divine, a boat of vegetable tempura, and a Tempura roll (I like it fried--I'm Southern); some delish plum wine, and mediocre tiramisu (one of my sweets of choice). We then went out to a local bar, and in true I'm-getting-older style I was home by midnight.
9. I watched and listened to more Wiggles than any one person should be allowed in their life time. That'll be another post...
10. I let the clean laundry sit in its basket for a week and counting...
11. I didn't do a single digital scrapbooking layout or read a single page in a book. I have GOT to change that, because these are things I love to do.
12. I did, however, end up mutilating my poor thumbnail. It split and I couldn't leave it alone, and it's going to be over a month before it looks decent again. Great image, right?
13. I watched LOST and loved it! I have since spent far too much time on the internet reading reviews, theories, and opinions about it, and it couldn't be more fun.
14. Hurricane Hissyfit finally passed. We should be back completely into calm seas by Tuesday. Thank.The.Lord.
15. Livers cut herself her first 2nd year molar. Wouldn't have even known it if I hadn't have peeked into her mouth while brushing her teeth to see what was going on. She is the best tooth-cutter EVER, because we have had nearly zero trouble with any of the 17 she's cut, even molars.
    

It can be really hard to look back at a whole week and figure out what I did/what happened! Maybe I SHOULD do this weekly, for posterity's sake at least.

Hopefully my writing brain will return full force this week, because having less than ten posts in a month is kinda pathetic. And if it doesn't, then see you next Sunday! :)

Get LOST!!!

No, this is not some sort of ill-tempered follow-up to yesterday's post.

Tonight marks the moment that I've been waiting for for what seems like the last

4 years, 8 months, 15 weeks, 16 days, 23 minutes, and 42 seconds.

If you don't get it by now, then run over HERE and get yourself very quickly acquainted with only the BEST show in the universe.

Here's to hoping that I can get Livers to bed early so I won't be watching my 3 hour extravaganza until 1 in the morning!

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Calling the Makers of Midol!

I have got PMS something fierce.

Words have been yelled. Tears have been shed. Hair bows have been thrown against bathroom walls and intentionally broken. Threats of head-shaving have been uttered.

I don't know what the deal is, either. I used to NEVER get PMS. No mood swings, no cravings, no cramping. The past few months, though, have been getting steadily more ridiculous. It started with late-night chip and sweet-eating escapades, and it seems a new symptom is getting added each time it comes around.

Today it all started with me trying to get ready and Livers turning on EVERY (and I mean EVERY) electronic device in my bedroom, and I just lost it. I need to do some fierce apologizing. I then tried to tame the rat's nest that is my hair today, and that's when it ALL came out. I usually don't wash my hair at night, but I did yesterday and my nerves are paying for it. I couldn't get it to look half-way decent to save my life. I threw away numerous elastics and seriously took a hair clip and repeatedly threw it against the wall. It did make me feel better, but then I started to cry. I am NOT someone who curses, either, and I let three too many f-bombs fly. Good thing I was locked in the privacy of my way-too-tiny bathroom so little angel ears couldn't hear it.

I'm glad for J not being here, either, because with my hormones being what they are someone would've been ripped a new one. (Probably me, because no one wants to be railed into during their lunch break.) I have to go to the grocery store soon, but unfortunately I don't think they sell a bona fide Chill Pill. I've calmed down for now, but I'm sitting here waiting for something else to set me off. Let's hope that no living thing is within shouting distance when it happens.

P.S. I need to invest in some cute hats a la Dirty Socks and Pizza pronto. I think that could've prevented this morning's mini-meltdown.

Sweet Smiles and Potty Seats

For the record, it is about impossible for a person with writer's block to attempt to write on their blog (or anything else) while watching The Pineapple Express....


Last night we ate a very colorful meal, to say the least. We made some wonderful pesto (and will be eating off of it for days and days), had leftover super sweet mashed potatoes (thank you loads of marshmallows and brown sugar), and a whole carton of strawberries with whipped cream. You might wonder where this comes into play with the picture. Well, we put Livers in the bathroom so she could get a shower and J wanted to show her her major whipped cream mustache. She got really amused looking at herself, and then she noticed she had a little bit of strawberry left on her chin. She thought she had a boo boo and kept touching it and laughing.

Yesterday was also a very big day for Livers.

Why?

She went potty in the toilet like a big girl for the first time!!!

We were so excited and she got really excited, too. Probably because we were praising her so much, but she did nevertheless. We had noticed that her diaper had been dry the past few mornings after waking, and while I know relatively little about potty training I do know that it's a good sign that readiness is on its way. I told J to put her on the potty and see what happens. He sat her down, and she felt very proud of herself to be on the big girl seat, but she wasn't doing anything so he turned on the water in the bathtub. While it was running he noticed that she was actually going, so he turned it off and she looked down and said, "Water!", noticing that it was coming from her.

I know that she's really not there yet. This morning, for example, she was soaked when she woke up, and she doesn't seem to understand the urge to pee at all (we're getting there with poop), but it's a beautiful step in the right direction. As long as she's (hopefully) ready by three...or whenever a sibling is born in the future...then I think we'll be happy.

It seems so strange that I'm excited and a little sad at the same time. I'm happy that the road to a diaper-free life is being traveled, but I'm teary-eyed that my baby is not really a baby anymore.

How to Give Me a Heart Attack First Thing in the Morning

If you're wondering, it's leave the gate to our backyard open so that when I go to let the dogs out in the morning they have free access to the whole wide world, as far as their little paws can carry them.

Livers and I went to take the trash out this morning, and when I opened the garage door there was Molly in the driveway, looking slightly confused by all of her freedom. Lacey was nowhere to be found. I felt my heart drop to my knees and first put Molly's jail-break butt back into the yard and started frantically calling for Lacey. Luckily she hadn't ventured that far (but she DID come in the direction of a very busy road) and she happily and obediently tottered down the driveway to be promptly put back in the yard.

I'm glad this had a happy ending, but just the mere thought of what could've been makes me positively sick.

So how is your morning going???

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P.S. Sorry for the lack of decent writing these days.... :( I'm having a serious case of writer's block/nothing of interest going on.

Misty Water-Colored Memories...

Everyone has moments in their history that stick out in their mind forever. Whenever that date comes around again, they can't help but think back to that time, replaying it in their heads. One such time for me happened two years ago this night. It's not a particularly special story, but it's one that was a turning point for me.

It was a Sunday evening/night. We'd had Livers home from the hospital for two days, and we thought we had it EASY. She was eating good, sleeping good, not fussy at all. We both had been able to sleep some, and we thought we had such a handle on it that we told my mom that she didn't need to stay that night to help. We'd be able to take care of things ourselves.

Things took a turn for the worse at approximately 10:30, give or take a few minutes. Livers wasn't the best nurser to start with. She only would use a shield, and we only had two. Around this time J and I decided that we'd both pack it in early. He had his first day back to work from paternity leave, and he needed to get some sleep. I didn't know when the next feeding would come, and I wanted to be ready. We get things a little straight in the den, and as I'm heading back to the bedroom I casually ask J, "Don't forget the nipple shield."

"Umm, where is it?"

"It should be--"

But it wasn't.

Thus began the worst night ever. We tore the house up for a good thirty minutes trying to find that shield. It wasn't so much that it was lost, because we had a spare, but more so where it might be. You see, our darling dogs, particularly Lacey, had quite the penchant for eating things they shouldn't. We were really worried about them eating the nipple shield, because it was large and we were afraid that their bowels would get obstructed and they'd die. We took it so far as to call an emergency vet to get their advice. They said we could bring them in or wait it out, and we decided to take the latter, because we knew that dogs were known to eat some pretty funky stuff and be just fine.

We went to bed almost an hour later, upset and afraid that just as soon as our little baby was born one of our fur ones would be leaving us. Not so cool.

I'd finally managed to fall asleep around midnight or so, and wouldn't you know it that a mere hour (at most) later sweet little Livers was up and hungry. That's fine, I said. She's my sweetie and she's hungry. We'll be OK. She nursed happily, and when she finished I took her back to her room to rock her back to sleep. However, she had much different plans. She was absolutely wide awake and mad as a hornet. I rocked and rocked, sang and sang, walked and walked, jiggled and jiggled her seven pound butt up and down the hallway for two solid hours. The sound of her angry cries were about to drive me insane.

Looks can be very deceiving when they are peacefully sleeping.

I finally had had enough and went to rouse J for some help, and he was not.happy.at.all. He had work the next day and needed his sleep badly, so he was in no mood to walk the floors and let me know it. He gave up after five minutes and that was that. I went back to rocking and singing and dancing and jiggling the **cute little angel** for another thirty minute and finally had some success.

Two hours and thirty minutes after she woke she finally fell back asleep at 3:30 in the morning.

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I know this is an old story. It's just one of those things that sticks out in my mind so blazingly that I had to write it down for posterity's sake. (It doesn't help that I'm starting digital scrapbooking--I think I'm in love :)--and need to write this stuff down.)

That night was truly a turning point for me as a parent, because it let me know in a bad way how difficult the road of parenthood could truly be. It taught me to surrender myself to the job of mother and to start learning to expect--and embrace--it's curve balls, because if I didn't I'd be down on my @ss so fast it'd make my head spin. And from that point on there have been very few "I want to hit the door" moments for me that stick out in my mind. Yes, there have most CERTAINLY been difficulties, but I've been left with the knowledge that they are there for a brief moment in time, and I always remember during those hardships the phrase that "this, too, shall pass."

I Like Cake!

Who doesn't, really? Especially delicious store bought ones. Yummy in my tummy!!!....

These are from Livers' 2nd birthday party. Feel free to send truckloads of OxyClean our way.







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Happy Wordful Wednesday!

Happy 2nd Birthday, Little Livers!

Dear Livers,

As I'm sitting here, with you snuggled cozily in your bed, I can't believe that it has really been two years since you've been born. Two years ago at this moment your Nana was intervening on my behalf for a C-section, as you were quite content to stay nestled in my womb for as long as absolutely possible. I was so tired and in pain, but all I wanted was to look down on the face of the angel I'd been dreaming about for nine months...and really, for my entire life.

I don't know if you burst on the scene quietly or with gusto, as I was knocked out with anesthesia, but you have let us know of your joyful presence ever since. You're not a fussy child (except when you're throwing a tantrum or two), but you most certainly inherited your mother's big mouth. Not that there's anything wrong with that. :) You are quite the verbal little child and you are talking in sentences just like a big girl now. You never cease to amaze me with what might come out of your mouth next, and that daily adventure is what makes the coming morning worth it every day. I love to hear your voice singing throughout the house, especially now that you are making up songs of your own. I never know what I'll hear next sung to the tune of "Jingle Bells"!

You are quite the busy little bee, just like when you were in Mommy's belly. I ache at times to feel your little pokes, prods, and rolls from inside my stomach, and it makes me sad sometimes not to be able to feel you so close, but all I have to do is look up and I'll catch you running swiftly up and down the halls, often with something you're probably not supposed to have. Those moments when you slow down, just for a bit, and run into my arms and tell me, "I love you, Mama!" make my day, and I could live a lifetime on the memory of these sweet little moments between us. I hope that as you get older that we will get closer and closer and have the kind of relationship your Nana and my Nanny had.

Every time I look at you I see your wonderful Daddy. You have his same eyes, and when you're not giggling and shouting, his same serious stare. For what you lack in my looks, though, you make up for with my inherited personality. You're not a girly girl, just like me. You loved stuffed animals, but only one bald-headed little baby doll you've named "Carla" catches your heart. You love to play with blocks, read books, pretend to clean, and move things from place to place in your own particular manner. Sesame Street has captured your heart, and you already have a love of rainbows. You love to hug on Molly and Lacey, even if they don't want to. You love to play with (and occasionally eat) crayons and to paint. You could listen to music all day long if I let you, and your passion for the Beatles (and a budding one of Coldplay) gets me very tickled. You are very loud and outgoing, just like I was as a child, and you talk up a storm.

Though it has only been two short years, I truly cannot imagine my life without you. I look forward to all of the adventures you, your Daddy, and I will be having together next year, from (hopefully) potty training to possibly moving to a big girl bed and so much more. I love you more than you'll ever know and my heart bursts with pride and love for you every second of my life.

Always your love, your comfort, and your friend,
Mama.

January 4, 2007

January 5, 2008

January 2, 2009
your actual birthday, right after you woke up this morning

Happy 2009!

I want to wish everyone a very happy 2009! I hope that everyone had a wonderful holiday season and that the upcoming year is spectacular!

It's been a very busy past week and a half. Between Christmas and New Years we've gone to/had four parties and have driven over 1100 miles to visit our Ohio family, so it's been a little hectic! I'll be returning to blogging again very soon. Until then I'll keep lurking and thinking of things to write!

Happy New Years!