Wordless Wednesday: Beautiful!

That's MY daughter!!

Super spring cleaning

If you know me personally, you know that I'm a CLEAN FREAK!!! I take spring cleaning literally and it lasts all spring. It's a great excuse for me to get to all the little projects I've been meaning to do all year. A few days ago, I pulled the stove out and cleaned behind and under it. The dried food bits between the stove top and the counter were really bugging me and I couldn't get at 'em. Of course I do all the normal stuff, but I also do things like this:

I completely take apart my vacuum attachments and clean them thoroughly. My husband thinks it's funny and always says: "Oh no!" when I tell him I've taken something apart because sometimes I have to have help putting it back together. I try to reach every nook and cranny in the house. I also make most of my own cleaners out of  natural ingredients. I use my vacuum a lot, it feels so gratifying sucking up dirt, dust and grime. I absolutely hate dusting, but using my vacuum makes it a little easier and faster.

What is your spring cleaning advice?

We won!

I love following other mom bloggers. A lot of them do product reviews and give away prizes. Recently I was fortunate enough to win a really cool prize: four homemade baby doll cloth diapers from one of my blogger friends, Beth, at Happily Domestic. Her blog is so awesome, she has all sorts of ideas for SAHM's like me. I was inspired by her weekly menu posts to start doing my own again. She recently hosted The Great Girl Event and personally sewed these these totally cute baby doll diapers to give away as one of the prizes!
Emma and I were really excited, here's how it played out:

"Look, Emma, a package for us!"

"Mom, what are these?"

"Mom! Open 'em!"

"What the heck, these will never fit me."

"See, that's how you do it."

"Oh, OK, I got it now"

"Please!" *see her signing it

She's an old pro now.

Thanks so much, Beth!

Emma is four months old!

**I know this is about 11 months overdue, but I was just editing posts and saw that it was still unpublished.

Emma had her four month doctor appointment today. She is 25 inches long and weighs 13 pounds. The doctor said that she is "the perfect specimen", so that was good to hear. Much to my delight, she only cried for a few seconds after getting her shot. She has quite the personality now, smiles and laughs all the time. She's rolling all over the place, as soon as I put her down on her back, she flips to her tummy. She's holding her head up and pushing up with her arms. She's grabbing for things and getting much better at holding her toys, she's even figured out how to grab the pacifier and take it out of her mouth and examine it. She's been trying some new foods, she had a Popsicle for the first time last week and licked on a piece of watermelon, it was pretty funny! We also tried rice cereal for the first time today and she loved it!

It's Friday Follow time again!

I'm Tamara, a SAHM of a 14 month old little girl. Just taking it day by day. I hope you take a moment to check out my blog.





Welcome to the April 16 Friday Follow celebration hosted by One 2 Try, Hearts Make Families and Midday Escapades! We invite you to join us every Friday to get more blog followers and to follow other interesting blogs. It is all about sharing and having fun.




Here's how YOU can join the Friday Follow celebration:
•* Link up your blog name and URL using the MckLinky below. Only need to add on one blog to be seen on all the blog hops.
•* Grab the Friday Follow button and include on your Friday Follow blog post.
•* Follow the Friday Follow hostesses listed in the first 3 slots.
•* Follow as many other blogs on the linky as you'd like
•* Take a moment to comment on the blogs telling them you're from Friday Follow
•* Follow back when you get a new follower through Friday Follow
The list is new each week. The links do not carry over. Please link up each week for new participants to find your blogs. The list is only open to add your blog links on Fridays. It will be visible all week to visit the blogs listed.

The great Orange Glo debacle

Never, I repeat, never, ever use orange glo hardwood floor cleaner. Of course, if you like having streaky, cloudy looking floors then go right ahead! For me, this was truly a case of  "the grass is always greener..." because my floors were just fine. I had always cleaned with my Shark steam mop, which uses only water to clean and sanitize! But, I guess I thought they could be even shinier (wood floors, at least the type I have are not meant to be super shiny), so I tried the Orange Glo floor refinisher that came with a dust mop I bought. After applying the product, the floor looked awesome and super shiny. Things went awry (sp?) the next time I went to clean the floor. I used my steam mop as usual and began to notice a greenish-gray filmy gunk collecting in front of the mop. It took me a minute to figure out that it was the film left behind by the orange glo. Gross!
I did some research and found out that there is nothing but negative talk about orange glo and many people are saying the same thing: "why is this product still allowed on the market?".  I couldn't even believe the amount of negative reviews out there! Apparently many a wood floor has been ruined by this product. Why oh why did I not do the research first?? I was definitley kicking myself. The orange glo website even recommends using ammonia to strip floors of their product! 
So, I got on my hands and knees with a bucket of ammonia and a rag and went to work. I could actually see the film coming up off the floor as I scrubbed. I really try to keep the cleaning projects I use safe and earth friendly, so I really hated to use such a strong chemical, but I wanted to get the floor back to it's regular state as quickly as possible and everyone said ammonia and water is the best way. I thik it'll take a couple more cleanings, but the floor is on it's way to being film-free.
What's the lesson here: if things are working fine, don't bother changing the routine! I don't know what I was thinking, but I'll never stray from my steam mop again!

The big 3-1!

Ok, so I originally planned to have this post done before my birthday, but, darn it! life gets in the way of my blogging. A day late, but here it is:


So, I'm turning 31 in a few days. I remember when I was younger and thinking that 30 sounded so old, but now that I'm here, it's nothing like I thought it would be. I don't really feel old, but I do feel like I've accomplished a lot. I also feel like this is the beginning of a new season of my life. On my thirtieth birthday last year, Emma was exactly 2 months old. My twenties were all about education, exploration and finding out who I am. I graduated college, lived by myself, had a couple serious relationships, tried a few careers, met my husband and got married. Obviously, my thirties are going to be about parenting, putting everything I've learned to use and hopefully raising a wonderful human being (and maybe a few more). I began my thirties with a newborn and in honor of my 31st birthday, I thought I would record 31 ways my life has changed/things I've realized since becoming a parent.

1. me time? what the heck is that?
2. I consider the day successful if I've showered and brushed my teeth
3. sometimes I find myself looking forward to an interaction with that annoying neighbor just to have some adult interaction
4. instead of putting a lunch order in for lucky dragon, I eat soggy peas and pasta off of Emma's tray
5. I never thought I could love someone so much and so unconditionally!
6. baby wipes are awesome and are very multipurpose
7. 6 hours of sleep, in a row is now exciting, not necessary
8. coffee is my new, rediscovered best friend! Emma's first word was "hot" refering to my coffee cup ;)
9. the staircase becomes the most fascinating thing in the world to a toddler and the most terrifying thing to a parent.
10. I sometimes have trouble relating my non-parental friends
11. I have a lot more respect for my parents now, parenting is HARD!
12. I've never thought so much about the future in my whole life
13. recycling and "living green" have a real, visible purpose now
14. there's nothing more entertaining than a baby first discovering a mirror
15. I can now shower in 2 minutes flat!
16. naps are so awesome!!!!
17. naps are so aweseome, yes, it's worth putting down twice!
18. I've realized that there are so many things that I though were vital that are just so unimportant now, because NOTHING is as important as my child!
19. being a mommy IS a job, so yes, I do work
20. there really is no need to buy expensive, fancy toys when the box is just as (or even more) entertaining
21. when you become a mom, you automatically grow eyes in the back of your head
22. poop is really no big deal, and someitmes it's even exciting
23. a baby's feet are quite possibly the cutest things in the whole world! and I am NOT a feet person!!
24. all women are warriors, but women who've given birth are goddesses!!!
25. multi tasking is no longer a stressful, once-in-a-while thing, it's a way of life
26. forget about "my kid won't do that/act that way..." because they WILL, no matter what you do
27. you can read all the baby books, read all the blogs and talk to all the moms you want, but your baby is unique and you have to do what is right for you and your family
28. I find myself being both more judgemental and more understanding of other parents
29. however long you think you'll need to get ready and leave the house with your baby...triple it (at least)
30. mashed fruit is yummy
31. my baby is the cutest, smartest, funniest and most precious baby in the world!!!!!!!!!!!!