LIFE AS WE KNOW IT

Giveaway Winner

noreply@blogger.com (Amber) — Wed, 16 May 2012 00:45:00 +0000

I'm a day later than I said I'd be posting the Fashion to Figure giveaway winner, but at least it's better than being a week late. Right?

Right.

So, without any additional preamble, the winner is...

Cam from The Real Life of a Modern Wife!

Congrats, girl! Email your info to me at Ber611 at aol dot com and I'll get you all set up.

Thanks so much to the handful of you who entered! I still love my blog and everything that goes along with it, including giveaways, and those of you who continue to share it with me are very much appreciated.

Guest Post: Create a Spa-Like Bedroom Using Your Sense of Smell

noreply@blogger.com (Amber) — Sat, 05 May 2012 12:37:00 +0000

I'm happy to have Sierra back to guest post again today! I have a particular fondness for the topic of scent in your home, since it relates to my much-loved Scentsy. Thanks for posting, Sierra!

_____________________________________________________________________

I'm back and Amber was kind enough to let me guest post again, this time with an article from my Paige One business. Thanks Amber and this post definitely reminds me of your amazing Scentsy business! :)

A step to creating a spa-like oasis out of your bedroom is to think about your sense of smell. There’s a lot of psychology behind a person’s sense of smell- for instance, a scent can boost a person’s mood, bring memories to mind, or even conjure romance. Introducing aromatherapy into your bedroom is a great inexpensive way to improve your level of relaxation and reduce anxiety.

{via Amber's Scentsy page}

Citrus scents like those with orange notes are not only known to reduce anxiety, they have been proven to subliminally encourage people to clean or keep spaces tidy. Scents of cedar and lavender are known to reduce tension. The scent of vanilla is commonly used while medical tests such as CAT scans are performed to help people remain calm. It has been shown that jasmine helps with a person’s quality of sleep and reduces their level of anxiety when he or she wakes up.

Scents can be introduced to our bedrooms in many ways: flowers, candles, diffusers, incense. Candles add an extra romantic ambiance to a bedroom but are a dangerous way to maintain a scent around 24 hours a day. It’s okay to light candles in the evening and blow them out before becoming drowsy (or opt for flameless candles like Scentsy). To create a consistent environment, purchase a diffuser in a matching or similar scent to maintain the smell all day.

{via Amber's Scentsy page}

Not only is it important to introduce scents into your bedroom that are inviting and relaxing, it’s also important to prevent bad odors by sticking to a cleaning regiment. Obvious ways to keep your room clean are by routinely doing laundry and washing bed linens, throwing out trash and old flowers, vacuuming, and dusting. A less obvious way to preserve a spa-like atmosphere is to maintain the cleanliness of your bedroom by ensuring that your wall fountains are cleaned routinely. If you don’t clean your fountain regularly, white scale and algae can build up- not a pretty sight or smell. Luckily this process only needs to be done about once a month and the steps are pretty simple:

Be sure to turn your fountain off.
Remove any stones or erroneous pieces from the fountain for cleaning.
Remove the pump for cleaning.
Clean the fountain with mild soap or CLR; wipe or scrub until all white scale or algae is gone.
Clean and rinse any cleaning product from the fountain and replace the pump (once you have cleaned it.)

With all of these elements combined you'll have the perfect spa-like bedroom using your sense of smell!

Giveaway!

noreply@blogger.com (Amber) — Fri, 04 May 2012 01:14:00 +0000

I have a little something fun for y'all tonight! Jessica from Fashion to Figure contacted me a while back to tell me about their site and I was immediately impressed by the cute choices and affordable prices. They carry trendy clothes for plus size women as well as fabulous accessories that fit any size. I was super excited when she asked if I'd want to do a giveaway and obviously my answer was "YES, please!"

How great are these??

{Maritime Striped Dress}

{Lemon and Line Blazer}

{Geometric Pullover Blouse with Collar}

I almost took Jessica up on her offer to do a review instead of a giveaway (but I love y'all so I didn't). If I had, I'd have asked if I could put my credit toward this beauty. It's so me.

{Versa-Style Satchel with Gold Zippers}

I'm really excited to give one of you an item worth $30 or less from the Fashion to Figure site! Take a look around and comment to let me know something you might pick if you win. I'll announce the winner on May 14th. If you do win, I don't envy you having to decide what you want because there are so many great choices! (And also because I'm really bad at making decisions.) Can't wait to hear what pieces y'all like!

Guest Post : Ways to Spoil a Working Mom

noreply@blogger.com (Amber) — Sun, 29 Apr 2012 13:36:00 +0000

I'm excited to have my sweet friend Sierra guest posting today! If I can't seem to find the time to post on my blog, I'm happy to have a friend stop by and do the honors. And if they include pretty pictures, even better :-) If y'all haven't met Sierra yet, head over to her blog and check it out after you read her post. Thanks for posting, Sierra!

____________________________________________________________

My name is Sierra, from Ocean Dreams blog, and I’m so excited to guest post on Amber’s blog today. First of all, I consider her a lovely friend who I had the privilege to meet I think more than a year ago! { Wow – really that long ago?! } Second of all she is just the sweetest and her family is adorable too.

So I thought about what to write and the thought that came to mind is the fact that Amber is a working mom with the sweetest baby boy ever. I thought – if I was a working mom I would love to add a few décor pieces to my home that would help me unwind at the end of the day. Amber technically has two jobs – she works for a company and she’s a great mom as well. But she definitely deserves some TLC (aka tender loving care), of her own, am I right? So here is what I would suggest and get for Amber if I had an unlimited budget…

High Thread Count Sheets and a Cozy Bed

There's nothing better than a well rested night of sleep in amazing sheets. I realize that high thread count sheets are not all there is...but they definitely make sleep a lot better, at least for me. A mom who's on the go deserves to have a few nights where she can really catch up on her zzzzz's and what better way to do it in a comfy and cozy bed fit for a queen? A beautiful bed that's nicely decorated also decreases the stress level and is lovely to look at - I know my surroundings often make me feel better and peaceful feeling when the days get long.

{via pinterest}

Pretty Lights to Light Up a Home

I know that beautiful lighting always puts me in a good mood, hence why I'm always anxious to check out the modern lighting on Lamplust's site. From Starlightz to solar lighting, Lamplust has it all. My favorite is the Starlightz because they are made of wood free paper and are printed, punched, and glued by hand. Not to mention the star illuminates with extraordinary beauty. I think this star would look beautiful lit up in Amber's room or a room that she likes to visit to get away and just enjoy some time to herself once in a while.

{via Lamplust}

A Cozy Library or Office Space

If Amber needs to work at home or gets the opportunity to read a good book while her little one naps, she'll need an amazing library or office space to enjoy herself at. From pretty decor to a nice sofa for her to sit back and relax on, I think a cozy library combined with an enchanting working space (aka office) is what every working mom needs.

{via The Pretty Librarian}

{via Cozy Cozy}

So if you are a working mom as well, how would you like to unwind when time allows? Whether its a cozy library, nice and warm sheets, or pretty lighting, I think these are all ways that a mom can enjoy some time off either from balancing work and not to mention being a mom and wife. I know Amber is amazing at what she does and I'm so thankful that she's my friend!

Thanks for the guest post opportunity Amber! :) I hope you get some time to relax and unwind and have a great Mother's Day too!

Why I'm Smiling A Little More Lately

noreply@blogger.com (Amber) — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 00:40:00 +0000

This blog has been a happy place for me for about 3 1/2 years now, but lately it's made me sad to visit it because I haven't had time to keep it up and to make my way around to all of your blogs. This is mostly because of my job. It's been draining my time, energy and emotions since I went back after maternity leave in August, just steadily wearing me down. And I didn't want my heaviness to carry over into my little happy place here.

Some of you may not know that I work in another city and my commute is at least an hour each way with traffic. Bad traffic. Sometimes an 18-wheeler will overturn, blocking and shutting down the interstate and it will take me almost 4 hours to get to work or back. (I wish I was exaggerating.) Jaxon is fairly content on my way to work and many times falls back asleep since we have to wake him up at 5:00. But oh my word. The drive home is often miserable.

My parents keep him most days and bring him to me after work. I kind of think he knows that when we switch him from their car to mine, he's going to be stuck there for a while. Recently, he's started melting down immediately and sometimes won't calm down until we get home. An hour later. This kills me. I hate having him upset and not being able to help him. To avoid this, my parents sometimes drive him from their house to ours, which is over an hour away because for whatever reason, he stays more content if he doesn't have to make the switch from their car to mine. It's such a sweet thing for them to do, but not fair to them to have to make that drive so often.

Once Jax and I are home, usually after 5:00, we play until it's time for bath, food and bed. Most nights he's asleep by 6:45. So I'm lucky if I get to spend an hour with my baby on weeknights before I have to feed him and start bedtime. This is not ok with me and has been eating me away inside. I've cried countless tears and beaten myself up for not being with him enough. I miss him so much it hurts, and feel like I'm missing out on some of the most precious moments of his life. Again, not fair to him or me.

To keep a long story short-ish, I went to my boss' boss and basically broke down crying in his office last week, on a day that it took me four hours to get to work. I'd been slowly cracking for months and just hit my breaking point. He must have taken pity on my sorry state, because he's allowing me to cut down to 32 hours a week!! That's a WHOLE DAY every week I get to stay home with my baby!!!!

This isn't the best case scenario for me (a part-time job in my town would be best), but it's definitely a welcome solution until something more perfect comes along. SO, I've been absent and I apologize, and I miss blogging and I miss y'all. My hope is that this day off every week will help me feel a little less stretched thin and maybe give me just enough relief to get back to doing some of the things that make me happy. Like this.

And some of the people who make me happy. Like you.

If you're reading this, thank you. For sticking around, and for still caring. I truly appreciate it!

February Specials

noreply@blogger.com (Amber) — Sun, 26 Feb 2012 20:10:00 +0000

I couldn't let this month pass without telling y'all about the exciting things going on with Scentsy!

First, almost everything in the catalog is 10% off! This sale doesn't come along often so whether you've never tried Scentsy and are wanting to see what it's about, or are already obsessed with it (like I am) and are needing to stock up on scents, this is a great time to do it.

And speaking of stocking up, if you're a fan of the bricks (which contain a whole pound of wax), you'll need to do it now since they're being discontinued after Wednesday. With the 10% off they're only $18, which is an awesome price for that amount of wax! This is the list of the fragrances that will be discontinued in the next catalog. Some of them could come back in the Fall/Winter catalog but there are no guarantees. They could be leaving forever! If any of your favorites are on the list, grab them while you can.

Another really exciting thing happening this month is that everyone who becomes a consultant this month will receive not only the upcoming Spring / Summer testers but also the current Fall / Winter ones in their Starter Kit. This means that if any of the current scents are brought back later, you won't have to pay for those testers. It's a great value - you'll be receiving even MORE than what's pictured here! This includes everything you'll need to get your business off to a great start.

I'd love to tell you more about what a blessing being a Scentsy consultant has been for me and what it can do in your life.

Let me know if you have any questions about buying Scentsy or joining my team! Or if you're ready to make a purchase, you can do so here through one of my open parties.

I hope you're having a wonderful weekend and plan to be back soon with Jaxon's 9 month update!

SHOUT-OUT

noreply@blogger.com (Amber) — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 02:05:00 +0000

Plus two points to anyone who thinks of Al and J-Si on Kidd Kraddick whenever you hear that.

But even if you don't, I want to send a quick SHOUT-OUT and many thanks to my pretty Palmetto Belle for having such a wonderful giveaway (THAT I WON!!!) and just for being generally awesome.

I won a fabulous blog makeover from Utterly Chaotic. AND, as if that wasn't enough, I also won a Sephora gift card! A very generous one, might I add. This kind of thing doesn't just happen every day! Not to me, anyway.

I plan to get this beauty with it. It's probably not a purchase I could have justified without a little assistance, so I am PUMPED that this is happening.

What do you think? Will this help to perk up my exhausted appearance?

I'm gonna go with yes. Because I NEED IT TO BE TRUE. We're working with 4:00 AM wake-ups lately and Mama don't play that game very well.

I also apparently NEED to slow down on the caffeine. There seems to be a lot of shouting going on in this post.

Anyhoo, if you don't know the Belle behind the Palmetto, head on over and check her out. She might just make it worth your while.

Month Eight

noreply@blogger.com (Amber) — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 13:00:00 +0000

So, I'm back. For today at least. I can't tell y'all how much I miss blogging. Life (especially work at this point) is making it impossible for me to spend any time on the things I enjoy doing for myself (except for Scentsy- thank the Lord for Scentsy!). I'm hoping things will change soon. They need to change soon.

For now, here's Jaxon's 8 month post (he's 9 months old now). He had his first little accident at his granparents' so he has a scrape on his face in the first set of pictures. I guess that's life with a little boy!

Jaxon Abbott,

You need to slow down, son! :-)

No, not really- I love watching you grow but you do continue to amaze me with how quickly you're advancing! The day after you turned seven months, you pulled yourself right up to a standing position using our couch and you haven't stopped since. You're using things to "walk" around and crawling like a champ, getting into any and everything you can get your hands on. We're sure you'll be walking in no time.

You keep us on our toes and BUSY chasing you around and redirecting you back to baby-appropriate objects, and we wouldn't have it any other way.

You've learned how to clap, give high fives, and kind of sort of wave bye-bye (all of which are the cutest things I've ever seen). You love to make as much noise as possible- usually by banging things around, like certain toys on the glass part of our coffee table. Ear-splitting but, apparently, fascinating to you, so we tolerate it.

You're still a "talker." Sometimes you go on and on and on and we just have to laugh. We wish we knew what you think you're saying! Sometimes you keep going even after you've started to fall asleep, like you just need to get one more thing in before you go to bed. It's precious.

You are so sweet and laid back. Your daddy, grandparents and I constantly talk about what a delight you are. You're nothing but a joy, sweet baby. And you're joyful- full of life and happiness. I am so incredibly grateful to have you as my son. Sometimes I look at you and just start crying happy tears because I'm so overcome, knowing that you're mine forever. I don't know what I did to deserve someone as beautiful as you in my life, but I'm eternally thankful for it.

I only hope that I do you justice as your Mama. I hope that I'm able to teach you the important lessons in life, with both my words and actions. I hope that I'm able to live my life in a way that's worthy of being an example to you.

I hope, above all else, that I'm able to point you toward the One who made you, and gave His precious life so you could be with Him forever. Because as overwhelmingly much as I love you, it's only a dim reflection of the way He feels about you. As hard as I try not to, I will one day let you down and disappoint you, because I'm only human. But He never will. He has an amazing plan for your life, an incredible purpose, and I can't wait to watch it unfold for you.

You are part of His plan for my life and I can't imagine a greater blessing.

I love you, baby boy.

To the moon and back,

Mama

Months Six and Seven

noreply@blogger.com (Amber) — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 13:41:00 +0000

I feel like an awful Mama waiting until Jax is seven months old to do his sixth month update! I really want to try to get better with the timing of these. But I think I've said that every month so far and it hasn't happened yet, so we'll see.

(I actually started this post a while back but am behind on his pictures so have been holding off on posting it. Jax is now approaching eight months and is doing far more than what I cover in this post but I want to remember each stage, so I'm keeping it as is.)

Jaxon,

You are such a good natured baby. You love to smile and sometimes when you do, it's like your whole body lights up - like you're so happy you just don't know what to do with yourself. Your Mimi says, "the happiness just gets all over you." And of course when that happens, it makes the happiness get all over us too.

Even when you're upset, you try not to fuss too much. You start out with a little wimper or other indication that something's not quite right for you and give us a chance to help you with whatever it is you need. However, if we take too long for your liking, you let us have it! It's like you have a long fuse but once the end is reached, we better watch out! I'm very much the same way, so you come by that characteristic honestly. (Your daddy has the patience of a saint, which is one of my very favorite things about him.)

I say this every update, but it's so much fun to watch you learn and grow! You now have no problem getting wherever you want to go. You sit up by yourself with very rare tip-overs. The first time we really noticed you sitting for a length of time by yourself was October 29th (you were about a week and a half away from being six months). Now you go from sitting to crawling position and back, and you have your "army crawl" down to a science.

Daddy says you're crawling but I won't admit that you are until you get the whole hand/knee coordination down. At this point, you get on your hands and knees and rock, like you know this is supposed to get you moving somehow but you haven't quite figured out the logistics of it yet. After rocking for a bit, you usually flop down onto your stomach and drag yourself around at startling speeds using your forearms.

Your attention span varies, depending on what you're doing. You love to play with empty boxes (cheez-its, granola bars, whatever), beating on them and flinging them around (though we take them away once you go to put them in your mouth). Those keep your attention for a while. But if you're sitting on your activity mat with different toys, it's like you're thinking, "BASEBALL!!! Rattle rattle soft yum SOPHIE!! Squeaky chewy nom nom nom ROLLY BALL!!! Lights music tags ELECTRICAL CORD, REMOTE, DVDS!!! **Siiiigh** here comes mama, moving me again."

When you were five months old, Dr. Wood said we could start you on a little bit of rice cereal twice a day. You took to eating solid food like a champ! At six months, you started eating vegetables. You've had a few different kinds and you haven't refused any yet. Since you were born, you haven't been too picky about what we feed you, as long as you get fed when you're ready to eat!

I can't believe how quickly you're growing. I also can't believe how my love for you continues to grow right along with you! I'm am forever in awe of the blessing and joy that you are. If I could've picked a baby out of all the little babies in the world, I would've picked you. God knew exactly what He was doing when he made you, your Daddy and me for each other. The three of us are such an awesome team and I'm so thankful to be part of it!

I love you to the moon and back,

Mama

To Santa Or Not To Santa?

noreply@blogger.com (Amber) — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 22:08:00 +0000

JD and I have been discussing a certain issue recently. Basically, whether or not to "do Santa" with Jaxon. I personally have no use for Santa. Shocking, I know! A few reasons:

1) I never believed in Santa growing up, and still ADORE everything about Christmas. Not having Santa didn't change my feelings about (or enjoyment of) Christmas one bit.

2) I work hard and long for the money I make that's used to buy things for Jax. I don't want some fat fake guy and his funny-looking fake little people getting the credit for MY awesome present-giving skills!

3) This one's my main reason. If we decide to tell Jaxon there is a Santa, I'm going to have a really hard time repeatedly telling him something that I know is just setting him up for a disappointment later. I've heard people argue that it's not lying to your children, but can someone please explain to me HOW it's not lying? You're basically tricking them into believing, loving, and trusting in something that's not true! I heard of one family a co-worker knows whose child, when she found out about Santa, said something along the lines of, "Well if you've been lying to me about Santa, how do I know you're not lying to me about Jesus?" I just don't know if I can in good conscience take that risk with my children. Even if it's something that can eventually be explained, I don't want to be responsible for planting even a seed of doubt in their little heads about God.

So. Having gone off on that rant (and ducking from the tomatoes that I'm sure are being thrown), I'm asking for your input. Did you believe in Santa growing up (probably, because I realize I'm in the minority, having not believed in him)? Were you upset when you realized he's not real? Do you honestly believe that Santa had any kind of major impact on your Christmas experience? And am I a bad Mama to not really want to "do Santa" with my children?

I'd love to hear your thoughts! (And I hope we're still friends after I said I don't give a flip about the big jolly fat man.)

(Picture is the first one I found on Google. Sorry, that's the only credit I have time for at the moment.)

Salmon Cove

noreply@blogger.com (Amber) — Sat, 10 Dec 2011 12:00:00 +0000

Today, I have a new (to me, anyway) product line to share with you! I was excited to hear from one of the owners of Salmon Cove, Owen.

When he offered to send me one of their products to try out, I was even more excited.

Owen described Salmon Cove as a "classic apparel line," and I found that the website calls it a, "fun, distinctive, confidence-inspiring clothing brand that (will) stand the test of time." I continued reading about the brand and was particularly persuaded by the lines, "Like salmon that swim against the current to return to where they were born, Salmon Cove was founded on the idea that you can go home again. We make clothes to help you enjoy the journey, regardless of the current you are swimming against." Rather inspirational, no?

And with that, I was off to choose which product I wanted to try.

I initially planned to try this Long Sleeve Cove Collar shirt. Most of their collar shirts have contrasting trim on the inside of the collar. Super cute. So I headed over to the sizing chart to figure out what size I needed. Let's be honest, I'm completely re-learning my body and the sizes it needs post-baby. I realized that according to the chart, I was on the edge of two sizes and couldn't decide which to go with. Thankfully, I saw that there were customer testimonials that were available for, "customer insight on our sizing/fit." Except when I clicked the link, it brought me back to the product page. Not helpful. I pointed this out in a later email to Owen and he thanked me for the feedback on the sizing charts and said they would "take a look and refine them today." That was on October 31st and changes had not been made when I checked the site earlier today.

Since I wasn't sure which size to go with, I chose to review one of their canvas totes because, really, can a girl ever have enough totes?

Here's the website description:

"Our durable canvas totes comes in four different color options. Featuring a zip-close top, pockets and detachable Salmon Cove keychain. Dimensions: 12"H x 16" W x 5"D."

I guess I should have paid more attention to the description because I was surprised by the small size of the bag when I received it. Overall, the tote is nice. I like that it zips closed because I don't have to worry about items slipping out, and I like that it comes with a matching keychain. That part is really cute.

Having said that, I wouldn't pay $49 for it. That's a pretty good little chunk of change for me and when I spend that much, I want it to be on something that I love. One thing that bugs me is that random (thick) strings keep coming off on the inside. It hasn't seemed to affect the fabric or seams of the tote but it's kind of annoying to have to finish pulling the strings that come loose.

This won't keep me from using the tote (unless it eventually causes holes or weakness in the seams) but I was hoping for a better quality for the price.

I kind of wish now that I'd had the chance to review one of their shirts because I like to think I would have been more impressed with those.

If you're interested in checking out the company for yourself, you can use the code "xoxoamber" for 15% off. Or, if the total comes out better, I saw on Twitter that you can use the code "Holiday2011" for $20 off your purchase!

In other news, Jaxon turns seven months today and I never did his month six update! I do have pictures from month six so I'll just come back soon to combine the month six and seven updates in one post. Mom fail!

Note: The pictures are from the Salmon Cove website and as I mentioned, I was given a tote for my review.

Exciting News

noreply@blogger.com (Amber) — Sun, 27 Nov 2011 14:28:00 +0000

I'm beyond excited to tell y'all about my latest venture. I recently decided to become a Scentsy consultant! Although I've heard a lot of buzz about the company recently, some of you might still be unfamiliar with it so I'll tell you a little about it.

I first discovered Scentsy products when I was looking for something to help keep Jaxon's nursery fresh. I didn't feel safe burning candles around him and was really excited to learn about Scentsy's flameless, wickless candles. Beautiful warmers use a low-watt lightbulb to melt scented wax and release the fragrance. If Jaxon somehow ever got his hands on these products, he wouldn't be burned - or burn the house down! The fact that the scents are so divine was just icing on the cake for me.

This one will probably be the next warmer I get. I love the idea of adding one of our pictures to it!

Source: amberdragg.scentsy.us via Amber on Pinterest

This warmer is my favorite one from the Holiday Collection. So cute!

Source: amberdragg.scentsy.us via Amber on Pinterest

This one's an example of a plug-in warmer for smaller spaces or areas that don't have a lot of counter space.

Source: amberdragg.scentsy.us via Amber on Pinterest

One of my favorite things about the Scentsy line is that the prices are so affordable. A scent bar lasts between 60-80 hours (depending on the scent) and only costs $5. A fun fact is that a bar can outlast a jarred candle that's more than 3 times its size!

Source: amberdragg.scentsy.us via Amber on Pinterest

In addition to the warmer and wax systems, Scentsy offers room sprays, anti-bacterial hand foam, travel tins, and more. One of my favorite products is the Scentsy Buddy, which is a collection of super cute stuffed animals that contain scent paks. I think this is a fabulous gift idea for a baby shower or child's birthday party! Each buddy comes with a registration number that can be used on a website to print an adoption certificate, play games and learn more about the Buddies.

Source: amberdragg.scentsy.us via Amber on Pinterest

These products are perfect for offices and classrooms since candles usually aren't allowed. JD has already put in a request for me to order a warmer for him to keep in the baseball locker room. He loves these products too, and it's the first time he's shown any kind of interest in a fragrance product that I've used in our home. And this was before I signed up to become a consultant! The fact that he seemed to love Scentsy as much as I do was one thing that helped me make the decision to be a part of this company.

If you're looking for gift or stocking stuffer ideas for the holidays, let me know and I'll help you come up with some ideas. There are options in just about any price range!

Have a look around my website and while you're there, sign up for my monthly newsletter. It will include promotions and announcements like exciting new products when they come out. The good thing is it's only sent once a month, so it won't clutter up your inbox.

If you make a purchase by December 9th through "Launch Party Open House," which you'll see on my homepage, I'll enter your name into a drawing for a door prize!

Let me know if you're interested in hosting a party or joining my team as a Scentsy consultant. One fabulous option for hosting Scentsy parties is what's called a basket party. You simply take a basket filled with mini-testers and some of our other small products around with you wherever you go for about a week or so. Show the products to your friends and family and take orders as you go. You earn the same hostess rewards as a home party without having to clean your house or buy and prepare food!

These products are so much fun to share with friends and family and I'd love to answer any questions you have about them! Have a look at some of the products and let me know what you think!

Family Pictures

noreply@blogger.com (Amber) — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 13:00:00 +0000

I'm so excited to share these pictures with y'all! I had planned on waiting until after I sent out our Christmas cards but our photographer posted most of these on facebook the day she took them so it's kind of pointless to wait now. Which is fine - some of you will just see them on facebook and here and when you get our Christmas card. We really like them, what can I say? :-)

The best part about these is that they were FREE! Ok, not completely free because I did buy our photographer a gift card, but she didn't charge us. How amazing is that?? She's actually not a "professional" yet. Which -btw- what constitues a professional photographer anyway? I've always wondered that. I saw some of her work on facebook and asked if she'd be interested in taking our pictures for us. I'm not sure who ended up more excited about the whole thing, her or us!

I don't really care if she's professional or not, I love how our pictures turned out. We had intended for them to be Jaxon's six month pictures and JD and I were going to get in a few shots to put on our Christmas card. Although we did end up with a few of just Jax, they turned out to be more family pictures than six month pictures. Either way, I'll always cherish them because they were our first professional ones (except not) as a family!

Sorry for the overload, I apparently have a hard time narrowing down what pictures I want to share

(helloooo my last Weekend Fun post with a gazillionty billion shots)!

Um, that face. Love it.

(Maybe just because I'm his mama but I don't care. I love it.)

That smile gets me every. single. time.

He sweetly tolerated all of the kissing for a bit.

But then decided he'd had enough. He usually LOVES him some kisses so we were surprised to get this reaction from him but they made for some pretty fun pictures! :-)

I'm so glad she captured these moments.

I keep looking at myself and JD in this picture and thinking, "Oh this is a good one." And then I notice Jaxon's face and crack up.

Seriously baby boy, you need to slow down. Such a little man already!

This was the last picture she took of the day. He got a bit fussy once or twice but, overall, was such a good sport about the pictures!

I mentioned this before but if you'd like a card from us and aren't sure if we have you on our list, email me at Ber611 at aol dot com. I'd love to exchange cards with anyone who's interested!

Stella & Dot

noreply@blogger.com (Amber) — Mon, 14 Nov 2011 15:00:00 +0000

I'm SO excited to tell y'all about a fun show I'm hosting! I wish I could have you all over to my house so we could nosh on some yummies and ogle the goods in person but since we're all so spread out, I decided to do an online-only version. I guess we'll just have to be satisfied with partying together virtually for now!

You've probably all heard of Stella & Dot. It seems to be all over the place these days. Believe it or not, I've never been to an actual Stella & Dot party but my supervisor wears their pieces frequently and I'm always coveting them. The line offers boutique-style jewelry and accessories and their wide selection offers something for literally everyone! There are both classic and trendy styles, and standout statement pieces as well as more simple everyday ones.

Here are a few pieces I can see myself wearing often.

And these are some of my dream statement necklaces. **swoon**

Someone please buy these fabulous pieces and wear them to a fabulous holiday party so I can live vicariously through you!

And speaking of parties, here are some arm parties that I'd love to attend!

In addition to jewelry, Stella & Dot also sells handbags, jewelry rolls and iPhone cases! Next time I upgrade my phone, you can be sure it'll be clad in this bright cheery number.

One thing that's great about Stella & Dot is that 50% of their jewelry is $50 or less! And if you're like me and love sales, this month's Trunk Show Treasure is 25% off of three necklaces: the Chloe, the Claire and this pretty Olivia Necklace (which is now under $30!), so be sure to check those out!

Have fun browsing! Oh and keep in mind that the holidays are right around the corner and a little something pretty from this line would make a perfect gift!

As an added bit of fun, I'm giving away a $25 gift card of your choice (Target, Starbucks, etc.) to one person who makes a purchase through my show. Because a party's not complete without some type of door prize, right?

Click here to browse. Once you add items to your cart and head to the checkout page, you can find my name in the Hostess drop down box or just type it in

(Amber Dragg).

My party will last until November 27th and I'll pick the gift card winner after it closes. Please email me at Ber611 at aol dot com or come leave me a comment with your email address after you make a purchase, so I'll have a way of contacting you if you win. And while you're doing that, I'd LOVE to hear what you got. I'm trying to decide what I'll be buying and having a really hard time narrowing it down!

Happy shopping and let me know if you have any questions about the process!

Weekend Fun

noreply@blogger.com (Amber) — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 19:38:00 +0000

Yep, I'm doing a weekend post on Wednesday! At least I'm consistent around here- even if it is consistently late.

We'd decided not to dress Jaxon up for Halloween this year for a few different reasons, the main one being that we didn't see much point. Another one being that I honestly don't give a hoot about Halloween and never have.

But then we received an invitation to a Halloween themed birthday party and the kids were asked to dress up. And I am SO glad that happened. Because then this happened.

Is that not one of the funniest costumes you've ever seen? It's just so completely random, it cracks me up. I mean really, a tree frog? I love it.

{"Mom. I look like an idiot."}

{Lordy, I hope all these people aren't looking at me in this thing."}

{"They ARE looking at me, aren't they??"}

{"Now who are YOU lookin' at?"}

{"Oh all right. Maybe it's not so bad!"}

My bestie and her little fam were at the party too. I always love seeing her baby Ali. I can't believe she's four weeks already! Pretty little thing.

Jax and Daddy had a blast in the bouncy!

He loved it!

Sunday was a super busy day. We "drove to town" an hour away to take our family pictures at 8:00. When we were done with those (which I'll hopefully be able to share on here soon, once our photographer is finished editing them), we stopped for breakfast and went to church. After church, we did a Craigslist meet-up to buy a back-up stroller for my parents' house and just when JD thought we were heading home, I told him I really wanted to get pictures of Jaxon at a pumpkin patch this year. He was not too excited about it, but was a good sport and humored me. I even made him stop for some groceries on the way home and he still didn't complain-- too much :-)

{"Really with the pictures again?"}

{"Ok fine. Here's a little grin. You happy?"}

{"Uh, what is this warty old thing you have me sitting next to?"}

{"Lemme check out this one over here and see what it's all about."}

{"Ooooh. Kinda cool!"}

{"Ok, really. Are we done now?"}

We were pooped after that whirlwind weekend but we made so many fun memories together. JD and I just get more and more excited as we're able to do more things with Jaxon. The smallest things turn into the "funnest" adventures when you have a baby along for the ride!

We've entered a really busy few weeks so my posting will probably continue to be sporadic for now. I wish it didn't have to be that way and I really appreciate those of you who stick around and continue to read my ramblings!

Loving Lately: October

noreply@blogger.com (Amber) — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 12:00:00 +0000

Happy November, y'all! That means it's already time for my October favorites, so here we go!

1. My new Levi's jeans

Let me just say that I'd like to go back and slap my pre-pregnancy self for ever complaining about clothes shopping. If I thought it was tough before a baby, I had no idea what tough meant. I panicked when I realized I didn't have any nice jeans that still fit to wear for our family pictures. After trying on what seemed like hundreds of pairs of jeans (at different price points), my favorite pair --possibly of all time-- ended up being one that I got on sale at Dillard's for under $20! They're ultra low-rise flare in stretch denim (be still my heart) and they're SO comfortable. These aren't the exact ones but are similar, except mine are more flared and longer on me.

2. My newest Coach baby

This was my birthday gift from JD earlier this year and although I've had it for a few months, I just keep loving it more and more. It's the perfect size to hold random baby items when I need to throw some in, and it goes with literally everything. I can't say enough good things about it. I just wish I could've found a better image of it online because this one turned out a bit blurry when I tried to make it bigger, and it's really so pretty in person.

3. My Marley Lilly monogrammed cup

This has become my official "Monday cup" to drink my Starbucks Iced Via (which I mentioned in a previous monthly favorites post). It's a literal bright spot in my otherwise dreary Mondays.

4. A cute reminder of Breast Cancer Awareness Month

This little guy has been sitting on my desk this month and I love him. I keep meaning to bring him home to Jaxon (real men like pink!) but I keep forgetting, and I kind of don't mind because he serves as a little pick-me-up at work. (I just realized that he's pink and a reminder of breasts, yet I think of him as a boy duck. Weird.)

And that's all I have for this month but I'd love to hear what some of your favorites have been!

It's That Time Again

noreply@blogger.com (Amber) — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 12:00:00 +0000

I'm pretty sure I used the same title when I blogged about Shutterfly cards last year, but it still works so I'm sticking with it. And yes I realize today is Halloween but honestly, I get way more pumped about Christmas. Also, we took our family pictures yesterday and the ones that I've seen so far have me more than ready to create our Christmas card!

I'm sure we all know by now how amazing Shutterfly is but on the off chance that you don't, I'll share a story that might help convince you. I received a promo code for a free photo book from them when I was pregnant, and used it to make a book of Jaxon's newborn pictures. I was ecstatic when it arrived but was disappointed to find that the cover was a little messed up. If it wasn't Jaxon's newborn album, I probably wouldn't have given it a second thought but since it was, I wanted it to be absolutely perfect. I called Shutterfly's customer service and explained the situation, and the nice representative quickly said they'd send me another one at no charge. It arrived a few days later in perfect condition. So basically, I got two photo books for the price of shipping one of them! We gave the original book to my parents, who don't give a flip about the cover and are just crazy about the book. So it was a happy ending for all, and now I'm an even more loyal customer than I was before!

Anyway, all that to say, "Use them, they're great!" Whether you need Christmas cards, greeting cards or photo mugs -- you know your grandma loves them ;-) -- they've got you covered.

If we exchange cards, you might just find one of these in your mailbox!

If you'd like to exchange cards this year, email me at Ber611 at aol dot com with your info! If we've exchanged them in the past, I probably still have you on my list but there are no guarantees :-)

______________________________________________________

Note: I received a promo for 25 free cards for writing this post but I really do love Shutterfly! If you're a blogger and want to participate in this promotion I think they're still offering it. Check this link.

I noticed some other bloggers are having Shutterfly giveaways and I wish I had one to offer you, but I wasn't given that option. Sorry!

My Fairy Tale: Pre-Wedding

noreply@blogger.com (Amber) — Sat, 29 Oct 2011 13:52:00 +0000

I just remembered that before I had Jaxon, I started a mini-series of posts about our wedding since I hadn't shared it yet on the blog. I got through our engagement pictures and story and my bridal pictures. Then the bug came along a week later, and the wedding series was quickly forgotten.

I do still want to finish it and I think I'll break the wedding into three posts: getting ready / wedding party pictures, the ceremony, and the reception.

So here are a few pictures from the pre-ceremony part of the day!

My dress ready and waiting:

Touching up my makeup:

Getting into my dress:

My bouquet:

Each of my girls' bouquets had a pin with their initial:

Peeking at the boys while they took their pictures:

Me and my girls:

Me and my flower girls:

My handsome husband and his boys:

Seeing each other for the first time that day- we decided to do it before the ceremony:

Just being with JD helped to calm some of my nervousness:

My amazing parents:

And my amazing in-laws:

And there you have it! Hopefully it won't be months until I get to the ceremony! :-)

Month Five

noreply@blogger.com (Amber) — Sun, 23 Oct 2011 19:25:00 +0000

This post is LATE YET AGAIN! Yes, I'm shouting. Because I'm so frustrated with myself that I can't get these things done on time. My baby is quickly approaching six months now. BUT better late than never, I suppose.

Jaxon,

Your fifth month was the most fun yet. Do I say that every month? I feel like I might. But it's true. You just keep getting more and more amazing. You're basically the most fascinating thing I've ever witnessed in my life. You constantly surprise your dad and me, and your grandparents have told us they feel the same way. We never know what you're gonna come up with next and we love it!

I'll keep the wordiness to a minimum because I *might* have gone a little overboard last month. I'll mostly just share some pictures.

This is pretty tpical of you lately. Your mission in life seems to be to grab anything within reach and get it in your mouth ASAP!

"Do we have to do this NOW, Mama? I'm sleepy."

We tried to take some more pictures in the living room but you got distracted by Muffin and wouldn't pay any attention to Mama.

So we went outside where you showed me how you can (kind of) sit up on your own!

Here you are on your actual 5 month birthday, with your beloved Sophie.

You're such a silly little thing and we love it!

"HEY YOU, you wanna see my big clunky orthopedic shoe?"

You're easily the most beautiful thing I've ever seen.

Thank you for being the light of my life and my literal dream come true.

I love you to the moon and back,

Mama

P.S. I want you to know

that the nights of dancing you to sleep

in the darkness of your room

will forever be
some of my happiest memories.

Family Fun

noreply@blogger.com (Amber) — Sat, 08 Oct 2011 12:00:00 +0000

I can't believe I'm just now sharing this because it meant SO much to me, but my brother Chase and his beautiful wife Katie came to visit us at the beginning of September!

Chase and I haven't seen each other very much in recent years (see this post for some back story if you're interested), so this visit was ridiculously exciting.

Friday night, we went to dinner with the two of them and my parents (Chase and I have the same dad but not the same mom). We decided to chance it and go to a nicer (read: less baby-friendly) restaurant because the food is so good and we wanted them to have a chance to try it. Jaxon cooperated (for the most part) and we had a wonderful dinner, including some delicious blackened alligator (yep, we actually eat gator where I'm from)!

We stayed up late chatting and woke up with plans to grill outside for lunch, until we were greeted with buckets of rain pouring down. We ended up just having a really relaxed, laid-back day (I didn't even get dressed until about 12:00!). We talked and laughed and just enjoyed spending time together.

Next time they visit -or when we visit them- we might plan something that involves actually leaving the house, but I wouldn't have changed anything about this first visit. It was perfect just the way it was. Chase and Katie are such a beautiful, warm, fun couple and we're looking forward to spending as much time with them as possible in the future! I'm so blessed to be reconnected with my wonderful brother and to gain such an awesome sister in the deal is a huge bonus! We love them so much!

Loving Lately: September

noreply@blogger.com (Amber) — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 10:00:00 +0000

It's already time for the next installment of things I'm loving lately! Have I said before how quickly time is flying?? Yes? Well regardless, here are some of my recent favorites, in no particular order.

Having beignets with friends I haven't seen in way too long

It's always so wonderful to catch up. I'm kicking myself for not getting a picture with them but Erin did snap this one of me and Jaxon. And I'm glad she did, because those sunglasses were stolen out of my husband's car this weekend. This is the only picture I'll have to remember them by, since I just had them for a few months.

Rest in peace, my little pretties.

Visiting the downtown farmer's market

I do, however, use the term "farmer's market" very loosely. I read about it on a local website and got myself all pumped up. The write-up promised 20 booths of locally-grown produce, fresh baked pastries and jewelry, among other goods. I drug my boys out bright and early, and we arrived to find 3 stalls. THREE! One was full of bows and other girlie baby items, another had grandma-looking jewelry (no offense, Grandma!) and the last had candles. I bought from 2 of the vendors just because we were one of the only families out there and it would have been super awkward not to.

However, it was nice to just get out and do something as a family. We walked around downtown until it got too hot and even got this fun picture to remember the day. Too bad we weren't actually in it.

Oh and funny story about the sign... a week after we took this picture, someone made "hot" into "ho." Surely I'm not the only one who finds this utterly amusing? :-)

Eating dinner outside at a yummy local Mexican place

Jaxon loooves being outside and is often an angel baby when we take him out, especially if we're outside for part of the time. This place we go to has a big fountain / waterfall thing that we sit by and he is just a happy little camper listening to the water and taking in his surroundings. JD and I are so thankful to still be able to enjoy fun dinners together even with a baby in tow. I was certain those days would be over once the bug arrived!

This yummy Cheesy Enchilada Casserole

Source: justgetoffyourbuttandbake.com via Amber on Pinterest

I. Love. Pinterest. For many reasons. This recipe alone is a good one. JD and I had fun working on it together. He cooked the meat part (I haaaate raw meat. Completely ooogs me out. Ew.) while I mixed up the rest of the ingredients with Jaxon in his sling. Super easy.

It was so good, I was disappointed when there were only enough leftovers for us to have it again for lunch the next day. We will be making it again very soon. (Oh and side note: we left out the lettuce and tomatoes... you know, the healthy part? Yeah, we didn't add the healthy part.)

So that about wraps up my recent faves. I'm sure we'll blink and then I'll be back with my October ones!

Welcome, Baby Girl

noreply@blogger.com (Amber) — Mon, 03 Oct 2011 12:00:00 +0000

If we're friends on Twitter you might have heard this news, but it's definitely worthy of being mentioned here as well. After what felt like years of waiting, my best friend finally had her baby! She was completely sure that she was having a boy but I've been telling her since the beginning that I thought it was a girl.

Over a week after her due date (which, of course, is more of a "guess date" anyway), Miss Ali Marie arrived at 7:36 p.m. on October 1st! :-) She weighed 7 pounds, 5.5 ounces and was 20.75 inches long. She's absolutely perfect. I couldn't believe how tiny and fragile she seemed. I don't know if I just don't remember Jaxon being that small or if the 2 pounds he had on her really made that big of a difference, but goodness! I felt like I might smoosh her if I wasn't careful.

Look how she's holding her sweet little hands! Cher bebe!

Already representing the Saints like a good little Louisiana girl should! And already crossing those legs! A little lady for sure.

(BTW, her bow and onesie were gifted by yours truly. I'm thrilled that she's already able to use them!)

Our little family went to meet her yesterday and it was love at first sight. I'm going to have to restrain myself from arranging a marriage between her and Jaxon because really, that would be just a little bit too perfect, don't you think?

Month Four

noreply@blogger.com (Amber) — Sun, 25 Sep 2011 18:46:00 +0000

It's that time again! Or, actually, two weeks past that time. The bug had his 4 month birthday on September 10th and of course I'm just now getting around to posting his update.

Jaxon,

This month we've kind of settled into more of a routine. This was my first full month back at work and your first full month with your grandparents. Mimi and Papa keep you about 2/3 of the time and Gugu and Pop keep you the other 1/3. I want you to know how blessed you are that both sets of your grandparents are willing to do this. A lot of people (me included) don't get to know or have a good relationship with all of their grandparents, so I never want you to take the time you have with them for granted. They each have so much they can teach you and they love you so so much.

At your 4 month doctor visit you weighed 17 pounds, 13.5 ounces and you were 25 inches long. So, you grew an inch this last month but only gained about 10 ounces. You're definitely losing that little potbelly but you're still in the 95th percentile for weight. Dr. Wood said you're very muscular for a baby and he knew your daddy would be happy to hear that, which he was! We've been amazed by your strength since you were born. You were holding your head up and looking around the first day we met you! Daddy and I like to think you'll be an athlete like he is, but of course we'll let you pursue whatever interests you have even if they don't include sports. (And Mama would really appreciate it if you didn't particularly want to play football. That would make me sooo nervous.)

We were able to get you out of your first pair of orthopedic shoes this month. I was so ready to get them off of you, I had a countdown going in our kitchen! What I didn't know was that the second pair of shoes we have to put you in are just as ugly or uglier than the first! The good news about them is that you don't have to wear them 24 hours a day. We have a little more flexibility with them so if we ever have a special event, Daddy and I just leave them off. You'll probably need to be in these for a couple of months and I'll probably start my countdown for them soon! When you have your shoes off, you looove your feet. It's like they were a hidden treasure that you're just now able to discover and enjoy, and you're just the cutest thing when you're playing with them.

Here's one last picture of you in your first pair of "special shoes."

This month you've seemed to grow by leaps and bounds, and when I say that I don't mean physically. You don't miss a thing. You're constantly observing your surroundings. It's so fun to just watch the look of wonder on your little face as you take everything in.

You're super interested in whatever we're doing when we're holding you. You reach your cute little dimpled hand out to feel anything else we happen to have in our hands, and you definitely know what your bottles look like. You've all but jumped out of our arms to get to them before! And speaking of bottles, you've been able to hold them by yourself for quite a while now but I always forget to mention that. It makes me a little sad because you're just growing up so fast already! I feel like before long, you won't even need me anymore! But at the same time I'm so proud of how smart you are and love watching you learn and grow.

During tummy time, you've started rolling over both ways! I made quite the fool of myself shouting and dancing and running for the video camera the first day you did this! Daddy just laughed and shook his head at me but of course he was super pround of you too. And from the look on your face you seem pretty proud of yourself!

Everything goes into your mouth these days and you're drooling more than ever! You've definitely been teething for a while but we're not sure when you'll actually pop your first tooth out. In the meantime, we just make sure we have a burp cloth nearby to wipe your face lots!

You "talk" more than ever now. You have the sweetest little voice and you love to hear it as much as Daddy and I do! You'll talk to anyone who will listen and many times, just to yourself. If you're playing with your toys or your feet and we've stepped out of the room, we can still hear you going to town, having the best conversation with yourself. It's such a joy to hear and always makes us smile. If I had to guess, you'll probably be a very talkative guy.

I don't think I've mentioned this but you've been sleeping through the night since you were about 10 weeks old and we're VERY appreciative of this. Your first couple of months, you slept in a pack-and-play in Mama and Daddy's room. It had a little newborn sleeper in it that kept you nice and snug. Around 10 weeks, we had two big transitions for you. We moved you to your crib and we had to switch you to formula because of an allergy you have. We're not sure which change caused you to sleep through the night. Or maybe it was both. Either way, we're SO happy for it. Most nights you go to sleep between 8:30 and 9:00. During the week, we have to wake you up at 5:00 in the morning because of our work schedules. Daddy does a wonderful job getting you ready for the day while I get myself ready! On weekends, you sleep until about 6:00 or 6:30.

You get bored easily and don't like to be in one place for very long. You usually don't spend more than about 15 minutes at a time in your Bumbo or jumper, or on your activity mat. We think this means you'll be a very active little boy, curious and into everything. We're sure you're gonna keep us on our toes! And you love interacting with people. If you're by yourself and start to fuss, you often start smiling as soon as someone walks over to talk to you.

All of this means that unless you happen to be sleeping, you HATE being in your carseat. I have an hour (or more, depending on traffic) commute to work and while you sleep most mornings, most afternoon rides home are torture for both of us. You scream and scream to get out of the carseat and my mama heart breaks when you're screaming and there's nothing I can do to help you. Mimi plans to start coming to watch you at our house one day a week, to give you and me more of a break from those awful car rides.

We're almost certain that your eyes will be brown- probably a darker brown like Daddy's than a greenish/hazely brown like mine. We've been curious for quite a while about your eye color so it's fun to finally think we know what color they'll be!

As you know, your Daddy and I love you more every day and can barely remember what our life was like without your happy little self in it. You're my dream come true and I am beyond thankful for you.

I love you to the moon and back,

Mama

New Look and Giveaway Winner

noreply@blogger.com (Amber) — Wed, 21 Sep 2011 12:00:00 +0000

Hi, loves! What do y'all think about the freshened up look around here? No major changes but I was getting tired of the blue background, so I had it switched to white and it feels like a breath of fresh air to me!

I've been meaning to mention something for a while. I've received some super sweet comments lately that I would love to respond to, but the comments / profiles aren't linked to an email address or blog. I do see and appreciate every comment I receive, but I'd love to be able to contact everyone who communicates with me through my blog!

If you don't want to link an email to your profile, please leave an email address in your comments if you want me to be able to respond. Thanks much! :-)

In other news: as I kind of suspected might happen, we did not win our little modeling contest. We did come in second in Jaxon's age group (winners were chosen from each age group). Only problem with that was, our 41 votes came in behind a little bowtie-wearing boy who received 291 votes! So yeah, not even close.

Jaxon was absolutely thrilled when I told him how many votes he received.

But he was a little stunned when he heard how many the other guy got. I don't blame him, I felt the same way.

But on to the happier news of who won the drawing for the $20 gift card! I used my typical outdated method of throwing everyone's names in a bowl (twice if you voted on both pages), then having my husband close his eyes and draw one. You'll just have to trust me that we didn't cheat. Cause we didn't. Promise.

And the winner is...

(drumroll, please, and all that jazz)...

Kindra S!

Congrats, Kindra! Let me know what store or website you would like a gift card to. Thank you so much to everyone who voted / entered. We feel very loved and are super appreciative of the support!

Now I'd just like to know how in the heck those crazy parents managed to drum up 291 votes.

A Year Ago Today

noreply@blogger.com (Amber) — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 12:00:00 +0000

A year ago yesterday, I had no idea how my life was about to change. I had been diagnosed with PCOS three months earlier, and was told there was a chance that JD and I might never be able to have children of our own. We had decided to stop doing anything to prevent me from getting pregnant, because we didn't want to put any more restrictions on our situation than my body was already putting.

When I was diagnosed, we decided that if I didn't get pregnant in the next six months, we would try clomid, a fertility drug. I was willing to take pills but not willing to do anything more invasive, like shots. And we had pretty much decided against adoption, though we didn't completely rule out the possibility. We decided that if I couldn't get pregnant with minimal effort, then we would do everything we could to live a full life, just the two of us. And our pets.

Little did we know that two short months after my diagnosis, I would be pregnant. I had a check-up with my doctor on a Thursday in September to adjust some medication that I take for insulin resistance (caused by the PCOS). I showed my doctor the temperature chart I had been keeping for the previous few weeks. I was just trying to get a feel for how the charting would work, and was eager to show him how I'd been doing with it.

He gave it a cursory glance, handed it back to me and said, "If you don't start your period by Monday, take a pregnancy test and call me with the results. Looks to me like you could be pregnant." I literally laughed in his face. I told him he was silly and that there was no way I was letting him get my hopes up like that. He shrugged and said, "Ok well I'll talk to you about it next week."

I didn't think much about it over the weekend. In my mind, there was zero chance that I was going to get pregnant that easily. But being the good patient I am, I took a test I had at the house while I was getting ready for work on Monday morning, September 13th. JD banged on the bathroom door and asked what I was doing that was taking so long and I yelled back that I had just taken a pregnancy test because Dr. A had told me to, but that it was negative. I was so sure that it was negative that I glanced at it and even though there was a clear "+" sign, it didn't even register that that actualy meant positive.

The image of the "+" on the test started to sink in as I was working, and I suddenly freaked out and started googling images of positive pregnancy tests. I called JD after work and told him I was no longer sure that the test was actually negative, and to clear things up in my mind I was going to take another test --this time digital, so there would be no question about the results.

JD had to work late. I think he was working out his baseball team or something along those lines. So I bought the test and went home to take it by myself, still completely convinced that I wasn't really pregnant.

Except I was.

I remember the completely surreal, almost out-of-body feeling that I experienced when the word "pregnant" popped up in the little window. I looked at myself in the mirror and thought, "We did it." Only, we didn't do anything. We hadn't had to do anything. No pills, no shots, not even an ovulation predictor.

We'd only had to trust. That if we were meant to have a baby, God would give us our baby. That if we weren't, we would be ok. Somehow, we would be ok.

Most days I was able to convince myself of this. But not all.

Those three months of not knowing if we would have children weren't easy. In fact, at times they were pretty hard. I tried not to show it to anyone, especially JD. Because I didn't want him to know how deeply disappointed I would be if I couldn't have a baby, to know that I would feel as if my life's purpose wasn't being realized, to know that I would feel as if I had failed- both myself and him.

I had no idea that one night really soon I would be staring at my face in the mirror, trying to digest the realization that I was a mother.

That night, I called JD and very unceremoniously told him on the phone that I was mistaken earlier that day and that I was, in fact, pregnant. Two trips to the doctor and two blood draws later, he was convinced. It turned out that I wasn't the only one who needed a little extra convincing that we were really going to have our baby.

And we had no idea that in one short year (no really, it flew by), we would have the most amazing four-month-old baby to ever grace the planet. We had no idea how completely our lives would change. We didn't know that we'd been walking around with a Jaxon-shaped hole in our hearts and that our family puzzle would begin to come together in such a beautiful way.

It's amazing to think that in one year, JD and I went from being a couple to a family of three. Maybe in another year we'll start trying to add to our famiy. Or maybe we'll decide that our family is perfect just the way it is for a while. Or maybe even forever.

The last year has taught me that life doesn't always turn out exactly the way we think it will. Sometimes it surprises us in the best way possible.