My first giveaway! Take a Second Glantz

I am celebrating this week. I am celebrating going back to my home after four months away. I am celebrating the near return of my dear husband after four months away. I am celebrating the end of single parenthood (God bless those of you who do it all the time, not just for four months!)

To spread the celebratory love around, I asked my good friend Cheryl at Take a Second Glantz to offer my readers a free gift from her Etsy shop! She makes beautiful beaded keychains and bookmarks.

Pink and Purple beaded heart bookmark

Cheryl is one of my awesome bloggy buddies; we have a fun conversation going on email and Twitter and have found out that we have so much in common. This is what I love so much about blogging!

Anywhoooo...I digress! Back to the giveaway!! One of my lucky readers is going to win their choice of a bookmark or keychain from the Second Glantz Etsy shop. Here's how you enter!

1. MANDATORY: Visit Second Glantz on Etsy and leave a comment telling me which bookmark or keychain you would choose. Choose wisely! The one you pick will be the one you get!!
2. 1 Extra Entry: Follow me on Google Friend Connect
3. 1 Extra Entry: Follow Cheryl at Take a Second Glantz on Google Friend Connect

Giveaway entries close at Midnight EST Monday May 3.

While you are over at Cheryl's Etsy shop, if you feel so inclined to purchase one of her lovely wares, you can get complimentary gift wrap and a handmade card when you purchase any "Gifts for Her." (This offer good now through May 2.)

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend. I'll be traveling home and will announce the winner on Tuesday May 4!

Erin

I love it when they play together

Recently, Miss H and Baby B have started to play together! Well, I use that term loosely because really Baby B just lays there. But Miss H will bring her toys to play with and will even share her own toys with Baby B! One day last week they played together for an HOUR! I didn't hear a loud noise out of either of them.

Can you say Mommy bliss??

Erin

Post-it Note Tuesday: Potty Training Tales from the Trenches

 

 

Erin

Crazy little thing called stress

Things are a tad it stressful around here this week. I don't know why in the world I thought it was a good idea to do potty training and sleep training at the same time. I MUST BE CRAZY.

Baby B took a step backwards Sunday night with her sleeping. I was up with her every two hours which led to a very tired Mommy on Monday morning. All day Monday, she continued to be fussy, cranky, and unhappy. Miss H was only making it to the potty half the time. I THOUGHT I WAS GOING TO LOSE MY MIND.

Tuesday came, and things weren't any better. I started feeling like something was wrong with Baby B she was so unhappy and sleeping even less. She had been having a bit of a hard time with her bowels, so I decided to take her to the pediatrician.

Sure enough, poor baby was constipated and she is cutting her top two teeth. The doctor was great and recommended treating her with dietary changes, pears and prunes, for the constipation, and advised me to give her Advil and Tylenol round the clock for her teeth.

Wednesday was much better. We finally got things moving in the right direction and she has been getting back into her regular sleep pattern.

Through this all, I have been a complete and total Uber-B*tch. I can't even begin to describe to you how awful it has been. I have been reduced to tears constantly. Even the slightest thing will set me off. On Monday evening, I was fighting with Miss H over holding still while I wiped the poop off of her leg and she turned around and yelled at me, "MOMMY, you are CRAZY!"

I didn't know whether I should laugh or cry. It was so true.

I don't know if what I am experiencing is just a response to the stress I am under or if there is some underlying problem. I am going to talk to someone about my crazy mood swings tomorrow. If you are a praying person, I would ask that you keep me in your prayers and pray for me to have patience and to relax.

Even though I am a day late, I am linking up with Shell because I am indeed pouring my heart out.

A very productive weekend

If you read my blog on Friday, you know that we were having Potty Training and Sleep Through the Night Boot Camp here this weekend. I have to say that I was honestly dreading it. I hate messes and I hate it when my children cry. Now that we have reached Sunday evening, it really has not been that bad.

The potty training is going well. The first day was the worst (going through seven pairs of panties and two rolls of paper towels), which is what I have heard to expect. The second day I think she only had one accident and we even managed a trip to Walmart and Sonic. Today has been a little bit messier than yesterday, but she is definitely associating the urge to go with sitting on the potty. My next challenge will come on Tuesday morning when it is time to go to school.

Baby B has had improved sleep each night of the last three nights. The first night was the only night that there was prolonged crying, and we never let her cry by herself. One of us was always right there with her. Last night, she woke up briefly around 2am with a dirty diaper, and then fell back asleep on her own in her bed until around 6 when I finally nursed her (thank you LORD!) She then slept until 9 AM -UNHEARD OF!! So basically she slept 13 hours with one diaper change and one nursing session. I will take that any day and twice on Friday....thankyouverymuch!

I hope all of you have had wonderful weekends. I am hoping to be able to online a bit more this week to read and comment on your blogs.

Erin

Going Cold Turkey

No...I'm not giving up my blog.

This weekend I am giving up nursing Baby B at night. I am absolutely convinced that she is only nursing for comfort and not for nutrition. Last night, my wonderful mother took baby duty all night, and even though B woke up several times, I did not feed her. My mom managed to comfort her and get her back to sleep, albeit with some crying involved. The goal is to get her sleeping through the night because I can't take much more of this.

Also this weekend, Miss H is giving up diapers. That's it. I am just done with changing her diapers and futsing around with the potty training. We made a big deal about "throwing away" all the diapers this morning, and she has been in "Big Girl Panties" all day long. As of right now there have been five accidents and only one half of a potty success.

So that's the deal. We are going cold turkey around here this weekend, giving up our "vices" if you will.

I'll see you on the other side, bloggies!

Erin

Parting is such sweet sorrow

Today I am linking up with another one of my best blogging buddies, Shell, from Things I Can't Say. Have you met Shell? She is the bestest! On Wednesdays, Shell likes to pour her heart out. Sometimes it is serious, sometimes it is funny, everytime it is cathartic and cleansing.

 

For those of you who don't know, the Rosebuds and I have been staying with my parents for the last almost four months. Mr. Rose has been on an extended overseas travel assignment and I did not think I could handle these two by myself.

 

Boy, was I ever right. Between the stress of having my husband gone, dealing with Miss H's terrible two's/throttle 'em threes, and Baby B's feeding and sleeping issues, I would just about be in a mental institution right now had I not come.

 

My parents are the absolute best. There have been breakdowns (on my part) for which they offered a steady hand to help me get through. My Mom has willingly done baby duty one night a week so that I can get some rest. They have babysat for free while I got my hair done, saw a movie, or just went to church by myself.

 

But alas, all good things must come to an end. Right now I am preparing us to go home at the end of April. A mere two weeks from today, we will pack up and caravan home. It is so bittersweet for me because I have loved being back in my hometown with my parents, brother, and sister, but I am SO ready for Mr. Rose to be home and for our family to be back together again.

 

There are no words for how grateful I am to my parents for everything they have done for me. I know that they are going to be very sad to see their girls go, and I am sad for that as well. Like I said, bittersweet.

 

I hope they know how much I appreciate them and how much I have loved being here. I guess I'll have to tell them.

 

Erin

Are you a baby carrier?

I am! Case in point: Remember this post I wrote about the sling safety issue? Yes, I am a card-carrying babywearer. My babies seem to still want to be attached to me once they are out of the womb. I have tried a lot of carriers in my day, but I have found the hands-down best carrier on the market: the Lillebaby Everywear.

Make sure you read the whole post - you can win one!

Right before Baby B was born, my good friend Erin (you can visit her awesome blog here) sent me the original Everywear as a shower gift. In case you were wondering, Erin and I used to work together at Scandinavian Child where Erin is now Director of Marketing (you go girl!)

When Baby B was born, I found out all about the awesomeness of this carrier. Basically, the construction of the carrier evenly distributes the weight of the child across your back and your hips. You can carry your child front facing inward, front facing out, hip carry, and on your back. With the infant cradle, you can even carry your baby in a cradle type position. Seriously, it is four carriers in one!

I put this carrier to the test when Baby B was four months old and we took our first family trip to Walt Disney World. I literally carried that child all day for three straight days. In every picture of me, I have Baby B on my chest (usually sleeping!) By the end of the day, I was no worse for wear - it is that comfortable!

 

That tan piece hanging down in the front is the sun shade that I have opened up to try to get her in some pictures.

Knowing how much I loved the original carrier, my totally awesome friend sent me a brand spankin' new Everywear a couple of weeks ago. Living in the south, it gets pretty stinking hot in the summer, so I opted for the Sport version of the Everywear. I honestly didn't think they could improve on the original, but the straps are even more padded and the clasps are easier to connect. The Sport fabric is a mesh type which breathes and also makes it lighter I believe.

Right now Scandinavian Child is hosting a contest all about getting out and about with your baby. They are GIVING AWAY 50 carriers, yes that's right 50! -to parents/caregivers who can give them a compelling reason why they try it out.

All you have to do is email challenge@scichild.com between now and April 16.  They'll review all the submissions and pick the best 50 emails to receive a FREE carrier.  How awesome is that?

Then, during the month of May, they'll encourage ALL baby wearing (wraps, Bjorns, Ergo, Moby etc) mamas/dadas/grandparents/sitters to log on to IAmEveryWear.com (going live end of April) to share photographs, videos and advice on getting out with baby. Grand prize is the new Micralite Fastfold stroller and two brand new lillebaby diaper bags.

I hope one of my readers win so go check it out!

Erin

Disclaimer: I used to work for Scandinavian Child LLC, but was not compensated in any way for this review (other than the two products that I received even though one was technically a new baby gift.) These are my opinions of the product.

Best Weekend Ever (Nearly)

What an amazing weekend we just had! The weather here in South Carolina was picture perfect beautiful. Blue sunny skies and temps in the mid-70's, cool breeze, and no humidity! We took advantage of this lovely weather by GETTING OUTSIDE!

Saturday we visited one of our local parks for a Piggin' and Pickin' Barbecue cook-off. There were twenty competitors and you could eat as much as you wanted. I think I sampled ten of them and they almost had to roll me out of there -delish! Miss H enjoyed some chicken fingers and had a blast sliding down the inflatable slide. Baby B did not partake in the pork either, but rather enjoyed her pureed peas!

Later that afternoon, we all took a ride on my Dad's boat. It was absolutely picture perfect. Miss H even got a chance to drive!

Today we spent some time working on my Mom's garden. Miss H was a big helper!

I hope you all had as great a weekend as we did. This week is going to be just as beautiful so I am going to try to get us outside as much as possible!

Erin

It's Party Time!

Have you heard? Its our party, and we'll blog if we want to, blog if we want to, blog if we want to....We're gonna party like its 1999...

It's the 5 Minutes for Mom ULTIMATE BLOG PARTY 2010 (#ubp10 on Twitter.) Woot, woot! I have been looking forward to this for awhile now. Wait, what? You haven't heard about it?

Girlfriend! Grab your favorite cocktail, put on your party dress, and come join the fun. Susan and Janice at 5 Minutes for Mom are holding THE BIGGEST BLOG BASH this side of Y2K!

If you are partying with us and visiting my little blog from the link up, WELCOME! I started blogging in 2007 with the birth of my first daughter, Miss H, for the purpose of keeping my friends and family updated on our little girl. Since then, we have added a new member to our family, Baby B.

Over the months, my blog turned into so much more than a family update. It became a place for me to spread the news about issues that are important to me including premature birth, breastfeeding, and baby product safety. It became a place for me to cry on the shoulder of so many friends inside my computer that I have never met. It became a place for me to just get my thoughts out of my head and onto paper.

Last December, I decided to make my family blog private, and Cultivating Rosebuds was born. {In case you were wondering, I call my children Rosebuds as a play on our last name.} I try to vary what I post about to keep things interesting. Sometimes I do a Pour Your Heart Out post, when I need to get something off my chest. Sometimes I do an informational post about a serious issue. And sometimes, I just try to make you laugh!

If you are new here, I would love for you to follow along, but more than that, I would love for you to leave me a comment. Comments are like candy to me - I eat them up! And when you comment, I try to respond right back to you through email {please do try to make sure that your email is connected to your profile...pretty please?} That way, we can get a conversation going and really get to know each other!

Want to party along with us? Write a "party post" introducing yourself and your blog. Then head over to 5 Minutes for Mom to link up. It's that simple. While you are there linking up, find some new blogs to follow and grow your network. That's what it is all about after all!!

Oh wait- I almost forgot! PRIZES!! Yes, there are prizes. Oodles, and oodles of prizes. Here are my Top Three Prizes that I would L-O-V-E to win.

1. Um, hello? - the GRAND prize is a Toshiba Satellite Laptop.
2. #8. Buds to Bloom Mommy Necklace from Elemental Memories
3. #17 - US and Canada - $200 Apple Gift Certificate CMomGO

If all of those happen to be taken already, I would love any of these great prizes, too:

US Only List: 18, 15, 11, 9, 2

US and Canada List: 11, 18, 5, 9

Or really, any prize for toddlers, babies, or a Mama who loves to be pampered and read!

Now, I'm off to check out the linky and get my party on! Later!!

Erin

What if today was your last day?

Last June, I sat on my couch, seven months pregnant with Baby B, checking facebook. I started seeing status updates from some of my friends from high school. {names have been changed}

Praying for the H family!

So so so so so sad for the H family!

Please keep Chris H and his family in your prayers.

What in the world is going on, I thought? So I emailed one of my friends with some knowledge of the situation. What I heard rocked my world forever.

That morning my friend Chris's wife and his two children were on their way to pick blueberries. They never made it. There was a terrible car accident involving a motorcycle and a dump truck and their minivan. The two children, a little boy age 5 and a little girl age 3, were both killed. His wife was in critical condition with very serious injuries.

Both his children were killed.

His wife endured many surguries and endless hours of physical therapy. I can't even begin to imagine the emotional healing that they are both enduring. I have kept up with them through her Caring Bridge web site, and I have never known anyone with as much faith in God as these two people. They are heartbroken beyond belief, but they believe that their children are playing games with Jesus in heaven, and that they will see them again.

When Mr. Rose came home that night, I told him with tears in my eyes what happened. He had never met Chris and his family, but I could instantly see pain in his face. He didn't have to say a word. The next morning when I asked him how he slept, he said, "I didn't. I couldn't get your friends out of my mind." And I know he meant that he couldn't get the possibility of being in Chris's shoes out of his mind.

One of the things that Chris and his wife want to scream from the rooftops, is to enjoy every single moment that we have with our children. In the times when Miss H is having a temper tantrum or Baby B is fussy and won't sleep, I try to remember how much Chris and his wife would give to be dealing with a toddler's terrible twos or a fussy baby. In the times when I am fighting with Miss H over two more bites of dinner, I try to think about the possibility that this could be the last day that I have with her. Would I really want to have this argument be the last memory I have of her or she has of me? Is two more bites really worth the battle?

So friends, cherish every moment. Every. Moment. With your kids, with your spouse, with your sister or brother, with your parents, with your grandparents, with whomever is dear to you. We never know what tomorrow will bring.

And for the record, Chris and his wife? They are expecting a baby this fall. To God be the glory!

What do you have to pour your heart out about? Head over to Shell's blog to link up!

 

Erin

Post-It Note Tuesday

What do you have to say today? Head on over to Supah's to play!

Erin

We break from our regularly scheduled programming to help a friend

Dear dear Bloggies,

I need to help a friend. This is a friend who I knew in high school; we did not stay in contact after graduation, but we have recently reconnected on Facebook. Her name is Jennifer, and she is a brilliant writer and a beautiful, kind, loving woman. Most importantly her family is experiencing a major crisis right now, and she needs help.

I am in a bit of a quandry here because I feel SO compelled to help her, but I am not close enough to her in proximity to be able to do any of the logistical things that she needs. So, I am reaching out to my blogging friends. If you are in the Raleigh/Durham area and are able to help my friend Jennifer in any way, I would really be very grateful.

You can read about what they need help with and how to contact her on her blog here. If you are able to help, please let her know that Erin McRedmond Roseberry led you to her. I hope she isn't offended that I am putting this out in the blogosphere, but I know that there are good people out there who can help. And goodness, does she need it.

As for me, I will continue to pray for them and to send them loving positive thoughts.

Erin

I've created a fitness monster

Remember last week when I recommitted myself to getting my body back in shape by doing more exercise. Well, Miss H has decided to take me to task. Every day she asks me to watch the exercise videos. Normally, I don't want to, but she whines until I relent convinces me that it is in my best interest.

The other day, we tried out a Pilates video. She was so cute doing all the moves that I had to get up and get my camera in order to take a break document the cuteness.

I actually think she is a good influence on me!

I hope you all had a very happy and blessed Easter!

Erin

Good Friday and Hershey's Better Basket Blog Hop

Today is Good Friday, the day Christians remember the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. Each day this weekend I will post a scripture passage for your reflection.

It was now about noon, and darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon, while the sun's light failed; and the curtain of the temple was torn in two. Then Jesus, crying out with a loud voice, said, "Father, into your hands I commend my spirit." Having said this, he breathed his last. (Luke 44-46)

Yesterday, I was gifted the Hershey's Better Basket by Melissa at Peanut Butter in my hair. In case you haven't heard of it, Hershey's is helping to raise money for Children's Miracle Network by sponsoring the Hershey's Better Basket Blog Hop.

Children's Miracle Network is a non-profit alliance of children’s hospitals dedicated to providing state-of-the-art care, life-saving research and preventative education across North America. Hershey's is going to donate $10 for every Better Basket Blog Hop post written up to $7000 to Children's Miracle Network.

Here's all you have to do!

HERSHEY’S BETTER BASKET BLOG HOP RULES:

* Create a blog post giving a virtual Easter Basket to another blogger – you can give as many Virtual Baskets as you want.
* Link back to the person who gave you an Easter Basket.
* Let each person you are giving a Virtual Easter Basket know you have given them a Basket.
* Leave your link at BetterBasket.info/BlogHop comment section. You can also find the official rules, and more information about Better Basket with Hershey’s there.
* Hershey’s is donating $10 per each blog participating to the Better Basket Blog Hop to Children’s Miracle Network (up to total of $7,000 by blog posts written by April 4th, 2010).
* Please note that only one blog post by each blog url will count towards the donation.

This Easter I am giving this basket to:

Erin @ Amundsen House of Chaos

Carrie @ Making Lemonade

I hope you all have a happy and Holy Easter Weekend!

Blessings,

Erin