You never know what you'll find on the side of the road!

This evening my hubby and I strolled the streets of Legacy Park letting the doggies do their business and getting a super fussy Parker out of the house. There's the usual trash along a side street near our house: cups, beer cans, pregnancy test (seriously...and it was positive! I keep waiting to see a pregnant teen on our street) ... but... today's roadside trash was... lets just say.... different. A raccoon? no...... rouge flip flop? no....... Chocolate Lesbians 4? yes..... WHAT? That's right.... a DVD called Chocolate Lesbians 4.

Here's how the scene played out. Daniel saw a CD upside down and figured it must have been dropped as it was in good condition and wasn't scratched up. He picked it up, flipped it over, gasped, threw it back down and yelled "sick!"I was overjoyed! Not for finding the DVD because it's nasty but for my husbands response! He was truly disgusted and I was so proud! Is that weird?! I LOVED that he was totally repulsed by the DVD when most men would have said "sweet" and brought it home for their viewing pleasure. I love that I'm enough for him and he doesn't desire for anyone else... not even chocolate lesbians! ha ha

We brought the DVD home and disposed of it so the neighborhood teens didn't get a hold of it but now I can't help but wonder.... which of my neighbors likes lesbo porn? Hmmmmm.....

Preppy Baby goes to the Nature Museum

Today my girlfriend and I took the kiddies to the Charlotte Nature Museum. It's located beside Freedom Park which is a beautiful and large park I plan to revisit when it isn't so stinkin' hot! The facility wasn't large but that didn't stop the kids from having fun! There were snakes, turtles, butterflies, baby mice, an owl (or oooowwwwwwwwwwwwwwwlllllllllll according to Parker), water table, reading room, slides and tunnels and more! I'm not sure if Parker got anything out of it educationally at this age but I enjoyed visiting a new place and mostly eating Monterray's for lunch while we were on that side of town!

This was obviously going to be a major picture taking outing so I put Parker in the most naturish outfit he has.... a blue gingham crab and starfish jon jon. ha ha... Actually, he has a monogrammed and appliqued T-shirt with a snail that would have been more appropriate but it's in the wash. Darn!

Here's a recap of the museum...in pictures, of course!

Pressing buttons to hear what sounds each insect makes and checking out turtles!

Playing with blocks



What a dramatic little ham!



Overall, fun time had by all and I definitely recommend planning a trip there if you have young kids in the Charlotte area! My advice would be to go in the morning when it opens (don't bother with a stroller), wait until about an hour before it closes or wait until Summer camps are over since the facility is SO small and the camp counselors are middle school girls on their cell phones not watching the kids! ha ha I give it 1 1/2 thumbs up for toddler friendliness!

Baby Blunders

Last night I went to girl's night at a friend's house in the neighborhood so Daniel was in charge of getting Parker to sleep. I had a blast...as usual... but was excited when I heard Parker wake up this morning! I love my little buddy and this is probably only the 7th night ever that I haven't put him to sleep. He was super smiley, gave me a big hug and then it was time for a diaper change. I pulled his mismatched jammies down and had to do a double take..... is Parker's diaper on backwards? YES... it was. Clearly Daniel has not put Parker's overnight diapers on enough to know that the sleeping mickey is on the front and the diaper size goes on the hiney. It seemed so unnatural to me to pull the tabs off from the back to the front. I decided Daniel needed more diapering practice so he got to do it ALL day! :)

This got me thinking of all of the funny, 1st time parent baby blunders/mistakes we've made. Some didn't seem so funny at the time but they are now! In our 16 months of parenting, we've learned the hard way that:

- Swim diapers don't absorb! We put Parker down for a nap once after taking him to the pool but not putting him in the water... whoops! One soaking wet pack-n-play later and we learned our lesson!
-Playtex Straw Sippy Cups suck up milk on their own if you don't close the valve. We left a 1/2 full sippy cup of milk on the back of the couch overnight and the cup was empty when we woke up but the couch was soaked! I'll be honest... this has happened a few times.
-Breast pads are a must when nursing...even at night. My girlfriends came to visit when Parker was 8 weeks and I fell asleep without any on. 2 of the girls came into the bedroom the next morning and I sat up covered in breast milk. he he.
-Travel systems are a huge waste of money. Spend the money and get the stroller you ACTUALLY want. We've been through 5 so I feel like an expert. I could have purchased an Orbit for the money I've wasted on crappy travel systems. My opinion... Graco SafeSeat or Snug Ride and the BOB Revolution.
- The pediatrician's office makes babies poop. I swear it's true. Almost every mom I know has a blow out at the pediatrician's office story. I'm not sure if it's because of all the smells or maybe they intuitively know they're getting a shot so they get anxious... but seriously.. blow outs. I've taken Parker to see his doctor twice in only a diaper because he ruined his outfit. Lesson: always have an extra outfit in the car!
-Great Clips is not so great. Normally I take Parker to the kid's cuts place called "Pigtails and CrewCuts" but he only needed a snip so I took him to Great Clips. The lady was so impatient and snipped even when he was moving so she grabbed his face and forced it still. It didn't go over well and thus the 2 weeks lapse in pictures. Pay the extra $5 and go where they are used to cutting toddler's hair.
-You can't trust everyone to know baby "rules." At a BBQ when Parker was 2 months old, I went to the bathroom and left Parker with (let's call her...) Leslie. Leslie proceeded to let my 2 month old suck on potato salad (even though she is a mom of 2!). I figured a mom would know better... and I was wrong... and thus he was sick for days and I was sick I put him in that situation!
- Toddler proof trash cans either need to be invented or I need to know where to buy them! SOO... if you're a guy or don't like gross stories skip this one! I was in the shower one day and Parker was playing in my room/bathroom. When I got out of the shower I saw he was playing with something and I walked over to him to see what it was... it was the cardboard of a used tampon (gag... I know) that he had in his mouth and was saying "dun da da!" We do this with wrapping paper tubes and paper towel tubes... so why not tampon tubes? ha ha.. poor kid is probably scarred for life.
- Monkey see...monkey do. My dogs hump. Lets just throw that out there. They're both fixed and they do it as a game and usually we tell them no but sometimes, they just HAVE to do it. Eventually, I get sick of telling them no, let them do it and it's over... well.... Parker is Mr. mimic (you see where this is going).... and a few times I've caught him join in on the fun. He also randomly humps the floor... Whoops... Lesson: no means no and he watches EVERYTHING we do! Better watch my (and the dogs!) actions!!!

Well that's enough baby blunders for the day... can't divulge too many or it will make me sound like a bad mom! :) The good news is that I've never dropped Parker, left him in a car, etc.. these are but minor speed bumps in an other wards perfectly precious life!

In MY opinion....

I've always been an opinionated person. There was a time in my life when I was just sure my opinion was always right and I LOVED to debate it! (ie.... week long debate in the 8th grade with the pastor of a church over the meaning of predestination) Something about arguing for what I felt was right got my blood pumping! I swear I was meant to be a bulldog of an attorney!

That all changed after having cancer. To be honest, cancer didn't change my life THAT much but it did change my outlook on a few things. One of which was drama..... man did I love drama. You know how you're not supposed to talk about politics, religion or money with friends (I think sex is in there too but that SOO much fun to talk about with a glass of wine so we'll leave that in play!)... well none of those topics used to be off limits. I'm pretty sure I've ruined a BBQ or 2 with my passionate takes on America's debt crisis, Islam, foriegn policy etc...

Whether it was cancer or a coming of age, I've finally realized it's OK to have an opinion whether it's based on fact or feeling BUT it's also OK for someone else to disagree; furthermore, it does NOT mean we need to debate it! You see, in my former years.... it was not OK for people to disagree and everyone had to think alike (alike me that is) and if you didn't, I would make you ... doesn't that sound like a fun world? ha ha

Testing this "new me" has recently come up a lot with my new venture into the toddler years! Boy does everyone parent differently! The more friends we make, the more opinions fly. As a 1st time mom to a toddler I've got a lot of questions and we're figuring this out as we go. Pointers, suggestions and "this is how we do its" are so helpful but I find them most helpful when given as such... suggestions...pointers... and tips... not "you're doing it wrongs" or "my baby book says not to do thats!" Moms you know what I'm talking about! I bet in your mind you're making a list of people who do this or situations you've been in where you're biting your tongue so hard it starts to bleed! In fact, I think I have been guilty of doing this here or there and I really want to make an effort not!

I think as mommies talking about our kids is kinda like talking about politics.... it's a subject we're passionate about it! That doesn't mean we should STOP talking about our kids but what it does mean is that we should agree to disagree on how we want to raise them. Isn't parenting really just our opinions on how we think we can best set our children up to be what we consider (in our opinions) to be independent, upstanding adults? So if I want to spank and you don't... cool; If I think it's OK for my son to wear purple and you think I'm making him gay... maybe so but I hope he adopts one day; If my son eats grapes and you're sure your baby book says not to until he's 2... then it's a good thing I know the Heimlich....

To each is own, right... well in my opinion :)

Taylor's TV Guilty Pleasures

Tomorrow is the big day! Parker's 1st airplane ride! Woo Hoo! I wonder if I'll be this enthusiastic tomorrow when he's sitting on my lap for an hour wiggling? Fingers crossed for an uneventful plane ride! Or worse yet... sitting on the tarmac for hours! Ahhh! Happy thoughts! So... in preparations for our trip, I had to get some things done around the house, one of which was to make sure the DVR was set so I wouldn't miss any of my shows! It got me thinking.... Gosh I have a lot of shows I just MUST DVR! My DVR barely had any space on it because I DVR way more than I could ever watch but I've got some guilty pleasures I had to make room for! Sorry Glenn Beck, you're only being recorded in the middle of the night now! If Daniel ask, I don't know what happened?! he he Here's a list of some of my must see guilty pleasures:

The Secret Life of the American Teenager - High school wasn't THAT long ago for me and I don't remember it being near as drama filled as this show! My daughter (should I ever have one) will NEVER go to public school if it's anything like this high school. Sex, Sex and more sex.... seriously... there wasn't even this much sex in college. Why do I watch it? I honestly have no idea. Mondays at 8pm on ABC Family (which makes it even funnier than this soft teenage porn is on ABC FAMILY!)

Pretty Little Liars - This is a new guilty pleasure of mine. What's not to love about lying teenage girls who may (or may not) have killed their best friend who is haunting them from the grave. We don't know the whole story yet and I look forward to it every week! What will A reveal next? Tune into (once again) ABC Family on Tuesdays at 8pm.

Modern Family- If you've seen it... you'd understand! It's H-I-L-A-R-I-O-U-S! Daniel and I have every episode saved on the DVR if you ever want to come over and watch them. Cam, the gay partner who is a stay at home dad and Phil the spacey dad of 3 are my favorite characters! Wednesdays at 9pm on ABC.

The Bachelor/Bacherlorette - Drama, drama, drama. I haven't missed a season YET! 25 women (women is a nice term for the majority of these females!) vying for the love, affection and 15 minutes of fame from 1 overly wealthy, handsome.... jackass and/or emotionally stunted male. Did you see Jake and Vienna duke it out last night? INSANE! ABC 8pm on Mondays

Parks and Recreation - I LOVE Leslie Knope BUT.... I believe Tom is my favorite character. This is the story of a group of co-workers who work for the parks department in a small town in Indiana. It's written like the office but Leslie is way less annoying than Michael Scott and the story lines aren't dead and over written yet. Daniel and I have gotten a lot of good laughs from this show! They just changed the time but it's on Thursday on NBC.

TrueBlood - My delightful Sunday night pleasure that even Daniel is into! This show is full of dirty, violent, passionate, naked.... vampire sex. Porn you ask... probably.... and I sorta feel bad about it BUT I love the relationship Sookie (human) and Bill (vampire) work on and mess up every episode... oh and then there's Eric... excellent eye candy. I never know what to expect on this show other than blood. It's hard to describe... just order it on Netflix and catch up.. you'll be glad you did! Sunday nights, HBO 9pm.

The Vampire Diaries - Yes, another vampire show... and if Twilight were a TV show, I'd watch it too. Damon and Stefan are 2 super hot vampires trying to live a semi normal life in a small town but what's normal about vampires? I know one of the extras on this how (shout out to Blair!) so that's also another fun reason to watch it. It's like where's waldo but instead it's where's blair! CW (it's off season right now so I'll get back to you when it comes back on)

A Baby Story - I just like babies. Some of the birthing gets a little much but I enjoy the story of how the couples met, how much they've wanted their baby (or prevented it and got pregnant anyways), how they prepare for the baby and watching them figure it out when they bring him or her home. It's a great show to have on the the background while you fold clothes, etc. TLC... pretty much runs all day!

Summer Heights High - This is off air now but I've got a ton of them DVRed! You Tube Mr. G. Hoopies Celine! My sister turned me on to this show. Its 1 guy who plays 3 hilarious characters.... a drama teacher, a special ed boy and a "trying to be popular" teen girl. Mr G the drama teacher is my favorite character along with his sidekick "Celine" the Chihuahua. "Ecstasy, ecstasy, Annabell died from ecstasy....she's a slut and she knows it....." Don't judge...watch it... you'll get it and you'll be glad you did :)

Project Runway - Have you ever seen the Dane Cook comedy bit where he talks about reviewing movies while watching previews? (No? You tube it) This is me watching Project Runway. You would think I'm a fashion designer/expert seamstress. Some of the clothes I love are hated by the judges and vice versa but every time I watch this I want to go rip down a curtain and make it into an evening gown. It's on Lifetime (or who knows what network next!... but it's worth checking out!)

So... these are some of my favorite guilty pleasures. What are yours?

Moms, do you ever wonder.....

For most of us, this is a LONG way away.... but do you ever wonder what your child's future spouse will be like? Will you like him or her? Will they fall in love young? Will it be love at first sight? Will they have children? Will they be around for holidays? Will they trust you with the grand kids?

As a mom of a boy, I wonder these things. In most families, I've noticed when the kids get married, they tend to spend holidays with the girl's family and if that were the case.... it would KILL me! Daniel's mom lives out of town and his father isn't in the picture so we spend most holidays with my family. We have traditions and quite honestly, it wouldn't seem right if we weren't there. I'm addicted to my son and we're developing traditions of our own. I'd love to eventually include a daughter in law in this but what if she prefers to be with her family? Maybe I'll just have super extravagant parties so they'll want to come to my house! ha ha. But seriously... I can't imagine raising my son for 20+ years and then barely ever seeing him once he's married. (Which is sorta the case with Daniel and his family) This would be seriously heartbreaking to me! I would have to go on a cruise every holiday with a full bottle of Prozac.

I pray for Parker's future spouse. I pray that she loves me and sees me as a second mom instead of a mother in law... there's a difference. I want to go wedding dress shopping with her even though it isn't my place to be there. The desire of my heart was always to have children but there are certain life experiences that only a girl has that I so desire to be a part of with my future daughter in law. I suppose the only thing I can do is raise Parker to choose wisely.... to respect women and himself and to listen to his heart.... to ask God for guidance... to know what he wants in a wife... to guard his heart. Whew... the job of a mother is so much more involving than keeping him fed and clothed!

Adios Butterflies... hello babies!

ALL 5 of my tumors have shrunk! WOO HOO! One even shrunk by 1/3 it's size! The biggest one went from 5 cm to 3 1/2 cm which is A-MAZ-ING! There has been no new growth and my cell counts look healthy! The best news... I'm in the clear if we want to expand the family. Who wouldn't want more if they'd all be as cute and sweet as this!?!


SO... on that note..... goodnight ;)