The Balm Cosmetics

The first time I saw The Balm stuff I think I was in a Marshall's and the cute packaging caught my eye. If you aren't familiar with the products, please check out their website. The packaging is so cute and just for that reason alone I want everything!!

thebalm.com

Got the privilege to try out some of their products, and I am in love!

This is "hot mama". I think it is a gorgeous warm blush that reminds me a lot of Nars Orgasm....do I dare say it might even be better? gotta love that its called hot mama too!

Balm Shelter Lip gloss. smells delicious!

Ok I recently did a video stating that I was looking for the perfect concealer. This is fast becoming one of my favorites. The one I got is in "medium" which I thought would be too dark, but it actually blends perfectly with my skin. great coverage, smooth texture. (for reference I'm an nc35, or medium plus in MAC)

Overshadow in "no money, no honey" cutest names huh? This is a beautiful, finely milled warm shimmer that can be worn alone or over any shadow you already have!! 

Here is my review on the products, hope you enjoy and discover these little treasures too! 

Zana Cosmetics

zanacosmetics.com

So excited about these new products! 

Delicious Cheeky Blush: Rumba

This blush is a gorgeous natural color, super pigmented so you don't need it a lot. definitely gonna be one of my favorites, I can already tell!

Kiss my Lips Satin Lip Color: Let's Celebrate!

Diva Glaze High Shine Tint: Sweet Diva

Picture Perfect Expert Face Primer

Products I'm currently loving

So finally over 7 months after having my baby #3  I feel like I'm starting to lose some weight. I have a long way to go... but its a good feeling when you can squeeze into your old jeans...even if they were your 'big jeans' and now are skin tight! hahah.... I am not one to exercise or diet so this has been a challenge for me. I can't do much physically because of my back, but I've been really trying to be more active. s l o w l y doing a little exercise. By slowiy i mean like.. I'll do 5 lunges one my way to get the laundry out , or I'll do 10 sit-ups while I do my back stretches. Its not much but its a start right? I eat pretty healthy...but I've been trying to do even better. So, hopefully I'll get rid of my invisible pants that give me this unsightly muffin top and firm up the jiggles....I need a butt perk up too. man... 

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anyways, here are some of the products that I have been loving the past while. Hope it is helpful, have a great day!

Sally Hansen Salon Effects for Toes!

of all my nail stuff, I definitely have the most Sally Hansen stuff. It's just the best! especially the salon effects nail strips. I've tried quite a few different kinds and they all peeled off within hours of applying them. These ones stay on forever. My nail usually grows out before it chips or peels. love love love them. They sent me these in my goody box (which by the way, makes me love them even more... if that was possible) and I was so excited! I haven't even seen the pedicure ones in store yet. So today I decided to do them and found that there were enough extras to do accent nails on my fingers to match!  I pairs them with the magnetic polish... isn't it cute? this pattern is "snake, rattle and roll". 

okay, well now that my nails are all cute I am off to bed.

Hope you all had a great day. I got to spend it with my family celebrating my husbands birthday. 

Thankful and blessed with every year I get to spend with him. :)

g'nite!

Father's Love

Reflecting after father's day...a hard day for a lot of kids and grown ups. I feel like we are living in a generation of absent father's. physically, emotionally.. everything.

I hope you watch this and are encouraged. If you don't or didn't have the kind of relationship that you want/ed or dreamed of... You can still experience it...
you are loved.

Liole Sheet Masks

I am such a sucker for packaging. I love how all the Liole stuff is so pretty and princess-y. I got these Liole Korean sheet masks the other day from www.naturalradiance.net (use promo code "aboutalot" for 15% off) and they come as a set of 5 in this pretty pink box. 

I finally got a chance to use one today. My skin has been a total mess so I decided to use the Trouble Clear Essence Mask in the hopes it would help clear up my skin ( I also went berserk yesterday and starting picking at my face..I know.. I know)

Here is the back side of the package. I'm so thankful when they write it out in english. I can read korean, but a lot of the time I have to read it out loud and slowly..and still some words I'm like "huh?!"

I opened it before reading the back and woooooooo buddy, you can smell the tea tree oil! This mask is super de duper saturated. It's like a thick wetness, so even though it was super wet it didn't drip or slide off my face while I waited. 

When I first put it on it was really tingly... I don't know if it's because my skin is so sensitive...but it was pretty tingly. I left it on for about 20 minutes and then took it off. Left the essence on my skin to soak it (kinda sticky). I could tell right away that a lot of the areas that were really red before had calmed down. 

It is now about an hour after taking it off and my skin feels really moist, elastic and soft. I have to say that around my mouth it feels a little itchy. Not bad, just a little... but again, I have super sensitive skin.

 all in all I really liked this mask and would definitely get it again. I'm excited to see the difference with the other ones!

Free Glasses

I got contacts 20 years ago... yes, 20 years ago!!! and I rarely have worn glasses since. especially in the last 10 years. My prescription is so bad that I have to get the super high index lenses to make them thin enough to fit a frame and that usually means.. super expensive.

I discovered this website the other day and could not believe it. I ordered them on Wednesday and got them Friday morning!! 

I know a lot of people are scared to buy glasses online, but this website makes it so that you can upload a picture and your picture shows up instead of the model's for all the frames so you can see what it will look like. 

www.coastal.com 

to get them free enter "first pair free" in promo code

These were my 4 top picks from the website and ended up getting the one in the upper right.

here are is volume 2 of best websites for FREE and super cheap stuff, hope its helpful!

a little about concealers

I am on a journey to find the 'ultimate' concealer... here are some of the ones I use and a little video review of each of them:

Sonia Kashuk Concealer Palette

Coastal Scents Camouflage Concealer Palette

Benefit Boi ing Concealer

MAC Studio Finish Concealer

Laura Mercier Camouflage Concealer

Avon Smooth Minerals Concealer

Milani Secret Cover Concealer Stick

Today's Tidbit: Inner Circle of Friends

Hope you are all having a great day, here is a today's tidbit :)

little girl fun

I feel like as a mom a lot of days are in 'survival mode'. Just trying to make it to the end of the day. I hate that. I don't want to just survive, I want to thrive. I find myself getting snippy throughout the day and telling my kids to clean up, be quiet, calm down, sit properly... nag. nag. nag.

yeesh. when did I become such a drag?!?

I'm not much of a play-er. I always thought I would be, but now... I feel like I'm always too tired to 'play'. So I end up telling the kids to play doctor as I lie in the middle of their room and close my eyes. what a bore. 

My kids are so beautiful, intelligent, funny and YOUNG. They will never ever ever be this age again, and one day I am going to miss it and wish that I spent less time nagging and more time having fun with them. 

Today my oldest who is 5 begged me if she could do my makeup. The boring, naggy mom in me was just about to say no... when I looked at her big brown eyes full of hope and excitement. How could I say no? 

OH MY. The girl was soooooooooooooo excited when I said yes. Who knew such a little thing could make her so happy?! She took forever picking the right colors... and finally chose 6 different blushes which she applied with the smallest brushes possible, pink and black glittery eyeshadow and pink lipstick. she did pretty good for her first time! look at the concentration!

Here's a close up. I have to admit I'm pretty impressed with the contouring. Plus, she even held a wet wipe to 'fix the smudges'.

I decided to keep the makeup on for the rest of the day. Every time she looked at me she would smile so big.... I need to let her do things like this more.

After makeup time we had a hula hoop contest and then she went and picked these little flowers for me.

what a beautiful and sweet little girl. makes my heart melt.

 This little girl is going to be a world changer. She is so smart, compassionate and loves so much.

Thank you Lord for a daughter who embodies so many different types of beauty and shows me every day how colorful life can be!

Sally Hansen Magnetic Polish

I often feel like when I'm having 'one of those days' I get some surprise package, letter, treat that I wasn't expecting. I feel like God uses people to say "I see you, maybe this will make you feel a little better and remind you that you are loved".  Sometimes timing is amazing. Even something little and seemingly insignificant at the right time can do so much. 

I love when I walk to the front door and see a package. Its like Christmas! my heart skips a beat and I start getting all huffy. I try not to walk super fast and scream...stay composed and be 'adult' about it. but secretly, WEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE! 

I love packages! I think even if I opened it and there was one skittle inside I'd be delighted.

I didn't recognize the name or sender so I was curious....opened it to find this!

Oh Sally Hansen, I already loved you... but now.... we are bff's! haha!

still trying to be 'composed and adult' I had to rip into some stuff.

so curious about the magnetic polish..and it was more amazing than I imagined! 

look at how cool this is!!!

Here's a quick video showing you how it works!

how I clean my brushes

I'm a little bit of a hygiene freak about certain things and get weirded out by funny things. Like, I don't like sharing towels... and I always check my water before I drink (out of a bottle). With that said, I feel like I need to wash my makeup brushes a lot or I'll break out. I bet there's some truth to it...right?

anyways I thought I'd share how I wash my brushes since it is so easy and cheap! I use to use makeup removing face wash, then I used antibacterial soap, then I started buying brush cleaner... and now.. I use plain old dish soap and olive oil. it works a GABILLION times better, faster and cheaper. Plus, you always have the supplies at home. All the other things I used I never got fully clean brushes I felt like the inside/middle was still oily and had makeup in it. anyways... here are the steps!

1. put dishwashing soap in a  bowl (i like the original palmolive the best)

2. add 1/3 the amount of Olive oil this will condition the bristles and keep them soft

3. lather in your hand, rinse, repeat

4. squeeze, and reshape your brush

5. let dry overnight 

hope this was helpful! g'nite!

a little love tap

my bubblegum pink nails :)

I've often heard it said "its just the little things"... its just the little things that can make or break: your day, marriage, job, relationships, mood, outlook, perspective,attitude...

I am so thankful for the little things today. I have been talking to a lot of women who feel neglected and overlooked by their significant others. It is amazing what a simple hug, nudge, warm touch or a kiss can do. I think it is hard for a man to realize how much it means to a woman. 

Feeling down, depressed, ugly, unloved, undesired, unwanted are huge feelings that really affect our every day. Something as simple as a hug, squeeze, or a heartfelt "i love you" or "you're doing great" or "you look beautiful" when you are out about in your every day can all of a sudden make a woman feel happy, joyful, beauitful, loved, liked, desireable and wanted. The lack of such over time can really hurt and potentially end relationships. I know a lot of women say "i don't want to have to TELL him to do it.. because then he's just doing it because I told him to". The reality is, most men don't realize the importance of it..and if you just let them know...I bet they would do it, and reverse the snowball of bad to good. 

I say all of this in appreciation to my husband who is so good (and gotten better over the years after me 'sharing' how important it is to me) at the 'little things'. encouraging words, hugs, going out of his way when we are out to make sure i'm ok and don't need anything... this week he brought me some 'just because' flowers. and as much as I love flowers.. the thought that he was out and thought of me made me feel special.

so with all of that said. Ladies, its okay to tell your man that you need some affection or that your love tank is running low. I know that if he loves you, he will be more than happy to fill it back up. hope you are doing well and hope you have a lot of little reminders this week that you are beautiful, loved, worthy, doing a good job, wonderful and perfect :)

good friends

Good friends are hard to find. As you get older, it gets harder. There have been so many times when I've been at the park and I see the other moms checking each other out and as each mom arrives, they get sized  up. I've had quite a few 'pick ups' where moms slowly come closer and try to find something to talk about. and sometimes nervously ask things like "so do you come here often?" its totally like dating!! hahaha I totally get it. Once you're not in school, or working especially, it gets harder and harder to meet new people. I can't imagine life without my good friends. Some of them live closer than others...but even the ones that live far I keep in touch with daily. I think you need that.

I think a lot of times when people get a boyfriend, or husband. That person becomes their EVERYTHING. Which is good, but bad. He should be your best friend, confidant, blah blah blah... but you need people other than your significant other to talk to, vent, sometimes just hang out and do absolutely nothing. It is healthy for you, and for your relationship with your significant other (he needs friends too!) 

Anyways, today I got to hang out with one of my best friends. She is alway so refreshing to hang out with. I can just be myself, talk about ANYTHING...and she always keeps it real. She happened to have her baby within weeks of me having mine. That in itself was amazing to experience with someone you love so much! That is her cutie up there on the left with my daughter. aren't they just so adorable? we took about a gabillion pictures together in the middle of the mall, but of course forgot to manage to take one of us together. 

The last couple of days I have been in such a poo-ey mood (i think its that time) so it was a nice getaway, even if it was just for a couple of hours. With all that said, I am so thankful for some good friends that have stuck with me through the years.... (S,A,M) you better be reading this! hehe. 

I know that I am a much more sane person because of your love and encouragement!

so while taking a breather in the dressing room I did a quick outfit of the day. who am i?! yeesh... haha! 

anyways, its nothing fancy. I'm not even wearing any jewelry or anything...its really like a mom uniform :)

 

Looking in from the outside

I hesitated to write this post...but this is  my outlet for thoughts so here goes.

Today I was at Target.  Me, the baby and my pile of coupons. I usually look for the line with the least amount of people, and if someone comes up behind me i let them go first. 

I was checking out and this couple came up behind me. I could hear the man huffing and puffing about something and grunting as they got in line. Of course my check out lady couldn't read the numbers on my item that wouldn't scan and asked me to read them. I happily obliged. The huffing and puffing got louder. the man turned to his wife and was like "this is going to take forever!! grunt grunt" he squeezes past me and starts moving my cart (that has my baby in it) and I was like, "excuse me, I will move it". He gave me a dirty look at huffed away. we proceed checking out. now the guy is standing on the other side of my cart with his hands on his hips mumbling to himself and giving his wife the death look. I look over at her and she just looks so scared. He squeezes back and grabs her arm and is like "NEXT TIME YOU LOOK AT THE LINE AND YOU DON'T GET BEHIND SOMEONE LIKE THIS!!!!!! DON'T YOU THINK BEFORE YOU DO THINGS?!!"  and huffs away. I look at her and say "It's not your fault, if its anyone's fault its mine... I'm sorry I have a gabillion coupons" and she shyly says "oh no... he... he's just not feeling well"....the cashier look at her, looks at me and goes "uh no, its his fault. doesn't he know it takes time to checkout? everything takes time, he can wait". the lady shyly looks down. 

*sigh... deep breath

this sight was all too familiar for me. growing up I remember looking up at my mom... who would awkwardly smile and act like it was no big deal. I remember feeling scared and embarrassed whenever we went out.  I HATED that feeling... and I HATED going out, feeling people look at us..watching us. ugh. so today I just got that sick feeling in my stomach. I was on the outside looking in, but I got that feeling all over again for the lady behind me. It makes me wonder why they stay, why they let men treat them that way. I automatically think that if he is comfortable being liked that in public, he's probably so much worse at home. but I get it. I get why they stay, why its hard to leave.

When I was  done the cashier (who before this happened was emotionless) looked at me with a sort of "i'm with you" look said "you have a good day, really... have a good day" and smiled. It's like we both saw something that was so wrong... didn't agree, but knew we really couldn't do anything. 

When I got to my car I just kind of sat there for a while. That could so easily be me. Don't they say that you often marry what you are use to... disfunction becomes the norm and even abuse becomes a strange comfort when that is all you know? 

So I thanked God. Thanked Him for a husband that never raises his voice at me, who always treats me with so much respect and is tender and kind. I know that my husband is rare, but also rare that I am on the outside looking in. 

For a moment I thought, what if I just grabbed the lady and ran? took her home and let her live with me? I know. crazy thought. but at this moment I wish I could be some sort of superhero that rescues women and   could give them the ability to see their self worth and and show them an unconditional love, that doesn't hurt or disrespect but that shows gentleness  and care.

So tonight as I'm getting ready to go to sleep I have this lady on my mind. Praying the Lord shows her His love, and that she receives it.

Sigma Brushes

I did a blog waaaaaaay back about 2 sigma brushes that I ordered off of Amazon using my swag bucks after reading a bunch of good reviews on them.

the flat top kabuki (f80) I use this for liquid foundation and seriously. flawless results!

and rounded kabuki (f82) This one I use for powder/mineral skin finish. You can use this for liquid too, but I use them this way.

 that are suppose to give 'HD'effect. I totally bought into the hype and absolutely LOVE them and cannot live without them! The bristles are super de duper dense unlike most kabuki brushes that are a little more fluffy. but I think that is what gives the hd effect.

I have a tapered kabuki on the way and I'm so excited to try it for highlighting and contouring. I wish I could order all of them... but I'm gonna need some more swag bucks for that!!!

anyways, there is a 10% off code right now so I thought I would share!

happy brushing!

Citrus Lane

So I know there are a lot of  monthly beauty box subscriptions going around, but I didn't know there were ones for baby and kids stuff! woohoooo!! Citrus Lanes is a $25/month subscription for ages 0-3 years old.   They fill the boxes (approximately $45 worth) of stuff for your child according to their age and gender

Citrus Lane sent me 2 boxes to review:

 This was my daughter's box

My son's box

To enter the giveaway:

1. Subscribe to the Citrus Lane YouTube Channel

2. leave them a comment or message saying that 'alittleaboutalot' sent you

3. giveaway will end on June 8th

4. if you are the winner, Citrus Lane will contact you via YouTube
 

Just a little time away....

sometimes I feel like you have to intentionally take a little time off. Time away from your every day. It gets harder to just "pick up and go" away for the night when you have 3 kids...but I think its just as, if not more important! The wonderful thing about living in California is, you don't have to very far to find things to do or feel like you are further away than you actually are. 

I got a last minute deal on Hotwire so we went to San Diego for the night. Am I the only one that gets nervous booking a hotel without knowing which one you're getting? I swear it took me forever to pull the trigger and just book it! We ended up staying at a nice Hyatt by the Bay and had a lot of fun. the pool actually had water slides.... i was shocked at how chilly it was though. less than 2 hours away and it was like more than 30 degrees colder! brrrr! and, just as an FYI Hyatt charges you up the wazoo for everything extra! I'm probably gonna get charged for saying their name! haha!!

So we went the educational route and went to the discovery museum which turned out to be a great choice. I am so amazed at how smart and bright my kids are, and how fast they are growing up. 

I feel like I could just stare at them all day. 

One realization I had this week was that being that they are so smart I expect so much out of them... and I have to remember...They are just 5, they are just 3.... sometimes they need to be that age. I guess it was kind of a mom epiphany moment. I think in the every day of life you get into survival mode and just try to  keep it together that you forget that sometimes, you just have to stop. enjoy. let them cry if they need to, hug them extra long....and just let them be whatever age they are. they don't always have to keep it together... that's my job. HAHAHHAHAA!!! 

so proud of the little people they are becoming. ok. one more proud mom moment. my daughter who is 5 has been getting an allowance for doing chores. we do this mainly to teach her about money, saving, tithing, etc. so anyways, she's been saving her money to buy a treat. the other day she says "mom, i figured out what I want to do with my money" and I was like "really? what do you want to get?" and she says "I want to give it to (our friend's son) so he can go to africa". my heart just melted. our friend's son is raising money to go to kenya on a missions trip with his school, I really didn't even know that she was aware of all this. anyways, I was so proud of her for having such a generous and thoughtful heart. what a sweet girl.....

anyways, I hope you are all having a good week and remember to take a little time to enjoy the people in your life!!! g'nite :)

May: things I love

Hello errbody! Hope you are all doing well. 

I did a quick video on things I've been loving this month. I forgot to say what color the lip butter is, and it is in "sweet tart". anyways, hope this is helpful...enjoy!

new perspectives

the past couple of weeks have been kind of a... how should i say, learning experience? I use to work at this kids camp and at the end of the day when the leaders were sharing about the day we would say if the day was a 'good' day or a 'growing' day. I would have to say the last couple of weeks have been 'growing'. not so much with me and internally, but with outside situations. learning how to deal with things, people, situations....its hard. 

relationships are hard. especially when people are hard. *sigh.

with all that said, I realize that certain people will never change. and since they will be in my life forever....I figure I need to change. change my thinking, reactions and expectations of them. The reality is, most people are selfish. AND even though they might be grown up in age...they might not ever 'grow up' and mature. I think that is the part I have a hard time with. realizing that some people might not ever think outside themselves. 

SO....in order to guard my heart and not get stressed and anxious about it. I have been really trying to change my perspective.

Get Ready with Me

Oops, I just got a second...but here is my get ready with me video. Just a warning, don't be scared of my morning crazy look! hahahha... I was hesitant to do this, but OH WELL!
 hope you are all having a great day!

I    

Chosen Family

Today was an interesting day. It was beautiful and sunny. Got to run around in the morning and get some things done and then spent some time with my family.

 I feel like I am aware of the blessings in my life, but today I realized it a little more. 

I always hear horror stories about in-laws and I feel like even in movies, in-laws are always portrayed as monster in laws....so I'm assuming it is a bit more common than not to have difficult in laws to deal with when you get married. I have the opposite. Truly blessed. I remember when I married my husband thinking that even if I didn't like him (which of course I am head over heels in love with him) I would have to marry him just for his family. His family is not common family. They are actually functional. Who would have thought? I didn't know that normal, loving, FUNCTIONAL families actually existed. Even seemingly normal families weren't upon further inspection. 

I remember when I first met his dad...waiting, and expecting him to yell, get mad or be mean. it never happened. He's a loving father...the way a father is suppose to be. I asked my husband if his dad ever yelled and he told me that all growing up he had never heard his parents yell at each other... I was dumbfounded. 

Now his mom is just as intriguing to me. Genuinely supportive, laid back and what a mom should be. She has never made me feel bad, not enough or lacking as a mother myself. They give us space and allow us to do "home" and "family" the way we do it...never offering up their opinions on how they think we should do things. Always supportive and encouraging. They love my kids and get down and dirty with them and always speak joy into their lives. I know its rare to find a family like this...and it doesn't end there. His siblings are the same way. Always positive and loving. (they never fight or get mad at each other... where in the world are they from?!)

anyways. all this to say... today having a little heart to heart with my mother in law and sister in law I was so amazed by the love and support they always give me. So I thanked God... for giving me such a wonderful 'in law' family along with the best husband in the world.

Life wasn't always so.
I am glad I have sister who is the only one in the world that was there through everything and understands  what no one else can. I want the same for her, that unconditional, encouraging, joyful love. 

I am glad I stuck with it, put my faith in God and asked Him for more. The unreachable and unattainable. He gave me. Showed me a father's love and a mother's love that I could see, tangible...the way He created it to be. 

So thankful tonight as I go to bed.

I hope you all have unreachable unattainable dreams that without God are impossible, that way when then happen.. you know it was Him.

G'nite! xoxo

Pumps & Bumps

Hey everyone! So Tommee Tippee was nice enough to send me a manual breast pump to try out, unfortunately I didn't like it at all...BUT I thought I should share. I am all about reading reviews on products and I find that bad reviews are just as helpful as good reviews.

 

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On another note, I have been a stressball (again) the last couple of days. I feel like my mind wanders a lot and I get to this place where I  have so much anxiety that I literally get a stomach ache and cannot eat. *sigh. I don't know why I allow myself to get to that place.
I feel like I get so bothered by the way people act. I don't understand how some people can be so oblivious, selfish and self absorbed. The truth is, I probably won't understand...ever. So why do I try? it just makes me more frustrated. I'm not saying I'm perfect by any means, I guess I just need to let things be and focus on who and how I am...

 

Do you stress a lot? I am prone to anxiety. Yesterday morning I was feeling a little bit overwhelmed with certain situations that are beyond my control. My husband gave me a hug and reminded me that at the end of the day, I have a wonderful family that loves me and that life is good. *deep breath.

This is something I've been working on a lot this  year. Trying not to stress out, and enjoy every day. 

Yesterday I ventured out and took the 3 kids to disneyland and met my mother in law and sister in law. I thought it would be a bit more stressful, but we did good...and the kids did good. they are good kids. I am blessed. 

I made this little video the other day about savoring little moments.

hope you enjoy!

so the other day I came home to another beautiful box of milani stuff to review! luckily I had a chance to try out the products for a couple of days and I filmed this before I caught what the kids had.
I'm still in bed all stuffy and feverish. I hate being sick...BUT it makes me realize even more what a good husband I have while he takes care of us and what good kids I have for not complaining once about taking medicine. I think I'm the biggest baby out of all of us!! Luckily the baby hasn't caught it yet...and I'm hoping and praying it stays that way!!
anyways, here is a review of the face stuff! hope you all are well :)

Fever Babies

I got this Zarbee's cough syrup a while ago for free using my coupons, and boy has it come in handy! it actually works, is packed full of vitamins the kids need when they are getting sick...and they seem to like the flavor okay too (huge bonus compared to the normal gagging they usually do)

I hate when my kids get sick. I feel so helpless...and paranoid. All these horrible 'what ifs' go through my mind. am I the only one? or are other moms like that too?

My son got sick the other day and woke up yesterday with a temperature of 103...we were in Arizona and still had to drive back to Cali. ugh. So we packed up and started driving. I hate seeing them sick, lethargic, eyes glazed over and so out of it. Moments like that make me wish they were running around yelling at each other! Drove all the way home safely and when we got him, he started acting weird. delirious. he kept thinking he was falling and would freak out. My husband took him to urgent care and they told him he had a cold virus. nothing serious, but that it just had to run its course. The delirium is normal with fevers I guess, I never heard of it before. 

So today he is feeling a bit better, but my oldest daughter is now coming down with the same thing. 

We were out of town for a week. Usually when we go on any kind of trip it is stressful for me. This trip was super busy, not a lot of down time to just rest and sleep but it was good. refreshing in a different way.  you know how people say they 'fell in love all over again' with their spouse, or with the Lord... this trip I feel like I fell in love all over again with my kids. They are good kids. Each one of them I love so dearly and in such different ways.  I know that I am blessed... I love them so much. pray for them every day, every night. I hope they grow up knowing they are loved, worth so much and live long healthy lives and have beautiful families of their own. 

time for advil.

Traveling with Kids

Ok. who and when did the layout for blogspot change? Am I weird? as I get older the less and less I like change in my every day things.. like the timeline thing on Facebook really made me want to quit it all together. 

 As a family we travel a lot. sometimes close, sometimes far. Our day to day is pretty busy and most of the time we are out of the house going from place to place. I feel like on a whole we are all pretty good at flexing and flowing and enjoy going to places. Of course that doesn't mean we are always good. I'm definitely guilty of having a meltdown or two...or three. I hope I'm getting better at being 'fun' on trips rather than a big grumpy stressball. I feel like about a week before a trip my mind is everywhere trying to think of everything we need, and everything we might need. Especially with kids you need a gabillion "just in case" things. Our luggage has turned into 95% kids stuff and 4% dad stuff...and I'm lucky if I have extra underwear. With each new kid come new things we gotta figure out. Sleeping arrangements, feeding arrangements.... but we also discover some new creative things that make trips more fun and less stressful. 

The picture above was a genius idea I came up with the other day. We've been swimming a couple of times a day.. .which means wet, soggy swimsuits draped all over the place. I stepped on a pile of child links and a lightbulb went off! and now, this little links are gonna make it so much more convenient for our swimming times! 

 Anyways, I feel like I go on little spurts with my blogs and then go on hiatus. I am gonna try to be better about it. maybe i'll start waking up super early and make my 'thoughts' time. hope you are all doing well... if you have any clever travel ideas let me know! maybe I should do a what to pack when traveling with kids video? wutcha think?

Postpartum/Menstrual Hives

am I the only person that self diagnoses through googling symptoms?

I know we are probably every doctor's nightmare, but I swear a lot of time when the doctor's leave the room for a minute they are googling too. haha!!!

After having kids I have come to love googling things just to make sure everything is okay and not freak out. The doctor/nurse usually tells me the exact same thing as what I found doing research myself. Of course I never tell them I googled or act like I "know" anything...cuz boy would that be annoying.

anyways. with that said...

yesterday at church one of my eyes started swelling...bigger and bigger, then i started noticing lumps. Then throughout the day I felt like my throat was itchy. By the time we got home at about 630pm I noticed that I had broken out in hives all over my arms. My hands were swollen and itchy and my shoulders were killing me. My arms often fall out socket and hurt really bad, so at first I thought that was all it was. Then it got worse and worse. I felt like all my bones were being smashed with a huge sledge hammer or that I had been hit by a huge mack truck. pain.

I could not sleep.. itchy and in so much pain. So I got up and looked up if it was okay to take benadryl while breastfeeding...which let me to start googling all my other symptoms.

I had also had started my first period since being pregnant the night before. This was already more excitement than I could handle. After my 2nd, my first period was horrible. It lasted almost 2 months on and off...and had the worst cramps ever. *sigh.

so back to self diagnosing... I had a sneaky suspicion the hives were from me getting my period again. I discovered that there were many woman who experienced getting hives postpartum or when they got their period after giving birth.

Most of the information I found was from forums, and moms asking for advice or if anyone else had experiences the same thing...more than actual medical help.

So I a hoping that mine was just an isolated event. (some women had hives every day for YEARS after giving birth).

So today I still feel groggy, benadryl is not my friend. my body still feels kinda sore...I feel dizzy but the itchiness is gone. one eye is still a bit swollen but I'm hoping it will all pass by tomorrow.

have any of you experience this before?

We are on our way to take the kids to the discovery museum, hopefully they won't discover their mom on the floor itching and scratching with bones in pain!