A Conflicted Heart

As I have mentioned before, Evelyn really doean't like pink. Yesterday, Tom went outside to work on the a/c and Evelyn wanted to follow. I told her to get dressed pointing out red shorts. She put on her shorts and said, "Okay I'm ready!" I told her she couldn't go outside with out shoes and especially without having a shirt. She ran into her room and came back with a pink shirt. I asked her if she was sure and she happily said yes! So I put it on her.

Later that night, Evelyn screamed out to us from her room, "It's not working! My light!" Hubby went to check it out and both 30w bulbs had burned out. He took one of the four 100w bulbs from our bathroom (I know, but 30w was very low for the ceiling fan, it's just what was in from previous tenants) and he put it in her ceiling fan. It lite up the room so much!

"Wow!" Evelyn came running to me in the kitchen, "Mommy! You've gotta come see this! You've gotta come see this!" She pulled me to her room.

"Look at all the pink every where! There's pink everywhere!" she excitingly said.

"Evelyn, do you like pink?" I asked her.

"Yeah, I like pink. Pink is for Raven so I like pink!" My heart felt so heavy I almost cried. During the time we didn't know the gender, Evelyn said she wanted a boy or both, so it made me feel so good that she truely is happy about having a sister.

Later that night, after we had been asleep for several hours, Evelyn came into our room and crawled in between us. Sometimes we have trouble keeping her in her bed all night. We only have a queen and Evelyn smooshes up next to Tom causing back problems so even one night can be bad. We told her to go back to her bed.

Evelyn started crying, "No! There's too much pink! You need to paint my room blue! I don't like pink! I need my room blue!"

We gave her extra hugs and kisses and she went back to her bed.

A conflicted heart. I'm not sure why she fights liking pink so much. I did when I was younger. I remember the reason I did it was because I didn't like being ropped into being pink, lace and damsel in distress. I thought pink was being dainty and weak.

Pink often represents breast cancer awearness and strength. I think that is something I need to teach Evelyn. I tell her it is wonderful to be a girl because we can do so much because we are so strong but I need to teach her that being gentle and "pink" are also good things to be.

How We Chose Our Babies' Names and My Five Top Rules About It

My Five Top Rules of Choosing a Baby's Name

5. Use a baby name book and keep a pen and notepad with it.

This makes it easier to take notes, mark favorites and you can try different spellings and get a better "feel" for the name also.

4. Include your spouse all along the way. 

If you are not married, but are in a relationship, I would suggest this rule still.  Just because you are carrying the baby, experiencing everything first hand, doesn't mean you get the last word on everything baby. Save that for when you decide on bedding or the color of car seat you want. You don't want your baby to have a name that your spouse really doesn't like. Their own child having the name doesn't mean they will eventually like it.  I have seen it.

3. Find your name style.

You can find quizzes online that can help with this. Do you like traditional, names that have lasted through the ages like Thomas and Elizabeth? Do you like trendy names that are snappy now, like Merrick? Or maybe you want a name that no one else has, then you could combind names, like Kasherin. Find that and you narrow things down.

2. Don't let family and friends pressure you.

If you have family and friends that have different name styles, or are just very judgemental about everything, I suggest not talking to anyone about names until you are sure of yourselves. Getting the opinions of family and friends can sometimes help, only if they don't keep you from choosing what you and your spouse want.

1. Remember, you can change your mind right up until you leave the hospital.

Don't force yourself to keep a name you are unsure about. I know for myself, having a name ready by the time we find out about the gender helped me to bond and talk to my child, both times, but just because your baby doesn't have a name until they are born, doesn't mean you can't bond with them as if they did. Your love is what is most important not the name you call them. "Cutie" can be the perfect name for bonding.

I have always liked traditional names, the kind that are classic forever. I try to be that way with my wardrob and decorating style as well. Evelyn's name (Evelyn Rosa), I had it picked out since before I was in high school. Tom didn't have much of a choice about it. "Rosa" is after my aunt and then also my grandma. My aunt died when I was a year old, she was my dad's oldest sister (he has three) and my grandma died just before my senior year of high school. Tom actually knew my grandma before he knew me, being moved around a lot, he lived in the same town as them, attending church with them, for four years. At the time it was one of the places his family lived the longest. He liked having Evelyn's middle name as Rosa.

Since Evelyn's middle name is a flower, I thought it would be nice to have the tradition that all the girls' middle names will be related to nature; a flower, a tree, a season, like that. Tom's middle name is William, just like his brothers and his father and his grandfather. So middle names for boys was set also. Tom didn't want a junior so we agreed on keeping William as a middle name for all the boys as a tradition.

One day, as we were going home, Tom said (and I am paraphrasing this), "Since the girls' middle names are all going to be something nature, why don't we have the boys' first names be something to do with an animal?"

I liked it! I quickly Googled "boy names with animal meanings." I found a site with an alphabetical list of names with origins and meanings. I read through them, trying William out next to them, and we stopped at "Bram" meaning "raven" in Gealic. It sounded like a strong traditional name, and we really liked it. The raven represents Oden the All Father, his messenger. Tom's ancestry goes back to Erick the Red whom traces his "lienage" to Thor, who is son of Oden. This made "Bram" that much more special. (I don't want to get into religeous meaning, but "Bram" is also a shortening of "Abraham" whom is the Father of All Nations. Just something to think about)

For so long time, I struggled on a girl name, not really so long just a few months but in pregnancy time...it felt much longer.

So I suggested to Tom, 'Why not name the girl "Raven" so that we will have a "raven" either way.'  He liked that plan.

I liked having "Lily" as a middle name but I wasn't sure about it. Raven Lily. It didn't fit as well as I wanted it to. I talked with Tom about middle names and we came up with finding something in nature in Gealic.

"What about 'Lily?'" Tom asked. I hadn't told him that was the name I was thinking of, so when he asked about "Lily" I knew it would be right. "Lily" translated into Gaelic is "Lilias" or "Lileas." Raven Lileas. It was completed. It was right. I wanted the spelling to be "ea" like it is in "Gaelic" (but inverted). 

So that is how Raven got her name.

How did y'all find baby names?
What's the story behind them?
Hope to hear from y'all!

And Now We Know

A week ago we had our sonogram to know if we are having a boy or a girl...

We are having a GIRL! My husband was hoping for a boy to even out our numbers. Too bad! I wanted a girl because I want Evelyn to have a sister. I had just my brother and I always wondered what it would've been like if I had also had a sister. My brother always wondered what it would be like to have a brother since he just had me. We plan on having more kids so there still are chances to have boys.

Since we first started trying (back in May 2013), I have been planning for this baby. Today we recieved our car seat in the mail and I am so excited to use it. We had planned on using our old infant car seat but we didn't store it well enough and a mouse chewed through half of a strap, so of course we needed to replace it. I did research and found that Chicco (pronounced Key-co, its Italian. I find it odd when those who sell Chicco, like at Babies R'Us, don't pronounce it correctly. The Chicco website tells you how to pronounce it), Chicco has the best safety ratings almost every year and the biggest complaint I thought we might have to worry about was the size of the canopy, according to reviews for the Keyfit 30. The other complaint was that the material made their child sweat too much but I didn't think that would be a problem since my husband, daughter and myself don't over sweat. Well, the canopy promblem was corrected when the Keyfit 30 Magic came out. The canopy unzips in the back and extends exposing a mesh section. The sides of the canopy are also mesh though it is denser. This model also comes with a footmuff. It is pretty thin for being a footmuff but is perfect for when you bring a newborn home in summer when you want to keep the sun and hard wind off. I don't have a problem with people touch my baby the way others seem to (I just ask if they are sick and if they are not...go for it) but if you have issues with touchy people, the footmuff plus extended canopy could ward of some people. We purchased our Chicco Keyfit 30 Magic at Babies R'Us with a trade in during the great trade in, so we had about $50 knocked off, yay!

A while back, Evelyn told us that she wanted to sleep in the same room as the baby, so the office will be the playroom and Evelyn's room will be "the girls'room." For awhile I have been trying to decide how to decorate and what colors and all that and I am almost to being close to something I might like. I know I want the room bright and I know I can't use pink in Evelyn's bedding. She really doesn't like pink.
"No Mommy I don't like pink. You like pink. Pink is for Mommy, not for me."
She has said that many times. Many times. I want Raven (I will tell about how we chose that name in a later post) to have bright pink in her bedding since she really doesn't have a choice and I haven't been able to buy anything pink for Evelyn in over a year. I was able to get one little sweater for her in pink this winter and she liked it because it had a bunny on top a stack of tea cups which she thought was funny. Even then, I bought it when she wasn't with me and I forced her to wear it the first time.
Back to figuring out what to do about the girls' room. I know Evelyn's bedding will be aqua and Raven's will be bright pink. I want the Harper quilts from Pottery Barn Kids and just plain white sheets for both the crib and toddler bed. Raven will spend her first six months or so in our room in a half sized travel crib that we used with Evelyn that worked perfectly for bed side sleeping. The bedding for Raven won't be needed before she is born but I do want to have the room ready and complete by the time she comes, at least for Evelyn. Even when Raven moves into the room with Evelyn, she can't use the quilt until she is at youngest a year. That is when a child is generally capable of removing a blanket from their face when sleeping.

In about a month, I will hopefully be able to update and tell you exactly what our plans are for "The Girls' Room."

Sorting and Storing Your Seasonal Clothes

As this time of winter starts to come to a "clothes," we have many things to think about when it comes to storage.  I am not the best at storing things but every now and then I find a very efficient way of doing something.  I figured out something that really works for my family and I hope that you will find that it also works for yours.

First thing to do is SORT:

Separate clothes into

• No longer fits
• Damaged
• and The Rest

I often just use trash bags when I sort.  You can also use boxes or you can just use your bed to make piles. 

"No longer fits" will be put in a bag or box and will be taken later to a charity like a church or Goodwill.  I have a giant box of clothes that I had been trying to get back into.  It's from my first and second years of college, before having a child (and now being pregnant with another).  I look at those clothes and I know that even if I were to get back to that size, I would not wear them because of how "young" they seem.  I have passed that stage in my life and don't wear things so flamboyant as I did before.  I wear bright colors differently now than I did then.  All those clothes, OUT!  Anything I throw out, I can buy again and it will be up to my taste now.

When you are doing this to your child's closet, especially if you plan on having more children, you want to put all of the clothes your child has out grown into plastic containers.  Be sure to wash all the clothes you store and it's also a good idea to wipe down the insides of the plastic containers.  Be sure the containers are completely dry before anything goes into them.

"Damaged" are clothes that have holes in them, tears that were not fashionably intended (in my opinion, if you have kids then your clothes shouldn't have any big tears in them unless its your "cleaning the house clothes."  Depending, it's hard to avoid not having jeans that are made with a snag, my husbands pants are that way), faded clothes and thinning clothes; these clothes will be thrown into the trash.  Some people like to keep parts of "damaged clothes" and use them as cleaning rags or as pieces of a quilt.  I tried that once and it only caused a bigger mess trying to fit those things in place that aren't as organized as they should be; example: my fabric "area." 

My opinion is throw out any clothes that is damaged and don't look back!

Ignore the memories that may come with any damaged clothes.  If you have a shirt from your engagement photos or from your first date with your husband (or wife), take that one piece of clothes and either frame it with the picture or movie tickets that you have with it and display it.  Don't lock it up in a box because that defeats the purpose of keeping that memory if you are only locking it away.  Show off such sweet, affectionate things that you have kept.  I love to see those kinds of things in my own home and the home of others.  The simple things we treasure often become the things that molded us the most into whom we have become.  Remember, almost anything that you throw away can be bought again at a later time.  If it is something from your past in the 60s, well, it was well used!  You can always ask your kids and grandkids if they want them.  Retro is in, and if you can't fit into them anymore, your granddaughter might be able to!  Just be ready to see them have adjustments after you have turned them over to other family.

After you have finished on your "No longer fits" and "Damaged" piles and have put them aside ready to be taken to charities or you have already thrown them out, then you can go back to "The Rest."

...and The Rest:

Now you will sort again:

• Spring
• Summer
• Fall
• Winter
• Work Uniforms

I have my clothes separated into two piles:  Spring/Summer and Fall/Winter.  In South Texas, we don't really get all the seasons.  Where my family lives, this winter, the lowest it went during the day was about the mid 30s.  At night the lowest was the low 30s.  So lumping Fall and Winter works well were I live.  If you have snow clothes then Winter should have it's own category, like I show.  Most likely then, you use a light jacket in Spring time so you would also want to have Spring separate from Summer.  So, for many of you who live further from the waist band of the world (the Equator), you should have the four separate categories for your clothes.

I really do go by the seasons with my clothes.  I like to dress my family to match, even day to day wear sometimes but especially for birthdays and holidays.  Having all our clothes separated into seasons helps me to quickly pick out outfits and it makes getting ready for the next day easier.

If you are unsure about the differences of seasons in your clothes, look it up online or just look around you at nature.

I still like having pastels in Spring, it reminds me of my childhood wearing pastel flowers with white lace and it always make me smile.  Fashion changes what "is best in Spring" from pastels to black and white(?) to brights and back again.  I like sticking with classics and what makes me happy.  If you like being what's happin' now...you want to watch closely because it's always changing.  Depending on where you live, you may want a jean jacket or other light weight jacket in a light fade or even a white.  Some people like to use scarves.  I like to use scarves.  You want light weight scarves in Spring with the same colors you see in your clothes no matter what color scheme you plan on using.  Sun hats can be first seen at this time also; white and wide!  When the flowers just begin to bloom, and color comes back to the earth, your clothes will reflect that.

Bright colors, like turquoise, coral, lime green and lemon colors are best for summer.  I think it's a timeless thing.  When the sun is brightest, your clothes reflect that.  Nautical is also very good for summer!  White capris and a navy blue/red and white stripe shirt with a boat neck and deck shoes in a natural canvas is perfect whether on a boat or shopping at the mall.  Don't forget your sun hats!  Have a white or natural woven wide brim sun hat for women and for men a straw fedora.  I like fedoras and my hubby looks hot in them so I try to influence the use of them! ;)

When the colors begin to change on the trees and a chill begins to blow in the air, earthy colors, browns, creams, deep greens, mustards, khakis, plums, burgundies and burnt oranges are what you want to reflect in your clothes in the Fall.  Skip out on all whites at this time.  Replace white with nude or cream colors and it will all work just fine.  You should also have a couple of light weight jackets in a brown or maybe in a red or green to help keep you comfortable.  Scarves come back again and as in Spring, the scarves you use in the Fall should reflect the colors in your clothes.  These scarves are heavier than your scarves in the Spring because Winter will be just around the corner.  I like to wear gold jewelry in the Fall the most, but I won't get into jewelry today.

Winter is tricky to me.  In South Texas it's hard to tell when Winter starts, so it often feels like I should be wearing earth tones until February when I like to start to wear reds for St. Valentine's Day.  Talking in a general, "We actually have Winter here" mind set this is what I always wish I could do every year by having a real winter.  Winter clothes can be very bulky.  Sweaters and large down coats and maybe even snow suits take up a lot of room.  When you have a regular snow fall, you really do have a completely different wardrobe.  In Winter, the colors can vary.  You want your snow clothes to not blend into the snow so that you can easily be found in an emergency.  Especially kid's snow clothes.  You need to easily spot them as they slide down a snowy hill with other kids.  December is when I start to wear Winter colors.  White is a color you can use again!  If you are where it snows, you can easily see that nature has brought it back.  White, blue, red, gold, green and other solid colors work for wintertime.  Also...things that glisten!  With the glimmering snow on the ground, your clothes will reflect that magical picturesque view outside your window.  Glimmering colors also are what help to celebrate the new year.  Scarves, mittens and gloves are used almost daily in Winter.  Look at the colors you have for Winter and pick the most frequent color and buy scarves and mittens in a color opposite of the color wheel.  Wintertime is when the world looks a little bleaker and having contrasting colors in your wardrobe help you perk up as well as those who see you out and about.  When February comes around, I like to start wearing reds and pinks to help celebrate love.  March is tricky sometimes because it is the transition month from Winter to Spring.  I like wearing greens at this time because of St. Patrick's Day.  My mother in law's birthday is on the same day and she also has Irish blood in her so I like to have my family wear green to remember that we have that in our family's history.

Now Storing Your Seasonal Clothes

Now that you have separated all your remaining clothes into seasons, it is time to store them.

Be sure all clothes that goes into storage is washed accordingly whether by dry cleaning or by washing machine.  The best containers to use to store clothes in are plastic containers/totes.  Wipe down the insides of all plastic containers with warm water and a little mild soap.  Rise them out well and dry them.  Be sure they are completely dry before you put in any clothes to be stored or your clothes will mold.  Label all of the totes before you add in any clothes.  Have one tote only for each season.  This needs to be simple to use, so use only one per season.

Fold your clothes and gently put each item in with your bottoms on the bottom since they are usually the heavier clothes.  Silk tops should be on the very top as they are the most delicate.  Scarves can be put in their respective seasons or you can have shoe box sized plastic containers to hold them for each season you have scarves for as well as other seasonal accessories to keep them from being lost in the larger containers.  Remember, you want to keep this simple.  When Spring comes, you want to be able to grab one tote and a shoe box of scarves and be able to quickly hang them up.  So each season there should be an empty tote in your closet.  If you have a shelf at the top of your closet, that is the best place to have your totes.  The empty tote can be stacked if you have the same kind of tote for each season.  You can also color coordinate your totes with the seasons but be sure they are the same size and preferably the same brand.  I have clear totes, though that is not necessary at all.  For your snow clothes, using something like vacuumed out bags that shrink down to a quarter of the size it started at are the best things to use if you don't have an extra closet to keep your snow clothes in year round.  If you are lucky enough to have an extra closet, lets say in a guest bedroom, use that closet for large coats and snow clothes so that they don't get musty over the year that they are stored so that you can quickly get them when you need them.  Coats are things that need to be dry cleaned a head of time and cutting that part out makes life easier when Winter comes and you lost track of time with the holidays.  For your hats, buy a hat box.  Nothing will work as good as a hat box for a hat.  I have one extra large hat box that I have all my seasonal hats in.  Our Resistol cowboy hats have their own boxes.  Those are special hats that need special care.  If you have special hats that need special care, give them their own box.

Work uniforms are something that you will always need to have out.  My husband has work clothes that is the same for every season so those are things that don't need to ever be stored.  If your uniform is just being in business dress, then that clothes should be sorted by seasons with The Rest and when you put them out and hang them in your closet each season, you can separate your designated work clothes from your day to day clothes at that time.

I hope this post has not been over whelming and I hope that it has helped you in some way. 

Be sure to be safe when you are doing any outdoor activities and be sure that your clothes and the clothes your children wear reflect your want to protect yourselves.  That's why I mention jackets, hats and scarves also.  These articles of clothing will help keep you and your family protected from harsh winds and the harsh sun.  Don't forget, fashion isn't fashion if it's also not functional.  As a mother, you can't live any other way when it comes to your family and what they wear or really anything you do together.  You can be comfortable and fashionable in these times we live in.  More mothers are the ones making what mothers need.  Go and search for what makes you happy in the skin you're in.