{FQF: Feat. You Are My Fave}

I'm sorry I missed last Friday's FQF post -- with the wedding, it was bonkers and I barely had time to think! We're back to your regular scheduled programming now.

Today our lovely guest blogger is Melanie from You Are My Fave. I have been following Melanie's blog since I first started mine two years ago. She's the absolute sweetest lady and can help you plan any party with style and ease. She's got an amazing cardigan collection and loves confetti. Who could resist such a peach?

Be sure to stop by You Are My Fave and tell her I sent you!

----------

{What is the last movie you saw in theaters? Thumbs up or down?}

Crazy Stupid Love - I give it a thumbs up (except for one story line that made me cringe). I loved the ensemble and there were plenty of moments I was chuckling about (my husband too!). If you see it, be prepared to hear women hollering at the screen and to walk away with a major crush on Ryan Gosling.

{What is your best childhood memory?}

My memory is not great. I seem to remember these really insignificant moments (like being yelled at because my new socks were dirty) more than the ones that should count. I do remember summers of wearing my swimsuit everyday and riding my bike around fondly. 

{Who is your style icon?}

I love how classy Kate Middleton always looks and she dresses modestly too! No wonder she's the princess.

{Do you collect anything? What is it?}

It's hard for me to resist party supplies. When I first stumbled upon Martha Stewart's party line at Joanns I camped out in the isle for hours. 

{As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?}

A professional chocolate taster. A make-up artist. A breakfast restaurant owner. A mom.

----------

Melanie can be found over at her blog You Are My Fave. 

{If you would like to be a featured guest blogger, send me an email -> maryruthcan(at)hotmail(dot)com}

{Five Question Friday: Feat. You Don't Know}

Today's guest blogger is the wonderful, always-funny Brandy from You Don't Know - she's as real as they get people! Super hilarous, she's been a good "blogging buddy" of mine since I started out. She's always supportive, a great commentor and is known to have a slight Edward Cullen obsession (just like yours truly)!

She's someone I always recommend to those just starting out with a blog - she'll show you how it's done! So, take it away, Brandy!

----------

{What is your favorite thing to do with your husband?}

The movies – I love a grown up date at the movies. I can also tell you my least favorite thing- HA!

{What would your perfect vacation be like?}

A GIRLS-ONLY trip to an all-inclusive resort with a beach and pool and spa and hot guys and places to dance. NO husbands – NO kids – NO drama. Dance – laugh – drink – look at the eye candy – dance – fall down – drink more. It sounds like heaven. Who’s in?

{What’s one thing you miss about being a kid?}

No F’n bills. Money is soooo dumb.

{What is your worst dating experience?}

I can’t remember. I’ve been married for 11 years. I was a huge slut in high school though. It wasn’t so much dating as it was parking. I did go on a date with a High School friend that was a little “off” He ended up going to prison for touching little boys.

{If you choose, how would you want to die?}

Hmmm. I wanna say peacefully in my sleep but that’s SOOOO boring. Maybe something super weird where I would get my own “I didn’t know I was gonna die” TLC TV special

----------

Be sure to visit Brandy at You Don't Know (and let's try to get her to join Twitter, too!)

{If you would like to be a featured guest-blogger, send me an email -> maryruthcan(at)hotmail(dot)com}

{Five Question Friday: Feat IROCKSOWHAT}

Today's awesome guest-blogger is Jessica from IROCKSOWHAT -- if you're looking for an honest and open mom/life blogger, look no further! Jessica is the epitome of a fun personality, and I love reading her blog. It's one of my daily visits! She also does custom banner designs and is an all-around talented little lady!

Be sure to stop by and tell her I sent you!

----------

{What's your favorite song to karaoke to and why?}

I don't have a favorite song to karaoke to. I've only done karaoke like twice in my life and I think I sang Beatles songs since I know all the words. :(

{East Coast or West Coast?}

I'd have to say West Coast. I'm from the East Coast and I'm so over it that the West Coast seems so appealing. Plus my husband is from there and we've made multiple visits.. actually, there's a big West Coast move being planned in the Craig household.

 

{Do you usually prefer books or movies?}

MOVIES DUH! I'm too A.D.D. to sit and look at words on a page. I love the TV and I will probably always choose to watch a movie than read the book. I'm shallow, yeah...I know.

 

{How do you vent your anger?}

Like every single woman in this world, I vent to my husband (or in other cases- boyfriend, partner, etc.). He hears it all. I'm very surprised he's still around after all these years.

 

{Name one thing you worry about running out of.}

WHOLE MILK. We're constantly running out and getting more because we're seriously almost out! But if we're talking about something that I use, probably BEDHEAD hairspray. I love it.

----------

Thank you so much Jessica for guest-blogging! Be sure to check out Jessica at her blog

{If you would like to be a guest-blogger, feel free to email me -> maryruthcan(at)hotmail(dot)com} 

{Five Question Friday: Feat. The Walmart Gourmet}

Today marks the start of a new series! Each Friday I will feature a guest blogger who shares their fun and random answers to five run and random questions!

I wanted to start this series to better acquaint myself with other bloggers, while introducing readers to new and exciting blogs. All of the guest bloggers featured here have amazing blogs that I read daily (sometimes hourly!). I encourage you to check out their blogs and let them know you found them through these postings! Blogging is all about networking and encouraging each other to keep sharing our stories with the world. I hope this new series inspires all of us to be better bloggers (and readers), while having lots of fun!

So without further ado, I want to introduce you to Leah from The WalMart Gourmet - I love Leah's blog! She's honest and upfront about her entire life, a quality I admire so much in a blogger! She's a hoot to follow on Twitter and always makes me laugh. Her tales of Adam Richman kept me laughing for weeks - be sure to go say "hello" and tell her I sent you!

----------

{Who was the hottest teacher you ever had?}

Not gonna lie, I totally took this one to my Facebook Page. I grew up in a small, small town. I was pretty sure we didn't have any hot teachers, but I needed backup. Since all of the teachers were friends of my parents, my views are pretty skewed. So my "official" answer is.....MY PARENTS! Because the created me. Obviously.

{What's the strangest talent you have?}

Hmmm. Strange talent? I can sing the hell out of some karoke, but I don't think that's strange. And I'm pretty sure I need to keep this PG 13, so I'm gonna go with none. I am utterly and completely talentless. Strange or otherwise.

{How many times have you been cussed out and why?}

Let's not count cussings out related to my douchebag ex, mmkay? That aside, just one. Many years ago, my BFF found herself in a 'situation' with an 'attached' man. In her defense, he totally lied to her and said he was not 'with' his girlfriend at the time. The next day, we all found ourselves together at a golf tournament. The idiot boy (and really, aren't they all) brought the girlfriend he was supposedly broken up with. I can't remember exactly what happened (it's possible a few beers were consumed), but somehow the girlfriend found out. She cussed us both out and with my beer courage, I jumped to my BFF's defense. I actually drew back my fist to punch her! It's the closest I had ever (and since) come to getting in a fight with anyone! My friends stopped me from hitting the chick, but I kind of wish they would have let me. It would have been awesome to have 'I decked a bitch' on my resume.

{What's the weirdest thing you've done while driving?}

Are we talking me actually behind the wheel? In that case, nothing super weird. Probably just taking off my bra or something. Now; while someone else is driving? Let's just say I'm glad we didn't get in a wreck.

{Name something you do when you're alone that you won't do in front of others.}

This is hard. I'm an open book. Really. Just read my blog and you will know this is true. I have no shame. Except digging my underwear out of my ass. I usually don't let people see that.

Thank you so much for asking me to answer these questions! This was super duper fun!

----------

Thank you so much Leah for being my first guest blogger! Be sure to check out Leah at her blog and on facebook.

 

 

{If you would like to be a guest blogger, feel free to email me -> maryruthcan(at)hotmail(dot)com}

Over There, Not Here, Today

I'm guest-posting over at Windshield Diaries today -- talking about that sweet Basset Hound, Buddy Bob.

Please go check it out -- and tell the lovely folks there at WD that I sent you! GUEST POST HERE.

honorable mention: Q&A style

Today I am very lucky to have Maria of http://www.mommymelee.com/ (@MariaMelee) on my blog, answering some of my burning questions.

Maria has the kind of blog I admire - she's open and honest, her words are always very fluid and concise. There have been many times I've read her posts and thought to myself "why didn't I think of that?" - she has a way of opening your eyes to new and different things, all the while being very humble and a loyal blog and twitter (and I imagine in real life, as well) friend.

I hope you find this Q&A as informative and enjoyable as I did; it's always nice to pin down a good blogger and pick their brain!


First off, how do you do it?! You have your blog, your review blog and you write for AimingLow and Girl Talk Thursday, among others. How do you find balance in writing and reviewing and picture-taking and editing? How do you keep yourself focused on your daily tasks?

Actually, I completely suck at managing my time. I need a personal assistant to smack me in the back of the head when I’m spending too much time on Twitter or in my feed reader. I try to spend no more than a few hours a week on my review blog since it isn’t currently profitable in any way. My personal blog is my emotional and creative outlet. I blog when I feel like it and usually post right away. I have deadlines to meet with Aiming Low so I consider that part of my work writing, which is what I spend most of my work time doing.

Many people don’t know that I work pretty much full time freelancing. I write web content for IdeaLaunch.com and a handful of small business clients. I also edit web and print content, direct social media strategies for small businesses, and design graphics for blogs. Focus is a constant struggle for me. I’m fortunate to have childcare. If I didn’t, I wouldn’t be able to balance my work time with my creative time.

Pictures? I usually work with photography (as a hobby) in the evening hours after the kids are sleeping and if I don’t have Project Runway to watch. Heh. I’d love to become a better photographer but the hobby is very time consuming and expensive. It’s a long term goal.

You've been on blogger since 2007 - what made you decide to start a blog?

I’ve actually been blogging since the fall of 2001! My previous blog was password protected. I decided to start a public blog when I left a corporate digital media job to start freelancing (and spending more time with my kids.) I needed a way to connect and I thought it would be a way to make money. (Boy was I wrong!) While blogging hasn’t been a source of income, it’s been a source of sanity and friendship. My blog is my voice.

In this day and age, public information is everywhere. It's available 24/7 for the world to see. Why is it important to you to keep your children's names secret? How do you decide what's private and what's public?

I promised my mom I wouldn’t use my kid’s names online. Since they’re little, they can’t tell me whether or not they want to be written about on the Internet. When they’re old enough to decide, they’re welcome to tell me to use their names online. Until then, I feel like I owe them the ability to not show up in a Google search.

At Mom 2.0, one of the panelists described the balance perfectly to me. To paraphrase, I share what is vulnerable for me to talk about, but I don’t share what is intimate in my life. I don’t blog about others unless I know they’d be okay with it.

Speaking of private things, do you think it's possible for a person to regain a certain level of anonymity after sharing public things on the internet? Some people put themselves out there 100% naively and then regret their decisions. What's the best way people can stop sharing so much about themselves online in order to keep their privacy?

I don’t really have advice here. It’s extremely hard to be private on the Internet. Unless you never post any pictures and you use completely fake names, people will be able to find out who you are. My only real suggestion is that you fork up the money to keep your “whois” info private. (This only applies if you have your own domain.)

Some people are absolutely okay with putting it all out there. I don’t think that’s naïve. It’s absolutely a matter of personal preference.

What are three blogging tips you've learned over the past few years that have really helped you become a better and happier blogger?

Write. Just open up a word processor and write. Don’t plan ahead.

Read. If you’re not reading your peers, you will not grow as a writer and you won’t grow in the community.

Value yourself. This goes for your time, your words, and your influence. I don’t care if you have five readers. Your words are valuable—don’t compromise your authenticity for a couple of lattes.

What made you decide to start reviewing products? Did you approach the subject or were you approached by other companies? What makes Your Mama Reviews stand out from your run of the mill mommy-blog reviews?

I think I started out of boredom and interest in getting free stuff. I know! I’m such a dick. But it’s true. We really had no idea what we were doing. Actually, I learned so much about the blogosphere by starting a review blog without researching first. It opened my eyes to the sorts of blogs I really take issue with. It gave me a lot of respect for those who are successful and engaging.

I think we stand out because we focus heavily on the quality of our writing. We really spend time with the products we review, and we try to be a little humorous. I wouldn’t necessarily recommend this approach since it takes forever and we’re not making any money.

What draws you to the blogs you follow and the people you friend on Twitter? Are there any online characteristics some people have that really turn you off?

I’m just drawn to a natural sense of connection. I love honesty, clever writing, humor, talent. I’m often drawn to moms of boys because that’s what I’m knee deep in. I’m turned off by bigotry, extreme conservatism and consistently mean behavior. And bullying.

What are your goals for your blog? Do you want to see yourself maintaining at the level you're at or would you like to see your blog reach higher?

I don’t really have goals. Like most bloggers, I love feedback. I hate writing in a vacuum. Comments are way more important to me than traffic and income. Ultimately, if I’m recognized as a writer I’m very happy. If I’m recognized as a good writer I’m pretty much over the moon.

If you had to give one piece of advice to someone just starting out with a blog, what would you say to them? What do you wish someone would've told you when you were first starting out?

Spend some time choosing your blog name/identity. I picked mine as a whim and I really hate it. Keep your design fairly clean. Don’t invest a ton of money when you get started—just invest time and write, write, write.

What's In a Name? Vol. Two

I have another round of baby-naming stories from some great bloggers!!! I am so fortunate to "know" these gals and to be able to converse with them daily (on Twitter - why do you not have your own account yet?!).

Their stories are heart-warming and funny and entertaining and wonderful - everything that being a parent is. I hope you enjoy this second round of guest bloggers as much as I do! Thanks again, gals, for playing along.

----------

Megan from My Embellished Truth

Naming a baby can be a daunting task, even if you and your baby are the only two people in the world with no one to answer to, even if you mom can't make fun of your choices and your grandma can't look at you cross-eyed and say 'Whaaa??' .. squatting in the woods, squeezing out that slimy bundle of joy, staring into your gooey newborn's eyes as you snuggle close, and having only the heavens to listen as you speak your child's name for the first time...

Where was I?

Oh yeah.. Baby naming. My oldest was not only my first child, he was also the first grandchild for my parents. And? He was the first grandchild for my husband's parent. Oh, and the first great-grandchild for both sides as well. Yeah, you get the idea. No, I wasn't 15.. though I wasn't far off. We were 19 (him) and 20 (me) when we welcomed our first shortie into our life and married just over a year.

My husband tends to be rather mysterious about his name on the internet.. So I'm not going to tell you what it is. Those of you who know him online, know him as 'OnlyAman' or just 'Aman'. I'll just say, his name is long. And it is tradition in his family that the first born son (though honestly, there really hadn't been any girls for a couple generations) would receive the father's name as a middle name. Great. So we had a big long name as a middle name and had to find a first name to pair up with it.

 I won't bore you with the details of all the discarded names (Dante, Dermot, Tristan, Max..) or all the ways my parents made fun of them. But I will tell you how we found the one we bestowed upon him. We used to do Renaissance Fairs. Yes. We did. As in dress up and perform reenactments. Now, when one performs in a Renaissance Fair, one dons a persona. My husband? His fair name was Aidan. Through all the names that we pondered over, Aidan stayed in the running. We loved it. Also, we were all for giving our kids Gaelic names. So Aidan, or 'little fiery one', it was.

Our second child was much easier to name. I read a couple of Frank McCourt's books. One of the characters in the book was named Kieran (his brother, I think). I loved the name. Our next son would be Kieran, or 'little dark one'.

Next came the baby who's name has little meaning.. or rather a hard to determine meaning. Our neighbors in the apartment above us also loved Gaelic names. Their son's name was Torrin. I loved it. I stole it. Our next child was Torrin, or 'from the hills'.. or 'little bird'... or 'the boy with the name that really doesn't mean anything'. Whatever.

So. I had three boys. I really wasn't sure if we'd have any more kids. But we did talk often about adopting a daughter. On more than one occasion, during church and during prayer, I prayed for a daughter and felt God's assurance that we would one day have a little girl. One afternoon, as I was putzing around on the internet a few months after Torrin was born, I came across a lovely name. Eliana. It means 'my God has answered me'. And I knew that that would be my daughters name. A couple months later, I got pregnant again. This time we waited until birth (our first homebirth) to find out the sex. It was a girl!

When Eliana was a year old, we moved from California to Iowa. Before moving, I gave away all of my 'baby stuff' that we no longer needed. I also left behind every stitch of maternity clothes I had. I warned my husband 'I'm leaving all this baby and maternity stuff behind.. you know what that means, don't you?..... I'll get pregnant as soon as we get there.' About two weeks after we arrived in Iowa, I found out I was pregnant with number 5. Again we waited to find out the sex of our baby upon welcoming the child into the world in our own bedroom.. Another girl! And another Hebrew name - Joella, meaning 'my God be willing'.

We haven't had a whole lot of rhyme or reason behind our baby naming.. but have kept with the Gaelic boy names and Hebrew girl names. We like unique names (who doesn't?) but of course are not immune to the 'we thought it was unique and now every other child the same age and younger has that name too' issue.. Sorry Aidan. Still, I'm quite happy with the names we've picked. And if you're not, you can suck it.

You can find Megan on her blog and HERE.

----------

Lisa from Unfiltered Insanity

When I was pregnant with Sophia, Mr. B and I talked a lot about names because we were both really adamant that her name either mean something, or that she was named after someone. We came up with Sophia Arielle. We both loved the name Sophia and after looking up the definition,  /_wise_/,  we decided it was even more beautiful. I'd always wanted an "Ari" (which is funny, because we never call her that!), but we came up with Arielle because it flows with Sophia better than Ari and when we looked it up it means, _/lion of God/_. So, Sophie's name means "Wise Lioness of God." And we loved it almost as much as we love her. And her name is perfect for her.

Annabelle Kate was actually going to be Lilian Kate, because Mr. B always liked the name "Lily." However, it didn't flow into our criteria of naming after, since "Kate" is after my best friend, Katey. "Annabelle" just came to me. I wrote it down and I fell in love and it works for us because a few key people in our family have the middle name, Anne, and my little cousin is named "Anna." (who is the daughter of my aunt who I was named after, so I kinda kept that rolling a bit longer!) We got a lot of crap for this name. No one really liked it. I didn't care. She was Annabelle from then on and she's so sweet that she couldn't ever be any other name.

You can find Lisa on her blog and HERE.

----------

Sara from In Lahman's Terms

 My son's name is Isaac Benjamin. The middle name was easy; my husband's name is Benjamin and I nixed the Ben Jr. suggestion as soon as we found out the baby was a boy. We could not agree on ANYTHING for a first name. We shot down every name the other came up with (kinda like that scene in "Friends" where Ross and Rachel veto every name). I was pulling for Elliot, and my husband just flat out said no. We picked so many names, but nothing felt right. We had ALOT of input from family and friends, most was not constructive. One night we were watching TV and out of the blue, my husband suggested "Isaac." He said it just came to him. We decided to sleep on it. The next day we both still liked it, and it just felt right to us. We knew that was our son's name. We said nothing to family and friends. 4 days later our son was born, and the name fits. Isaac means "he who laughs" and he is one happy little baby.

Find Sara on her blog and HERE.

----------

Stephanie from Mommy*Mama*Mom

My husband and I both have fairly common names, Christopher and Stephanie. We were each one of 5 or 6 people in all our classes with those names. Even before we were engaged or truly talking about having children, we had agreed that if we had kids, our children would NOT have extremely popular names. We wanted pretty, not too out there, but still unusual names.

Our first child came much sooner than we expected and in the midst of chaos and turmoil. We were newly married and facing an issue that most couples (thankfully) never have to deal with on top of living over a thousand miles apart. I immediately told Chris that I wanted her name to be Hope. She was the one shining beacon of hope that we saw in our lives right then. Chris did not want that to be her first name for some reason. He agreed to it being the middle though. I think I went through 5 different baby name books. None of them we could agree on. Finally he gave up and said that I'd just have to figure it out myself. That night he called me. He had been (re)playing a video game that he really liked -- Kingdom of Hearts. The main character's name was Kairi, he wanted to know what I thought of it. I will be honest, it took me 3 months to remember how to say it right. I finally figured out how to say it after playing the game myself. I fell in love. (Kairi is pronounced K-eye-ree.) Kairi Hope is my princess. She reflects her name to me: pretty, unusual, but not completely "out there". Her name means melody which is also fitting as she loves music of all sorts.

Our second (and last) child was a boy. We didn't even begin discussing names until we knew he was a boy. I had dreamt my whole life of having a boy named Caleb James. Unfortunately, right about the time I found out I was pregnant, I had 3 cousins born named Caleb/Kaleb. Chris didn't want our son to be confused with someone else and nixed the first name. I didn't give him a choice on the second. It WOULD be James. I think I sent Chris 6 or 7 lists of names I liked. All were nixed. One day he came home. He had a name he loved. Alex. I was told that night "You can name the boy whatever you want to, but I'm going to call him Alex." I'm still not sure how Alex fit the prerequisite of an unusual name, but Chris was in love. And I loved the idea of calling him Alexander James -- especially when he was in trouble, it just flows off the tongue. How bad is it that I agreed to my son's name based off of how authoritative it seems when I'm yelling? LOL Chris and I primarily call him Alex, but from time to time we call him Alex, Axis (how Kairi pronounced his name for months), and Alexander. His name means defender of the people, and he will defend his sister, his mommy, and his puppy to the end of the earth.

Find Stephanie on her blog and HERE.

----------

I have to say "THANKS!" again a million times over. I love getting bloggers together for guest posts. It's a lot of fun and it spices up the norm! Hopefully, I can wrangle up some more gals and get a Volume 3 out soon! Please take some time to visit these amazing women on their blogs....

And for the love of all that is good and right, GET YOURSELF A TWITTER ACCOUNT!

What's in a Name? Vol. 1

Baby naming is hard work! Don't ever let anyone tell you different.

From the time I was in middle school, I thought about what I would name my children - my daughter specifically. Because even as a twelve year old I knew that I was destined to be a mother to a little girl. Deep in my soul, I just knew it - which is kind of ironic because the entire time I was pregnant with my daughter I was convinced she was a boy. Weird.

But back to the task at hand - the art of naming children. In today's society, anything goes. Celebrities have carved names out of the weirdest of woods. Hence celebrity babies with the names Banjo, Pilot Inspektor, Reign Beau, and Bronx Mowgli (those children belong to Rachel Griffiths, Jason Lee, Ving Rhames and Ashlee Simpson-Wentz respectively). We have classic names, boring names, unusual names, ethnic names, made-up-fairy-tale-freak-sci-fi names! The door is flung wide open for us and we have the opportunity to name our children anything and everything we damn well please.

So what do we name our children? How do we choose those names? Do we honor our heritages and go with traditional or quirky family names? Do we draw inspiration from the time we were pregnant with our children and give them a name that will always remind us of the months they spent in-utero? Do we sit down and pick a name from day one of pregnancy or do we wait until our babies are here before we give them their monikers? How do we name our children? Why do we name them what we name them? It's an interesting question - one that always has an equally interesting story. And so my curiosity was peaked...

I asked some lady friends of mine on Twitter to share their stories with me, so that I could in turn share them with you. I love these kind of dicussions. I love to read about other women's pregnancies and how their children came to be. I'm still that same twelve year old girl fantasizing about what to name my daughters. I still doodle names all over notepads and napkins and scrap pieces of paper. It's a little hobby of mine - the art of naming children. Too bad I can't have the sixteen kids I would need to take up all the names I love so much!

Here are their stories, with links back to their homepages. Please read their tales and then go visit their sites. All of these women are amazing people, and I feel so very lucky and honored that they agreed to do this for me. I hope you enjoy reading their baby-naming process stories as much as I did! Enjoy!

Angie, from A Whole Lot of Nothing

I am the fourth generation of eldest daughters with the middle name Marie, so my whole life, I know I'd have to have a daughter and make her middle name Marie. I had two requirements for her first name: no nicknames and must not be in the top 20 names list. I grew up with a nickname (Angie for Angela) and know it's a pain in the arsehole, so we picked Anna which was the 22nd most popular name in 2003. Sucky for me is that Anna became the 19th most popular name in 2004 when she was born. Still, it fits her and I have NO regrets naming her Anna Banana. Oh, shit. A nickname...

I've always loved the name Siobhan (pronounced sha-VONN), but we didn't want to torture her with an unpronounceable name, so we agreed to give her that middle name. Claire fit, had no nicknames, and wasn't NEAR the top 20. That's how I got my Claire Bear. DAMN! Another nickname.

Find Angie HERE and HERE and sometimes HERE.

---------------

Mishelle, from Secret Agent Mama

We have one daughter. She is our second-born child. Her older brother, whom is named after his father and grandfather, is only one year and three days older than her; we apparently got busy fast.

The day we found out that I was pregnant we had decided to meet a friend for lunch at our favorite Mexican restaurant. When we got there we instantly realized something was different. It turned out that, in the short time between our last and current visit, management had changed hands. There was new decor, new servers, and a new menu. Hesitantly, we sat down. I grabbed the new menu and said, "I'm going to have the first thing I point to!" My finger landed on Olivia's Platter. I looked up and said to my husband, "If this baby's a girl, we HAVE to name her Olivia because of this."

We have one daughter. Her name is Olivia.

Find Mishelle HERE and HERE.

---------------

Lala

I was recently asked to contribute to a compilation of stories about how I named my children. Cute. Simple. Paragraph.

I normally refer to the the kids that came from my body as my spawn. I have five total, but only two spawn. I admit that this isn't the most endearing way to refer to my children. The word brings to mind insects. My kids are sometimes annoying, but they are definitely not insects. After being asked this question, I thought: how simple, why didn't I think of that to distinguish them? My spawn, in addition to being the only ones who sprang forth from my uterus, are also the only two I have named.

Their stories are cute and simple. My son is named after my favorite gangster leader, scary in the way real gangster's should be, the original OG, the Godfather himself, Marlon Brando. Coincidentally, and as an answer to the type of folks who raise their eyebrows, it is also my maternal grandfathers middle name, and my uncle's first name. I try not to throw up any Sicilian gang signs when asked.

During my pregnancy with my daughter I was obsessed with television. I didn't watch lots of TV before she was born, and watch only at the gym now. But during the last few months before I gave birth I was ordered to bed rest, which I mostly ignored, except for Law & Order marathons. My daughter is named after the heroine for victims of violent and sick minded crime: Olivia Benson.

Okay, maybe those anecdotes aren't as cute as I thought they were when I started thinking about my answer.

Oops. ; )

Find Lala HERE and HERE.

---------------

Kelly, from Momma Sunshine

Okay, well, my oldest daughter's name is Emma Kathryn. We'd originally chosen "Emily", because I love old-fashioned names, and I had a great aunt named Emily. About a month before she was born, however, I had a panicked change of heart when I read in the paper that "Emily" was a very popular girl's name for that year (2003). We felt strongly that she needed to have an "E" name for some reason, and so decided upon Emma (only to later find out that thanks to "Ross and Rachel", Emma was actually an extremely popular name that year as well!!). Her middle name, Kathryn, is after my ex husband's younger sister.

My youngest daughter's name is Molly Madison. Her first name was chosen on the day I found out I was pregnant. We were taking a road trip as a family and I casually mentioned to my ex, "You know what name I still love that was on our 'reject list' the first time? Molly." He thought about it for a split second and said, "If it's a girl, we'll name her Molly." And that was that! I chose Madison to go with it because I love that name, and I love how they sounded together.

Find Kelly HERE.

---------------

And here's my baby-naming story.

Our daughter's name is Sidney Morgan. I wanted to name her Sidda, but Justin told me it sounded like an old black woman's name and he didn't think that was appropriate for our family for whatever reason - mostly I just think he's a wet fart who wouldn't let me get my way.

From Sidda we went to Sidney, which served a dual puprose. It gave me the option of calling her Sidda for a nickname and it honored my paternal grand-father who's name is Sidney Carroll. I chose Morgan as her middle name simply because I liked it and I liked how it went with Sidney. Back story on that, I was driving around in a neighboring community near my hometown and I completed mispronounced the town name Glamorgan (Glay-morgan...I said Glam-organ). Morgan juist stuck in my head!

And I have to share with you that I endured several dark days where I mulled over naming her Sydney versus Sidney. When you're pregnant, you're insane anyways, but I kept feeling bad for naming her Sidney with an "I" because I knew she'd never be able to find a souvinier with her name spelled correctly. HOW INSANE IS THAT?! I based my child's name on vacation souvineirs!!! I know the horror of trying to find things with your name on it. I've always had to buy two of everything for Mary and Ruth, because I hate going by one or the other. I have two license plates, two flip-flips, two ink pens, two of everything! But alas, I still couldn't find it in my heart to name her Sydney for two reasons: one very reasonable and one still kind of insane. Sidney with an "I" properly honors my grand-father, so that's nice and sweet and sensible. But the insane side of couldn't stand the two "Y"s in Sydney paired with the two "I"s in her last name. Couldn't do it - couldn't stand it. Like I said, completely insane.

And that's how Sidney Morgan came to be Sidney Morgan!

---------------

Again, a big thanks to the ladies who participated with me on this! I hope to gather up some more Moms and have them share their stories in Volume 2!!! Check back soon!

guest blogger: mocha beanie mummy Q&A

Another guest blogger!!! I know you guys are TOTALLY stoked. I've been following Ms. Lindsay aka the mocha beanie mummy for quite some time now. I adore her and her blog and her boys! She's a wonderful person to "know" on blogger and twitter and I'm sure just in general. When I approached her about this guest-post, she was just as enthusiastic as I was and I love her even more for it. She's a genuis momma raising her two very young and very close in age boys. I can't imagine how she keeps her sanity sometimes - I can barely hang on to mine and I've got half the kids she's got! If you want to learn more about the darling Ms. Lindsay and her life, her boys and her witty little self then please do check her out! Her blog link is HERE and her twitter link is HERE.

PLEASE go show her some love and tell her what a darling she is for joining me on this little Q&A guest post! She's answered below for her two sons Noah and Isaac (N for Noah and I for Isaac, obviously) and I've answered with an S for Sidney! Again, I have to say mucho much thanks to my darling guest blogger!!! I had such a blast with this one (of course who wouldn't have a blast talking about their babies all day?!!)

Q&A: mocha beanie mummy & mommaruthsays

When you found out you were pregnant, what was the first thing that went through your mind?
N: Score!! Man that was easy...

I: Crap!! That was easy...

S: For me, the first feeling I had was “Oh, sh*t” followed by “wow” followed by “it’s amazing” followed by “I’m so lucky”. I was barely 18 when I found out. It was my freshman year of college, and I was nowhere near ready to be a parent. But I am mature enough now, as I was then, to know that any pregnancy is a blessing, and shouldn’t be disregarded no matter the circumstances.
----------

Did you want a boy or a girl? Or did it matter?
N: I wanted anything that was human and healthy.

I: I wanted anything that was human and wouldn’t physically destroy me.

S: I wanted a girl. I know Justin wanted (and still wants) a boy. But above all, I wanted healthy and happy!
----------

When you found out the sex of your baby, how did you react? How did your partner and family react?
N: Was *totally* expecting a girl so I think I partly questioned whether it was real. I think I was more in shock about his size to be honest.

I: Shocked again, was convinced it was a girl. Hubs and I were chuffed to bits.

S: I was elated!! Justin never would admit that it was going to be a girl. Up until Sidney was born, he held out some small hope she’d be a boy. Both of our families were thrilled – Sidney is the first grandchild on either side, so you can just imagine their reactions.
---------

Did you have any preconceived notions about raising a boy/girl that were shattered after your baby got here?
N: Not shattered, but proved - boys are FUN :D

I: Not shattered but proved - boys are squooshy yumminess.

S: I think we both had the idea that she’d be a charming, adorable, and skillful little baby from the moment she got here, and so far, its rung true. From day one she’s had us all wrapped around her little finger and she KNOWS IT!
----------

How does your baby handle the word “no”? How do you handle the way your baby handles the word “no”?
N: He's very good (mostly) though he's started testing me by doing naughty stuff, then frowning and shaking his head saying "ouuuwww" (noooo). I have to struggle really hard not to laugh.

I: He’s too young though I suspect it’ll be quite similar.

S: Sidney is very much a girl when it comes to the word “no”. She does the pouty lip, the dropped head, and the watered eyes. It breaks her daddy’s heart. Usually he apologizes to her for being so mean, and she gets what she wants. I’m not so gullible. She knows that stuff doesn’t work on momma! Usually with me, it’s just a fight – mean and ugly. She ends up having to stay in her room until she’s calmed down and has quit crying.
----------

Do you or your partner ever get upset if your boy/girl starts to do/play something that relates more to the opposite gender?
N: Hell no! He has a fixation for the pink push chairs and bikes at playgroup. That makes me laugh. He also loves my handbags. The boy has style, obviously.

I: Heh he’s still too young. Though as long as he’s happy, we don’t care if he plays with “opposite gender” toys. Though...I may draw the line at baby dolls that cry and pee and poop. I got enough of that already.

S: I don’t, personally. I think she’s curious as a person, not just as a girl. I think it’s important to let her play with whatever she wants, whether that is dolls or dump-trucks. Justin pretty much agrees with me on this one, although I don’t think he’d be too happy to see his baby boy playing with dolls. That’ll be a bridge we have to cross someday, I’m sure.
----------

What do you think will be the biggest struggle for your baby when he/she gets older since he/she is a boy/girl?
N: Hmmm...he's a very gentle boy so he might be wary of rough and tumble kids; also he rarely fights back if someone hurts him.

I: Sneaking suspicion we’ll have similar problems. Even more so as he’s built like a bulldozer but wouldn’t hurt a fly.

S: I have no idea what the future holds for Sidney, and who’s to say how things will be when she’s an adult? But I do know that she’s going to grow up a girl in the South, and with that alone come obstacles to overcome: ignorance, prejudice and narrow mindedness among them. Hopefully I can teach her to be a decent human being and a good individual regardless of her sex!
----------

As the mother of a son/daughter, how are you preparing yourself for the dreaded “teenage” years?
N: Dread. He’s a good looking kid and without being crude, I suspect he may be popular with the ladies when he’s much older. I blame my genes.

I: I'm not. He will be my baby FOREVER.

S: I DREAD THIS LIKE I DREAD THE END OF THE WORLD!!!!!!!! There is no preparation for it, is there?
----------

What’s the best advice you can give to other mothers who also have a son/daughter? What was the best advice given to you as the parent of a boy/girl?
N: Enjoy every single kiss or cuddle you get. Make the most of them as they are at that time, and do NOT wish their life away. Words of wisdom.

I: Try not to sweat the small stuff. There are so many things I’ve just not had time to worry about second time around. I want to enjoy him as much as possible, and if it goes to pants, well, deal with that when we get there.

S: As the mother of a daughter, I say just “relax – let things happen”. She’s only going to be a little girl for so long. Someday she’ll be your big girl and a baby no more. Enjoy the ride and make every moment count. Tears are going to happen. Screaming fits of rage are going to happen. But so is laughter and love and that’s what matters most.
-----------

Was there ever a defining moment in your life when you were able to look at your child and say: “He/she is such a boy/girl!”?
N: We bought him some little Hot Wheels cars and some cars from the film, "Cars" the other week. He hasn't played with any of his other toys since. In fact, if it's got wheels on it, it's perfect.

I: The day (hour) he was born and whilst being weighed, he peed all over the midwife. Perfect aim. Awesome.

S: One day Sidney got upset over something I can’t even remember now. She was about 16-18 months, I think. I just remember her going into her first fit of “hysterics” – uncontrollable sobbing. She was in full-blown panic-attack mode. Justin just looked at me said “Good god, she’s just like you”.
----------

Now that you are the parent of a boy/girl, can you imagine your child being the opposite sex? Do you want to try to have more children until you do have a child of the opposite sex? Why or why not?
N: I could never imagine him being the opposite sex. He's too cool to be a girl.

I: Nope. He’s much better as a boy (I just couldn’t imagine girls born at 11lbs...for me it’s a little weird). And lovely as they are, I'm sure, I don't want a girl, and don't want to try for one. Besides, I'm not sure I've got enough sarcasm and wit to get me through another pregnancy.

S: I can’t imagine Sidney being anything other than the darling, charming, witty little girl she is, although there are times I think she would be better suited as a little boy – she is very rough and tumble sometimes! But she is my little girl and I love her just the way she is. Justin says we’ll try again for a boy, but if we get up to three babies with no boy then we’re done. I’m not so set on a certain number or a boy-girl equation. Whatever happens, happens in my book!
---------

Wasn't that just the most fun ever?! I love her little snippet about Isaac peeing on the midwife. Makes me LOL every time! Keep coming back for more fun and enjoyment. I've got another guest blogger coming up sometime soon!!!

Harry Potter Q&A

As I mentioned earlier this week, I have a guest blogger on my site today! I am so excited (thrilled, pumped up, psyched, etc. etc. etc.) to have LISA from Unfiltered Insanity on my blog today. She has agreed to be the whiz-kid and answer all of my questions regarding the latest Harry Potter installment (and then some)!!!

*I have to warn you that there might be spoilers listed down below in the Q&A section, so if you haven't seen the new HP proceed with caution!!!

Here is her entire post regarding the newest Harry Potter and some reflections on the older ones as well. If you have any more questions regarding HP please feel free to leave a comment on here and I'll get an answer back to you from the Guru of HP herself as soon as possible!

And be sure to check out Lisa's blog and show her some big love for being such a great guest blogger!!


---------------


HARRY POTTER & THE HALF-BLOOD PRINCE Q&A

1.This movie was much more in depth into the love lives of the Hogwarts students – so what happened to Harry’s first love, Cho?
While the movie makes it seem that Harry was done with Cho after she “ratted” them out (under the influence of Veritaserum, a.k.a. truth potion) for being in Dumbeldore’s Army, the truth is, she just couldn’t get over Cedric Diggory. She spent their first, and only, date crying. He was done with her then. Ginny is a much better match anyway!

2.What is the significance of the Half-Blood Prince? What does that even mean “Half-Blood Prince”? Other than having some extra little snippets in his old book for Harry to use, what was the purpose of the Half-Blood Prince?
Half-Blood Prince was a self-given title that Snape gave himself. Half-Blood means that you are not a full-blooded wizard (i.e. both parents being wizards). Here’s where reading the book REALLY comes in handy, Harry, Ron, and Hermione are under the impression that it was really Voldemort’s book. They had no idea it was Snape’s until Snape revealed that little tidbit to him.

3.Who was that new kid – the blonde one who liked Hermione so much? One minute he was there and then he was just kind of gone. What was up with that?
Cormack McClellan is a new character in this book. He’s “that guy” you have in every high school. Ruggedly handsome, great at everything, and a pompous jerk. He plays a very minor role in the book too.

4.When did Nymphadora (I don’t remember her other name) and the werewolf teacher guy hook up? Isn’t he a lot older than her?
One of the key missing ingredients from the book to the movie. He is a lot older than she. I’m hoping they elaborate on their relationship more in the next movie for the “movie-only fans.” Their relationship is key to Harry and I was really disappointed that they didn’t elaborate more on that in the movie. Not to mention, Luna does not discover Harry on the train petrified under his cloak. Tonks does. Harry notices she’s not quite herself and worries about her terribly. Her patronus has changed in the book, which is also a key indicator to Harry that something is not right with her. You later discover that it is the weight of the relationship between her and Lupin that is so difficult for her. He was worried about the age difference and at one point chooses not to pursue the relationship. Like I said, I’m hoping they elaborate more on that in the next two movies.

5.Was Draco just used a pawn by Voldemort? Did he really want Draco to kill Dumbledore or was he just using him to get the death-eaters into the school?
I cannot answer this question until the next two movies are completed. If they don’t explain this in the “Deathly Hallows” movies, I will be more than happy to elaborate on this, but for now, I cannot answer this.

6.Why did things come back weird in that traveling box thing (the apple bitten, the bird dead)?
One closet is in the school, one is in Borgin and Burkes (the dark artifacts store in Diagon Alley). I think the point of this was to show that someone was, in fact, on the other end. You don’t even know how these things are happening in the books until the end. You are completely unaware of the closet being the key until the end of the book. I was disappointed that they gave so much away so soon in the movie.

7.If the Weasleys and everyone else surrounding them are such wizards of magic, why didn’t they put the fire out and just save their house? Dumbledore was able to put Slughorn’s house back into order, so why can’t the Weasleys do the same?
The house doesn’t get burned down in the book. This is my biggest issue from the movie. LIKE HUGE ISSUE! The Burrow plays a huge role in the next book and is the location for many important events. I’m hoping that they do have the wizards repair the house because it is essential. I’m still bitter. Grrrrr.

8.Don’t fully explain, because I hate spoilers but, is R.A.B. someone we already know or is someone new in the story to be introduced later?
All I’m going to say is that the mystery of RAB is a mystery through at least ½ the next book. No, we don’t know who he is yet. Nothing more on this.



Now, some Movie/Book discrepancies that haven’t been asked about:

Who are Padfoot, Prongs, Wormtail, and Mooney? (Authors of the Marauder’s Map)
Padfoot and Wormtail, you’ve eventually learned from the movies are Sirius and Peter Pettigrew, respectively. Prongs is Harry’s father (James) hence he could turn into a stag (hence Harry’s patronus). Mooney is Lupin, because he’s a werewolf.

Does Harry really lose his broom in the first Quidditch match of the year against Slytherin?
Yes and No. The first match is actually against Hufflepuff. This match introduces Cedric Diggory into the mix, who as you know if you’ve seen movie 4 and 5,plays a huge character in Harry’s life. But yes, dementors storm the field during the match, causing Harry to fall off his broom and his broom really does get blown into the Whomping Willow.

Does Harry really get a Firebolt (“best of the best” broom) from Sirius?
Yes, he does, but he receives it in the middle of the book and there is a huge fight between Harry and Hermione. She tells McGonigal and she confiscates the broom from Harry until it could be tested to make sure that whoever the anonymous benefactor is (at this point they don’t know it was Sirius who sent it), isn’t actually trying to kill Harry.

If Lupin’s class had to write an essay regarding werewolves, why is it that Hermione is the only student who figured out that Lupin is a werewolf?
Because Lupin returns to the very next class and cancels the assignment immediately. The only person who’d completed it was Hermione, thus, leaving her the only student who had figured it out.

Is there really a fight between Ron and Hermione in the book?
Not only between Ron and Hermione, but Harry and Hermione too. Hermione is quite outcast in this book. It isn’t until the end of the book that their relationship is restored, when Hagrid calls them down to his hut.

So, how does Harry really learn about Sirius Black and Peter Pettigrew?
This is actually a huge discrepancy between the book and the movie. In the book, Harry learns the story in Hogsmeade, like the movie, EXCEPT, he is NOT under the invisibility cloak, and he is NOT alone. He’s in the Hogshead with Ron and Hermione and is forced under the table when Hagrid, Flitwick, Fudge, and McGonigal walk in. The whole, teen angst, crying thing… never happens. THEN, when in the Shrieking Shack, Harry learns the truth. The only reason Sirius was able to keep his sanity in Azkaban was because he knew he was innocent. He also kept murmuring “He’s at Hogwarts” in his sleep. Why? Because he saw the edition of the Daily Prophet that has the Weasley family on the front with none other than Scabbers (Pettigrew) on Ron’s shoulder. Sirius’ mission was then to protect Harry, not kill him.


CONT'D...

There are a lot of details missed in the third movie, and these are just a few that are actually crucial. There are actually more that are crucial. But that could be an entire post.

Now for the fourth book: Actually, this is another very, very long thing. I will say that they do get the challenges for the Triwizard Tournament right, in general. A few details are missing, but overall, it is almost accurate. The events at the World Cup are inaccurate. The Weasley’s actually have top box seats WITH the Malfoys and the Minister of Magic. There’s a gambling ordeal. There’s S.P.E.W. House Elves play a HUGE role in this book. The whole story is missing from the movie, really.

Order of the Phoenix. I liked the movie. There were a few discrepancies, but minor compared to 3 and 4. A huge thing is the attack on Mr. Weasley. While you see this in the movie, what you don’t see is that Ron, Ginny, AND Harry and Hermione go with them to the hospital and back to Sirius’ house. This is where you learn about Neville’s parents, as he’s there over the Christmas Holiday to visit them. This book is also where you learn that Neville could have been the “boy who lived” instead of Harry, but that Voldemort chose Harry. This book also has the complete prophecy told to him by Dumbledore, as he was the one who heard it from Professor Trelawney during her interview for the post. Not to mention, Harry is also finally given an explanation as to why he is forced to go back to the Dursley’s year after year. It is for his protection. There is an enchantment that Dumbledore performed to protect Harry from Voldemort.

If you Google search “Harry Potter differences book and movie” You’ll get a whole LIST of things from others who’ve blogged about it before. These are really just a few things. I encourage all to read the books. They’re fast reads, even though they are huge books (well, at least 3, 4, 5, and 7 are), and you’ll get a great appreciation for the story of Harry Potter!


---------------

A BIG, HUGE, GIGANTIC, MONGO THANK YOU TO LISA!!!
From one measly Harry Potter fan to the creme de la creme of Harry Potter fans!