Santa Baby!

Ho Ho Ho!
Merry Christmas my lovely readers! We are definitely in the Christmas spirit at the Goley house! We have taken a short break from the nursery to get all of our decorations out and some presents have even come in that we already have wrapped and under the tree!

Last year, due to insane traveling plans, we did not decorate at all and let me just tell you, it was the saddest Christmas I have ever had. You know the feeling when Christmas finally gets here and it is just another day, nothing magical, nothing exceptional, just another bleak day of winter... Well if you do its terrible, if you don't be glad! So this year I put my foot down and told Dustin to march his behind up in that attic and bring down every box of Christmas we had! There is something so warm about a house filled with lights and sparkle-y things (Elf playing in the background), whether it is 80 degrees out (like it is here) or a snowstorm.




To further get us all in the spirit, I wanted to share a few decoration pictures (taken with a crappy cell phone camera that doesn't cooperate with "mood" lighting... sorry!) and then get on to a list for Santa!

 

Now, on to that Christmas list for Santa!

I wish everyone else would do one of these to help me out this year! We aren't doing very many gifts but there is one person in particular who is not someone who wants anything or ever really needs anything (ahem... Dustin)! I could definitely use some help!

But, This list is not intended to come across as, 'oh I need all these awesome, expensive things or I'll hate Christmas!' (Let's not forget the real reason we celebrate Christmas in the first place, the best gift you could ever possibly get- Jesus Christ was born (in a manger, a freakin manger)! So again, don't think everything on the list is a must have, just ideas if you were already struggling to figure out what I might like!

The list is divided into a few different parts:

I have 1 plead, 3 wants, 1 need and 1 backup plan for when all else fails

1. PLEAD- I want to pass the Praxis 2 tests I have scheduled on Dec 18th and 20th

2. WANT- Keurig Coffee system (the Single cup Elite 40 model- mostly found for around $119.99) I went ahead and did the research on this and Bed Bath and Beyond seems to be the best way to go because you can use those $10 coupons towards this and maybe even use multiples, I'm not sure! 

As far as all the accessories go, I really would only like a storage container for the pods (and maybe some store credit for pods- but not necessary, because you can get them anywhere!) I like this storage solution, also found at BB&B (Cheap-o tip: buy the machine and storage container(s) separately so if you can use more than one coupon, then you can print more and get these for like nothing!) It is not likely that they will run out of these and you have time, so shop smart people!

3. WANT- A pair of Tom's shoes (to match the pair Elli-Anne already got!). I am not sure about the size but I will check on that. I did, however, stumble upon this awesome website that sells Tom's at a discounted rate of $26.99! (Thank you Pinterest!) So check it out here! I like this grey pair... and, for half the price, why not go all out and get the LV Tom's too!?

3. WANT- Moroccan Oil in the big bottle! I found this to be a pretty good price and they are offering Free Shipping! I love the way this stuff makes your hair smell and then, sometimes, due to it being the only smell I can really tolerate while preggers, I like to rub the excess off on my elbows and neck (like perfume!) so I can smell it all day!

4. NEED- No fun! I just need some big ole granny panties from Walmart or somewhere... My cute little Victoria's Secret cotton undies are absolutely miserable! They are teeny tiny! Ahh! But this could also be filed under the "gift card" type situation too :)

5. IN-CASE-ALL-ELSE-FAILS- Money! Duh! All of these things I have listed, I can go out, find the best price, charge it on my credit card (earn free clothes from Old Navy) and then just pay it off with money! So, as I think anyone my age would say, when all else fails, go for the money! Please note that this was not #1 on my list, in fact, it fell dead last! That is because I love Christmas and I love surprises and presents under the tree. Money works and is definitely a direct approach but it is not nearly as fun as the real deal!

So here's an idea- Be nice and send the people in your life  a Santa Baby list! Not sure what you want or how to condense it down into a reasonable list? Start with the format I used here (you can skip the first one, PLEAD, because I am just pathetic :)) But go for 1 NEED and 3 WANTS or vice versa and then go ahead and spell it out that if none of it is do-able Money/ a Gift Card is the next best thing!

Happy Shopping!

Check in with Elli-Anne!

Hello!
So I know I have been a terrible blogger to leave you all hanging just when things are getting good! I am back though, so have no fear! Firstly, let me make excuses for myself :). I took the Praxis 1 test today in Mobile, AL and passed! I was studying for this test and trying desperately to stay away from blogging in the mean time. It was very hard! But, now I have passed this one and am about to move on to the next two. The Praxis 2 tests I am taking are English and Family & Consumer Sciences. These tests are scheduled for December 18th & 20th so I may have to step back again to study for these. After Christmas though, I am in the clear to blog your eyes off!

Now that excuses are out of the way, on to what you may have missed! I am currently 23 weeks with Ellington-Anne Goley. She is moving more and more every day and last night she gave her daddy a ninja kick right before bed! It was pretty amazing that Dustin could finally feel her. We laid in bed trying to describe what it felt like to each other (to me it is like someone is tapping their finger on my tummy from the inside, to him it felt like a quick twitch on his hand). She is getting stronger and stronger every day and I have noticed that she sleeps less than she used to, allowing more time for play in there. In fact, she played what seemed like all night last night while I was trying to sleep! If I want to feel her all I have to do is eat and within a few minutes there she is, tae-kwon-do baby! I am looking forward to seeing my belly move, as so many people tell me about!

We had our 23 week check-up (thrown a little off-schedule due to the holidays- so it was for 5 weeks, not the usual 4) on Monday and everything looked great! I love Dr. Vice because, despite the fact that I gained more weight in this 5-week period than I have the entire pregnancy, he said I "looked perfect". Drum roll please... We (I am totally roping Elli in this one!) gained 13 pounds from 18-23 weeks! Ahh!!! So when I refer to her as "The Beast " or "Elli-Belly" stop defending her! We are getting pretty big. I don't care though- I guess you could say I am fine with sacrificing anything for her already, even my body and swimsuits! Although, I don't have any stretch marks yet, I feel them coming. There are what appear to be tiny little veins running from my left rib cage towards my belly button that look suspiciously like the beginnings of stretch marks... but I can't be sure yet. I am itching like a fool! So I have been tummy buttering, dry oiling and slathering on the lotion constantly! Paranoid much?

We have been working on the nursery (Stop. Don't even ask for pics yet; I want to finish or mostly finish and post them all on the same blog) like crazy! Dustin is the sweetest daddy ever (already!), sparing no expense for his little girl's room and being super handy and dedicated to time-consuming projects! I <3 my husband! We have the crib, mattress, and rug on order, and then I found "the" fabrics I plan to use for the crib skirt and chair throw pillow, and to line or cover the openings for the cubes! So I will update that in a post as soon as the things on order come in and it is mostly finished!

We visited Columbus recently and got a very generous amount of clothing and other miscellaneous items from a friend and my aunt... So, I think it is safe to say that 3 storage totes of amazing baby clothes (most with tags!) will suffice for this little rotten thing, for at least the first year! I won't be needing any clothes at any of my showers... I also (you already read an entire blog about this, but hey...) won't be needing disposable diapers, wipes, or any of their accessories like the Genie, wipes warmers, etc. because we are cloth diapering and, therefore, also using cloth wipes! Sure, call me granola, nay-say all you want... I stopped caring about, oh, the second I realized that we are the ones committing to do this (so all you people who just have something to say but no real input, meaning you don't plan to ever change one of our daughter's diapers anyway... shut up and go on- find something else to focus your negative energy on!). Whew-there. I said it. Now we can move on!

We have all of our registries ready to go (after quite a few frustrating customer service line calls to unsaid stores... ehem... Walmart & Babies R Us). So if you are interested or just want to get a head-start on your shower gift (I hate that I always procrastinate and end up having to get the last few little random things that are no fun and never go cute together... everyone always beats me to the good gifts in the right price range!) then you can go check out our 4.7 million different registries! We have 3 showers in 3 different cities so we had to accommodate each one with stores they have available to them. So, we are registered at Babies R Us, Target, Walmart and Amazon.com. The first 3 have pretty much the same stuff, covering everything from bottles to blankets and then the Amazon.com registry has all of our cloth diapering needs (and a few other miscellaneous things)!

Hmmm... What else?...Oh yes, I am hosting the (first and) final Tyler Candle party this Friday night at my house. This is meant to help anyone who is in the area who likes Tyler candles but wants to smell the ones I have left before they buy them... Bring it on! Elli-Anne gets all the money and, believe me, we need it because she has been very expensive! I have a limited number of each scent/product left so hopefully this will sell-out! Then an added plus is the extra closet space it will free up for more baby stuff- they require an insane amount of stuff! If this is your first hearing of this, I am selling the Tyler Candles from my mom's store (closed) under cost, meaning that you pay less than what we did at wholesale! Candles prices are as follows: Small $3, Medium $6, Large $9 and the other miscellaneous products (wash, lotions, etc.) run no more than $9. This should be pretty nice for Christmas! Speaking of, the Christmas scents accidentally went to auction, but check my Facebook page and I will link that page up in the next few days so you can go get those for dirt cheap!

I am working on a Christmas list for a quick blog (maybe tomorrow :) ?) so be looking out for a sweet and sassy Santa Baby post soon!

Thanks for reading and I love your comments and questions so come on with 'em!

...and I do WHAT!? with the poo?... The beginning of my journey through the cloth diapering world

WARNING: This post is not one for the faint of heart or queasy stomach! The most commonly used word is "poo" and I talk a lot about nasty sh*t, literally. So, as mentioned in previous blogs, please go read something else if you aren't interested in my opinions on poo :)

Cloth Diapering is something that has definitely come a long way, especially from the cotton folded diapers with the giant safety pins back in the day. This is something that I have been interested in for years and luckily all that has changed is the availability of more brands, styles, prints and You-Tube tutorials!

Well, "Why cloth diapers?", you may ask... I like them because they are adorable, better for your baby's bum (no diaper rashes), better for the environment (no landfill trash), and ultimately save you a lot of money! the dispute on the money issue comes down to what styles, brands and how many cloth diapers you buy. If you get what you need and not just go nuts over all the colors, then you should break even on the first child, maybe even get some "free" use. But by the second or more babies, you are basically diapering for free! You can't beat that and since I know for a fact we plan to do this again (and maybe again), it is worth the initial investment for me!

Now, I know what you are thinking- gross! But let me walk you through what all my research and a billion questions to a friend who uses them and is on her second child now (basically diapering for free!) has shown.

First of all let's start with the types of cloth diapers- There's a ton of types to confuse the interested person enough to stop looking. That's kinda where I was; completely lost and discouraged. Then my friend Cindle, the one I mentioned above, helped enlighten me on the differences and told me that all my current knowledge about cloth diapers was from the pocket-style, which is also what she uses. After a lot of research I found that this style is the most popular and common in the cloth diapering world. And, just look how adorable the prints come! These are Alva Baby, a brand suggested to me that are actually pretty inexpensive, and comparable to the BumGenus!

Side-note: Babies really don't fit in the one-size-fits-all until they are about 10 pounds so instead of investing in an entire newborn system, I want to just go ahead and start out on newborn Pampers Swaddlers- disposables (Sorry Mother Earth and cloth diaper advocates!). Plus, I've heard newborns go through like 20 diaper changes a day! Once she is around 10 pounds, let the earth and money saving begin! But they will grow with her until she is like 35-40 pounds and potty-trained! Think about it- the same diapers from 10 pounds to potty trained!!! Amazing!

Back on topic: The pocket-style has an outer, waterproof shell and absorbent inserts that slide between the shell and the soft inside that touches the baby's bum. Each diaper change you toss the shell and the liner(s) separately into a foot-operated pail (with the breathable, washable pail liner). You then leave them there for a day or two- basically until you are ready to wash!
"But what about the poo?!?", you say... Well this was the most enlightening part for me! Breast-fed babies have  a liquid, runny poo until solids are introduced, so those are fine to toss directly into the pail. The solid-ish poos have a rule of thumb: If they are "plop"-able, then "plop" them into the toilet and flush. That is simple! Wash the liner and shell like normal. Wet ones always just go straight to the pail.

Something cool that has come out for on-the-go changes is the disposable liner that goes between your baby's bum and the diaper, catching the solid poo (not letting it stick in any way to the diaper), making the change quick and easy in public restroom. You would simply pull the liner out and toss the turd like a disposable diaper, then put your diaper and inserts in the wet bag for washing at home and get a fresh one.




Let's talk dirty... laundry that is!
This is probably the hardest part to sign up for, but once explained from a mom who does this all the time, it gets better-sounding. So you have this 1-2 day old pail of stinky, wet cloth diaper pieces, now what?

Well according to my sources, you just:

1.) Take the pail in the laundry room, dump everything into the wash (including the wet bags and pail liner
2.) Wash these on a quick rinse cycle first (This is way better than the toilet attachment that sprays them first- not interested in doing that at all!)
3.) Add two scoops of  any free and clear detergent, 2 scoops of oxi-clean free
4.) Wash on the hottest setting with high water level
5.) Do a quick, small rinse cycle to make sure all the soap came out
6.) Hang your shell covers on a drying rack overnight
7.) Dry everything else in the dryer on med heat
8.) The next morning, re-stuff the diapers so they are ready for diaper changes and put away

That is not so bad. I always imagined (and I think my husband does now) scraping poop, turds in my washing machine, touching every single dirty diaper with my hands, stinky hours over the toilet rinsing rank cloths, giant stains and a stinky, leaky kid... not the case at all! Just a couple of extra rinse cycles!

So just to clarify, the accessories needed for this style are:
1.) The outer shells/ diaper- You need enough to diaper change for around 2 days and then a few extra, just in case.
2.) The absorbent, diaper inserts- Each diaper should come with at least one, but you want extras. From what I understand, at night you may want to double up. Plus, I think we could all agree it would be better to have extra underwear on a trip than run out of clean! So I would guess (and this will probably change with more research) order 10 extra inserts. I have also seen youtube videos where people use the microfiber (sham-wow type towels) wrapped in the cotton for night diapers. The problem with those towels alone is that they would potentially pull moisture from the baby's bum too... So with delicate skin it is best to have cotton closest to the inside of the diaper/ baby bum.
3.) The disposable liners for trips to the store (if expecting a solid stinky). Again, breast-fed babes don't need these until they are into solids!

4.) A foot-operated pail! Cuts down on germs and extra hands I don't have when disposing of dirty diaper parts.

5.) Breathable, washable pail liners. Most people have a few of these and they rotate their uses and wash with the diapers. The odor isn't terrible like you might think either- because you are washing every other day or so and the liner is breathable. I've heard diaper genies for disposables smell horrible! Also, one hippie said to put a little baking soda at the bottom of the can and maybe a rag with a lavender oil down there too...

6.) Wet bag for trips to the store and diaper changes on the go. This is just a washable, water-proof bag that you put your soiled liners and covers in while out and about, away from your pail. They recommend having a few of these to interchange.
7.) The expandable drying rack. These are super cheap at Walmart and can be folded and put away for non-washing days. Also, my laundry room is right by the garage so I could set this up in there for more room! But I have been advised to do this step overnight, so it wouldn't be in anyone's way anyway!

That's it! Sign me up...

Once you know the style of cloth diaper you want to work with, it is easy to find reviews on which brands are best, where to find deals and who has the best patterns! I have even found diy diapers and liners tutorials for the extra-thrifty! There are You Tube videos, blogs and discount sites to help you once you understand the basics of your style choice.

For all the grandparents, friends, and future babysitters out there who are frantically deleting my phone phone number from your phones in fear- Chill out! I don't see how this is any different then dealing with a dirty disposable. In fact, you put the whole dirty diaper in the bag and send it to my house for disposing/ cleaning... saving your can from smelling like a**! I think you win in this situation! Take the dirty off, bag it and put the clean on. The best news of all is that with the cottons and soft materials used, babies in cloth diapers don't get diaper rash (caused by chemicals and wetness- its absorbed into the stay-dry materials) therefore, do not use diaper rash creams! No creams, no rash, no chemicals, no landfills, no coupon-clipping, no clean up- What was the argument against this again?

Find out about cloth diapers: check
Share the news of how awesome cloth diapers are: check
Convince family and friends they will survive it: check
Convince Dusty he can do this and lots of other dads love cloth diapering: working on it!

Next venture: choosing between re-usable wipes or homemade disposable wipes vs. store bought....
should be interesting!

Finally, I'm letting my inner-hippie free- minus taking mood-altering drugs :)

***Please send me any questions you come up with because before Elli-Anne gets here I want to find out as much info on these as I can! So your questions are my questions! Thanks for your support :)

Ellington-Anne (Elli-Anne) Goley... Our Baby GIRL!!!

Well, it is official! We are having a Baby GIRL! Ellington-Anne Goley was smothered in love and support this Saturday past at our Gender Reveal Party. (You may remember the last post about what our plans were for this party and what the heck it is.) We invited our families and close friends to be a part of the biggest surprise of our lives! I have never been so thrilled and totally side-swiped as I was Saturday!

We kicked off the party with some healthy betting. The idea here was that guests would drop a dollar or so and place a bet whether they thought it was going to be a boy or a girl. Once we knew the gender of Baby Goley, we would draw a name from the bucket and the winner would win a Tyler Candle! What turned out better than expected, was that most guests started their bets at $5 and went up to $20 each! Let's just say, "Thanks!" for that, because, as it turns out, girls can be very expensive!!!

To help place your bet, we displayed some "Old Wives Tales" and my answers to them. (After having a long discussion and a Google-off about whether it was "old wives tales" or "old wise tales"- I won!)
Check out the answers and see what your guess would have been!















We also served food before the big reveal. My husband's (really messy!) Award-Winning Chili warmed us all up (and made us all squirmy :) - it has like a million kinds of beans in it!) and prepared everyone for the anxiously awaited information.

Dusty and I finally picked up our cupcakes: Man, I was so nervous!

We decided to turn around so we could see the cupcake first, then turn and show the crowd. Now, I must say, I was absolutely rug-swept-out-from-under-me-floored! The whole pregnancy, I thought Baby Goley was surely a boy and that is the only concept I had wrapped my head around. So when I saw pink in that cupcake, well my faces said it all. As for Dustin, let me just tell you, I have seen that face before. The night I told him I was pregnant (remember I told you) he leaned over the counter and started spitting, well, at the reveal, he leaned on the table and it was priceless! Check out his surprised face! (Note: The camera was on constant shot, meaning it was taking pictures very fast to catch everything. So, as promised, I'm showing the good, bad and ugly!)

So a baby girl... Hard to believe, even still today. We already had a few things picked out either way, like a nursery wall color (Tiffany/ Aqua blue) and names. For our baby girl we had Ellington-Anne (Elli-Anne for short) Goley and for a boy we had Grierson Scott Goley. So Elli-Anne will be the first addition to our little family and we could not be more thrilled! Even Sam Bo Riley was excited!

I figure I should save some tear-jerking for a later post when it finally hits me that we are having a little sweet girl so I will just say, "Thanks for reading!"

3 things... Wedding, Halloween and Life Crossroads!

Good morning people!

19 weeks!

I have a lot to catch you up on but I also have a ton of stuff to get done today so I will need to make it quick! (Dustin is wiping his forehead sighing, "Phew", knowing it won't be a long one.) So, since our last rendezvous, I was in a wedding, Halloween happened and I made a decision about some direction my life is going to take.

As some of you are aware (Thank you Facebook for bridging the gap between posts!) I was recently a bridesmaid for one of my best friends, Sheila Humphrey (now Kowalewski). The big day, 10.27.12, was celebrated with some of my other favorite people too! Chelsey White, Laura Maxcy, Meg Purser and Anne Franklin Lamar all stayed at Hotel Goley so we got to spend some good ole quality time together! I miss those lunatics! Pictures from the wedding are slowly surfacing on Facebook but here is one of us girls right before pictures. (Yes, this was the infamous dress that was reordered 3 times! It fit like..., well it fit- no thanks to my eating all the time fatty self!) Enjoy!

On to Halloween! We attended the annual Les Badineurs Halloween party after the wedding Saturday night. I was a little tired but the awesome potluck kept me hanging on... Oh and if anyone sees Kevin, let him know that although he said he would bring me some of the world's best banana pudding, he didn't but I haven't forgotten! So, I'm still waiting fool! Anyway, this year the weather was much more tolerable than last year. I was a frozen tooth fairy! This year I was not only armed with tights, fleece leggins, a scarf, a jacket and socks, but it really wasn't nearly as cold. I could actually enjoy the live band and the company of everyone else! We had a great time and Dusty had the cutest DD ever!

Then Wednesday night, actual Halloween, we hid out from trick-or-treat-ers and went to downtown Ocean Springs for a kids trick or treat festival. It was kinda creepy that we don't actually have any kids but I wanted to go somewhere and do something and, as it turns out, we are between the whole, "Let's go get drunk at the casino parties!" and "Let's take our kids trick-or-treating!". So we went in support of our Godson, Reed! We had dinner at Leo's Pizza (YUM!). Great night!

Cianna, the Wickedly Adorable Witch
& Reed, the MagicDragon

And so we move on, to the future. I am currently at a crossroad in my life. I have a college degree (so far, completely useless) and I even have some real-world experience, but I really do not know what I want to do with my life. I have always known I wanted to have a big family and a great "American Dream" life but as to what profession I would be doing, no clue. So when my husband asks me, "What are your plans after the baby comes and it is time for you to go back to work?" I just get all uncomfortable because I just don't know. I mean how are you supposed to know? So we brainstormed some ideas. He let me know right away that I don't need to worry about the salary (something is better than nothing right?) and that I should pick something I enjoy. So I decided to take my major and my minor from school and turn it into a skill- teaching! I have decided to go the alternate route to becoming teacher certified and teach either English or Speech Communications, or both! Eventually I want to teach Spanish (my minor) but I actually have a chance at passing the English Praxis 2 so I will start there. So I am registered for the Praxis 1 for November 28th and waiting to get better dates for both Praxis 2 tests in January. The summer training for certification, hosted by the MS Community College Foundation is in June so applications will be available in January and due before April. So for 3 weeks in June I will be a student again- needing some baby help (hint hint) and then I will (surely, hopefully!) be a certified teacher looking for a job on the coast! Spread the word!

I love my husband!

Sneak Peek: We are having our Gender Reveal Party this Saturday! So I gotta get to work, but be looking forward to some great pics, total excitement and, of course, Baby Goley's gender! Again, this was family and very close friends only so if you didn't get the invite, please make sure you message me on Facebook your address so we can get you a shower invite! We have tons more parties to come that we want you to be a part of!