Getting Ready for the Holidays

I sat down and totaled the cost of buying/making all the gifts we planned on getting this year for Christmas and Monkey's birthday and Mr. OCD handed it over yesterday. So I've been out and about. One thing I wanted to let all my readers know about is that Costco has a KidKraft Dream Mansion for $78.99 in store. There is one of these * on the sign which means they won't be lowering the price anymore and that the won't be getting anymore in stock. Considering most KidKraft dollhouses are more like $130.00 I thought that a great deal. The dream mansion comes with two beds, two lamps, a table with chairs, a lounger, a couch, a toilet, bathtub, curtains, stairs, moving elevator, birthday cake and a piano w/bench.
I went and bought it last night because I was afraid they'd run out before I got another chance to get it. We put it together too. Monkey will be getting it for her birthday, but her party isn't for a month so now we have a dollhouse stuffed in the closet. I woke up yelling at hubby to get out of my closet, now where am I going to hide everything else?
It took us 2 1/2 hours to put it together. I put one piece of the elevator on upside down and had to take it off and redo it. We also agree that the first few pieces were all put togather correctly, but they weren't. Around step 10 we had to stop and pull of a side piece and flip it over so the living room wall wasn't facing out and the brick wall wasn't facing in. Otherwise it went smoothly. These little things in life have a way of bringing Mr. OCD and I closer. I feel like we had been drift with him sick and three jobs and me still overtly exhausted and uncaring about many things doing this together gave us a chance to talk.

Mad Monday

Today I am mad mad mad mad mad. My sister showed me some new commercials on her TV. They were basically justifying the consumption of High Fructose Corn Syrup. The commercials do two things. First the make it seem as though consumers are so stupid that they will just not eat something because they thought it was unhealthy but don't know why or how it is unhealthy. Dear corn refiners association- I would like for you to know that I am not a drone.
Secondly they suggest that since high fructose corn syrup starts out as corn it must certainly be okay to eat. The fact is that it does come from corn but the part that makes corn a food is removed. The body doesn't even process the HFCS the same as it processes food. The body doesn't see it as food, it just see's it as a chemical, like you didn't even just digest 100 calories. Since according to your body you didn't just digest these calories then you are still hungry and should eat 100 calories to fill up.
The commercials also suggest that HFCS is okay in moderation. I am sure this is fairly true statement almost anything in moderation is okay. So lets go down the list of things in my house that used to have HFCS in them and have been replace by items that don't.
Bread - eaten every day as part of  a healthy diet (right?)
Juice - drank often to help replace lack of fruit in the diet
peanut butter- helps me get protien
jelly - use sparely on bread
premade meals or sauces
instant oatmeal
cereal
premade tea
crackers
BBQ wings
ketchup
salsa - (really is that necessary ?)
teriyaki anything
I can't think of anything else right now but surely you see how if it is in everything you eat and drink even if you don't drink soda it would be hard to eat in moderation, unless you started going out of your way to buy products without HFCS.
My daughter has just grabbed the mouse and said DONE. So with that I must be done here. Please pass on your knowledge of the well known cons of HFCS before they skew the research to show other wise.

Blood Work Back

So my Dr. had already said that I was probably low on Vitamin D, when I went in. She also ask for blood work to be done up to see if something was amiss. I was having lower back pain, nausea, and bruises appearing for no reason. Some of my bruises appear in the middle of the day and one of them was really serious looking. She told me that the regiment of Advil I was taking, as per recommendation of another Dr. was not healthy. So I am no longer allowed to take any Advil.
The test came back and I was a little low on Vitamin D, but not severely. There was nothing else wrong. I am still getting the lower back pain and nausea and I am still getting bruises although they are less severe then before. I just don't think that I would suddenly after living in Oregon most of my life get symptoms from being Vitamin D deficient, especially since I wasn't severely deficient. 
So in a week or so if my symptoms continue I will have to go back to the Dr. again and see if she has any other advice. In the meantime, I get to call insurance and see if they cover the specialist she sent me to regarding my upper and continuous back pain.

Monday Doctor Tuesday Zoo

So we got a new Dr. the last one I had asked ME which pill I wanted and when I asked her what she recommended she said let me list them off and see what is familiar sounding to you. She really never engaged in the conversation with me and basically didn't seem to like me. I should have found a new Dr. sooner, but when we moved here I was quite pregnant and didn't care about my back issues. Plus I hadn't gotten really sick in such a long time.
Our new Dr. won't prescribe me anything, she referred me to a specialist and was quite appalled that I had not seen more specialist. So that was kinda  nice change in pace, not to say I have a renewed hope that I can be fixed, but possibly working with people who specialize in main, medicine, spines and surgery  to learn more about managing my pain could possibly help out some.
The reason I went in is the on Friday I mentioned all these crazy new bruises on my body. I didn't mention the other symptoms I had, nausea, lower back pain, more then exhaustion I reach a whole new level tired. She said I am probably vitamin D deficient , but it could be caused by the high dose of Advil I was on (via directions from Dr.'s). Then we discussed if I could be pregnant. The only cause of a pregnancy would be a spontaneous reconnection of Mr. OCD's vas deference.  So that is a pretty low chance. Still they had me pee in a cup and checked while they checked for any kind of infection. That was all clear so YEA, I am not pregnant and I am not dying of a kidney infection. They also took FOUR things of blood, I wanted to pass out. I didn't though, but I did steal some of Monkey's snack before we drove to the park. I am still waiting on the results of the blood test. They are checking everything from vitamin D to anemia (I've been checked for anemia for then a dozen times turns out nope, I don't have it) to everything they could think of, just to make sure. In the meantime I am not allowed to take Advil (tears) but I can take my muscle relaxer and I can take Tylenol.
Then I woke up this morning, then I woke up again a few minute later, then finally I got out of bed, I think I woke up in the hall LOL. I was really thinking of skipping then Zoo, then I heard Monkey in her bedroom and she was saying "blah blah blah ZOO, hehehe" repeat. She ran around the Zoo like a completely wild child. She also said orangutan, but she won't say blue or egg??? Well, we start speech therapy on the 17th of November so I guess we can work on that then.
Monkey is also going through a phase where she thinks it is funny not to listen to me. So I say come here and she turns around and runs the opposite way laughing her arse off. It is so cute, but I don't want her running out in front of a car.
Monkey is also going through a lets figure out this potty thing phase. I was given the potty tots training kit a few months ago. It came with a potty chart. She brings it to me and we read over the steps. Then I take her pants and diaper off and talk about feeling a sensation right before you have to go. We have had a few successes, a few half and half successes and a few FAILS. When she brings me the chart it is her way of choosing to work on potty training, and I feel like if it is her choice it will be sucessful.

Real World Evaluation

I was asked to post up the beauty tips widget and try out some beauty products and I agreed. For doing that I was also entered into a contest (and won WOOHOO). I was excited, I didn't know exactly what I would get in the box and that made it even more exciting...and daunting. I don't wear make-up so if they sent me some lipstick and blush that would just look silly on me without some foundation and eye shadow. Although I was willing to get some foundation for the right product or send it back if I needed to. That didn't happen though, what happened was I have actually changed products.


I got Q-tips in a super cute box. Your going to laugh at me, we actually really needed this item and didn't know it. See Monkey likes to clean her ears like Mommy and Daddy do. That is cute and all, but very dangerous to find her in the bathroom doing it by herself! So, we had these Costco size Q-tip boxes and they didn't close and so we would put them precariously on things that wouldn't hold them. We would move them and she would get to them again or they would fall wasting Q-Tips by the dozen. This super cute box slides open and shut. It is also small and perfect for our bathroom shelf. So we will be refilling it. Thank you Q-Tip, who knew you had such great products.


I also got some Vaseline, which is great to have around the house. You can put it around your hairline before dying your hair to prevent it from staining your skin. You can put it around your nails before you paint them to prevent the paint getting on your skin. You can just use it for dry, cracked feet. It is a great product to have around for all sorts of uses.I also got some Dove Clinical strength protection deodorant. I actually already use the Dove solid. This product was interesting. It wasn't my cup of tea, but I think my sister would like it. You have to roll it up each time, but it isn't  a slimy jell it still seems like a solid powder type. So I didn't mind that at all. I just think that the scent (original) didn't go well with my personal scent. I never really felt like I was stinky or sweaty just didn't like the scent.


I got these Pond's face cleansing towelettes also. I really love them. One of the tips on the widget was to take them to work with you so then you can take off just your eye make up and put on darker make-up so you can leave straight from work ready to party. I think that is a great tip. I used them by my bed. I have actually tried several different products but this is the first one that worked. See, for me when Aunt Flo visits I often get really tired and cold. Then I pile on the blankets and sweaters. Then I wake-up covered in sweat and then I break out. I've tried those oil absorbing pads and they just feel like they are pressing the oil into my face. I also tried a few other brands of towelettes and often felt like they were just smearing the sweat around. These those are the first time I've made it through a full menstrual cycle without a huge zit and a half dozen painful blackhead. So these are going on the grocery list from now on!

Last but not least I got Dove Shampoo and Conditioner, Go Fresh Cool Moisture Therapy. So my favorite conditioner of all time (even now) is Paul Mitchell Tea Tree Oil condition, but it costs OVER $30.00 for about 2 months worth of conditioner (if Mr. OCD stays out of it). Well, we are still waiting on disability and we are still paying school debt and we are still living in an apartment so unless somebody buys it for me for Christmas or a birthday then it is NOT on the grocery list. Plus you can only get it at a salon. Well, this Shampoo and Conditioner have tea tree oil scent AND it costs the same as Kirkland brand that we have been using. We did our Costco run last night at it was $6.99 for 40 fl oz.each separately for shampoo and conditioner.
Well, we bought it so you already know, I loved it. The thing is I had already become a fan of Dove for all they do to support women and especially younger girls. They took up a topic that needed attention, and without overtly commercializing the topic they brought attention to it. Which is great. So, while I got Mr. OCD to try a new body wash a few months ago, getting him to try the girly looking shampoo just wasn't going to happen as easily. So when they sent it to us and he tried it too and it wasn't really THAT girly smelling he was fine with it, although when he saw the bottle go in the cart last night he did cringe a bit (so I just put his attention on food).
So I wanted to get a great before and after (which took a bit because I always pushed aside the Kirkland for the Dove LOL).I think you can see the difference but I wanted to talk about more then looks. I feel better, more clean and friendly and bouncy (hair wise). I have this horrible skin that cracks, even with Dove body wash and lotion if I shower every 24 hours, so I have to wait about 48 hours to shower. Do you even know what that means with a toddler in the house? I walk around in the wind and rain with oatmeal and jelly stuck in my hair for about 47.8 hours at a time. So when I do get in the shower and wash it all out I want to at least feel clean for a few minutes. So I thought 24 hours AFTER I showered, how my hair is looking then would be a great real world test.

24 Hours AFTER I showered, no blow drying, a trip to the Aviation Museum, oatmeal, jelly and some rain and wind to boot. Kirkland brand

  My hair is just going every which way at the bottom, out of control!

 I could feel the grease and my hair was so flat to my head

24 Hours AFTER I showered, no blow drying, a trip to Costco, a trip to the Zoo, oatmeal jelly, and plenty of rain and wind  Dove brand

Ahh look I brushed my hair and it laid down perfect

I still have a little volume left, when I move my head my hair moves too!

Oh Yeah Friday .....time for VGNO with Ann !

So, I have had bruises appearing one everyday for 5 days and am going to the Dr. on Monday. I have no clue what they are going to say, google unexplained bruises and you get everything from anemia to kidney failure. The good news is that while I have some other symptoms , I DON"T have a fever so I am probably not dying... well not today or this weekend. So with the Dr.'s appointment set I have nothing left to do except randomly check for more bruises and enjoy the weekend as best as possible. To make get my mind off things, I thought I'd join the party at Ann Again .... and again.
So I am going to beg everyone and their boss/grandma to vote for my Monkey in the Gap Casting Call.

http://family.go.com/gapcastingcall/entries/lovelychriss/

I got a new camera for my birthday. So we are having tons of fun with it! Hey I know I'll show you Monkey's first photo shoot. She is going to be an amazing photographer some day LOL.

She thought this one was funny, she is so weird about feet.

Please Don't Lick The Floor !

Having a toddler means you have to say the words, don't, no, stop, and freeze about a million times a day. I thought I would share with you something I found that works very well for my little monkey. It is very situation specific, but if you can't make yourself utter another, "Stop" here is another option. "What is the plan here?". I say that to my monkey very often, especially on the playground. For instant if she looks like she is going to try to get off the play structure in a way that doesn't accommodate a toddler, I'll say "What is the plan here?" It actually seems to work. She actually stops what she is doing and looks around at her situation, occasionally she will point. Then I'll respond with something like, "okay I get it, you plan on standing on the bar and then what? fall off and bonk your head? How about you try going down the slide." While my advice on trying the slide might not be headed,  the main concept 'lets get a new goal' usually is. I think this has really helped her ability to think ahead and prevent her from getting in painful situations.
I also thought that  I would share with you a few other phrases/conversations I've had thanks to a Monkey being a fully fledged crazy toddler.
Please stop licking the floor, you might get sick.
Please don't eat the cheerio's under your butt.
Please don't stick your finger in your nose and then in your ear, at least wipe it off on Mommy's pants.

Conversation between Myself and Mr. OCD

Mr. OCD - Honey can you please pop this huge zit on my back
Me - Ummm, you mean remove this Cheerio
Mr. OCD - Well, I'll be are you seriouse..........I didn't eat Cheerio's today
Me- Yeah I know we've been out for a week