I also have a (newly formed!) green thumb!!

Check out the start of my new passion-- growing things!

I have always loved plants and had futuristic dreams of being able to not kill my own garden-y things and actually grow things to eat! (There was a time when I thought: growing food to eat only happened on big farms and by supper market suppliers--not in my own house or backyard!)

I have always wanted to grow my own food, and after doing the Yoga Enlightenment Studies program last year, which taught me about the importance and the power in growing our own foods on our own lands, I decided to get at it, more seriously, once and for all! (I already had my apple, pear and pomegranate trees started before I started the YES program, it just strengthened my passion!) I hope to have enough land someday to grow miles (and greenhouses full) of food and flowers!

For now, I will start in my kitchen (while waiting patiently for my love to build me a greenhouse this week (right!? this week!? ;)

Here is a table full of things:

There are lots of different things here: 2 tomato plants, a hot pepper plant, 10 or so cucumber sprouts, rattle snake beans, carrots, an apple tree & a pear tree (both grown from seeds from an apple and a pear I ate!) and a couple of flowers and plants (not good with their names! lol Though, one is a 3-leaf clover!).

And here is my pomegranate tree (also grown from a pomegranate i ate!) (And I'm certain this must be the 1st pomegranate tree in Newfoundland, if someone else knows of one, please let me know! :)

(much taller than a gatoraide bottle...the bottle is a little bit out of scale because it's further up the table, but you get an idea!)

The following pic is a plant we bought that pretty near died after I re-planted it in a larger pot (it only has little roots, so it dehydrated in the soil, unable to reach its water! i felt bad.. poor lil thing!) BUT! With high hopes of saving it, I repotted it in a smaller pot (while expressing much love and hope for it while doing so!)

And here it is! The last elder of the bunch (hung-over from exhaustion of trying to stay alive for so long!) & the 1st little newborn sprouting up to show me: its LIFE WILL GO ON!)
(I swear, seeing these 2 teeny-little leaves poking through the soil today sprung forth emotions resembling the ones that I experienced by frist seeing my two newborn daughters faces... it was that: "OH MY BABY! IM SO GLAD YOU ARE HERE!" feeling... ;)

I love growing things! I cant wait to eat the ones we can eat (the ones that actually grow things edible!)

This is only the beginning... <3

green thumb? maybe...

But i certainly had a blue thumb for a while...

blue thumb?...

... THUMBS DOWN!

Awesome black-now-blue patio chairs and table?...

THUMSB UP!!

(ok, so this was originally a "thumbs down" shot, I flipped it to show the love for the blue chair ;) *love*
(note: the spray paint came off with a lot'o scrubbing and a lot'o dish detergent!)

love summer days of at-home projects!

spider pics

I wrote a piece a while ago called: i dont kill bugs... (here: http://overzealousblog.blogspot.com/2011/05/i-dont-kill-bugs.html).

And, in it, I mentioned that in order to rid my fear of spiders I had to first begin to look at them "from A distance and on the internet"... from there, I realized, I had to also begin taking pics of them... so I could view them up-closer and see them in real life, while at the same time completely eliminating the possibility of one of them jumping on my face and laying thousands of eggs in my nose (they can't do that from a photo I'm CERTAIN! It's a good place to start!)

Bees and spiders are my favourite bugs, spiders because they were something I once feared intensely (insanely!) and, to me, they represent the ability to evolve past my own irrational fears... if I can love them after despising them for so long, then I can evolve past my other limiting thoughts and fears!

I took a few pictures over the last few days, and wanted to show the spiders some love and acceptance...(as if letting them live anywhere outside (and for the most part:) inside my house wasn't enough!)...

The first 5 photos were taking of a spider that was hanging in our entrance way.. (and yes, after taking a couple of pics, I let it go wherever it wanted (I didn't squat it, nor did I shoo it outside ;)

(Can you find it? It climbed really far away... Its web started at the bottom step- it took over the entire stairs!)

(Lookit the speck ;)

(Wonder how long it was in that fixture?)


This spider was in the window, caught it mid-climb...

(To me, there is something so inspiring about this picture, I think it's beautiful.)

I am so confident in my physical ability, that I jump rocks on a beach with a 2 yr old in my arms. (yes this is one long title.)

I am confident in my ability to do that and do it safely and efficiently while looking at it for what it is: a beautiful bonding moment, a nature-ful meditation (for both of us!), as well as a great workout and a chance to be next to the ocean with my family!

How can that not be safe?

I know it’s up to me if it’s safe or not. I just have to stay conscious and mindful of my body and trust its reflexes (and watch out for wet rocks, slimy seaweed, protruding drift wood, and make sure I’m wearing hiking boots with wicked-awesome traction: CHECK, CHECK, CHECK AND CHECK!)

Most people, or at least, some people, would say that jumping rocks while holding a two-year old is much too “dangerous” and “totally crazy” and “wtf is wrong with that mother??”

(!!!DANGER!!!)

It seems like anything is deemed “crazy” if it is different and more difficult from what is considered “the norm” of how people should react and interact with a two year old. If it appears dangerous and poses risk of injury or death, then some people expect others to: AVOID AT ALL COSTS!

(DONT GET OUT OF BED, THERE'S DANGER OUT THERE!!)

Though, that’s a pretty good rule of thumb, for like car seats and maybe babies on motorcycles, or for anyone in a situation where they think, yeah: I could hurt the 2-yr old or myself, doing that, so I shouldn’t do it. (like if it was a rainy day, I wouldn’t jump rocks with her in my arms… because then the risk is something slightly out of my control… I haven’t figured out how to maneuver the human body to not slip off a slippery rock while jumping at a pretty significant speed---—yet.) And putting her on a motorcycle or holing her in my arms while driving also poses possible events out of my control: other drivers and vehicle malfunction!

But that sunny day, the rocks were dry and the sky was blue. Safe enough for me!

We had so much fun and got lots of fresh air and had lots of bonding time! (I ignored the one puzzled look I got from a person walking “safely” on the path. ;)

OverZealous Wedding Shoot! {Rachel & Damien}

It really took a lot of pressure off having the bride herself say: Oh don't worry too much, as long as you get one or two good shots, we'll be happy! (that's really a photographers dream, at least, for me it was!)
I was worried, this was my first semi-professional shoot... what if I didnt get ANY good shots for them!?
I worry too much.
They are beautiful people! Full of love and smiles! How could I NOT get any good shots!? (Plus the backdrops were stunning, a lot to work with!)

Here are some of my fave shots of the day:


(The beautiful couple!)

(Just the girls!)

(A full family shot!)

(Love the ocean-themed shots!)

(Gorgeous couple by the water!)

(I made them kiss a lot ;)

(Wedding party by the beautiful rock wall.)

(Hovering over them on a 4 foot wall was worth it! lol)

(This photo looks so old fashioned.. I love it!)

(Her bouquet was beautiful!!)

{Thank you Rachel and Damien! I had a wonderful time with you and your family! Congratulations!}

What's the opposite of "riot"?

This kind of mob-insanity kinda scares the crap out of me.

That people can get so swept up in freaking out that they destroy a part of a city.
How does that happen!? Why does that happen!? (But really, it’s no worse than paid-for-by-the-government wars, though is it?)

Maybe it’s because of the amount of forced control they feel over their lives.
Maybe the rioters were trying to overtly take back some of their freedom, maybe they were driven to do it.

They may have reacted in an unnecessarily violent way… but I’m guessing, it’s societal and personal pressures, mixed with the lack of control exercised over their own lives and their lack of true, ultimate, joyful freedom that could be the significant causes to such mob lash-outs. A few people react in ways that look and feel just like real freedom and self-control, and that leads other people wanting in on that pseudo-freedom wave.

Who the heck doesn’t want to feel like they are in control and have full freedom? I know I do- all of the time! But I’m not going to burn a car over it.

Or would I? *cue slight paranoia over the state of the human mind*

How does mob-mentality work, exactly? I remember discussing it in Psych classes, but I never really dove into the workings of it. (This is where I make a note to go back to my psych book—and yes, I still have it!)

Let me see what google has to say…

On the website, wisegeek.com it says: Social psychologists who study group behavior tend to prefer terms like “herd behavior” or “crowd hysteria.”

Yeah. Not really the depth I was hoping to quickly stumble upon (and because I told myself I was going to write tonight, I’m not going to get into researching it just yet, but maybe I’ll do another post like that later).

I’m sure we all know what mob-mentality is… but do we know what it IS?? The root and cause of it? Why it happens?

Brings me to questions and paranoia’s like: Do only people who are similar in personality, or intellect, or blood alcohol level, or some other factor, react together in a mob? Or should unsuspecting people be wary of getting swept up, as if in a spontaneous tornado? Like, what if I had been on that street at that moment, might I have ended up smashing out a window or kicking a puppy or something?

(Not sure why my mind is comparing a riot in the streets of Vancouver to a mud slide in a rain forest (do mud slides even happen in the rain forests? OH there are SO many things in this world that I just don’t know for sure! Can we ever know it all!?))

And to completely contrast everything I just wrote:

I guess mob mentality offers a subtle, promising hope. If a mob of people can get so railed up over something like losing a hockey game, maybe mobs of people can spark spontaneous bursts of joyful evolutions over the streets of the world!

It shows that people really do have the potential to group together as one and completely change and take over a section of the world.

Can we create a mob-evolution? One where we over-throw all the things that don’t seem to “work” in society? Can we group together enough people working on their personal evolution to make everyone else on the street work on their own?

And instead of burning cars and robbing electronics, we plant vegetables and trees and use no cancer-causing chemicals!

It will take everyone together to create a world beautiful for everyone; natural, sustainable, full of love and animals!

Yes. I am a utopian. (but take that lightly… remember I don’t know what causes mob-mentality or if they have mud slides in rain forests, do you think I know the complete definition of a “utopian”? ;)

You Are What You Think, Especially if It’s Ugly You’re Thinking.

I know it’s best to not think about the past. But there are times when it’s useful to go back there, to try and find out a little about how my mind is working now and to make sure I align my mind with the present moment, to be sure it’s not merely running from a subconscious, false belief.

All this thinking was brought on by finding old pictures of me that I dislike looking at. I was 18, in Niagara Falls with my family and I was so unconscious it was scary. (So unconscious, in fact, that I had my hair slicked back in a self-loathing pony tail with two pieces of “bangs” hauled out on either side, which resembled a handle-bar moustache…. placed on my head. Yeah. I hadn’t a clue!)

I hated myself and my life back then; and I hated how I looked, I hated people, I hated how lost and confused I was. I was dorky and ugly with not one ounce of Self developed. I had no idea who or what I was, I was alone in my internal self-war.

Back then, I was living in the past everyday. Going back to things bullies said to me years and years before, and what felt like every day after. I believed everything they said because I didn’t have a sense of who I was or what I could be. I sat desperately alone inside my self-loathing for the entirety of my teenage life. Spent much time and energy in seeing all my faults and believing all the crap people said about me, instead of building who I was and creating who I would be. (I was also very dumb ;)

An older boy I knew back then said to me a few times: you are going to be beautiful…when you’re older. This reconfirmed my notion that I was indeed ugly at the time, but it also planted a seed inside me. I’m not sure if he planned it that way, in hopes of saving my deteriorating appearance, or if he saw beauty in me that I hadn’t yet. Whatever way he meant it, it planted that seed, one that made me start looking for beauty inside myself.

Though because I was 16-18 when I heard that, I figured: I have a LONG way to go before I’m “older” (I'm there now, 30 is the beginning of "older" haha). So, it wasn’t until I was about 23-24 that I started to see some kind of beauty poking through, which correlates well to when I started hearing it from other people a little more (when I would hear someone tell me I was “beautiful” before those ages I would scoff at the lies they were trying to convince me of.) But during my mid-twenties, I started to pause, and Thank someone who would say that (instead of accusing them of being senile liars.)

I didn’t always completely believe them (even still, I have moments of doubt). But thanking people, instead of dismissing them, was my first step in becoming beautiful, like the boy from my past said I would be.

I hear it all the time from people now, that I’m gorgeous, beautiful, natural, etc. I still battle with my inner scowl, which tells me I’m the ugly duckling I always was, but luckily that voice is getting smaller, loosing its power. And the truth is coming forth, that all humans are beautiful.

I do see the beauty in this human form I have, I see the beauty in every human form around me.

So I’m guessing it has been my efforts to create my inner beauty that has slowly been releasing an outer beauty, and my quest to see the beauty in each and every person I see, all of which is what other people are seeing.

I always thought I would be made fun of if I spoke of being any sort of beautiful (people in my past also didn’t take well to other people being confident in any way, you would get ridiculed for “thinking too much of yourself”), therefore I always felt uncomfortable telling myself I am beautiful. It has only been lately that I see how important it is to tell myself that, that I am honoring, not only myself, but the Creator. And after being so negative for so many years, I feel I owe the universe some good vibes!

So, here, I’ll say it, I’ll mean it, and I’ll ignore the inner voice that’s disagreeing with me: I AM BEAUTIFUL! (And so are you ;)

One of the main problems in our society? (Canada)...

Our society hasn’t adopted the siesta!

A regulated 3-4 hour national rest time!

I’m willing to bet it’s the main reason stress levels are so high, depression is so rampant and volcanoes are erupting all over the world! (Sure, why not!?)

When I was in Southern Italy, walking the busy streets, seeing people everywhere, shops and cars and businesses all running at a steady pace, I hadn’t witnessed a siesta at that point. So, as the streets became less busy, the shops emptying, and the businesses flipping to the “close” side, I wasn’t sure what was happening!

I’m surprised my first thought wasn’t “OH CRAP, IT MUST BE A TERRORIST ATTACK!” but I don’t really think like that (and does that even happen in Italy?) and I was lost in a meditative state of joyful, exhausted, semi wine-drunk bliss- there was no sign of fear in me. In fact, I was so sedated, I’m pretty sure someone could’ve ran at me with a knife and smiling would’ve been my reaction before flinching in fear.

Then our tour guide explained it: it’s siesta time! Everyone goes home, prepares food, spends time with their families, or has some alone time, and then everyone takes a nap together! (Sounds BEAUTUFUL to me!)

My thought: WOW! How come your culture does that and ours doesn’t?! (Another reason I am convinced I have been born on the wrong continent! I totally have culture envy. Even though I love Canada- mostly.)

The tour guide continues to explain that it can get really hot during those ours of the day, so spending it at home, resting, ensures that people’s energy will be conserved. Which also ensures more productivity and positive energy for the evening, while everyone gets on with their day.
So, even though our climate doesn’t really get THAT hot... it can be annoyingly cold, even in summer months (especially Newfoundland!)- so it’s still fair and we would totally benefit from it!

I can see how it would make for a happier, more efficient society. An afternoon nap has a LOT of power!

They seem to have it figured out in Italy and the other siesta countries (Latin American countries (except Brazil), as well as in the Philippines, China, Vietnam, Bangladesh, India, Southern Italy, Greece, Croatia, Malta, the Middle East and North Africa.)

Prime time, middle of the day, you get to hang out with your loved ones, take sometime doing things for yourself, and then napping!? Awesomesauce.

Now. How to get the Canadian government to regulate this!?

Who’s with me!?!!? ;)

Random Blog Alert (home, life, parenting and personal evolution)

Sometimes I get so overwhelmed by housework I have thoughts of burning the house down and moving into a clay hut in the woods. Well, ok, everything but the “burning the house down” part… I would just give everything away and leave the house for the next poor shmuck who wants to live in such a “modern” house (and I’m not using those quotation marks loosely there! Wtf is modern anyhow? I like huts. There’s nothing wrong with a hut! (ok. Maybe it’s not perfect, but at least I wouldn’t have to do laundry… because well, if I live in a hut I might as well not wear any clothes, right? Sounds good to me. Though, my hut will need internet connection.)

NOTE TO SELF: answer my child right away when she runs to me saying “mommy look, mommy look, mommy look, mommy look” …because, note: responding on the second “mommy look” is the only other acceptable “mommy look” to respond to.

It’s rude to ignore people! -even IF they are disrupting the best sentence the world has ever seen to untangle a peace sign necklace from a piece of fence from the horse play-set. DO NOT CHOOSE TO IGNORE THE CHILD! Because by the time she gets to the 9th or 10th “mommy look” it will be rage-filled screams of urgency.

Ok. So I exaggerate sometimes.

And exaggerating may go against the “yogic” way, but it makes a more entertaining read.

See? Right there! I justified my use of exaggeration! Thereby, justifying a reason I am not fully living up to the yogic lifestyle I have been learning about for the past 9 months. (RANDOM ENLIGHTENMENT STUDIES OBSERVATION!)

At least now I am more awake to moments I do that. (Well, ok, awake to MOST of the moments I do that.)

Anyhow, after that random interruption, back to whatever it was I was saying or something completely different, I'm not entirely sure:

Attempting to work and study at home, during moments of harvesting creativity and independence in a 2 year old through alone playtime, is quite the juggling act, which, from many time to many time, leads to dropping the flaming torches, or balls or scarves, whatever one feels safer juggling. (NOTE: For anyone who isn’t a parent: even though the child is “playing alone” she is in the same room, right next to me, and I am giving her a lot of my attention, hence the reason I can usually only focus on something for a short amount of time, and why I end up writing about her interrupting me in the middle of a blog post.)

The movie “Motherhood” (Uma is AWESOME in it, btw!) totally reminded me of so many times and things in my life (some “times and things” a little more than others!)
Especially, the part about choosing to stay home with baby, while putting other types of dreams on-hold, well not really “on-hold”, so much as decreasing the amount of hours put into those dreams, and not killing myself in the process.

The millions of new tiny little things (and big humongous things!) the mind starts running with after the babies are born, takes up quite a lot of space and energy in the mind and hours in the day.
All minds are different remember, so for some people, the shift is easy, natural, smooth, and they don’t think about much else, they have the benefit of being able to comfortably not do or worry about much else. Which is great for those people!

But I am totally not one of those people.

And I would’ve been more envious of those people years ago, but yogic belief reveals the harm in it- and I can’t afford any more energy leaking!

My mind needs to process, analyze, evolve, try as many new things, and connect with as many new people, as possible! Therefore, my parenting style reflects this: lets do as much as we can together, with other people, and during our alone times. (That is a summed up version of how I’m living right now.)

Which leads me to point out one of those things in life I’m currently dealing with: the undying feeling that I could be doing more! I need to do MORE! WHY AM I NOT DOING MOOORRRREE!? Which can cause impatient feelings during my days (sometimes feeling suffocated, like a pillow firmly placed over my face (oh yes, and I am NOT exaggerating there!)

Also, this “need to do more” curse, can usually lead to a trail of unfinished projects (and dishes) and drop in confidence, but more on those defects later. ;)

Even though I am doing a lot of study and working and exploring new things, while aiming to be the best Mom I can be- I still battle with the need to DO MORE- MAKE MORE MONEY-BE MORE GODDAMIT!

Luckily, a thing about children: with a surprise hug, giggle, moment of trust or a homemade card, they snap that pillow off my face and remind me of the importance and love with which I brought them into the world and all feelings of impatience about certain things are replaced with feelings of importance of other things yet. (Yes, I tend to write very 16th century poetic sometimes. It’s a flaw readers and natural born editors will have accept about me;)

My kids are the reason I am a mother, the reason I have been able to feel love at its highest capacity. They are the reason I dedicate so much energy into evolving my own mind and life and ways of thinking about the world, in order to love them and support them as much as I can, in as many ways as possible.

Though, I still screw up and get stressed out at times. Because, they, my sweet little love forces, are also, at times, my biggest sources of stress. Which just affords more opportunities to learn and evolve! Thank you my stressful little precious children!)

Meh. I’m not perfect----yet ;)

Now, back to that darn pile of laundry.

I swear to gawd my stomach just said "yellow".

It totally did.
And it sounded like a man in one of those barbershop bands,
where they raise the next voice just a notch higher. "yellooow.. YELlooow.. YELLOOOOOOWWW.."
My belly is a soprano.

Breast cancer is annoying.

And I don’t just mean because of the pain and devastation it causes- because that part really could stop!

But these new “facebook awareness status” ploys ARE SO ANNOYING.

How in the HECK does making pseudo-sexually explicit statuses make any difference whatsoever to breast cancer awareness? Most people know about breast cancer by now, this crap isn’t helping anything.
It’s just making people look foolish, if you ask me, which you didn’t, by I’m telling you anyhow. (and I use “foolish” to tone down what typed first.)

The term “slacktivism” doesn’t accurately cover this phenomenon. This is worse than doing little. This can, in many ways, cause damage. Why all the sexual innuendo?

How about make your status something like: make healthy, positive choices and find out more about preventive measures to stop breast cancer…

OR MAYBE: donate to the breast cancer foundation… and, men, we aren’t trying to deceive you with this, we want you apart of it as well. (that’s a status sweep I could handle!)

Maybe I’ve grown into a prude, but stating where “I like” my purse and listing my shoe size as inches is NOT something I would ever be comfortable doing, nor does it tickle my funny-bone in anyway.

Why?! Just tell me why, goddamnit!

And, maybe accompanying the pretty pink ribbon, we start adding pictures to reveal true devastation of it, to maybe wake some people up to how serious this really is...

This is an early sign to look for (while also feeling for lumps):

So please, the next time you're about to get swept up in that sweep, change your status to something a little more classy and proactive maybe? Or write a blog to bitch about it? Or follow along, and know I (and other people) may be judging you a little bit ;) haha

Take care of yourself <3



(question mark ribbon found at: http://icantquitboobs.com/faq_content.html)
(the other two images found at: http://kathleengrieve.blogspot.com/2011/02/building-breast-cancer-awareness.html (who wrote a piece about awareness, that didnt include anything sexual- YOU GO GIRL!)

It’s OK to be GAY.

In order for that belief to be the norm in society, we must start referring to homosexuality as normal and acceptable, early in children’s lives.

When my first child was very young (daycare age!) someone asked her: do you have a boyfriend yet?” To which I quickly added: “or girlfriend” (and gave a supportive smile to the question asker- didn’t want to offend. And she actually said to me later, how great that was to say, that she never thought about it that way before.)

It was the first time (and not the last!) my daughter had been asked that question, so I was very happy I was quick to the draw on it. I wondered, what if she was gay!? What if she wanted a girlfriend? Wouldn’t being asked “do you have a boyfriend” make her feel she couldn’t have a girlfriend, or that there was something wrong with wanting a girlfriend? Or if she wasn’t gay, wouldn’t it make her think that having a boyfriend is more “normal and acceptable”? THAT was not the type of thinking I wanted her to develop. I want my children to be open to any possibility and accept people for their differences, and be free to choose for themselves.

So, it’s either scrap the question altogether, or get real about it… some kids are gay, don’t make them feel bad about it or make other kids judge them for it.

I also give my kids the longwinded statement: there’s: boyfriend and girlfriend, girlfriend and girlfriend, and boyfriend and boyfriend- everyone is different! :) ← never forget the smile!)

In order for the teasing in schools to stop and more acceptance to evolve, everyone needs to be asked the question that way: ‘boyfriend or girlfriend’, just so they stop for a moment, think, and are made to see the normality of the fact that it IS possible to be gay—and that it’s OK!

(photo: these are peace-rocks i tend to make whenever i go on a hike.. if you see one, let me know! ;)

What has our society done to breastfeeding?

Better yet: what has our society done to the female mind!?

I believe, the societal thought surrounding breasts is so perverted that some women struggle with the idea of breastfeeding. Women’s breasts have been THAT over-sexualized in the media (and by other people!) that, to a lot of women, their true function seems foreign, unnatural and “rotten” (according to a woman that used to be on my facebook.)

How can someone refer to feeding a baby, the way it was intended, as “rotten”? Would this same mother be terrified to change a poopie diaper? Baby poop (especially bottle-fed baby poop!) is much more “rotten” than an infant suckling a breast for nourishment.

I just don’t get it.

(babys first breastfeeding moment, my second baby.)

I was 19 when I had my first baby (I planned and prayed for 5 months for her!). Right from the start of wanting a baby I knew I was going to breastfeed, because well, really, I was in-tune with the natural life force of my body, it was the most natural thing to do.

I was lucky that I had an aunt who breastfed her baby.

I was around 10 when I walked in the living room and saw a babies face reaching toward her breast. (I can still see it in my mind after all these years, this kind of transcendental moment sticks with me!) It was the first time I had ever seen breastfeeding. I don’t even know if I hadeven heard of it before that moment! I was mystified. I was overflowing with love and joy at this new, delicate sight before me (as I turned my head away real fast, because I didn’t want her to think I was weird for wanting to stare (again, due to societies pressures and effects!)
It was at that moment I finally realized the point of boobs. That they weren’t just proof that God was a perverted old man who violated women’s bodies by putting those multi-sized bags of fun on the front end of us—they actually served a purpose! A beautiful, once-in-a-life-time purpose!

I couldn’t wait to have a baby to breastfeed.

Breastfeeding is as natural as the heart pumping blood. It’s a bodily function. The same mentality that would crack up laughing at multiple fart jokes reminds me of the mentality that makes fun of and is uncomfortable about breastfeeding.
Breastfeeding is the human thing to do! Our bodies do a lot of strange things, a lot of things that could be considered ‘disgusting’.

For example: breastfeeding is as natural as, and much more beautiful than, puking up your guts. And I get that some people don’t enjoy puking and wouldn’t choose to do it 5-10 times a day everyday for a year or more, but there is a purpose in puking—it saves our lives! Therefore we should do it!

Thank you Creator, for giving us the beautiful functions of purging and breastfeeding!

Breastfeeding can have moments of discomfort, like many bodily functions. But that’s no reason to write it off and never do it.

It is truly a joy, once you get passed the week-long nipple burning/stinging hump, when the sight of a towel is threatening and you have to bite your knuckles or punch yourself in the face when the baby latches. (I wonder, does every mother endure that part? or just some?)
However, after that week, that scary painful week, it is amazing! Natural! Relaxing! And full of loving bonding moments! (and "what doesn't kill you makes you stronger"? After that week, your skin pretty much turns to cast iron, strong-GER!)
(NOTE: there will probably be more random, overwhelming moments throughout the duration of your breastfeeding career— don’t feel bad for wishing you could rip your boobs off just once! Just once!! To give to dad, or someone else, to fed… or you could just pump a bottle ;)

But breastfeeding is easy! It’s sooo easy! There’s no way I could manage doing laundry while safely bottle-feeding! But strap my baby in a snuggly- front on- and I have two free hands to sort the clothes!

(----> dont lemme hear you say breastfeeding limits you! This is me and my 2nd daughter breastfeeding during a 4 hour a hike! ;)



It’s also much cheaper than bottle feeding (provided you spend money on ensuring you are eating healthy, which also benefits YOU and BABY! Two for one babeee!)

It also includes all the necessary health factors for baby and for mom. (Reducing risk of breast cancer, ovarian cancer and a truckload of other benefits!)

Also, if you are concerned with getting rid of the extra baby tub you’ve gathered over the last 9 months (or the tub you’ve had most of your life!) then breastfeeding is better than spending 5 hours at a gym EVERYDAY. It burns about an extra 500 cals… minimum-to-no exercise required!

If you are pregnant, or plan to be someday, I suggest you educate yourself on the topic, instead of shying away thinking it's not for you. Read things, watch things, and try to find mothers who are breastfeeding who don’t mind being starred at or being asked a hundred-million questions.

It is your (and your child’s) natural birthright! Your breasts have an evolutionary purpose! Fulfill it! (pun intended…they get REAL FULL!)

i dont kill bugs...

There was a time, many years ago, when I'd scream "KILL IT!" at the sight of anything crawly, except for maybe babies or drunk people, some drunk people. Anything with more than 4 legs would creep me out to the point of begging someone to end its life. What a waste of energy that was! (Not to mention the waste of a lil life force!)
Then one day, about 6 or 7 years ago, I asked myself: wtf is my problem? Why do I act like a sociopath at the sight of a bug? Why do I imagine these things crawling in my orifices, laying a billion eggs that will hatch a billion babies that will chew through my skin to escape? Why? It's irrational! Completely!
SO then I started to love them... from a distance and on the internet, at first.

Then I got closer, in real life. (--> check out the beautiful detail of this spider that was in my mothers window for an entire summer! IT'S GORGEOUS! And builds its house from its BUTT!)


One day, sitting on a back deck, an ant, an inch worm, and a fly all started to crawl toward me (no doubt testing my pledge of love!). I forced myself to suck-it-the-heck-up and let them crawl on my feet (while clenching everything I could clench!) and LO AND BEHOLD I didn't die and there was not one egg laid inside me anywhere! WOW! I fell in love (for real time!) right then and there! Wherein, began my protest of not killing bugs and never allowing anyone else to do it around me (if someone wants the bug gone, I'm happy to escort it back outside).

I even express the rule in my house: no killing bugs in my house! (I've wanted to make a sign that reads something witty like: if you kill a bug in my house, I will kill you. But that's not "witty" so much as it's "threatening" and a lil crazy.)

Me and my partner fell madly in love with spiders one early morning, laying for hours, wired on love. We let a teenyweeny baby spider crawl around our hands, letting it explore from my hand to his. I had been letting them live in random places in the house for a while at that point, but when I noted the remarkable contrast of that itty-bitty bug on his big strong human hand, it really warmed my heart! Bugs (as well as humans) are truly amazing beings! They have purpose and beauty just as anything does. And they are defenceless against us. Which is why I take a stand against the unconscious cruelty of random bug killing (Tho, I still eat chicken? yeah. I'm working on it. It's helping to picture chickens as big feathered vegetables).

(For the record: if your house is being infested with bugs to the point of them crawling on your children and eating all of your food, then yes, a lil genocide might be called for. But be sure to do it from a place of love in your heart, no anger on your tongue... or maybe let them have the house and you move? (Tad overzealous with that last thing?-maybe.))

'no, mom, dont take a picture of my berry-juice face!'

(raspberries, cherries, and strawberries: and it didnt stain her face, wow! lol) (it's even on her nose) ♥

caterpillar go potty too?

she thinks: if i gotta do it, the sprinklers gotta do it too...

sister action shot!

when you lay on the floor, it's an open invite to be POUNCED ON!
(see the fear in the big sisters eyes? ;)

a fish named zen...

she naps in the strangest of places...

the face of an evil sand-throwing baby:

punk.