Happy Heart Day!

I wanted to share all of this with you, in honor of Valentine's Day and our hearts! My family has been affected by heart disease - both of my grandpas had heart attacks and open heart surgery, and eventually both passed away after suffering heart attacks.

Heart health is something we really need to think about ... and Diet Coke has a message they'd like to share with you.

Show your Heart Ohio!

Because Heart Health is always in style, Diet Coke will be hosting a Heart Truth Fashion event at the Ohio State University later this month to remind people to show their love for the cause and support heart health educational programs.    

The Heart Truth® is a national awareness campaign, sponsored by the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI). The campaign not only raises awareness about heart disease in women, it also equips them to take action against risk factors.

The fashion event will be held on February 29 at 7 p.m. in the Ohio State University Ohio Union Performance Hall.  Models recruited from Ohio State and the greater Columbus community will walk the runway, wearing red and displaying their commitment to heart health. During the show, heart health facts and heart health best practices will be shared. Models will share how they live heart healthy and will ‘show your heart’ at the end of their run.

The event will also feature Diet Coke product sampling, Heart Status stations featuring heart health screenings by a local heart health organization & Wii Fit Heart Healthy trials.  The conclusion of the event will be marked by a charitable contribution to a local heart health organization.

Diet Coke is a passionate supporter of The Heart Truth® and a four-year partner with the NHLBI. In 2012, Diet Coke will continue to raise awareness and funds in support of women's heart health education and research and is celebrating its partnership with limited edition cans and bottles featuring red heart and dress visuals.

Thanks to Diet Coke for sharing this information with me!
As we celebrate Valentine's Day, let's remember to keep our hearts healthy too!

Disclosure: I didn't receive any compensation for this post. I was fortunate enough to be invited to the event on February 29 by Diet Coke, but am unable to attend. However, I wanted to share the information about the fashion show and heart health with my readers because you all hold a special place in my HEART.

Who Makes You Smile?

Think about that for a minute - who makes you smile?
Your kids? Your spouse? Your parents?

Well, what if you could win a fabulous trip to New York City just for showing off your smile?

Yep. You read that right - all you need to do is share a photo of yourself and someone who makes you SMILE at http://www.topdentists.com/smile/ , write a brief caption (140 words or less...just like a Tweet!), and then ask your friends, family, and anyone else you can find to vote on your photo by February 24!

Five submissions with the most votes will be eligible for the Grand Prize - the winner and ONE guest will get an all-expense paid trip to New York City, $1,000 spending cash, AND a professional photo shoot! (The top three entries within 100 miles of Troy, MI; Philadelphia, PA; Aventura, FL; Austin, TX; and Beverly Hills, CA will be judged for five regional prizes).

The winners will be announced on March 16!

The contest is running now through February 24 so enter today: http://www.topdentists.com/smile/

Disclosure: I was not compensated for this post in any way. I just wanted to share it with my readers!

39 and holding

39.
Yep.
I have the gray hair to prove it.
One more year til the big 4-0.

I told my mom today that I remembered when SHE turned 40. I was 17 and we threw her a surprise party. And now, I'm one year away from that same milestone. How CRAZY is that?

As it is, I had a wonderful birthday weekend (oh yeah...at this age, it becomes a two-day celebration!). Last night I partied like a vampire at our annual "Twilight" viewing party. It was Breaking Dawn this time - and we wore our wedding veils. And drank blood red drinks out of Stryofoam cups. (And those last two sentences made no sense to anyone who hasn't seen the movie).

We also wear Twilight themed T-shirts each year. Mine for this year read: "I never received my letter to Hogwarts, so I'm moving to Forks to live with the Cullens." My theory - you're never too old to wear crazy Twilight T-shirts.

Anyway...back to turning 39 today.

I've been thinking back on the last 10 years ... you know, when I was 29 and on the cusp of my 30s.

10 years ago I was planning my wedding, working full time, and had no gray hair or stretch marks. I was 40 pounds lighter (at least). I wasn't blogging. It seems like a million years ago. And the thought of turning 30 didn't phase me at all.

Fast forward to today. I'll be celebrating my 10 year anniversary in October. I have two beautiful children who are my world. I'm still trying to find the 'right' job for me - looking for my happy place, I suppose. Oh and I have to get my hair colored every eight weeks because I have so much gray hair. What a difference 10 years makes.

As for turning 40 in another year?
Bring. It. On.

I have a few things planned for the next 365 days (or is it 366?). First, I'm participating in my first 5K race in two weeks. Then, when the weather get warmer (and my motivation comes out of hibernation), I am going to start "training" with the couch-to-5K program (again). And my end goal? I want to run a half marathon before I turn 40.

There. I said it.

It's "on paper" now....so I sort of have to do it, right? (lol)
I want to run a half marathon (that's 13.1 miles!) before I turn 40.
Preferably a Disney half marathon, since if I'm going to torture myself it might as well be at my happy place.

A plus to this insanity? Maybe I'll actually lose those extra 40 pounds before I turn 40.

Oh and I'm also going to find an amazing job very soon.
I just know it.

Ballerinas and star stickers

Tonight was one of "those" nights at dance class where I just wanted to (a) smack someone, (b) yell at someone, or (c) both a and b.

First, I arrived as I always do for everything - 15 minutes early. Dance class starts at 6 p.m. and I was in the parking lot at 5:45. And then I spent the next 20 minutes driving around in a circle around the lot because there was absolutely NOWHERE to park. I had to drop Emma off at the door to the studio and let her go inside. Alone. While I knew she would make it to her classroom OK, I'm not a fan of dropping my 5 year old at the door and driving away.

After finally stalking out a parking spot, I had to endure 30 minutes of "dance mom talk" from several other moms in the waiting room. First, they don't understand the concept of "inside voices" - it's as if they each need to talk louder than the last mom so EVERYONE in the room knows just how AMAZING their 6 year old is in "company."

And secondly, quite frankly, I don't care how many days you have to spend at the dance studio every week. Or how many days your kid is going to be in the recital. And I really don't care about the dance competition that you were practically yelling in my ear about.

And if that wasn't enough....

On the drive home I asked Emma if she had fun and she said that she was "sad" because she didn't get a pink star sticker. I asked her who did and she said "other girls in my ballet class, but not me."

These stickers weren't given out for behavior - Emma was perfectly behaved as always. It appears they were given out as "rewards" for the girls who got all the steps 'right.' As Emma told the story, during the "ABCs of Ballet" if the girls didn't have their feet in the right position, they were told to sit down and they didn't get a sticker.

What the hell?

This is NOT OK with me.
These little girls are five years old.
They are beginners.
They should not be made to feel like they're not good enough to get a pink star sticker.
And they most certainly should not be made to feel like this is a competition for stickers!

This is NOT a dance competition. Nor is it a reality show. It's a ballet class for kindergartners. Emma loves dancing and to see her sad because she thinks she wasn't good enough to get a pink star? That is heartbreaking to me.

I have called the dance studio and they assure me that they will "get to the bottom of it" and figure out exactly what happened.

As it is, I am making Emma a big pink star to hang on her bedroom door. She's a superstar in my book.

Wordless Wednesday - Two weeks

Italy.

One of my favorite pavilions at Epcot.

Two weeks.

Classroom parties, peanut allergies, and homemade cookies

Having a child with an allergy to peanuts and tree nuts is not easy. Every trip to the store is full of label reading and "nope, she can't eat this either." Going out to eat involves informing the wait staff and restaurant manager that they need to insure there's no cross-contamination with products that are made with or contain peaunuts/tree nuts (and sesame...let's not forget sesame).

For the most part, people are very accommodating ... the last time we went to eat with my mother-in-law, our waitress went out of her way to be awesome and made sure everything was "risk free." But every now and then you run in to people who act like it's "no big deal" if there's a little bit of risk that Olivia might "accidentally" consume something made with (or near) peanut products.

Case in point: back in December I blogged about the brainless irresponsible parents who chose to ignore the "peanut allergy" warnings for classroom "holiday party" and sent in foods made with peanut butter, peanuts, and various other tree nuts. I was furious after that party - how hard is it to just NOT cook something that contains peanuts? How difficult is it to take the health and safety of all the kids into consideration?

Sometimes I really want to just smack people upside the head and scream "YES! This is a serious peanut allergy. NO she cannot eat anything that is made with peanuts or tree nuts, nor can she eat anything that is PROCESSED in a plant that processes food made with peanuts or tree nuts." There is no gray area here - I have instituted a ban on these products. Hell, I try to not eat peanut butter if Liv is home, just because I don't want her to come in contact with it. (Yeah. I'm a bit overprotective. The French would hate me).

I'm trying to protect my daughter and meanwhile these other parents are serving peanut butter cookies to the classroom without pausing to think about how potentially dangerous that could be. This is not OK with me.

Fast forward to today. The classroom mom for Liv's second grade class called me and asked me to bring in the treat for the classroom Valentine's Day party. She said that she cannot imagine what it's like to have to deal with this kind of allergy, and she wants to make sure Olivia can eat the very same treats as the rest of the class. She didn't want to single her out or make her feel "left out" of the fun.

I thanked her for the concern and told her how much I truly appreciated it. And, I agreed to bake homemade sugar cookies - from scratch - that are peanut free and soy free (there's a soy allergy in the class too). Beyond thanking her over and over and over again, I really wanted to give her a gold star for caring this much. It means so much to me that another parent would be so concerned about my daughter's health and well-being.

It's all about using your brain, kids.

While it can be challenging, dealing with a food allergy doesn't have to be scary - it's about being smart and understanding how serious it really is. And when it comes to peanuts and tree nuts for Olivia ... "no" really does mean "never."

Oh wells and what ifs

So here we are...second day of February. Funny, it feels a lot like the last day of January to me. And if we're being honest, it feels a lot like December. And November. Same stuff, different month. 

 

No, I'm not TRYING to be cynical. I'm actually happy right now .. it's just that so far this year isn't much different than the end of 2011. I'm still looking for the "right" job ... and no, I'm not willing to take "any old job" just because it's a job.

If I was willing to do that, I would have actually turned in that application last week after the most bizarre interview ever. As it was, the minute I walked OUT of the interview I called my husband and said "no freaking way will I EVER work there...I worked for crazy once, not doing it again." The paper application promptly went in the garbage can and was soon covered by coffee grounds and raw chicken pieces. Mmmmm.

I know what I want to do - it's just a matter of finding the right place where I can be successful. I also know what I won't do. I won't work where I won't be happy. I want to be able to say "I'm happy" every day. It might seem like a lofty expectation, but at this point in my life, it's what I'm demanding for myself. 

I've had enough "oh wells" in the past six months to last a lifetime. That just means I've taken chances and been disappointed. Which is better than never taking a risk if you ask me. Why spend your life thinking "what if." It's better to take that leap and if you don't stick your landing, get up, dust yourself off, and say "oh well, maybe next time."  

Words of Wisdom - Leaving the past behind you

Yes. 

There are people who used to be in my life and this applies to them. 

Unequivocally.

Wordless Wednesday - 21 days

21 days 'til I'm back in my happy place.

29 days 23 posts

Two days. That's all we have left in January (if you don't count today, which I'm not). And since I started this month challenging the writer in me to WRITE EVERY SINGLE DAY, I have to say I'm mildly pleased with the outcome. I've written 23 blog posts this month so far - which if we're being "technical" isn't one blog post per day...but whatever.

I was writing.
A lot.
And darn it all...it felt good.

This personal challenge was exactly what I needed to get 'back on track' and reignite my passion for words. Sure, I write a lot every day ... but 140 character tweets aren't the same as blog posts. And that's OK with me. Sometimes fitting in what I want to say in 140 characters is more challenging than writing a 400 word blog post.

And so here we are...almost to February.

Yes, professionally I'm still in the same place I was when January started - looking for the "right" job - but I have to believe that it's out there waiting for me. I have to keep believing that last year happened for a reason and that 2012 is MY year and that good things are going to happen very soon.

I have to believe this because if I stop then it means I stop believing in my dreams. And I refuse to allow that to happen.

So I'm going to keep doing what I'm doing.
I'll be challenging myself again in February with more NaBloPoMo.
For me, it's all about the writing.

Yep. My name is Traci. And I'm a writer.

Wordless Wednesday - Epcot

29 days....and counting.

[insert loud sigh here]

Yeah. This blog post has no title.
Apparently I wasn't feeling very creative tonight.
(insert laugh track here)

Ever have one of "those" days that just seems to keep on going and going, just like that annoying pink bunny? Yeah, that's my week so far. And it's ONLY Tuesday.

At this point I'd like to just eat an entire pint of Ben & Jerry's "Chubby Hubby" and watch trashy reality TV for hours. While wrapped up in a Snuggie. Surrounded by past issues of US Weekly. Then, just maybe, my week would seem better.

There isn't just one thing that has made the week craptastic so far.

It's a lot of little things.Things I am not going to elaborate on, but all these little annoyances just built up and then one more thing happened tonight, and at about 7 p.m. I was sitting at my computer crying, talking to a friend via direct message on Twitter.

Seriously.
Crying.
What the hell.

It isn't like it was the end of the world.
And...I do have PMS so just about anything makes me cry this week.

But you know where there's just ONE THING you really, really want (cue the Spice Girls!) and then you don't get it? Yeah. Tonight was a lot like that. There was just one thing I hoped for (no,this time it isn't about a job) and it didn't happen. And yeah, I'm pretty bummed out about it.

You know what though? I'm in damn good company ... there's a whole LIST of people who are pretty bummed out right now for the same reason that I'm bummed out. And well, crap happens and sometimes there's no rhyme or reason. It just happens. I'll just pick myself up. Dust myself off. And move on.

Right after I finish watching "Kourtney and Kim Krochet in Kazakhstan."

Happy Birthday Emma

My sweet Emma,

It seems impossible to me that you are five years old today. My baby, my sweet peanut Emma-nem is FIVE. I swear it was just yesterday when you were this small:

You were our sweet surprise - your daddy and I knew we wanted to add to our family but when I found out you were on the way it was quite the surprise. To this day, it's the best shock I have ever had. You are one of a kind, my sweet princess.

You are funny. Funnier than any other five year old I know. We call you our family comedian. Every day you make me laugh with something you do or say. You're our 'tiny dancer' too. Last year you decided you wanted to be a ballerina and each week at dance class I marvel at how you just waltz into the classroom on your own with a little wave and you dance your heart out. I've noticed that you practice your tap dance at random times during the day. It's very cute and we can't wait to see you on stage in May!

You're also super smart. And independent. During the last six months you and I have spent every day together and that has been so amazing for me. I have loved watching you discover new things and learn new things ... like your ABCs and how to count and how to write your name and how to find "your" game pages online - without any help from me!

And when you say things like, "Mommy when are you going to get a job so I can go back to school?"....well that just makes me smile. Because I know you miss your preschool classmates and I want you to go back very soon. [I also love that you told Daddy that you all needed to get me a new job for my birthday!]

Simply put, you are my sunshine Emma. You made our family complete five years ago and I love you more than you'll ever know.