My thoughts on Chagrin Valley products so far

So we've used the nettle shampoo bar sample and herb garden shampoo bar sample. My preference between the 2 was herb garden. My hair felt thicker after using it. I have very fine, thin, dry hair. My husband preferred the nettle shampoo bar. He has thick hair. Both lathered well. The nettle bar lathered just a tiny bit more than the herb garden bar did. For my hair I also needed to follow it with a vinegar rinse which I'll put the directions for at the end of this. Every other day I follow-up with a second wash using the castile & calendula baby soap. This is a regular soap bar made with 100% olive oil. It's great as a conditioning bar for your hair. I would not advise using it every day unless you have extremely dry hair.

You should also know that if you are currently using a store bought shampoo, the shampoo bars are going to take some time to adjust to. Your hair is going to feel very different after washing with a shampoo bar. Don't expect it to feel silky like it does with store shampoos. That silky feeling comes from all the gunk the shampoo is leaving behind on your hair. Read the label on your bottle sometime. If you can even pronounce all the chemicals in there you're doing better than I did. Finally be patient! Give the bar time to work it's magic, remove all the chemical goop from your hair before you make a judgment on it.

I've also been using the whipped shea butter from Chagrin Valley Soaps. One word for it...WOW!!! It is amazing stuff. I used to have horrible, itchy dry skin that drives me mad scratching. I've tried just about every single lotion on store shelves with little to no results. Had finally given up and figured I was just going to have to suffer. One time putting the shea butter on was like magic. I don't itch anymore. My skin is silky smooth.

If you have a chance to try the products from them please do.

Vinegar Rinse recipe courtesy of Chagrin Valley Soap website:

1/2 tablespoon of vinegar to 1 cup of water

After shampooing apply the vinegar rinse.

Now you have a few choices. You may rinse it all out if you want, or leave the rinse on your hair. I don't rinse it out. Leaving the vinegar rinse on your hair helps prevent tangles in long hair. Since the vinegar restores natural pH it also helps prevent an itchy scalp. As your hair is drying you will smell vinegar, but once your hair dries, no smell. I was skeptical at first--but this really works!

Update coming soon...

There are a couple people who are waiting for updates on a few things. I will try to get to them tomorrow after I take the cat to the groomer. Feel a migraine coming on tonight. I'm off to bed before it gets completely out of control.

So tired of the way adoption is portrayed as a marvelous wonder

Normally I would have kept this to myself but today I'm just in a pissy mood so here it goes...

I am so sick & tired of how adoption is portrayed as a marvelous solution for an unplanned pregnancy. Even worse is that d@mn term open adoption. Sorry folks but open adoption is a big game of russian roulette with your's and your child's emotions. There is not one single state in the good ole USA that will actually enforce an open adoption agreement. Know what that means? It means if you place your child, the adoptive parents promise to keep in touch, then decide not to, you are out of luck. Adoptions can be reversed on the basis of fraud if you can prove it. But here's the kicker...lieing to the expectant mom about contact isn't considered fraud. It's considered the adoptive parents' right because once the bio mom signs she has no more connection to her own baby than a stranger walking down the street.

Having lived just that scenario there is no way my daughters will ever be allowed to place a child for adoption while there is still an ounce of life in my body. I love them way too much to sit back and allow them to walk into the hell which comes with living as a birthmom. When are people going to wake up to the reality adoption is not the sunshine & roses choice they think it is. It makes me soooo mad.

I speak out nicely and people brush it aside. Whatever!!! Go on living under your rock. I hope one of your daughters never ever has to walk in the place I'm in now. I certainly hope your daughter doesn't end up the way Cindy or Kate did either. Read about them here: www.remembercindy.com I was in a private group with Cindy and still to this day think of her, miss her and wish her life could have been different. Think those are out of the ordinary stories? Think again. Things like that are more common among birthmothers than adoption promoters would ever want the public to know.

15 years ago today...

We buried my gram. It still hurts even after all this time. As irrational as it is I will always wonder if I could have kept her with us just a little bit longer. She wanted to live to see her first grandchild graduate from high school. I graduated June 11, 1994. She passed July 13, 1994. Sometimes I wish I could go back for just one more day with her. Going up after school to help carry in wood for the stove. Vacuuming the dog hair from the rug under her table because Jaime, her alaskan malamute, was always leaving hair behind. Heading down to the basement to get a jar of gram's homemade sour pickles...yummy! Her homemade tomato soup...never have been able to find anything tasting as good. And darning socks...she never just threw anything away. Was a child from the depression era. She taught me how to darn socks. By the time you threw away a sock it had more stitching than it did original material. I miss her so much. But will never ever regret taking care of her and being with her right up to her very last breath. We all still miss & love you gram. You'll never be forgotten.

My girls are growing up

Yesterday Victoria got her ears pierced. She did so well. I was really proud of her. Also lost another tooth. So she had a visit from the tooth fairy last night. Seems in the blink of an eye they go from little baby you're snuggling to big kid.

My mom has been in the hospital with a broken hip. She was thrown from a horse. She's doing well. They are working on finding a pain med that doesn't make her too drowsy but still takes enough of the pain away. Then she'll be going to a rehab place before coming home. I offered to come stay with her at home for a while, help her but she declined my offer. She doesn't want to feel like a burden to her kids. Stubborn woman stubborn stubborn stubborn!!! She promised she would keep it in mind and let me know if she changes her decision. My Dad seems lost at home without her there. After 31 years being married you get used to the other person being around.

On Sunday Catherine, Victoria and I had ice cream with my IFs. It was cute. They set up a rock selling game then it seemed to move to a contest looking for the biggest white rock. Chuck won. Travis told them there were rocks in their head and a rock fairy. (Thanks Travis LOL) Catherine came home asking Daddy if it was true about rocks in her head. Poor Daddy was lost until I explained it to him.

Today we are heading off to play in the brook after lunch. Girls are excited about it. Sun is out. Hopefully weather continues to cooperate.

Attaching a pic from earlier this summer of Victoria.

Infertility sucks!!!

I saw something this morning that has left me feeling awful. A friend of mine selling her baby things. She has tried so long, so hard to find a surrogate. She and I tried to match a couple times. It didn't work out so we could. Since that time I've remained friends with her. Watched her struggle then hurt. It's just NOT FAIR!!! She's not crazy. She's not mean. She would give you her last dime if she thought you needed it more than she did. Why is it she gives so much and the universe continues to crap on her. It should be her turn by now to get something in return. Infertility sucks!

One of those kinda days...

Yesterday's appt went well with the midwife. She did my pap, took out my IUD, did my STD testing, asked me some questions, gave me some info I let the guys know about, took my bp which was 122/70. She is excited to be a part of a surrogacy. Will be the first surrogacy in the office. She can't wait to meet the guys. Said they sounded like big sweethearts when I was talking about them.

The girls played at Meme & Bampa's (hubby's parents) while I went to my appt. They love going there. It's always a fight getting them to leave. Meme & Bampa have a playground and a doggy so it's child heaven. Helps too that Bampa keeps a candy stash. They know what he's after if he walks to a certain part of the kitchen.

Time for coffee. Have to wake hubby by 7:30 to get ready for his appt with the dr today. Finally!!! It only took 5-6 weeks of waiting to get in to see this dr for his back.

Lots to catch up on...

Saturday we went to my sister's for the 4th of July. Rained most of the day. Didn't end up going to fireworks. On the way home Alexa decided to vomit. So we spent a half hour on the side of the highway catching fountains of vomit with beach towels, cleaning her up with bottles of water and trying to clean out a carseat enough to get her home. Apparently eating gobs of frosting with nothing else in your tummy except liquids is not a good idea. It doesn't settle well. LOL

Yesterday we got to play outside. Had a beautiful sunny day. Came inside to have strawberry shortcake before getting ready for bed. Did you know Cool Whip makes a great hair & skin treatment? Alexa experimented with it last night. Cream cheese does too. She tried that this morning. A tip for any of my readers out there; Nature's Gate Organic baby shampoo does not remove ground in gobs of cream cheese from baby fine hair. In order to get it all out you need to carefully scrub with adult shampoo.

Today we spent another day outside. Played with a parachute since all the neighborhood kids were here, had bubbles to chase, drew pictures on the sidewalk, had a couple atitudes from Victoria when she didn't get to go off by herself with the older kids, and seperated two 6 yr olds who thought they needed to be kissing. All in all it's been an interesting few days.

Mommy withdrawls

Here it is almost 10pm on a Friday night. My older 2 have gone to stay the night with my sister. Mommy withdrawls started less than five minutes after they left. One child for the entire night. What in the world do I do with myself when there is only 1 child? Alexa (pictured) and I played outside, read some books, we put every bear she owns down to nap...at least 4 times LOL. Those bears kept having poop. So we had to change them. You can't let a teddy bear nap with a stinky diapy. Then off to the tubby to play with her new rubber ducky.

With a push from hubby I'm attempting to come out of the dark ages of technology. Got myself a new cellphone today with Verizon. Hubby wanted me to get a Blackberry. Took one look at them, ummm NO thanks. I swear people invent these things just to confuse those of us who are technology challenged. So anyhow, I was fooling around with my new phone while chatting with one of my IFs. Somehow it popped up on the phone's screen that sound was now off. You think I could figure out how to turn it back on??? Yeah right!!! Had to call tech support to walk me through it. I did calculus & trigonometry as independent study courses my senior year of high school yet I can't figure out a dang cellphone without calling tech support. Where is the logic in that?

Tomorrow will be a trip to my sister's house. We're planning a BBQ, fun with water toys then off to see fireworks. Can't wait to see my girls. It's going to be pure torture having to wait until late morning to leave. Hubby is working tonight. He'll have to sleep a few hours in the morning before we go. Over tired, crabby husbands are not a pleasant thing. Especially during a nearly 2 hour car ride. Anyhow the dishwasher is done. Off to put dishes in the cupboard, take a shower and head into dreamland.

Happy 4th of July!!!! Stay safe. Have fun. Catch up with you sometime Sunday.

Rain rain go away

It rained again last night. We had thunderstorms rolling around from 5pm until at least 1am when I went to bed. At this rate my house is going to float away. So far basement has remained free of water. Which is surprising since usually too much rain means a wet basement.

Well I thought all was safe to sit with my coffee, blog, read emails. Boy was I wrong. Catherine came to tell me Alexa was painting on her knee. Painting? How in the world is she painting? The paints are in the top of the hallway closet. There's no way she could have reached them. Into the living room I went to see what was going on. Awww geesh it stinks. She's painting herself with poop from her diaper. I just changed her before I sat down with my coffee. She was clean, playing with her dolls & teddybears. Even after three children it still amazes me the ways they can find to make a mess.

So this post started over an hour ago as a blog about the weather. Ended up about poop. If this is a sign of how my day will progress I vote myself back to bed.