http://thedeliberatemom.blogspot.com/2012/02/postcard-5.html 
 

Obviously.

It’s a well known fact that I would drop Shawn in a heartbeat if Chuck Norris said:

“Hey Kim, there’s an open spot on my beard. It has your name on it.”

Don't question our awesomeness or my photoshop skills. We will kill you for a cookie.

I love the shit out of that man.

Want to know how the obsession came about?

You’ll just have to head on over to Alison’s blog Mama Wants This to find out.

I know that you’re dying to know.

http://thedeliberatemom.blogspot.com/2012/02/snowflakes.html

http://thedeliberatemom.blogspot.com/2012/02/giving-boot-to-you-can-do-it.html

“Are you ready?” Shawn asked when the car came to a halt in the parking lot.

I looked down at my hands that had a firm hold on the forms I procrastinated to fill then gave Shawn a nod.

“I don’t want to go in there!” Chunky shouted from the backseat.

“But it’ll be so much fun,” Shawn reassured him.

He huffed as his feet hit the wet pavement and Shawn grabbed his hand tightly.

I just stood there watching them walk to the big blue doors that held a new world for Chunky.

My boy.

My baby.

My little shadow.

Is growing up.

You can read more at All Work And No Play Makes Mommy Go Something Something

• A luxury dog bed – To provide a plush home for your pet

• Tasty bags of Purina Dog Chow – Provides a complete, healthy meal in every serving for a fun and energetic Family Day

• Dog-inspired picture frame – To display your Family Day memories

To enter the contest simply visit Losing it and share why dogs make the perfect addition to the family. 

You must sign-in to enter so we know how to get in touch with you.  Click here to join.

The gray on his chin makes him the "George Clooney" of dogs

He gets a lot of flack here on this old bloggity blog for things such as eating our linoleum kitchen floor, eating socks, and rolling in dead things like baby birds and dead worms but we love him anyways.

After all, he is our first born.

We got Champ shortly after I injured my back in 2003. I was practically bedridden at the time and Shawn thought that it was a good idea to “buy me some company”. Little did we both know, that having a dog is a lot of work.

But totally worth it.

Champ is more than just a pet to us. He’s part of our family

To read more and to see the contest ($125 Dog Chow Family Prize Pack) head over to All Work And No Play Makes Mommy Go Something Something

If you're familiar with the blogging world, you are probably aware that you can run analytics on your site. I am sad to report that my most popular posting is Antepartum Depression: Stopping The Tears. Last month it received 442 pageviews... that's sad and frightening. The keywords that link to my site most frequently are: "Antepartum Depression". Obviously there are many other women out there who are suffering through the pre-baby blues. I am fortunate. After a few months, my depression passed.

I recently started receiving e-mails through my contact me form... so many women are desperate and looking to me for advice. What can I do? I am not a doctor but I hear you and feel your pain. So today I am going to sum up the information that I've been e-mailing back to the women who have been reaching out to me.

http://thedeliberatemom.blogspot.com/2012/02/im-sad-about-this-posting.html

I hope you all had a wonderful love day! Thank you to everyone that entered the giveaways and congratulations to those that won some awesome goodies!

Of course, without the help of some amazing Canadian companies, the Be My Valentine Giveaway Event would be pretty sad so a huge thank you to The Pumpkin Patch, Look Who's Growing, Posterjack, PINK Espresso and Shian Naturals. I would also like to give a shout out to the lovely Theo for covering the shipping costs of the CMO Scentsy giveaway! We truly appreciate your support and generosity! MWAH!

WINNERS:

The Pumpkin Patch:

#10 Suelyn Liked The Pumpkin Patch on Facebook

#139 Carrie Liked the blog post

Look Who's Growing:

#24 @mommyto5boys followed @LookWhosGrowing on Twitter

Posterjack:

#101 Laura P Tweeted about the giveaway

PINK Espresso:

#8 Lisa Bbl Liked the blog post

#65 Patty O Liked PINK Espresso on Facebook

#44 Sue S Liked the blog post

#112 Kristen S Blog about it

# 96 @xocanadianangel followed @PinkEspressoLTD on Twitter

Shian Naturals:

#151 @RebTheCatSitter tweeted about the giveaway

CMO (Scentsy):

#290 Louise G followed @CndMoms on Twitter

Congratulations all! Enjoy your gifts!

the intention that I had set with the full moon was to  guest on more internet radio shows, which is very fun for me.  I did have my eye on a twitter connection.  I like her energy and she has a connection to the Mother Earth Goddess also.  the energy never felt right for me to contact her.  Until the 13th.  she had a post on her twitter account that she was looking for guests for her radio show. I checked out her show and her message and I liked the energy of it all. a lot.

I also liked her approach.  you send her an e-mail she checks you out first to see if you are a fit with her vision.   I love that.  that tells me she is serious about what messages she is sending out in the world.   She also has her  own station, called Awakened Radio, which is a dream come true for her.  the focus being on empowerment, especially of women. this fits very well with my energy.

She checked me out and not only offered me some guest spots but offered me an opportunity to host my own show.  wow, the Universe  really delivered on that one.  I pondered and considered and ignored the fears and eeek energy and took the leap of faith and said yes to the opportunity.

I am hosting an internet radio show on the Awakened Radio station on Monday evenings at 8pm mountain time.  7 pm Pacific time, 9 pm Central time, 10 pm Eastern time. it is called Magical Mondays with the Psychic Cowgirl.  it is a call in show, you can call in and ask questions.  there is also a forum and a chat room.  the chat room has a lot of great interaction, comments and conversations.

here is a link to my page on the shows website:  Magical Mondays with the Psychic Cowgirl

link to the forum: Magical Mondays with the Psychic Cowgirl Forum

link to the chat: chat room

join in through skype by adding AwakenedRadio to your contact list.

to call in:  334-649-7204

this is a very exciting adventure that I get to share with all of you. yay!!!!

hope to chat with you on Monday evening.  I may or may not be in my pajamas. that is the great part of radio.  :)

update:  the last show had 16 000 listeners. wahoo!! 

you can download the shows on Itunes.  in the store type in Awakened Radio Psychic Cowgirl and you will find it. 

hugs

Shannon

I watched as his excited little legs carried him swiftly out the back door and clumsily across the winter landscape. 

His laughter animated the air.

And these smiles filled my heart with so much love.

You can read more at All Work And No Play Makes Mommy Go Something Something

No matter how much your situation has worn you down, hope will always be that gentle whisper telling you things will get better.

And they will.

Believe in that.

Last year, undeniably the worst one of my life, I clung to hope with everything I had. When it came to an end, I wanted something to remind me of how important it was to my survival.  One day, I typed "hope jewelry" in an Esty search and I found more than beautiful jewelry.

I found an amazing store and woman who is dedicated to spreading hope to those fighting mental illnesses and cancer. 2 illnesses that have impacted her and her families lives.

Everyone meet Nathalie and her store:

Arcana Dea Design

In the fall of 2010, Nathalie's father was diagnosed with stage 4 metastatic colon cancer.  Her father's strong spirit fights extremely hard each day to beat this monster and this month he will be undergoing another round of chemotherapy after 2 more tumors were found in his liver. 

"His unwavering positive outlook, his steadfast goal of becoming cancer-free, and his ongoing strength and determination to heal continue to be an inspiration and a source of hope to all of us."

And in March of 2011, Nathalie lost an amazing part of her family to suicide.

"My brother-in-law was a wonderful man with a great many talents: an accomplished photographer and world traveller, a Royal Conservatory certified pianist, a wood carver capable of taking the simplest piece of wood and turning it into a beautiful piece of art, and a well-respected expert in the technical field in which he worked. He will be forever missed by all who knew him"

 Because of these 2 men, Nathalie came up with the Hope Collection as a dedication to them.

And as a dedication to all of the people who fight cancer and mental illness.

Twenty percent of the proceeds from sales of all items will be donated to two charities: The Canadian Cancer Society and the Royal Ottawa Foundation for Mental Health. Ten  percent of each sale will go to each charity

You can read more at All Work And No Play Makes Mommy Go Something Something

"The plant is growing up to the wall!" bellowed my four year old

"Mmm hmm," I replied, as I groggily poured myself a cup of coffee.

It's another typical morning in our house. The day started with a 6:40 wake-up call from my six-month-old baby. I fed her and before I could slip her sleepily back into her crib, my four-year-old burst into the bedroom to greet both of us.

My day has begun.

We walk downstairs together. I step over my sleepy dog, Maverick, who has made himself a cozy spot on the landing of the staircase. Every time I make this maneuver, I envision losing my footing, falling and landing on him before sliding down the stairs....

...because putting on Chunky's boots are a bitch.

There are a lot of  difficult things that other parents have warned me about like how it's difficult to get your child to eat vegetables, or how it's difficult to brush their teeth, or how it's difficult to get them to take  nap.

But no one, NO ONE warned me about how difficult it is to put friggen boots on a kid.

It's like putting boots on a limp noodle.

Then once their foot passes to the ankle part of their boot, they curl their toes and stiffen their feet.

What the hell?

I've learned a few things about putting on boots, and because I am not like those "other" parents who didn't warn me about boots, I'm going to share my helpful tips with you.

#1. Show the boot who's the boss.

#2. Beg child to help you put the boot on.

 #3. Lay the child down on the floor. Proceed to shove the boot on. Remember: Kids are resilient so put your weight into it.

To read more of this post and to link up your own Secret Mommyhood Confession please head over to All Work And No Play Makes Mommy Go Something Something

http://thedeliberatemom.blogspot.com/2012/02/this-moment_10.html

I wanted to puke.

For the past couple of months I have been exercising every day and eating healthy. I want to be healthy... or so I thought.

http://thedeliberatemom.blogspot.com/2012/02/shes-watching-me.html