Type One to Type None

This is my daughter Kaylin.  She is participating in JDRF One Walk™ to raise money that will help improve the lives of millions of people like her living with type 1 diabetes (T1D). T1D is an autoimmune disease in which a person’s pancreas stops producing insulin—a hormone essential to turning food into energy. It strikes both children and adults and is unrelated to diet and lifestyle. With T1D there are no days off, and there is no cure – yet. Your support of JDRF can help change that.

By donating to JDRF One Walk today, you can help fund research that impacts the lives of the millions of children, adults, and families challenged by T1D every day. Together, we can create a world without T1D. Thank you.

Here's a link to her JDRF One Walk Donation Page: http://www2.jdrf.org/site/TR?fr_id=6087&pg=personal&px=10794709

I'm a T1D Mom

One of the biggest changes in our lives during my blogging hiatus is that Kaylicious was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes or T1D last year on her first day of kindergarten. We've had a lot of learning and adjusting to do, but I'm happy to say that despite having to check her blood sugar 4-10 times per day and inject insulin 5 times a day, my little girl is healthy and thriving!

T1D Moms have the Sweetest Kids

For those of you who are not familiar with Type 1 Diabetes, Riva Greenberg Diabetes advocate, author, speaker and coach gives a very accurate description of day to day life with T1D here: Type 1 Diabetes Finally Explained.

August 26, 2013 -- Kaylicious's 1st Day of Kindergarten, 1st Ambulance Ride & The Day We Found Out She Has T1D

Becoming a T1D mom, was and is one of the hardest things I have ever experienced. No mom ever wants to see her child suffer.  Knowing that there is no cure for your child's chronic, life-threatening disease can be really overwhelming at times, explaining that and helping your five year old understand and cope with her diagnosis is even harder.  To her credit, Kaylicious has been an amazing trooper through all the poking, prodding and diet changes.

Since Kaylicious's T1D Diagnosis, I have actually worked through the five stages of grief:

1. Denial
2. Anger
3. Bargaining
4. Depression
5. Acceptance

I didn't realize this was happening until I hit the Bargaining Stage, where I "what-iffed" myself crazy for a month or so trying to figure out what could have been done differently to avoid having my child get Type 1 Diabetes.  

We've made a few discoveries along the way that have made treating T1D a little more manageable and helped me get to Stage 5 . . . Acceptance.  I'll be sharing some of the T1D tools that have been the most helpful for us in an upcoming post.

Until then, I will leave you with one thought that both gives me hope and makes me grateful. Insulin was discovered less than 100 years ago.  Prior to that, a diagnosis of  Juvenile Diabetes was essentially a death sentence.  Today, Type One Diabetics have a life expectancy similar to the general population. T1D can be difficult to manage, but understanding of the disease, treatment methods and technology have come a long way in a short time and are improving everyday.

 

The Crate's in the Mail

As a homeschooling mama, I'm always looking for exciting, inexpensive, educational ideas for my daughters.  This morning, I saw a link for Tinker Crates by Kiwi Crate on one of the homeschooling groups I'm in on Facebook.  My girls are way into science experiments and building things, so I decided to give it a try!

Tinker Crate inspires kids to explore and learn about science, engineering, and technology—and have fun doing it. Every month, a new crate to help kids develop a tinkering mindset and creative problem solving skills.

I ordered our first Tinker Crate for only $9.95 with free shipping!  Can't wait for it to arrive!  You can get your first crate for $9.95 too, and if you access Tinker or Kiwi Crate from this link, I get a $10 credit toward my next crate too:  Shannon's Kiwi/Tinker Crate Link.

I didn't notice until after I ordered that the suggested age for Tinker Crates is 9-14+, but with my help I'm sure it'll be fine.  Zazu, my five year old, has solved the Rubik's Cube twice now, so maybe she'll be the one helping me and Kaylicious :-)

Kiwi Crate, the company that makes Tinker Crate, also does crates for younger kids, so I may use their MERRYSUB Black Friday Coupon for 60% OFF on Friday and try a Kiwi Crate for ages 4-8 too.

With the holidays coming, I've been looking for alternatives to the never ending piles of plastic toys, my kids seem to accumulate.  If these kits turn out to be as cool as they look, Tinker and Kiwi Crates may be a great holiday gift option!

What kid wouldn't love to get an exciting package of fun in the mail?

I'll be sure to share more, once our first crate arrives!  In the mean time, have you tried Kiwi Crate or Tinker Crate?  What did you think?  What did you little ones think?  

Long Time, No See

Life has been crazy. Lots of big changes and I haven't blogged regularly in way too long. But I'm home now, home-schooling my daughters, Kaylicious, who is 6, and Zazu, who just turned 5 yesterday. And I'm planning to begin blogging regularly again. My kids are a little older and my life is a little different, but more on that later. Right now, I'm just excited to say I'm back!

Long Time, No See!  I've missed you so much!  {{{Hugs}}}

Celtic Tide Creations Hair Clip Give-Away

I love making barrettes and hair clips for my girls. They always turn out cute and that makes me feel really crafty. Plus, it's an inexpensive hobby, I can make bows to match every outfit, and I don't feel terribly pained when my daughters lose them, which they inevitably do.

Here are a few of the barrettes I've made for Zazu and Kaylicious:

As much as I love my own hair bow creations, I know they don't even begin to compare to the hair accessories produced by the amazing talents on Etsy. Some of the most marvelous hairclips I've come across are actually made by a mom who is local to me. Heather of Celtic Tide Creations handcrafts the ultimate in adorable ribbon sculpture barrettes!

 Check out Her Sweet Colorful Hedgehog Ribbon Sculptures Hair Clips.

These Lego Inspired Barrettes Make Me Feel Like Singing 

"Everything is Awesome!"

And Kermit the Frog Here ...  

How could anyone not love Kermie?

It’s hard for me to even begin to pick a favorite Celtic Tide Creation; I pretty much want every single one of them for my little girls. I just can’t help it.  Her hair clips are obnoxiously cute and I’m greedy like that  . . . so greedy in fact, that I almost don’t want to share the giveaway Heather’s having right now with all of you, because I've got my fingers crossed that I’ll be the big winner. But if it isn't me who wins, I sure hope it will be a Counting on Me Fan! 

Celtic Tide Creations Give-Away

Right now, Celtic Tide Creations is having a Spring Give-away. In honor of Spring, and as a way to say "Thank You!" to all the awesome Celtic Tide fans out there, They’re running a new giveaway! The Winner will receive their choice of an animal hair clip or pin (the pins are great attached to boys hats and book bags!). You may even request a new animal design! You can enter everyday until Thursday April 10th.  Here's the link http://tinyurl.com/mkrkfu6.

200 Blunt Words for Divorcing Parents

Today, I came across this advice for divorced parents from Judge Michael Hass, a retired Minnesota Judge, and wanted to share.  I think this advice could extend to all parents and grandparents.  

"Your children have come into this world because of the two of you. Perhaps you two made lousy choices as to whom you decided to be the other parent. If so, that is your problem and your fault. 

"No matter what you think of the other party -- or what your family thinks of the other party -- these children are one-half of each of you. Remember that, because every time you tell your child what an 'idiot' his father is, or what a 'fool' his mother is, or how bad the absent parent is, or what terrible things that person has done, you are telling the child half of him is bad. 

"That is an unforgivable thing to do to a child. That is not love. That is possession. If you do that to your children, you will destroy them as surely as if you had cut them into pieces, because that is what you are doing to their emotions. 

"I sincerely hope that you do not do that to your children. Think more about your children and less about yourselves, and make yours a selfless kind of love, not foolish or selfish, or your children will suffer."

65 Books for Three-Year-Olds

Here's a list of books that are perfect for three-year-olds.  

Three can be a hard age to pick just the right books. Many simple board and picture books start to become just a little bit too babyish, while lots of picture books still have too many words per page to suit the attention span of toddlers and young preschoolers.  Although there are scores of great children's books out there, there are also many that lead parents to believe that their own three your old could have come up with a better story.  The stories on this list are not too long, not too short and better told than the average three-year-old child's tale. The list is in alphabetical order which should make them easier to find in the children's section of most libraries.  

I hope you and your little ones enjoy reading these together!

65 Stories for 3-Year-Olds

1. Monkey Do! by Allan Ahlberg
2. Duck in the Truck by Jez Alborough
3. Babies in the Bayou by Jim Arnosky
4. When I was King by Linda Ashman
5. An Orange in January by Diana Hutts Aston
6. In a Blue Room by Jim Averbeck
7. Be Gentle with the Dog, Dear! by Matthew J. Baek
8. Hickory Dickory Dock by Keith Baker
9. Little House, Little Town by Scott Beck
10. A Visitor for Bear by Bonny Becker
11. And the Train Goes… by William Bee
12. Annie and the Wild Animals by Jan Brett
13. Two Little Trains by Margaret Wise Brown
14. The Dark, Dark Night by M. Christina Butler
15. If You're Happy & You Know It! by Jane Cabrera
16. Holly's Red Boots by Francesca Chessa
17. Sometimes I Like to Curl Up in a Ball by Vicki Churchill
18. Pigs Love Potatoes by Anika Denise
19. Llama Llama Red Pajama by Anna Dewdney
20. Dog's Noisy Day: a Story to Read Aloud by Emma Dodd
21. Horse by Malachy Doyle
22. Feathers for Lunch by Lois Ehlert
23. Knitty Kitty by David Elliott
24. Bark George by Jules Fieffer
25. Beetle Bop by Denise Fleming
26. The Perfect Nest by Catharine Friend
27. Three Billy Goats Gruff by Paul Galdone
28. The Most Perfect Spot by Diane Goode
29. Ginger Bear by Mini Grey
30. Fall Leaves Fall! by Zoe Hall
31. Kitten's First Full Moon by Kevin Henkes
32. A Good Day by Kevin Henkes
33. It's Moving Day! by Pamela M. Hickman
34. Chickens to the Rescue by John Himmelman
35. Angelina Ballerina by Katharine Holabird
36. The Seals on the Bus by Lenny Hort
37. The Doorbell Rang by Pat Hutchins
38. Help!: a Story of Friendship by Holly Keller
39. Pearl's New Skates by Holly Keller
40. Bubble Bath Pirates by Jarrett Krosoczka
41. Green as a Bean by Karla Kuskin
42. Albert the Fix-it Man by Janet Lord
43. Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by Bill Martin
44. The Mighty Street Sweeper by Patrick H. Moore
45. Wake Up Engines by Denise Dowling Mortensen
46. Pillow Pup by Dianne Ochiltree
47. Bobo and the New Neighbor by Gail Page
48. Mouse Mess by Linnea Asplind Riley
49. Looking for a Moose by Phyllis Root
50. Kids Like Us by Carole Lexa Schaefer
51. First the Egg by Laura Vaccaro Seeger
52. Duck on a Bike by David Shannon
53. The Rain Came Down by David Shannon
54. The Stray Dog: from a True Story by Reico Sassa by Marc Simont
55. Gobble Gobble Crash!: a Barnyard Counting Bash by Julie Stiegemeyer
56. The Monster at the End of this Book by Jon Stone
57. Winter Is the Warmest Season by Lauren Stringer
58. Big Smelly Bear by Britta Teckentrup
59. Duck at the Door by Jackie Urbanovic
60. Apple Farmer Annie by Monica Wellington
61. Pigeon Wants a Puppy! by Mo Willems
62. Bear's New Friend by Karma Wilson
63. Every Friday by Dan Yaccarino
64. Who Likes Rain? by Wong Herbert Yee
65. How Do Dinosaurs Eat Their Food? by Jane Yolen

"There are many little ways to enlarge your child's world. Love of books is the best of all." Jacqueline Kennedy

Organic Grapefruit Body Scrub

I made homemade citrus body scrubs to give this Christmas.  This was my first attempt at making my own body scrub, and I love how it turned out.

 

The Recipe:

Organic Grapefruit Body Scrub

Ingredients:

3 cups Organic Turbinado Raw Cane Sugar
3/4 cup Organic Sunflower Oil
2 tbsp Organic Coconut Oil 
2 tbsp Organic Aloe Vera Gel
40 drops Organic Grapefruit Essential Oil*
10 drops Organic Sweet Orange Essential Oil*
*It took more essential oil than I expected to get the desired scent. Next time, I may try a tablespoon or two of grapefruit in lieu of about half of the drops of essential oils

Mountain Rose Herbs is my go to source for organic essential oils.

Directions:

Blend all ingredients thoroughly.  I used a food processor to blend mine.

The Packaging:

5 4-Oz Jars -- The recipe above makes enough to fill all five jars plus little bit left over for you to sample.
5 Avery Print -To-The-Edge Round Labels, Glossy White (22830) 

• These labels are the perfect fit for the jars above.

• I used the Avery Design & Print Online Program to create my labels and absolutely loved how easy it was to get beautiful, professional-looking results!

The End Result:

I couldn't be more pleased with these homemade gifts.  In fact, I wish I had ordered more of the 4 Ounce Eco Jars.  I think these not only make great Christmas presents, but would be great to keep on hand year-round for whenever you need a little thank you gift, hostess gift, etc. 

Home-made Christmas: Baking Soda Clay Ornaments

Just saw these baking soda clay ornaments on Play At Home Mom LLC and can't wait to try them with Zazu and Kaylicious!

We made ALL of our Christmas ornaments last year, and I'm looking forward to doing it again this year.  Making the ornaments for our tree as a family was such a fun way to spend quality time with my little girls, get into the holiday spirit, and save my carefully chosen and collected "fancy" ornaments for years to come when my daughters can tell the difference between blown glass, crystal, fine china, porcelain and toys. It was so much fun and really helped decrease my holiday stress level. I will post photos of our own baking soda ornaments ASAP.

1,028,460 and Counting!

That's more than a million page views!  When I started this blog, on my birthday last year, I would have been excited if a couple thousand people viewed it.  As a matter fact I was.  I was so ecstatic when I realized at the beginning of June 2011, just a few weeks after I began Counting on Me, that 1700+ people had already visited that I could hardly contain myself.  I phoned both my husband and a few close friends to share my amazement that so many people were checking out my simple little blog.  Fast forward a year and multiply that excitement by about a zillion and you'll know how overwhelmingly pleased I am with a more than million pageviews! Thank you all for visiting!  I hope you'll keep coming back!

A million plus pageviews!  Trying to fathom all those visitors, all the times something caught someone's eye and they clicked through to my little blog, all the times that had to happen to add up to be more than a million pageviews, I'm truly amazed!  Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

Happy Mother's Day -- Free Printable

I love this quote from Agatha Christie:

“A mother's love for her child is like nothing else in the world. 

It knows no law, no pity. It dares all things and 

crushes down remorselessly all that stands in its path.” 

Happy Mother's Day to All My Mommy Fans! 

Here's a free printable made by me for you:

Left Click on the Image to View Full Size and Print.

Related Posts:

• I Am Mom Enough (mamahealthnut.blogspot.com)
• 101 Things to Do With Your Toddler (counting-on-me.blogspot.com)

Earth Day 2012

Happy Earth Day! 

 I love infographics and the one below from Recyclebank is perfect for today! 

Share Responsibility for the Planet

Create a network effect on the environment with small changes to your everyday behavior -- Let's take going green viral!

• Fill a Pool: If all Facebook users shortened their showers by 1 minute we'd save enough water to fill 1,123,364 Olympic-sized swimming pools  
• Pin Your Green Idea: If every active Pinterest user pinned one reuse idea per month, there would be 12 million new green ideas on the web
• Power Down: If all Twitter users shut down their computers for one hour, it'd be like taking 9,128 cars off the road for a  year
• Up your Eco-IQ: If you set aside just two minutes a day to watching an environmental video, you'd set aside 12 hours a year to improve your eco-knowledge
• Donate to Illuminate: If every smart phone was recycled at the end of its life, enough energy would be saved to power 199,800 homes for one year.
• Hit the Pavement: If all Nike+ app users ran outside for just one day instead of on a treadmill $442,500 could be saved on electricity bills.  

101 Things to Do With Your Toddler Free Printable

With 656,004 page views to date, my 101 Things to Do With Your Toddler post has been one of my most popular.  I've made it my goal to do everything on the list with my daughters this year.  Little by little, we've been checking them off.  Some of them have been a big hit, and we've done them many times already.

If you'd like to try to do all of these activities with your toddler or preschooler, I've made a free printable checklist to make it easier. Click the link or the chalkboard image below to open and print the printer-friendly checklist.

101 Things to do With Your Toddler Free Printable Checklist!

Click Here to See Blogs Where I Like to Share

No More Sippy Cups

I cannot wait for Kaylicious' and Zazu's new Klean Kanteens to arrive, so I can get rid off all this plastic nonsense.  

One of my Green Goals is to do away with toxic-leaching plastics in our home.  I ordered two Klean Kanteen Sets  for my daughters to replace all these sippy cups.  I know the Klean Kanteens are going to being an environmentally friendly alternative that will make me very happy.  I won't just be happy because they are healthier for my daughters and our planet, but because I hate dealing with all those different plastic cups and their ridiculous mismatched (nothing is universal on these cups) spouts, lids, three-piece straws, etc!!!

Kaylicious chose the Solar Yellow.  Not surprising, since yellow is her favorite color.   Zazu chose the Prevention Purple for herself.  The ones we ordered come with both the sippy lids and the sport bottle caps, so they will grow with the girls.  Our Klean Kanteen Sets shipped yesterday, so hopefully they should be arriving soon!

Klean Kanteen is an awesome green company devoted to doing what's best for their customers' health, their employees and suppliers, and our environment. I love when I find a company from whom I can truly feel good buying.  

Do you have Klean Kanteens at your house? Are you using plastic sippy cups and bottles or greener, healthier alternatives? Are your kids' cups and bottles BPA and phthalate free? Are yours? Leave me a comment telling me what you're using and why.

Related articles

• Klean Kanteen (mamahealthnut.blogspot.com)
• Muffin Tin Monday (counting-on-me.blogspot.com)
• Hungry for Change (mamahealthnut.blogspot.com)

Happy Groundhog Day 2012!

Source: luckymecraftsandkids.blogspot.com

via Shannon on Pinterest

Happy Groundhog Day! Here in Maryland, we've been having a mild winter, so when our favorite weather forcasting rodent, Punxetawny Phil, predicted 6 more weeks of winter, I assured myself that I can definitely handle six more weeks of this.  It was sunny and an atypical 70 degrees here yesterday.  I even wore flip-flops!

To celebrate, the girls and I made these adorable Heart Groundhogs.  I saw them on Pinterest late last night and knew we would be whipping some of these cuties up today. I love how both groundhogs and hearts are incorporated, making it a perfect February craft.

I've been a little under the weather lately, so I was happy to find a simple craft to do with the girls that didn't require me to venture out for supplies.  To make it more uniform and easier to cut out the various hearts needed for this project, I printed the hearts right on the paper and then cut them.  Here's the template I made for myself:

Heart Groundhog Craft Free Printable Template

The template makes two groundhog crafts. You'll only need a few other supplies:

• 1 sheet of white paper 
• 2 sheets of brown paper (Tan, gray, red or pink would work just fine too.)
• scissors -- My little ones are 2 and 3, so I did all the cutting in advance, while they donned their party hats and princess costumes in anticipation of Groundhog Day Craft Festivities. (See photos below).  
• glue sticks
• 4 googly eyes -- In a pinch, you could easily let the kids color the eyes on instead.
• Optional: Tape -- We taped our Groundhog's ears on from the back. Several pipe cleaners in a neutral color -- We used strips of white paper, but if I could have found some pipe cleaners around my house that weren't red and pink, I probably would have let the girls use those for whiskers.  

Here's Princess Zazu showing off her groundhog and her fine fashion sense:

 

Here she is again admiring her royal craftiness:

And here, Kaylicious shows off her groundhog while sporting a Hello Kitty Party Hat!

Happy Groundhog's Day, My Friends!  We're wishing you beautiful weather wherever you are!

Organic Beer & Wine?

I was both intrigued and inspired by Ridge Organics’ post “Is Organic alcohol hangover proof?”  For me the bigger question is why the notion of organic beer and wine never crossed my mind previously?  Regardless of whether organic beer or wine is less likely than its conventional counterpart to leave you with a hangover or the much dreaded wine flu, organic beer and wine are surely healthier for you than those tainted with pesticides, fertilizers and other toxins. 

The Count & I Enjoying Some Locally Brewed Beers

Some Occasions Really Could
Use a Hangover Proof Option!
(or possibly a tad more moderation
than this crazy couple is exhibiting here :-)   

The Count and I are definite beer fans. We love sampling different craft beers, and The Count began brewing his own beer at home last year. I am not sure why I never thought about organic beer before, since I stress about the contamination and impurities in so many other things in our lives on a daily basis. I have not noticed organic beer being sold here locally, but that may just be a complete oversight on my part.  I am definitely going to have to check into it, and The Count is looking into buying organic supplies for his next batch of home-brew.

Have you tried organic beer, wine or liquor?  Do you have any favorites that you would recommend? Have you noticed any less after effects from drinking organic beer, wine or alcohol?

Homemade Christmas Ornaments

Happy New Year!  As we start 2012, I know many of you are taking down and putting away your Christmas decor today or planning to do so in the next week or so.  This year we did all homemade Christmas Ornaments and the "Un-Christmasing" at our house, something I usually dread, was so quick and easy.  Here's what we did:

Our Adventure in Homemade Christmas Tree Trimming

I have a large box full of painstakingly wrapped and stored Christmas ornaments carefully chosen and collected over the last twenty five plus years. I love those ornaments, but since having children, I have found that they bring me more stress and aggravation than joy. Getting them out and placing them perfectly on our tree, only to have my fragile little treasures ripped off the branches and thrown into a bucket of Little People or jammed into Elmo's mailbox is nerve-wracking for me.

Seeing baubles I have saved for years and years carelessly tossed about or crushed by excited two and three year old hands, is not something I wanted to have to deal with this holiday season. I also didn’t want to have to play "Christmas Tree Nazi" guarding and hovering over the tree, putting an ugly play-yard gate around it, only putting my favorite "grown up" ornaments on the upper branches of the tree where curious little hands can't reach and/or never allowing my little ones to help decorate or touch the tree. With hopes of making Christmas decorating simpler, more fun and more of a family affair, The Count and I decided that this year we would forgo our tradition tree trimmings for all home-made ornaments.

Quality Time and Crafty Fun with Our Teacup Humans
In the weeks leading up to Christmas, we made every single ornament that went on our tree. We made salt dough ornaments, some stamped and some painted and glittered, paper chain garland, snowmen ornaments from a craft kit, and hand-print snowmen Christmas balls. I think The Count and I enjoyed making our own ornaments as much as our kids did.

Stress Free Holiday Decorating!
The girls and I decorated the tree with no fuss over being careful with the ornaments or getting them perfectly placed. Kaylicious and Zazu absolutely loved the whole process, and The Count and I were both pleasantly surprised at how pretty our tree looked. It wasn't just "our babies made this pretty." It was truly a good-looking tree!

Beyond the fun we had making all the ornaments and decorating the tree, I loved not worrying about it. Some of our new home-made ornaments got broken over the holiday season, but it was no big deal. The kids danced and ran around the tree more times than I could count, lots of fun, no stress!

The Christmas Cleanup was a Breeze
As a bonus, I was able to with the help of Kaylicious and Zazu take all the ornaments off the tree and pack them away it under ten minutes. I never look forward to having to put my ornaments away after Christmas. Wrapping and packing all those fragile porcelain and glass decorations is so tedious and never any fun. It usually takes me several hours.

A New Homemade Christmas Tradition? I think so!
Our adventure in home-made tree trimmings was such a success that it may be a new family tradition. Who knows when and if that big box of fancy-smancy, fragile Christmas ornaments will grace the branches of our Christmas tree again? I kind of relish the idea of someday having a tree decorated entirely in ornaments made by hand by my sweet little children and maybe even their children and grandchildren one day. What a festive trip down memory lane that would be for our family!