Wednesday, December 18, 2013

2013 Family Photos

Much to Andres's chagrin, I have decided to make yearly family photos a "thing."  You can imagine what this does to the man who needed reminders to smile during pictures at our wedding.  Not to mention what it did to me when I read that when planning outfits every color should appear at least twice.  I wish I'd never read that.  After tearing apart our closets I discovered that none of the three Frowow's wear common colors.  So, I had to go to Kohl's to buy an orange infinity scarf.  I had to.  In the end, I decided on this:
 See how all the colors show up at least twice?  Nice job, Heather, you say.  Thanks! :)  However, in typical Andres fashion he did not want to wear the blue gingham shirt.  He wanted to wear an orange shirt.  That may not sound like a big deal, but it was.  See, if the blue shirt vanished, where would that leave Max's blue puffer vest?  ALL ALONE, THAT'S WHERE!  The fun, peaceful afternoon I had envisioned collapsed around me as Andres put on an orange shirt and then insisted that Max not wear the puffer vest because it was the same outfit he had worn to the pumpkin patch.  Eventually, we settled on having Max wear an orange checkered shirt (which I LOVE) but our color scheme went from orange and blue to just orange, which I wasn't thrilled about.  Yet, as with all drama, in the end it didn't even matter because look at these amazing photos:

 How adorable are we in all our orange?  And how amazingly attractive is this guy:
 Ahhh!  I can't even take it!  Our photos were taken by the amazing Bart Copeland.  You should get your family photos taken by Bart Copeland too.  Max was running all over the place during the entire shoot and I was positive that we did not get a single good photo.  Every single photo is freaking amazing.  I have no idea how that happened.  Bart is great!  And not only is he an amazing photographer, he's also a 4th grade teacher and  just so happens to be the person who was my long term sub when I was on maternity leave.

So, here is the awkward conclusion of this blog post:  Bart Copeland Photography <~~click it.

Monday, December 16, 2013

Favorite Things Party

Last Thursday my friend Heather hosted a favorite things party.  For those of you unfamiliar with the concept, you buy 5 of one of your favorite things.  They are usually all the same item, but they don't have to be.  Most hosts typically set a price limit.  Ours was $5-7, which I felt was perfect.  Once you arrive at the party, you take 5 pieces of paper, write your name on each of them, and place them in a hat.  Then, everyone draws five names (making sure that there are no doubles and that you don't draw your own name) and then you receive the favorite things of those people.  Understand?  

It was so much fun!  Why?  Because...

First of all, Heather just bought the cutest townhouse I have ever seen.  I rode with my friend Melissa and as soon as we pulled into her neighborhood and saw all the colorful houses, I said, "I hope Heather has a red one!"  She had a red one!  And not only did she have a red house, her upstairs loft has a cupboard under the stairs.  Which is where I will be sleeping should I ever spend the night at her house, which could happen, because....

Second of all, Heather made delicious signature drink with bourbon.  
That's not juice.--Stephanie, with a tone of warning
I know.--Heather Frowow, pouring herself a generous third cup

Third of all, there was a potato salad with bacon on top.  Plus also, my friend Laura made amazing egg rolls.  I think I was a little too verbally enthusiastic about the food at the party and may have embarrassed myself, oink oink.  BUT, my breakfasts, lunches, and most dinners end up looking like this:
And I end up throwing a few crackers in my mouth while I clean the mess and call it nutrition. So, the fact that there was food and I would actually get to eat it was super exciting.

Fourth of all, it was fun because of the actual favorite things.  It was so much fun to see what other people liked and who doesn't like receiving presents?  My friend Crista was the perfect "Oprah" for the event:
You get a book, and you get a book, and YOU get a book!  Plus also, Crista's favorite thing was actually a book!  I drew her name, so I got to go home with a copy of Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers.  People, I started it yesterday and am already on page 167.  It is so good.  Read it.  I also got a Dunkin Donuts gift card from Laura, Twizzlers and lotion from Heather, lip gloss from Christine, and a necklace from Melissa.  The necklace is from a super cute, affordable online boutique called Urban Peach.  How did I not know about it until now, I have no clue.

Fifth of all, of course the whole reason to have a favorite things party is to be with friends!  



Thursday, December 5, 2013

Bachelor Contestants Announced!

Did you see it, did you see it?  My friend, Sarah, messaged me yesterday with the link to the Bachelor contestants and their bios.  Go here to see the primary source.  For my personal opinion and predictions, continue reading...

1.  Alexis
I like her.  I like that she wants to spread the love of Jesus and the message of the Catholic church.  I hope she doesn't embarrass it, but she probably will because don't we all?

2.  Amy J
She is a massage therapist.  I am predicting a super awkward touchy-feely first conversation at the initial cocktail party.










I hope I'm wrong.  Please no.

3.   Ashley
She lists her favorite author as Dr. Seuss.  (Along with others).  To me, this is code for "I don't really read" so she gets minus 5 points.  However, she goes on to mention pumpkin spice lattes which gives her plus 5 points.  So what I'm saying is my rating for Ashley is zero.

4.   Chelsie, Christine, and Christy
This trio, who I will call "Chelstinesty", are all the same person.  They are simply disguised and photoshopped in different ways.  So whoever is playing Chelstinesty has a numeric advantage and thus a pretty decent shot at Juan Pablo.

5.   Clare
I was initially attracted to the way she spells her name.  However, her answers are grammatically sloppy in a way this here blog never is.  Por ejemplo, when Clare is asked about the best trip she's ever been on, she replies: 
I have never taken a vacation. I've always worked my buns off and never made time.  Plus, I was never in a relationship that I could go on a vacation with.
Hi, I'm Clare, and this is my boyfriend, Relationship.  We are going on a vacation together.  Where would you like to go, Relationship?

6.  Kelly
Kelly lists her occupation as "dog lover."  I'm confused.  That's all.

7.  Nikki
"Is drunk a type of dancing?" asks Nikki, earnestly. 
The defense rests.

That's really all I have.  The rest of the bios were pretty standard and I'm super curious about who is going to be the Tierra of the season.  No one really stands out quite yet.  I can't wait for the season to start and to read all the recaps and tweets.  The best tweeter (twitter-er?) is Jennifer Weiner and the best recaps, in my opinion, are from  this blog.  She is the friend of Shay Shull.  Shay Shull, for those of you not Bachelor obsessed, is Sean Lowe's sister.  So I consider her recaps super legit and hilarious.  Just a few weeks more until:
















Swoon.

Tuesday, December 3, 2013

My Top Five Oils!

On November 27 it arrived--my Young Living Starter Kit!  I was so excited that I opened it right away and began researching the various uses of the oils and taking notes on each one. Obviously, I am by no means an expert or even all that knowledgeable...I've only been using the oils less than a week!  But I can already say that I love them and they are one of my favorite things.  Here is what I'm loving:
1.  You know when you feel a cold coming on and it sucks because you know it's coming, but aside from eating well, rest, and vitamins there is nothing to do but pray it passes over you quickly?  I love having Essential Oils to use as another form of arsenal.  
2.  It makes our house smell and feel more homey.  
3.  (Warning:  this one is silly, but true).  Using them makes me feel like Hermione Granger.  I'm serious.  They are so fun.  It feels like something out of the wizarding world, like a rare potion.  I don't go around applying them to my family while speaking with a British accent and pretending I'm wearing a Gryffindor robe and wielding a wand, but it sort of feels like that and it's fun.
But, moving on from my weird imaginings, here are my five favorite oils and the results I've seen with them.  Super big disclaimer:  I've only been using the oils for 1 week and I'm not NAWT, NAWT a doctor, or an herbalist, or an aromatherapist, or a nurse, or a doula, or a midwife, or a receptionist at a medical facility.  I'm just a mom with a blog.  So, don't go taking this as Bible truth, super duper medical advice.  K?  k.
ONE
My first favorite is the Thieves blend.  Thieves is a blend of rosemary, eucalyptus, clove, cinnamon, and lemon oils.  The blend comes from a legend of four French thieves who covered themselves in the aromatics listed above prior to robbing plague victims.  Thieves provides immune protection and eliminates bacteria.  I mix 1 or 2 drops with a small amount of coconut oil to the bottoms of our feet at bedtime.  I also diffuse it in the house on occasion to purify the air.  It's hard to prove a negative--Max and I had no symptoms to start with, so I can't say it's "cured" something for us, but Andres was beginning to get a cold.  When the oils arrived, I immediately started applying Thieves to his feet and within a day or two he felt fine.  Bonus: Thieves smells AMAZING!
TWO

Lavender comes in at second place.  I've probably used lavender the most. Lavender oil is an antiseptic and can be used to disinfect scrapes, cuts, and bites.  It also aids in sleep.  I have tried using this on very dry, chapped skin around Max's mouth.  However, this is one area where I haven't seen the results I hoped.  Max gets really bad chapped skin around his mouth every winter and as soon as it starts to heal, it gets further irritated by liquids (his drinks and his drool) or by food.  It's a vicious cycle.  I would say that the lavender works when coupled with LOTS of coconut oil, but the lavender hasn't "healed" his skin...it still gets red and raw as soon as he eats or drinks.  Sigh.  BUT, here is a success story:  I switched to Toms of Maine deodorant about a week ago and developed an allergic reaction to something in the product.  It was gross.  I couldn't even apply a different deodorant because it needed to heal.  I used coconut oil and lavender and it healed in about 4 days, when combined with this:
THREE
Young Living's Purification blend.  Purification neutralizes odors, repels insects, and helps heal dry skin.  Did you get that first use?  Neutralizes odors.  See where I'm going?  Because of the rash I didn't wear deodorant for almost a week.  Y'all.  It could have been a nasty, disgusting, stinky time in my life, but it wasn't.  I mixed about 1 drop of lavender and 2 drops of purification in coconut oil in lieu of deodorant and was fine all day--my rash began to heal and the stink factor was not even close to what it could have been.  Would I use this combination instead of deodorant every day?  No.  Was there a slight stink factor by the time 5:00 came around?  Yes.  But it could have and would have been  BAD, ya'll.  I also use some purification on Max's mouth and it seems to help reduce the redness even faster, when combined with lavender.
FOUR
Peppermint oil can be used for headaches, sore muscles, to boost your mood, and it aids in digestion.  It can also help improve respiratory function and can help fevers.  I've only used peppermint oil once to help with a headache and it worked like a charm!  I applied 1 drop combined with coconut oil to the base of my neck, forehead, and temples.  It feels very cooling and has a strong "icy hot" sensation when applied.
FIVE
Lemon oil promotes a healthy immune system, it uplifts and energizes the body and mind, and can be rubbed on the throat and glands for a cough and sore throat.  While we were out of town for Thanksgiving I began to get a scratchy throat.  My mom had been coughing and was getting over a cold and I didn't want to head in the same direction.  After just 2 days of applying lemon oil to my throat, the scratchiness was gone and has not returned.

There you have it!  My 5 favorite oils (thus far!) and how we've used them.  I signed up as a distributor of Young Living Oils in order to receive their starter kit.  It is far and away the best deal out there and you are under no obligation to the company and do not receive any emails from them, etc.  You just get good deals!  
Please do not read what I am going to say as a sales pitch or gimmick:  I want you to get the best deal too, so consider signing up as a distributor. You get a kit of 10 oils, plus the diffuser, and some sample oils for $150.  The diffuser alone is $98 retail price.  We use our diffuser every day!  
SO, my point is:  if signing up as a distributor is something you want to do, email me at teamfrowow {at} gmail dot com.  I can send you a link to sign up and that way we'll both be winners!

To review:
Essential Oils = Hermione Granger + Yummy Smells + Stay healthy + You can sorta not wear deodorant if that's your thang + Bye bye headaches = AWESOME!

Monday, December 2, 2013

Happy Halloween!

Now that Thanksgiving has come and gone, and we've entered the season of Advent, let's talk Halloween.  K?  Well, for starters, in our old neighborhood I was one of the few people who decorated their front steps with fall decor.  Pretty little pumpkins and a pot of mums that lasted 4 days before I killed it.  Enter the new neighborhood:



Frankensteins.  Spiders.  Giant inflatables.  A dead freaking body.  Are you kidding me? Team Frowow's decor sucked big and I even sprang for the white pumpkin this year. Whatever. Your house may be better, but our kid is cuter:
Oh my heart!  Isn't that the cutest little crocodile you ever did see?  Max was so happy and excited for Halloween.  Our neighborhood put on a little parade for the kids and then it was time for trick or treating.  Once Max realized all you have to do is ring a doorbell and someone puts candy in your bag, he was all over it!  He signed "more" after each house and refused to let go of his treat bag all night.



We stayed out for a little over an hour and then came home to look over the stash.


Max enjoyed his first kit-kat bar, however in our official analysis, Mama and Papi Frowow don't believe we Max got enough candy to sustain our his sweet tooth.  Next year our goal is to pick up the pace and visit more houses.  ;)  
It was a great Halloween and Max was at such a fun age this year at 21 months.  I'm excited for future years, as I'm sure it will just get more and more fun!