The usual drill:  Link up with me or the fab Adele-wannabe Sara (be sure to only link up your post), grab a button and read, read read!

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1.  Last week I wanted to share my birth story with you all but there were some technical difficulties.

2.  Hopefully this week you all will be able to read about it.

3.  Because I know you want to know the deets.

4.  It was one of the best days of my life.  Well and maybe one of the worst.  Not because of the baby, mind you.  The pain.  Oh the pain.

5.  Donut’s lucky I’ve *almost* forgotten how painful it was.

6.  Let’s just say thank goodness for epidurals.

7.  Makes me reconsider doing this again.

8.  Wait, what?

9.  I’m crazy, I know.

10.  Ok, I won’t keep you any longer.  Go read about the day Donut entered this world over on Jessica’s blog The Spit Up Chronicles.  (Don’t you just love that name?)

That being said, here are my thoughts on high school reunions:

1.  People will tell you that you look exactly the same as you did in high school.  I’m still trying to figure out if this is a good or bad thing.  I’m still skinny?  Good.  I still have frizzy hair?  Bad.

2.  A little interesting and disheartening to see that people act like they’re still in high school.

3.  Fun to catch up on the gossip–who married who, who’s in which profession, who’s still a tool…

4.  I will admit that I had fun catching up with some of the people that I was friends with in high school.  And knowing that they were genuinely interested in how I was.

5.  It’s nice to be remembered.  Even nicer when people remember how to pronounce your name.

6.  Not only was it interesting to see who was there, but it was interesting to see who wasn’t there.  I’d say about 80% of our class was missing.

7.  I had fun talking to people that I wasn’t friends with in high school.  It’s nice that we didn’t have to worry about cliques or labels.

8.  That being said, it was great seeing that some people still find cliques important.  Not.

9.  It was encouraging to know that I made some lifelong friendships in high school.  People I still talk to today.

10.  But the best part of the reunion?  Knowing that high school was O-V-E-R!!

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1.  So guess who’s dealing with sickness again?

2.  Yup, this house.

3.  I had NO idea little children were such germ magnets.

4.  I barely got any sleep last night and poor little Donut didn’t either.

5.  Where are all these germs coming from?  I’m completely baffled.

6.  I’m thinking of investing in some haz-mat suits for us.

7.  Also thinking of never leaving the house again.

8.  Good thing we have the internet, right?  I can get whatever I need with the click of a mouse.

9.  But seriously, this is getting old.  I mean, she’s not around other kids a whole lot since I stay home.  But these germs still find a way to invade.

10.  I’m just hoping for a fast recovery.  Can you send some soup?

Have you dealt with a lot of sickness this season?  How do you stay healthy?

I’m also announcing the winner of Monday’s Sam’s Club giveaway.  Congrats!

Lately it’s gotten worse.  I am optimistic, but for other people.  I can’t seem to do it for myself.

I don’t know why I’m angry.  Or why I hurt so much sometimes.  It’s dumb.  I’m tired of talking about it.  I’m tired of throwing a pity party for myself.  You all aren’t invited because pity parties are lame.

And frankly, I’m pretty tired of my own attitude.  I don’t even want to hang around me.

But I don’t know what to do.  I’m kind of lost right now.

**********

I’m a bundle of contradictions.

I say that I’m lonely but I isolate myself.

I say that I don’t have friends, but I run away from the ones I have.

I say I have nothing to do but I make up excuses to avoid going.

I say I want friends but I don’t reach out.

I say that I’m a friend worth having, but when someone reaches out to me, I tell myself that they’d never want to friend someone like me.

I say that I want to participate, but I hold myself back.

I say that I can do it, but I don’t.

I say that I want to be happy but I don’t work at it.

**********

The irony isn’t lost on me.  I do this to myself.

I keep hiding.  I keep avoiding.

I keep hurting.

I only see what I don’t have, how I’m not included, how I’m alone.

And part of me knows that’s what I choose to see.  Because I could choose to see the good in my life and know how much I’m loved.  It’s just a harder choice for me to make.

So I keep spiraling.

I want off this ride.  I’m sick and dizzy from this roller coaster of emotions.  I wonder if I’m just afraid to be happy?

**********

I don’t know how to get over this.  The only thing I absolutely do know is that I do not want to feel this way.  It isn’t just that I can make up my mind to be happy.  If only it were that easy.

I don’t know what it’s going to take.  But I need it to change.

Being the nerdy accountants that we are, we came armed with a pen, paper and a calculator.  We checked out all the basics that we thought we’d buy and made notes.  Then we went home and compared prices with other retailers.

Much to our surprise, the numbers made sense.  We promptly bought ourselves a membership and I have to say that I’ve been enjoying using it.  It’s so much easier to buy supplies in bulk and not worry about having to run to the store every couple of weeks because we’re out of something again.

Sam’s Club has been great for baby essentials.  Once we switched to formula, we quickly realized how much money we could save buying it at Sam’s.  And time.  Babies go through formula so fast!

And from now until February 29th, when you stock up on any 2 of the following P&G baby essentials, you can receive a $10 Sam’s Club gift card:

• Pampers® Swaddlers® or Pampers Cruisers® Diapers
• Pampers SoftCare™ Scented Baby Wipes
• Similac® Advance® Powder or Similac Sensitive® Powder
• Dreft® Liquid Laundry Detergent

Be sure to register for your card by March 14th, 2012.

Also, I am giving away 2 gift cards worth a total of $25 to one lucky winner!  To enter, simply tell me what your household stocks up on at Sam’s Club.  Be sure to leave your email so I can contact you should you win.  Winner will be announced Friday, February 24, 2012.  Good luck!

Disclosure:  The Sam’s Club Gift Card and information have been provided by Sam’s Club and P&G through MyBlogSpark.  Offer open to U.S. residents.

What’s life teaching you?  Sara and I want to know!  Be sure to link up your post, grab the button and try to visit the other writers.

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1.  If anyone can loan me an extra 10 hours in my day, I’ll pay you.

2.  I have no idea where the time goes.  I don’t nap.  I’ve cut down on my online time.  And yet I still feel so behind.

3.  I’ve been meal planning for weeks, I’ve made a chore chart to keep up with my daily and weekly chores.  And yet, I still feel like I’m not accomplishing what I want to.

4.  I need time to learn my camera, to craft, sew, bake.  To read blogs, call my friends, read a book.  And play with my kid.

5.  I know one major area that’s taking up a ton of time:  cooking.  I resolved to eat healthier once I got pregnant and I haven’t looked back.  But eating healthier means making a lot of foods from scratch.

6.  And people?  Making food from scratch is so.much.work.  I totally understand why it’s easier to serve a meal out of a box.

7.  I spend a lot of time chopping, dicing, and freezing kitchen staples.  Not to mention running to the store every 2 to 3 days for fresh produce.

8.  Seriously if someone could grocery shop for me, it would make my life a lot easier.

9.  It would also be helpful if someone could mop my floors and clean the toilets.  Any volunteers?  Don’t y’all speak up at once…

10.  Yeah I didn’t think so.  Sissies.

Do you need a clone too?  What would you do with your extra time?  Besides sleep?

Happy Friday.  I’m getting takeout.

So here’s Robin today sharing her special heart story.

“You need someone who lights you up,” my mom told me several years ago. At the time I was dating a guy I really liked, but who I knew wasn’t going to be a long-term thing. A few months later – after said boyfriend moved away, thus ending the relationship – I came home from a weekend trip to a friend’s wedding. As soon as she saw me, my mom knew I’d found that someone.

I say “found” because I had actually met Rich many years before (and “hooked up” sounds so much less romantic). I was 17 when I first met him during the first semester of my first year of university. I lived in residence and on the other side of the floor was a girl I’d fairly quickly become good friends with. Her boyfriend at the time was a creative guy, as evidenced by the various types of art adorning her dorm-room walls, but he went to university a province away. These were the days before email, so he sent snail mail instead. In one package was a mixed tape (remember those?) that included a healthy dose of The Cure and, just for kicks, the 1971 hit Would You Like to Buy an ‘O’ from Sesame Street. I figured he seemed like a pretty cool guy.

Part way through our first semester he came out for a visit, and that’s when I first met Rich.

I liked him right away but, as I’ve said many times since, if you had told me then that I’d end up married to him I’d have laughed. And laughed. For one thing, he and my friend were the golden couple, and I would never have pictured them splitting up. (Ah, the naiveté of youth.) But he also wasn’t really my type.

He had shoulder-length blond hair and a sort of “alternative” style. I had just emerged from 11 years of private school and badly needed my eyebrows waxed. He jokes now that he thought I was a little bit geeky, though with his library full of programming books and his love of telling pi jokes on March 14^th he will concede he’s winning the Geek War these days.

In any case, we hung out when he visited (I was impressed that he dove right in – literally – to join us at an aquasize class) and I got to know him a little better when I visited my friend in her hometown during the summer.

And then they broke up.

I didn’t see him again for several years because he was, of course, the evil ex-boyfriend. Then, as people do, they both moved on and when they ran into each other a few years later all was friendly again. So she invited him to her wedding.

I suspect she thought he wouldn’t come, but he did. He drove out with another friend from high school – a girl I had also met – and, oh yeah, they also had a stalker he’d had a fling with along for the ride (but that’s really a story that stands on its own). I had gone with a third friend of theirs from high school who I’d had an on-and-off long distance thing with for a while, until the morning of the wedding when I found out he actually had a girlfriend. So that was the end of that.

When we got to the church, Rich was there with Colleen (who stood up at our wedding). They sat behind my (former) crush and I, and I tried very hard not to laugh inappropriately at Rich’s jokes.

And that’s where this narrative ends. I wish I could tell you what it was that sealed the deal, but I don’t actually know. Something happened that day and we both just knew it. We spent some time together the next day, then each left to go home to our respective cities. That was in June, and by August I had quit my job early to stay with him for a few weeks before leaving on a backpacking trip to Australia and New Zealand. We never actually “dated”. We just were.

He joined me for part of my trip and we spent the month of December travelling up Australia’s east coast. That trip ended with a 30-hour bus ride back to Surfer’s Paradise where we were meeting up with my Aussie friend. I figured if we could survive that, we could survive anything.

And so far we have.

I wanted to answer all the questions, I really did, but I know you’d all be bored to tears if I answered 55 questions.  So, I’m breaking the rules a bit and I’m going to pick 2 questions from each blogger to answer.

So, let’s talk about me, shall we?

From Robin:

#4.  Do you consider yourself a “blogger” or a “writer”?

I would say both.  A few months ago I would’ve said blogger because I don’t think that I’m that great of a writer.  But then I realized I don’t need to be Jane Austen–I just need to have my own voice.  I may never write a book or be famous and I certainly don’t have a way with words.  But writing makes me happy.  And I’ve been told from others that my words have inspired them.  If my words help one person, even if that one person is me, then I’m happy.

#11.  What do you hope to do this year that you’re really excited about?

I hope to be a better cook and rely less on packaged and processed foods in my diet.  I took a cooking class and just loved it.  I want to keep at it.

From Greta:

#3.  If you could start over completely with a brand new Facebook account and ditch the one you have, would you have the same number of friends, fewer friends, or more friends?

Definitely fewer friends.  I admit I added a bunch of people at first out of curiosity, but then I realized a lot of those people aren’t invested in my life and I’m not in their’s either.  Sometimes it feels like a numbers game and I’m often reminded that it’s quality, not quantity.  So now I don’t feel like I have to accept every friend request that comes in.  After all, I want the people who truly care about me (and who I truly care about) to see what’s going on in my life.

#5.  What toy from your childhood do you secretly wish you could still play with?

Ok, I never really had this toy, and I never got over it:  A play kitchen.  I wanted one soooooooo bad and even remember asking Santa repeatedly for one.  All I got were my mom’s old plastic containers and dishes to play with.  Therefore I’ve already told Mr. DIH I want him to build Donut a play kitchen and I have already started stocking it with these fun Melissa and Doug toys.  Don’t laugh–some dreams never die.

From Lindsay:

#3.  What trait do you admire most in others? Why?

I love people who have the ability to talk to anyone and make everyone feel special and included.  I’m often so quiet and it’s not that I don’t want to include everyone, but it’s just hard for me to jump in conversations and start talking.

#10.  What do you do to pamper yourself after a tough day?

Now that I’m not nursing, I like to curl up with a glass of wine and chat it up with my Twitter friends.

From Leighann:

#8.  What fashion DON’Ts did you participate in and STILL secretly love?

I’m going to say that I did not participate in a fashion don’t.  And not because I’m so uber hip and stylish, but because I wear yoga pants and jeans 99.9% of the time.  So maybe I don’t look all trendy and fashionable, but I don’t look like a giant mess either.  Or maybe I do??  Maybe people are secretly laughing and pointing at me in my faded black yoga pants and lopsided ponytail?

#7.  Have you ever had a speeding ticket? Did you try to shamelessly get out of it?

Yes, in college.  And I cried, thinking the cop would take pity on a miserable, yet sweet, college kid.  Nope.

From Sarcasm Goddess:

#2.  Would you rather have your spouse/significant other forget your birthday or buy you a dress that’s three sizes too big?  Show your work.

I’d rather him buy me something that’s too big.  It wouldn’t hurt my feelings at all because I know my husband has NO CLUE how to read women’s clothing sizes.

#1.  What reality show would you most hate to be on?

I’d really hate to be on The Bachelor.  If I were single, that is.  I’m so non-competitive when it comes to guys and I’m definitely not the type to flatter a guy and coo all over him just to get a date.  Not to mention all those women on that show scare me.

Alrighty-roo, now I get to pick 11 questions and tag 11 people.  I could put an end to this blogging chain letter, but frankly, it’s kinda fun.  So, here are the rules and my 11:

• You must post these rules.

• Each person must post 11 things about herself on their blog.

• Answer the questions the “tagger” listed for you in her post, and create 11 new questions for the people you tag to answer.

• Choose 11 people to tag and link to them in the post.

• Let each blogger know that you have tagged them.

1.  If you had to leave the U.S. and move to another country, where would you move to and why?

2.  Are you an adventurous eater?  I.e. do you like trying new foods?

3.  What’s your favorite animal?

4.  What was your first job?

5.  Would you renew your vows complete with another wedding?

6.  What one talent do you wish you had?

7.  Do you let your kids jump on the bed?

8.  What’s your favorite salad dressing?

9.  Do you recycle?

10.  What do you like on your ice cream?

11.  Are you left or right handed?

So I’m tagging:

Jen from Jen Has A Pen

Ali from My Suitcase Full of Tricks

Natalie from From Corporate to Domestic

Bruna from Bees With Honey

Katie from Your Girls and Boys

Lisa from The O’G's

Sara from Life’s Recipe

Jen from Runner Mom

Charity from Our Giggles & Grimaces

Kim from Mom Tried It

Laura from Mommy Miracles

Make me proud, ladies.

If you’ve been around here long enough, you know what to do.  If you’re new to linking up, you can link up or with my fabulous friend Sara.  Please grab the button and visit as many other linker-uppers as you can!

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1.  I’ve been quiet again this week.

2.  Because we’ve been sick.  AGAIN.  We went a whole year without being sick and now twice in a month.

3.  I don’t know how Donut manages to recover so much faster or easier than her dad or me.  I feel like I’ve been knocked off of my feet for days.

4.  Of course I don’t have someone making all my meals, cleaning up after me and carrying me around 24/7.

5.  Moms never get a sick day, do we?

6.  I’ve also had some friendship drama going on over here.

7.  I honestly don’t know what’s more exhausting–physical illness or relationship drama.

8.  Now I admit, I do like drama.  Just not in my personal life.  Drama is what reality TV is for.  It’s amusing to watch and then press the off button and be done with it.

9.  I need a real-life off switch.  Or at least an easy button.

10.  You know how I like to make last minute holiday crafts?

11.  Yeah, I’m making a Valentine’s shirt for Donut.  Like right now.  And I’m going to be mean and make you wait until next week to see it.  Because I’m not quite done.  I haven’t finished stabbing my fingers with the sewing needle yet.  Kidding.

12.  Maybe.

13.  It’s amazing how excited I get for any holiday now that I have a kid.  This is my chance to be all cheesy and have her wear fun outfits that she’ll probably cringe at one day.

14.  Oh well.  If I have to change poopy diapers, I get to pick the outfits, right??