About a year ago we purchased a new bed. It is amazing. I sleep far better on it, then the old one. However, I do seem to wake up with some neck aches. This actually is pretty common. We’ve tried buying new pillows a million times. It seems I never buy the right one or within a few weeks they are all tattered and worn. I want to invest in some GOOD pillows. Hubby has agreed, so I started searching online for some healthy pillows, something that will last, something that will be allergen free. I came across Healthy Dreams Pillows. Here’s a video:

Okay now let me tell you, the more I read about these pillows, the more convinced I was I *needed* them. When I read that most pillows begin growing mold, bacteria and dust mites soon after you start using them, and then problem only gets worse over time. Why? Well because we breathe moisture into our pillows as we sleep. Makes sense right? Well the Healthy Dreams pillows have a Micrenza bio-filter. This makes them to be the first truly germ-free, mold-free, and allergen-free pillow available! The filter is made from the same material as the  N95-rated surgical mask, so you know it truly works! I thought the price of them at first was a little deterrent, however, once I thought about it… $10.00 for a moderate standard pillow at a department store, replaced 5 times (less then 5 years) you have spent $50.00. The Healthy Dreams pillows come with a 10 YEAR warranty. Now the next question you are going to ask, but what if I spend all that money and hate it. First, you won’t, BUT if you do, they give you a 60 days  Unconditional Return Privilege. Okay, honestly the thing that sold me on my new bed was that I could have a 30 days IN HOME trial and they would either fix or replace it. This is so much nicer then laying on it for 5 minutes and deciding if it’s right. So the fact I can try the pillows, just completely sealed the deal for me!! I think I found my winner!!

I scrapped 2 new layouts. These layout where not for the ADSR they were just because. So here they are:

Both of them are linked to my DST Gallery in case you want to see credits or leave a comment there for them. I am having fun getting back in to scrap booking again. It’s so zen-like for me!! Okay I am off to grab some dinner! Have a great night bloggers!

About a month ago I posted to my blog and stated that I was going to have some “mommy topics” from time to time. I think it’s a good thing. I am going to try to do at least one a month! This next topic is probably one of the most serious ones I will put up. I contemplated this for a while. But then I got speaking with a friend and decided YES I NEED to post this… Even if I change just ONE mind, it’s worth it. So the topic… Circumcision!

Recently a friend of ours, his wife, my husband and I had a conversation about circumcision. The friend has three kids, two boys and a girl. We have two kids, one boy and one girl. When I was pregnant with my son I did a TON of research on Circumcision. I found very little to support the fact that it is a HUGE hygiene risk to keep my son intact (uncircumcised). I found little had to do with Religion as it once was a Jewish thing, but not so much anymore. I found MOST people doing it are AMERICANS! Other countries rarely preform the routine. But what really had me thinking was a conversation that we had with our friend about it. He did NOT circumcise his sons. I asked him why. Without ANY embarrassment or hesitation he replied “I am circumcised and when I have a full erection it hurts.” WHAT?!?! I was NOT going to do something to my son that is UN-DOABLE and have him suffer in the future. Of course I asked my friend questions and he answered, every last question. He knew that my son was about to be born and he could change ONE person. My husband and I had talked about it but never really decided anything. Here’s a video from Momversation to watch:

Is Circumcision Wrong?

So having watched that video, does anyone have any thoughts? Truthfully we decided NOT to circumcise. If my son wants to be circumcised (a body altering experience) he can chose to do so later when he’s older. I guess the part about circumcision that really annoys me is the reasons people chose to DO it. Hygiene (myth), because dad is, because most people are (myth), uneducated decisions. The truth is the rate of baby boys being circumcised is FALLING. Here’s a yearly chart. The average in tact rate in 2006 was 43.9%. Since then it was reported by Parents Magazine that it’s closer to 55% now. As for hygiene, I would honestly hope that one could TEACH their child how to bath and clean. If not you probably shouldn’t have children. The risk of STD’s does decrease, however, once again this can be easily solved by talking to your children about STD’s and the risks of unprotected sex. If you can’t do that then again, you probably shouldn’t have children. I can see the whole, look like dad, however, we were not as aware of things back then as we are now. Bottom line for me, Circumcision is an elective surgery. I would never but my newborn through and elective surgery, I wouldn’t circumcise my girl so why should my boy be … and to top that off, that’s the way he’s born and if it wasn’t supposed to be that way, then God wouldn’t have created males with the foreskin.

Please feel free to comment or not, with your thoughts!

I am seriously annoyed as I look at my eBay history. When I win an auction I always pay within 2 hours. I usually pay RIGHT away, but there have been times, I’ve won things and was gone, so I waited till I was home  to get on PayPal and pay. I realize not everyone is like this, and that is fine, however, if I pay SHIP MY ITEM!!! I seem to wait forever for my packages. When they arrive I notice one of two things. Either the seller waited almost a week AFTER I paid to ship or they ship Media Mail. For those of you not aware, Media Mail according to the United States Postal Service is: Media Mail® service is a cost efficient way to mail books, sound recordings, recorded video tapes, printed music, and recorded computer-readable media (such as CDs, DVDs, and diskettes). Media Mail can not contain advertising except for incidental announcements of books. The maximum weight for Media Mail is 70 lbs. Sometimes it’s BOTH! When I order a wall decor, candle, cell phone accessories, pet toys and accessories these are NOT Media Mail. I am down right annoyed. I am annoyed so much that the last 2 “power sellers” that did this to me, I turned them in to the Post Office locally. I am sick of being charged $10 to ship and they use Media Mail (illegally) and it costs them $1.00. Not to mention Media Mail is a low VERY LOW priority on the mail scale. Media Mail can take up to 15 days to deliver!! So now they waited 5-7 days after I pay and are using a 15 day mailing service. All for the convient over charged shipping rate of $10.00. Now I don’t mind when sellers up the shipping $1-$2 to cover the listing fees. I get it. Hell, they can profit $6 on the shipping, and use priority mail flat rate envelopes for less then $4… I wouldn’t even complain!! Profit if you will, but at least use Priority Mail and ship TIMELY!!!

Then there is feedback. Let me tell you how much THIS annoys me. After I get my item, they conviently time it about 2 weeks after they mail, they email me and ask me to leave feedback. However, they haven’t left feedback for me. Why? Well because then if I leave neutral or negative feedback explaining how they SUCKED AT SHIPPING they will retaliate instead of being honest and saying “fastest payer ever”. So I’ve resorted to emailing THOSE people back and saying “Sorry, I do not leave feedback in cases where it hasn’t been left for me when I am the buyer. Thank you.” I never hear from them again!! Why would they leave feedback KNOWING they SUCKED and I am going to be honest!!

Don’t get me wrong, I’ve met some AMAZING sellers on eBay. Ones that I continue to buy from, but there are always bad apples that ruin it for everyone. *sigh* It’s not like I am looking to buy property, cars, or Outer Banks beach rentals… this seriously is not rocket science. Can someone please explain to me what people are thinking? I’ve sold on eBay and I strive to ship the SAME DAY they pay and ONLY use Priority Mail. I just don’t understand!!

I want to take a moment to remind my readers that as we reflect on the days past and present, to keep your hearts open. Tonight my kids have spent some time in their rooms with the doors shut, this is not something that we usually allow in our house. We like to have open hearts and open communication. However, tonight they wanted this time and asked their dad if it was okay. They were making cards for me. Tomorrow is my birthday. As I thought on it, I couldn’t help but think of Susan. There is still no information and she is still missing. I thought about her sons. They will never get to have a moment like my kids had. They may have made things they are hoping to give to their mom. As much as this made me sad, I felt like we need to keep searching for an answer. Friends, Family, Bloggers, PLEASE take a look again at this postand the poster below. If you have ANY information, PLEASE contact the appropriate parties. Even if you wish to remain anonymous. Someone has answers and the family is desperately trying to find out what happen. Something, anything, they need/deserve to know. 

I want to thank ALL my readers for taking the time to read this post and look at the face. This face & story will be familiar to someone and that someone will come forward with answers. Answers the family is so desperatly seeking!