Silpada Jewelry Trunk Show

Hey!!!

For weeks now, I've been advertising and preparing for a Silpada jewelry show, and the day was finally here. After constantly going back and forth on the phone with Victoria, and adding more and more people to the guest list, it was so exciting to see the jewelry being set up and displayed on my dining room table. As Victoria was setting up each piece of jewelry, my eyes were just widening wondering how I was going to decide on one to pieces: I wanted it all!!! And then when Victoria informed me we could try on any and every piece of jewelry we wanted to, I felt like a celebrity where the jewelry was being brought to me for me to choose. Unlike the celebrities who get to borrow the jewelry, I actually had to buy mine. The show that was only expected to last two hours, ended up going on for 3.5 hours, and the ladies were pleasantly pleased. I think they were also excited to try on all the jewelry and stand in the mirror and feel like a queen being adorned with endless pieces of jewelry. It was such a great way to get all the ladies together, I am already planning another holiday December show! But if anyone is interested in ordering from this show, the link is:

http://mysilpada.com/sites/victoria.robin/private/content/home.jsf, and do not forget mention me as your host :)

Layth and the Potty

I am just giving an update on our potty training adventures after mentioning we had begun the process a few months ago, and I would like to say, we are almost there minus a few night time accidents every now and then!! It has been an adventure, but one I know every parent must go through! First of all, I would like to give a personal thanks to Evergreen Montessori for assisting in the process by insisting he come to school in underwear and remain in underwear throughout the day, except at nap time where they switch them into pull ups. Pull ups, that is something I have a mixed opinion about since Layth viewed them as a more comfortable diaper. He enjoyed the fact he didn't have to lay flat to have them changed and instead could remove them himself while easily standing up. The only time he would inform me of a possible accident is if they leaked since they are not made to absorb much. Nonetheless, it helped to introduce him to the idea of being wet outside of a diaper. And so, after months of pull ups, I decided to transition him strictly to underwear. I will not lie and say it was easy, it was definitely an adventure from reading his body gestures, to timing when he had his last drink to making sure we put him on any potty we came by, and packing my baby bag with three or four different changes of clothes. I think Layth, himself, enjoyed the adventure because it meant endless treats to be rewarded when he would use the potty, and seeing mommy run in panic each time he would say "pee." Even until this day when he tells me " pee" Layth still gets excited since using the potty has become synonymous with treats. It is just difficult because when he does in fact tell me " pee" it usually implies " mom right now, and no, I can't wait." But anything is better than diapers! It also means less time spent in the women's bathroom, less money spent on both diapers and wipes and more room in my baby bag or in my case, I can actually start carrying a purse again!!

And so, our adventures continue

Hello Everyone,

Since Layth and I are always on the prowl for new afternoon adventures, we decided to take a risk and try the " Paint a Piece" pottery studio in Cordova, TN. For years now, I have expressed my desire to paint pottery, but either found no one to accompany me or felt ridiculous going in myself. So when I observed that Layth loves to paint and express himself artistically, I thought to myself, it's never too early to expose him to painting pottery. It was also my excuse to finally be able to paint pottery. And surprisingly, Layth really enjoyed it! I mention this, because when I asked some friends to accompany us, they thought I was ridiculous to take a two year old to go paint pottery. Instead, Layth found it exciting he was able to choose the piece he wanted to paint, the colors, and of course, many paint brushes to accompany the different colors. Once he had chosen his colors, his dog, and five paint brushes, he sat down, put his serious face on and went straight to work! Since they recommend you to coat the pottery with three layers of paint, it was the perfect opportunity for Layth to test his different colors. Rather than designating a different color to each part of the dog, i.e. his ears, eyes, tail, etc., Layth found it simpler to cover the dog in one coat, before proceeding to paint over the previous coat with a different color. Although I did not get to officially paint my own piece of pottery, it was fun going over Layth's missed spots and putting in the details to make his dog look more like a dog. Of course, as I was doing this, Layth decided to take the paint brushes and paint over his own shorts; thankfully, all the paints were washable... one week later, we have an artistic, colorful dog to bring back home to show Chafeek!

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