Dear Ashtyn

My baby is almost 8 months old! :( It seems like yesterday she was newborn and last week we were just finding out she was a little bean in my tummy. 

I guess thinking about that today made me a little sentimental and got me thinking about giving her advice now instead of when i'm 45 and she's thinking "Mom, there is no possible way you were actually my age once..."

So here it goes...

Dear Ashtyn,

Here are some little lessons in life that will hopefully make your maturing years a little easier than having to learn about them on your own.

1. High school boys will ALWAYS be dumb. Yes they mature eventually...some don't but thats another story. They will flirt with you and then probably have a new conquest the next day. This isn't because you're not good enough, or pretty enough, or even skinny enough, this is just because they are boys and don't know what they want yet.

2. Spray tanning does not look natural. I don't know if it's even possible to get the right shade. You WILL look like a traffic cone and you will get laughed at, but mostly by me. (follow this rule especially in the winter, enjoy the whiteness including your own.)

3. Never, I repeat NEVER wear white pants during "that time of the month." EVER!!! It will never end well and if does it's because you decided to wear diapers. Also make sure to ALWAYS bring extra pants during that period of time. (haha get it?!) Lastly, never sit on anyones lap during the 3-5 days. I don't feel the need to explain that one.

4. Sweatpants and makeup don't go together. Whenever I see this, i'm always confused. Were you rushed and forgot to get dressed after putting on makeup? Or maybe a ninja stole your clothes while you were getting ready? Who knows, the second one sounds more reasonable to me. Wear one or the other. Yes i'm guilty of this and that is why i'm telling you now it's a big no no. Although ponytails and sweats do go much better together.

5. Movies LIE!!! First kisses are not romantic. Your leg wont automatically rise, and it doesn't start to magically rain either. I expected both and was totally let down. First kisses are in fact awkward and in my opinion terrible. This does not mean you are allowed to just keeping kissing boys till you get it right. Just expect that your first kiss might end up making you feel like this.

 6. Truth or dare always ends badly. Either you've said way too much OR you've gone and done something not only stupid but RIDICULOUS. I'm not proud to admit this but during one of these fun truth or dare seshes I accidentally ended up mooning my poor mother when she drove past us on the freeway. (insert long, awkward, embarrassing pause here.)

7. Gossip=drama. Gossip is not nice, it's not cool, and it's not fun. I'm sure that more than once in your high school years people will gossip to you and about you. It's mean and it's not worth it. Save yourself the drama and tears and just don't do it!

Well thats what i've got so far, I'm sure the longer I think about the more advice I could give. Until next time bubby. I love you!

Love, 

Mom

Mirrors

Having a baby as taught me a lot, especially as she grows, and the things she learns to love and do.

The hubby works at six so when I get up the morning to get ready for work I put Ashtyn on the floor by me so she can look in the mirror. I noticed how happy she was, looking at herself in the mirror, she was laughing and smiling, and I thought to myself, “Man, I wish that was my reaction when I look in the mirror.” Instead I judge and think of how I wish I could look a different way.

Maybe if my eyebrows could just be a little thinner and not so unibrow’y

Maybe if my nose wasn’t so large and in charge

Maybe if my face wasn’t as chubby as the Michelin mans.

Maybe if one of my eyes wasn’t saggier than the other

The list could go on and on…

After thinking that it made me sad. Ashtyn may be a baby and doesn’t quite care or know to care what others may think, but seeing herself made her happy.

I don’t know exactly when looking in the mirror became so depressing but I think it hurt so much more realizing that it has been for a while now.

It’s funny that as a society we care so much about how we look or how others view us. We would rather have someone judge us based on our appearance over how we are as people. We make friends based on how “good looking” they are not by how they treat us. Or maybe high school mentality has finally become the “super senior” in the world. Never growing up and realizing what’s actually important in life.

Models and actors/actresses aren’t perfect although we’d like to think so (I think they might too.) They have fat and wrinkles and uneven body parts. Some are even famous because of their strange looks.

In high school there was a kid who was blind. He was my friend and used to tell me about all the girls that he thought were hot and sexy. That was always funny to me because he couldn’t see them. Was I missing something? The girls he described were not what I would call hot and sexy. One day I asked him how he judged girls… His answer was pretty simple. He said, “By how they talk to me and what they say about others.” HUH!?!? This is not what I was expecting from a “typical guy.”

Obviously then his answer seemed stupid and pointless so I forgot about it.

Now that I have my own daughter, this “typical guy” answer makes me hopeful, not just for my own daughter but other girls as well.

Good looks end with time, although Sandra Bullock and Jennifer Lopez will always be lucky and be gorgeous.

Impressions, friends and memories of others and yourself last, lets just say a lifetime.

A wise woman named Abeline once said “You is kind, you is smart, you is important.” 

Babies, Babies, BABIES

I have a serious problem. I think it all started when I got married. I would see all these super cute babies at the mall, at the grocery store, at school, at church, at... ok you get the point. 

They were EVERYWHERE!

I kept telling the hub that we should have one. And his forever no changing answer was... surprisingly NO. 

Two months after we got married, I had just gotten back from a trip to Las Vegas. The entire time I was down there I was sick as a dog, (has anyone ever really thought that phrase out, it makes no sense) and just thought I was super carsick. 

Surprise! It was not car sickness but actually a little bean growing in my belly.

To make 9 months into a short story. 8 1/2 months later our sweet little Ashtyn graced us with her presence.

Now fast forward 7 months to present time. My little Ashtyn is not little anymore. She sits up and rolls everywhere and has two little teeth that she likes to use alot. Now I realize to some reading that she may still seem little because she can't walk or talk or even eat on her own. But my "baby" is no more. She is a mini human as we like to call her. A little being with an amazingly happy demeanor. 

Every time I see a newborn my whole body aches to be pregnant again. Why? I have no clue. I did not enjoy being pregnant the first time. 

I can't help it. 

Maybe it's the snuggly, cuddly phase babies go through when their tiny...

Or the fact that their clothes are doll size...

Or maybe it's that they sleep all the time...

I don't know, all I know is I want one bad! 

Is there a cure? 

YES!

Let me be around a newborn for a couple hours and it cures me right up! My brain lies to me and tells me how fun Ashtyn was as a newborn. Once I'm around the newborn phase again, I come back to the reality of how it really was.

No sleep

Lots of crying (from both Ashtyn and I)

Poop everywhere

Feeding schedules... nonexistent

Newborns are fun don't get me wrong. But then I remember that Ashtyn is growing and instead of being stuck in this never ending state of sleep, poop, eat, sleep. I get to see her grow and change and learn. 

I still feel that little ache whenever I see a newborn but the more I'm around it, the more I realize how lucky I am to get to enjoy watching my little human grow.

 It's definately not easy, especially when she throws temper tantrums or spits all her food out, but after we laugh and cuddle and play, it erases all the hard learning experiences we've had to go through together.

Mothers/Aunts/Grandma's never said it would be easy, but it is most definitely worth it.

Random Wednesdays

Due to the fact that I rarely blog about anything of actual importance, heck I rarely blog at all, I decided I would give myself a day that I had to blog so that those who follow me.. (1 person currently YEAH!!) can see what nonsense we have been up to. (we being the Oliver's.)

This day is now called Random Wednesday's, hence the post title. :) As I have dived more into the blogging world, I've realized lots of people talk about themselves, ALOT. Not just like what they did that day or what they ate (this is not Facebook people), but actually personal deets about themselves. So in honor of E Blogger I will now try and keep up with other blogging fanatics and join the all to personal bandwagon.

Since I have nothing random to say, I thought I would just get all my weird quirks out of the way first.

Random Facts:

1. I was born 8 days before Christmas. Most people think this is super awesome, I however tend to think of it as a day that people tend to forget or mush together with Christmas. (ex: Left shoe for my birthday, Right shoe for Christmas) Ok that has actually never happened to me, but you get the jest. 

2. I can touch my tongue to my nose. Kinda gross, I realize no one actually cares but hey when people ask to see a talent, I just whip out the old "tongue touch to the nose" trick. Works every time.

3. I can count from 1 to 10 in french. My high school French teacher would be so proud since I was usually tardy or just didn't show up. It also helped me get an in with my father-in-law. (he served his LDS mission in France/Belgium.)

4. My all time favorite snack food is... Peanut Butter and Pickle sandwiches. It has to be creamy peanut butter or it just throws the balance of crunchy and smooth off. People think that this came from being pregnant but sadly no, I liked weird food before.

5. I have this horribly, awful habit of hearing a song on the radio, really REALLY liking it, and then listening to it over and over again until I hate it. I have tried to stop but I can't. (Hi, my name is Madison, and I am a compulsive song repeater.)

6. Everyone has that weird, random collection. I happen to have that weird, random postcard collection. It's actually not to weird but I have a whole box full of them. My farthest is from Iraq.

7. My left pinky finger is significantly shorter than my right pinky finger. I wasn't born a weird mutant person with special pinky powers. I just jammed it playing tetherball years ago and it never quite healed the same way.

8. I LOVE GREEN SKITTLES. Ya know the lime ones, not those nasty green apple ones they just changed to. The original green skittle. So yummy.

9. I like to  nest. Again, I didn't just learn this when I was pregnant, I am weird and did it before. Ex: Before watching a movie I get like 5 pillows and cram them around me. Sorry hubby no cuddling for you tonight.

10. I'm a huge lover of reading. I love mysteries, romance (not the icky stuff), pretty much anything. If you can't find me or get a hold of me it's probably because i'm hiding and reading a good book.

Well thats all for today folks, hopefully I can keep up with this Random Wednesdays :) Happy "hump" day everyone!