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Tuesday, May 29, 2012

What I learned from having pink eye...

Exactly two weeks ago, today, I woke up with pink eye! I have NEVER had this in my life, so I was mortified!! It made me feel germy, ewww!!
So because of the dreaded PE, I had to throw away my current pair of contacts (what a pain b/c I only have one pair left!) and ALL of my eye make up. I was distraught! Anyone that knows me well, knows that I don't go ANYWHERE without my concealer (hello raccoon eyes!) , eyeliner, eye shadow and mascara - go ahead call me high maintenance! To this Mr. B replied, "So? What's that gonna cost? Like ?10 bucks?"
Oh Mr. B, who lives in boy land....what can I do with him?? I love him, but he had no idea! Mascara alone would cost $10!!
So since I am ever frugal and budget friendly (I refuse to call myself cheap), two weeks later, I still haven't bought any makeup :/
But I have learned a few things in the past two weeks that I would have never learned without getting the funk:
1.)Mr. B prefers me without makeup (big plus!!!)
2.)It's pretty nice to be able to spend a sweaty day outside and not worry that my makeup has slid down my face and that I now look like an extra from "Night of the Living Dead".
3.)My niece (who is a lover of makeup herself :)) said I looked "fresh faced"! I took it as a compliment :)
4.) I feel like I look younger??
5.)I don't really have raccoon eyes-they just look that way in comparison to the face I'm used to seeing in the mirror.
6.)That face that I was used to seeing...wasn't mine....
7.)God made me, so those freckles that I "have" to hide are there on purpose.
8.)Makeup can act as a mask. When I've been up all night with NKOTB, it's too easy to cover up the dark circles with concealer and when someone asks me how I'm doing to say, "fine!" When actually I'm exhausted beyond relief and could use a break.
9.) It's OK to not look perfect all the time. Flaws can be pretty too!
10.) I actually like myself without make up :)
11.) I wish I would have gotten pink eye years ago!!
http//:www.trend-setters.co.uk
Penelope Cruz-with and without makeup
Now don't get me wrong, I will probably go out and replace my makeup (maybe ha!). But at least I don't feel like I "have" to wear it, or I can't leave the house! It's very liberating to like myself just the way God made me.....freckles, dark circles, brown mousy hair and all :))

Wednesday, May 23, 2012

My Blog is PR Friendly!


PR Friendly

PR & Giveaways
Do you have a product that you'd like reviewed & featured on Boys & Butterflies?

In order to be reviewed, products must be related to:
Biblical values
cloth diapering
breast feeding (when I have a LO nursing)
baby wearing
families
homeschooling
babies/children
craft products



When a product is reviewed on my blog, I will include a link to your site (or the site of your choice, including social network sites). I will mention the review on Facebook so that followers can see the product for themselves. A sample product will be required for me to review (shipping at your expense).

Giveaways are also welcome (and encouraged!) And if one is included I will announce the winner on Facebook and  B&B along with what they have won. I will then email the winner with your contact info. It will be the winner's responsibility to contact you from there.You will be responsible for shipping this, at your expense. If you are interested or have any questions, please email me at beckedy1003@hotmail.com

Tuesday, May 22, 2012

To homeschool or not to homeschool that is the question...

As Super Kid (aka Travis)'s last week of school has come upon us, I have been scouring the Internet trying to decide what homeschool curriculum we will use for next year.
image by www.homeschoolprograms.biz
All of this year (Travis' first in K3) I have been an emotional wreck and have felt like I have missed out on so much! Which led me to the realm of homeschooling.
There are several reasons that I want to homeschool. The obvious being that, I get to see him all day. I get to see his face light up when he finally gets something we have been covering. I get to teach him to read-how cool is that?! The second is that, I was bullied/ picked on/messed with/ called names all the way through school. I still haven't figured out why, I never really thought I was that weird! But looking back I think it was because I was an easy target...and I know that now because I can see it in Travis. He is his mother's son. My boy is so sweet and tender hearted...and those mean kids will rip him to shreds! I don't want him to go through that (and I don't care what ANYONE says, it DOES NOT make you stronger!). If I can protect him from something, I will. The third, is that I will have control over what he is learning. I won't have to explain why the teacher says that dinosaurs lived millions of years ago, but according to Bible records it was really only about 6,000 years ago. I won't have to worry about other kids/teachers telling him stuff that I'm not ready for him to know (some states are suggesting -and teaching- sex ed in the third grade!)
All of this sounds really good, right? Like I'm thoroughly convinced that this is the right choice to make for our family?
If you think this, then you are WRONG...
Going through all of the curriculum and comparing the pros's and con's of each AND trying to decide which grade he should go into next year....k4 or k5?? I'm stumped for that one!
When I try to decide, I get an uneasy feeling...maybe it's just doubt.
It's been easy all year to dread dropping him off everyday-well 3 days a week anyway. And looking forward to him being home from now on. But I am terrified that I won't teach him the right things, that he won't learn to read....and it will be my fault!
Even though the easy thing would be to put him in public school and forgo all of this anxiety, I couldn't imagine not seeing him for 8+ hours a day....
I guess that's my answer, huh? We do what we have to do for our children...not what is easiest.
It's amazing how much insight I get just from writing all of this out.

So my question this time is for homeschool mamas! How did you choose your children's curriculum? And what in the world am I supposed to do k4 or k5? He will be 5 TWO days after public school's deadline for K, and he just finished k3....sigh...

Monday, May 21, 2012

The Heart of the Matter

Concerning previous posts, I have been accused of being judgemental, legalistic, harsh etc. This was never my intention in writing this blog. My intention was and still is to encourage Christian women in their walk with God. When I write about my personal convictions,  I try to stress the point that they are exactly that...personal. I put them on this blog for those who maybe have seen some changes in me-changes that God is making from the inside out, or for someone who is feeling the stir of conviction herself but needs some encouragement.
 Because let's face it- it's hard to be different! And it feels really good to find someone who agrees with you.
My convictions do come from God (because believe me, I wouldn't be putting myself through this for anyone else!), and I don't need justification from anyone. By asking for someone's opinion, I am simply reaching out. Why am I reaching out? Because making choices that go against mainstream (even mainstream Christianity) can be isolating.
Think about it...say God lays standards for entertainment on your heart (mine happen to be Philippians 4:8), and there is this movie that EVERYONE is going to see. BUT it goes against your standards...how do you feel? Alone?.....So do I...
I can guess that someone will accuse me of pitying myself for writing this or of calling myself a martyr. But that is not why I am writing this. I am writing this to apologize...to apologize to those that I have offended by my stance on certain subject. To those that I have pushed aside because they don't share my views. And to those that I have silently (or not so silently) admonished for having a different opinion.
I will continue to post blogs, but hopefully they will come across as more encouraging and less critical. But I do ask that you as a reader remember that I am a person, with feelings.
So here's to hoping that I have mended some bridges, and opened some hearts.
Please leave me some feedback, so that I know that SOMEONE read this. No admonishments please :)

Thursday, May 10, 2012

...& Butterflies

This is the follow up post to "Boys...". It was supposed to be the next blog after that, but you know how that goes ;)
Anyway, I'm sure there are some that are curious as to why I named this blog "Boys & Butterflies". The "Boys" part is pretty obvious considering I live with 4 of them! But the " & Butterflies" part is something that only one or two people know about (and I'm not even sure they are aware that they know!).
In school, everyone always had their "thing" that they were crazy about. Whether it was dolphins, puppies, or zebra print stuff. So I decided my thing was going to be butterflies (little did I know the significance it would hold in my marriage). I picked them...just because they were pretty. Nothing beyond that. Every time I saw something that had a butterfly on it, I instantly loved it. But it was superficial, nothing significant.
Until my wedding day that is.... (I'm not even sure HE knows, what I am about to divulge!)
To be honest, I dated ALOT before I married Tommy. And I knew that marriage was forever, for better or for worse. I also knew that I wanted to marry Tommy and that he was the love of my life.But on my wedding day, as Tommy was at the alter waiting for the procesional to begin, and our parents were being seated. I panicked! I looked at my oldest sister and said, "But what about the butterflies?!"
She looked at me, puzzled. So I said, "I won't have anymore first dates, or first kisses!"
And in her wisdom, she said,"Yes you will!, " You will have first kisses as a married couple, first dates and kisses after you have babies! And you WILL still get the butterflies!" And my nerves were eased. With her words ringing in my ears, I confidently walked down the aisle...

And she was right! After 5 years of marriage, 3 crazy/beautiful boys, 2 heartbreaking miscarriages and more than I thought we could cram into 5 years, I still get the butterflies when He walks into a room and smiles at me :)

Tommy- I love you, and thank you for the Butterflies <3