It’s almost kick-off time for March for Babies. Because I’m interning at the March of Dimes this semester, I’m getting a jump start on fundraising while I work out some interesting (and hopefully fun!) incentives for family teams to raise more money, and perhaps for donors who donate a certain amount. So, without further ado, here’s my fundraising widget. Feel free to donate, if you can. You can also read our (brief) story on my page, or search for it here on my blog (I’ve posted it a couple of times before). If you can’t donate, you can still support us by leaving a comment here if you’d like. And, if you have any ideas on how to get teams and/or individuals to raise more money, I’d love to hear them!

Charities, March Of Dimes, Prematurity Awareness | No Comments »

This is my last semester of undergrad! I’m so excited to start, too. I don’t technically start until Monday, but I had my first day at my internship today. I’m interning at the March of Dimes, which is an organization I’m already pretty immersed in. I figured I might as well put all that work to good use and get 6 credits out of it! I’m super excited! I’ll be a family teams specialist, with a little bit of admin work. I think it will be fun to get a feel for the inner workings of a non-profit.

I went back to campus yesterday to turn in some necessary paperwork to fix something that should have been fixed a long time ago. I found out last week during my winter session class that I’m being counted as an out-of-state student for tuition purposes, despite the fact that I’m getting a state grant that’s only available to residents! No one had bothered to tell me that I needed to fill out a residency affidavit prior to the fall semester. I paid 3 times what I should have in tuition for last fall and the winter term! Had I known, and had everything been squared away last summer, I would never have had to take out student loans.

So, I had to take the residency form to school to get notarized and turned in so they’ll change my status. I’ll get a massive refund this semester, too, because of that. That’s nice, but it still stinks that I wouldn’t have had to take out the loans I’m getting refunded to me in the first place. The only good part about that is that I was able to pay for my text books out of that refund. And because I’m taking a political philosophy class AND a politics in literature class this semester, there are a LOT of books! It’s nice to know I’ll have them all when the semester starts, though.

Charities, March Of Dimes, going back to college | No Comments »

Happy New Year! As you can see, my blog has a new look. I’m celebrating my 30th birthday later this month! My theme for the year is celebrating my next 30 years. I wanted to be sure to wish you all a Happy New Year! I’ve also decided to try something different in terms of blogging. I tried nablopomo, but it’s far too overwhelming for me at this point in my life. A friend tipped me off to Project 52, which is similar to nablopomo, except that it’s one post per week, rather than one post per day. That seems much more my pace and I think I’m going to give it a try.

I’m off to get dinner and enjoy a movie with the hubster. Later!

General | No Comments »

I’ve been desperately trying to find these stuffed reindeer online for some time now. The boys were given these as a gift a few years ago and they have fallen apart (as you can see). I’m trying to replace them, but haven’t been able to find them anywhere. The boys are just heartbroken that their best friends are falling apart. Does anyone know where I might be able to find them???

General | No Comments »

This time of year things get so busy half the time I never hear a single word being said to me. It isn’t because I’m intentionally ignoring anyone. It’s just because I have so much going on and my mind is racing so much there too much in my brain to comprehend the information being given to me. That being said, I heard loud and clear what was said to me yesterday, and it was not at all what I expected I’d hear.

We have been moving for the last week. Not far. In fact, right across the parking lot. We had been living in a 2 bedroom townhouse and have moved into a 3 bedroom. Mostly, through last week, we moved smaller stuff over; boxes, clothes, tv’s, etc. This last weekend, we moved the big stuff. After that move, I’d been having some pain and numbness in my right shoulder/arm. I thought for sure I’d pinched a nerve. So, I made an appointment to see a chiropractor yesterday morning. As it turns out, a pinched nerve is not what I have. He’s 99% sure I have Carpal Tunnel.

Talk about a shock to the system. I had no idea that was coming. My mom was Dx with that and actually had surgery in Dec of 2002 (though I didn’t know she had the surgery). She wasn’t at all surprised to hear that that’s what is wrong with me. At least it’s manageable. It’s likely I caught it early enough so as not to have to have the surgery, but I guess only time will tell for that.

General, life | No Comments »

Today is National Fright for Preemies Day. If you’ve read my blog at all, you probably know by now that we have 3 preemie children, 2 of whom were micro preemies. If you don’t know our story, here is the short version (search my blog for the full story. I’ve posted it before, though it’s been quite awhile):

Our twins were born at 27 weeks gestation, 13 weeks early. They spent only 6 weeks in the NICU out of the 12 they were projected. We were very fortunate on every front. Though they came dangerously close to needing a transfusion (and being diagnosed with TTTS, or twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome) we never had to go through that. They were jaundiced, had their eyes fused shut for the first two weeks of their lives, were on oxygen and in temperature controlled isolettes, couldn’t be held for the first 2 weeks of life, had sleep apnea, and several other “minor” problems. They are 8 and a half and to this day, have no lasting effects of their prematurity. Unless you count the fact that they are a bit short for their age. Then again, if you know me, you know I’m only 5 feet tall, so it isn’t a stretch to equate the two things together

Prematurity is the #1 killer of newborns and can lead to lifelong disabilities. What’s worse is the number has increased 31% since 1981. It can happen without warning and for no known reason, much as what happened to me. Though I had a uterine infection due to loosing my mucus plug around 25 weeks with the twins, our youngest was born 4 weeks early for no apparent reason. I was on an oral medication for a month prior to his birth because I had gone into early labor (that’s 8 weeks early…not as early as his brothers, but early enough). My doctor had no idea why. She conceded that some women just aren’t made to carry a baby full term. I suppose, at least with my youngest (who will be 7 next month), that that is the category into which I belong.

Though the March of Dimes has made great strides in developing things to help premature babies survive and live healthy lives, we still have a long way to go. Won’t you join me in this fight? If you’d like to help, you can donate to our family team in anticipation of the 2010 March for Babies in May. You can also head over to the March of Dimes website and join the fight.

Charities, March Of Dimes, Prematurity Awareness | 2 Comments »

It’s November 3rd and I nearly forgot to change my blog theme to reflect that this is Prematurity Awareness Month! I don’t have much time since I have to head to class in a few minutes. But, I wanted to make sure I told you all, in case you forgot or didn’t know

Charities, March Of Dimes, Prematurity Awareness | No Comments »

My children’s lit class is probably the most unexpectedly fun class I’ve had. When I first got the syllabus I thought for sure I’d drown in all the readings, even if they weren’t specifically hard (and they aren’t hard books).

My final project is a diversity project, where we are to chose children’s books to read that have something to do with diversity. This can be race, gender, disability, identity, family, culture, etc. Originally I had thought of doing something with ASD (Asperger’s Syndrome…a high functioning form of Autism that one of the twins has). But something struck me as I was going through book lists…perhaps I should simply do something on twins themselves. They often struggle with identity…at least it’s something I see in mine, being identical twins. I was very surprised by how many children’s books I found on the subject. I am looking very forward to seeing how this comes together.

The final for this class requires a creaticve project for this diversity project. Something like a story, or lesson plan or quilt. My first thought was to do a scrapbook. But I’d LOVE to do a “Day in the life” movie. I don’t know if that’s even possible, but I’m exploring the possibilities of that. I just think it would be a neat idea to follow the twins around for a day and then have them narrate the movie. Has anyone ever done something like this before? Any pointers?

General | No Comments »

Movie Review: Where The Wild Things Are

Posted using ShareThis

General | 3 Comments »

I found this fascinating quote today:

Yes, that’s right, I am giving away THREE SKYPE PACKAGES each of which includes a Skype Unlimited U.S. and Canada subscription and a Skype Freetalk Everyman Headset. *note: you need your own web cam to use video skype-that is not part of the prize pack.Amy, Giveaway: Skype Headset & 1 Year Skype Service | Frugal Upstate, Sep 2009

You should read the whole article.

General | No Comments »