I’m getting close.. 1 month away from meeting baby Bob. Anxieties are starting to kick in.
1) The diaper change! (I have yet to google/youtube the technique)
2) How wild are little boys really?
3) How’s Adora gonna handle this?
Must admit the joys of shopping continue. Despite what I was told.. I was able to find some pretty cool threads for the little guy!
The May FAMILY Magazine issue is out and we had so much fun being a part of it. Adora was a little crazy at the shoot.. but she’s just 2 after all. Special thanks to photographer Cyndy Porter and Cornwell Styling’s James and Carla. The team was phenomenal and SO patient! Being interviewed by veteran writer Charlene Giannetti was a great experience too. You can find the magazine pretty much everywhere across town.. but you can also check out the digital copy. We’ve got behind-the-scenes photos from the shoot too.
Some photos from the shoot..
The team!
Click the magazine below to read the article!
After I saw how much my two year old loved ballet.. I thought gymnastics may be worth a try. I heard from other parents that it’s a great way for the little ones to get all their energy out. We called up Gymini and they invited us over for a trial. Adora was sold faster than you could say the word “mat”. I love all the different stations that test the baby’s strength and also encourages coordination. With her week filling up (ballet, swimming,gymnastics, spanish and soon pre school!) I’m going to have to make some tough decisions on what to keep her in.
Adora’s first gymnastics, age 2 from OhMyGOFF on Vimeo.
Um … I want one of these pits to play in
With just 6 weeks away from hatching.. we decided to take a little babymoon or staycation. I spent the week down in beautiful Charlottesville Virginia. What a scene. We stayed at the gorgeous Keswick Hall. Whether it’s from your room, dinner or the pool the view is absolutely breathtaking! Best part of all.. the location was just minutes away from Monticello. We got a tour through history with a pro- Shirley Midyette. Everyone knew Shirley .. and she knew everything about Monticello. She is highly recommended and so sweet. As suggested by twitter friends we strolled to the Downtown Mall where we indulged in some great milkshakes from The Nook and let Adora run her energy out at the Virginia Discovery Museum. We couldn’t leave town without making a stop for some good old school donuts– visiting Spudnuts was like stepping back into 1985. It was totally awesome. In fact the trip was totally awesome. Hard to believe.. just a couple hours outside of Northern Virginia.. there’s this whole other world! Thanks to Poshbrood for the recommendation!
Monticello– such a history lesson
Miss Shirley helping Adora count her flowers
Learning about TJ’s first home!
Food was fabulous! Cream cheese stuffed french toast at Keswick!
The Virginia Discovery Museum- small but entertaining enough!
The old fashion merry go round!
Downtown Mall- so many cool antique shops to stop by
The infinity pool at Keswick– gorgeous!
Poolside
At the entrance of Keswick… this place makes it hard to take a bad picture
Bubbles
The view from dinner at Keswick
Enjoying our Spudnuts!!
I love the coffe signs and prices!
Nearly $700,000 was raised at a night filled with furry friends dressed to the nines! It was Fashion for Paws 2013, an show stopping production that included many familiar faces of DC and their pooches. I had a great time walking the runway with little Inko. I would’ve brought Atticus again but these days he’s so strong and being me so pregnant I was afraid I’d have a tough time wrangling him on stage.
I was thrilled to be part of the Lilly Pulitzer part of the show. The evening featured fashions from shops you’d find at Tysons Galleria. E! News’ Ashlan Gorse and Pamela Sorensen did an outstanding job as the night’s emcee and Mistress of Ceremonies. Special thanks to Richard and his friends for coming out to show the support! We were really tired for the show this morning.. but the great cause was worth the no sleep! Photos by Rich Kessler Photography and Travis Vaughn
Top fundraising models Susan Ostrowski, Melinda Griffith and Dr. Ashley Gallagher. Susan Ostrowski raised $37,000, followed by Melinda Griffith at $24,000 and Dr. Ashley Gallagher at $17,900.
With Inko!
Philippe Cousteau and Ashlan Gorse
Richard and Renee
F4P Shout Out on NBC4
View more videos at: http://nbcwashington.com.
I recently got an email from my friend Maggy with the subject line: HELP!
This is what followed:
I came home today and found this little old lady sitting at my doorstep and no where to go. She was totally unaware she was in Maryland and didn’t know who she was at all. She didn’t know her name, age or where her family resided. She was very kind but clearly has a severe case of dementia. Please let me know if you can help. The police and ambulance arrived and didn’t know where to begin. I sat with her for about an hour to comfort her but didn’t get any information at all.
Maggy went on to share it on Facebook and Twitter and by the end of the evening through the power of social media the case was solved! Maggy says the lost elderly woman’s photo she posted got 18K shares & 7,291 Likes & comments in just a few hours. The family stated they were getting calls from all over from North Carolina South Carolina, Atlanta and Virginia from concerned family members who saw the post. Maggy says it was confirmed that the elderly lady known as Mrs. Dorsey has dementia and that she just moved to the Bowie area to live with family. Maggy was told she wandered off while her daughter stepped into a store. All are safe, sound and at home now.. thanks to all those who shared.
Alexandria mom Courtney Demers is booked making cakes every single weekend through the summer
Home bakeries: They’re a booming trend that can make you big bucks. I checked in with some women finding financial success from the comforts of their kitchens.
Courtney Demers‘ Alexandria kitchen.. has quickly become her corner office. Cake pans, cookie cutters sprinkles.. supplies fill the cupboards.
Add taking care of two kids to the mix.. she’s got the ingredients for cake baking success at home.
“One led to another led to another and very quickly I was booked through the summer not even knowing this was something I was gonna do!”
Demers is part of a booming trend of home bakeries- people making stuff at home-using social media smartly to sell it.
It started when she made a birthday cake for a kid’s birthday party.. a string of orders followed- she found no storefront necessary.
“It’s been entirely online… all back and forth via email.. all word of mouth.. through Facebook likes and re-posting.”
Through her website Sweetest Soiree Demers turned her love of baking into a money making home business.
Profit possible because she lives in Virginia…one of nearly 40 states with a Cottage Food Law or restricted law that allows bakers to sell food made at home. Maryland has a limited law.. and just last month the DC Council introduced legislation to make it legal.
“It’s a really nice opportunity especially having children. Being able to work on my own schedule work in the evenings or work when they’re in school.”
One town over, Michelle D’Ettorre does the same but for the dogs. She started Aunt Sasha’s Barked Goods- an online bakery for pets featuring dozens of all natural treats made at home. In less than 3 years D’Etttore says engagement online has helped triple their profits. No paid advertising, no marketing, just pushing petworthy products and contests through tweets and facebook.
Facebook fans recently chose the name for Aunt Sasha's Barked Goods' newest dog treat
“There are so many great ways to interact with our customer without having them have to walk in our door!”
Baking at home obviously comes easy for a lot of these women but when it comes to running a business there’s definitely a big learning curve. Cheryl Savastano says she now drives like her grandmother… so her creations don’t get squished. Savastano is learning the tricks of delivery after ditching her cush corporate sales job for cupcakes. She’s also becoming an expert on driving traffic to her site Savvy Treats.
She says she started doing SEO or Search Engine Optimization. In other words, she found ways to make her website rank higher in search engines like google and yahoo. So when people like Judith Koritsas searches for cupcakes here…Savvy Treats is one of the first to pop up.
“If I have a special request I can do that also online and it’s so easy for me, Judith says.”
With International orders now coming in and business growing Savastano is looking to the next level- renting a commercial kitchen.
“I’m so comfortable taking that next step!”
She’s well on her way.. and like the others finding sweet success working from home and using the web to ge the word out.
Watch the story as seen on NBC4
View more videos at: http://nbcwashington.com.
Super Brenna... the inspiration!
Sick kids become superheroes, one cape at a time
Many of us moms do it. We follow blogs of other moms for advice, laughter and inspiration. Sometimes the stories we read are so powerful they inspire us to act. In the case of Robyn Rosenberger… it made her want to sew.
The Seattle mom was in the midst of making superhero capes for her 1 year old son when she came across the blog about a baby girl named Brenna. Brenna was born with a rare and severe skin disease. Robyn read about the little girl’s battle including eye surgery at just 3 weeks and beating an aggressive blood infection. In Robyn’s mind, Brenna was a fighter.. she was Super Brenna.
“I realized that while my son looked cute in a cape, Brenna needed a cape.”
A smile is Super Anthony's biggest weapon in fighting hypotonia & congenital heart defects.
Touched by a total stranger Robyn reached out to Brenna’s mom through Facebook. She asked if she could send a cape her way.
“She was ecstatic and told me that they have been calling Brenna their super hero since she was born!”
And that was the moment TinySuperheroes was also born.
Within a month Robyn’s Singer machine pumped out 80 capes. In the last two months the little colorful cloaks have empowered more than 100 kids nationwide. Many who are fighting illnesses that are undiagnosed, terminal or don’t have a cure.
How does she find them? She says it’s easy.. they find her. Social media and Facebook have allowed TinySuperheroes to thrive and share incredible stories.
Almost all of the kids are connected to one another. Some stayed at Ronald McDonald Houses together, NICUs together, have the same disease, or became friends through social media.
“There’s Blessed by Brenna, A Very Special Case, Casen’s Crusade, Mabel’s Able, Ireland’s Journey…I’d been on Facebook for 7 years now and had never stumbled upon pages like these…and now they consume my Newsfeed!”
Once the child is comfortable in their new cape, their pictures and story are featured on Robyn’s blog. She hopes the it gives them a voice and their disability a face.
Robyn adds many of these kids have 10,000+ Likes on Facebook.. and that for most families social networking is the main source of advocacy and support.
Right now 100 more caped crusaders are in line to be featured on Robyn’s blog. When she’s not profiling these super human powers to be she’s stitching away for future heroes. Response has been so big the mom-on-a-mission has enlisted sidekicks… girlfriends that find fun in sewing around the dinner table.
“Our lives are full – full of fabric, full of typing, full of story reading, and full of so much love.”
Case by case, cape by cape… it’s this genuine power to help that’s making it easier for a little someone.. somewhere… to heal.
Bright and Bold for Heroes in Waiting!
Robyn and friends with their sewing machines
To sponsor a cape for a child or to read their extraordinary stories visit TinySuperheroes.com
***UPDATE***
Just heard from MCPS and apparently this is NOT their app. They’re looking into who made it. They pointed out that they’ve worked on making a very mobile friendly site: http://mongtomeryschoolsmd.org
MCPS says no one should pay for this app.. it appears the company scraped public information off their site to make it.
