Fish Swoosh! Another Score for Nuby!

Bath toys are all the rave in my house right now... I swear of all the things we do - bath time is at the top of the list... and that is a HUGE thanks to Nuby. The newest edition to our tub toys is the Fish Swoosh set.

"Fish Swoosh™ will help develop and improve your child’s motor skills as well as hand eye coordination. This bath time play set is so much fun. Your child can squeeze and squirt the fish between dunks in the goal! Sturdy suction cups keep the goal adhered to the bathtub wall for endless bath time fun."The boys like to stick it up SUPER high on the wall... and then shoot the squishy fish into the hoop. There have also been a few slam dunks... ;) My favorite feature is the little tie at the bottom... keeping all the fish in the net and easily put away after bath. We are always pleased with Nuby Bath Toys - stay tuned for more coming soon!  

Want one!? They're available at BuyBabyDirect.com

Get social with Nuby! 

 www.facebook.com/nubyusa 

www.twitter.com/nubyusa 

 www.pinterest.com/nubyusa 

 www.instagram.com/nubyusa

 

Summer Lovin...

*sings* Summer Lovin'... had me a blast...
What a fun weekend! We spent pretty much the whole day outside...
We did water balloons...
*spent about 20 minutes filling them... and they were gone in 3 minutes*
but it was a blast and worth every second!

*Izzaq - Gracie - Zavery*

Then we pulled out the sprinkler... and the kids spent about an hour chasing Gracie around. They both absolutely adore her... and are convinced every day that she has to choose which Zrust boy she will marry... Im so not ready for this - and am doomed by the time they turn 13.

Ladies First!

Lastly - after almost drowning while trying to drink from the sprinkler... we headed in for the day for a family movie night... what a great day... don't you wish sometimes that real life could be this? Just playing and fun... no worries, no bills, no work... just. summer. lovin'.

Look mom, no hands!

How do I get things done with 3 kids, a full time business, a husband, a house, cleaning, cooking, etc. etc. ETC... hands free... A great friend made me the MOST AWESOME pouch for Rozzlyn... I had a sling with the boys, but its just not the same. Nothing compares to the awesomeness of my pouch... It was so perfect to keep her close as a newborn, and now that she's bigger Its even more amazing...

Her cute little toes fit through the sides... her head peeks out the top... the only issues I had at the store was her trying to chew through my shirt to nurse, haha... greedy baby had just eaten! *note to self - no v-necks while baby wearing "flesh=food to baby* Though, now that I say that... I probably could nurse her in there too... hmmmmmm.... 

Long story short, if you havn't tried wearing your baby, I recommend it... Life is so much easier with a baby in a pouch :)

The Avengers! Crafty Style...

Its been oh so busy as usual - and last week we had the pleasure of working outside the punk rock box! With all the hero movies coming out, no doubt there are little guys and girls everywhere wanting some for themselves... so we were happy to give that to them!

A custom birthday outfit.... skirt and matching shirt for a birthday girl!

A set of birthday Booger Basher party favors made with Avengers fabrics & gold minky smooth

And a custom hoodie for my little man Zavery :)

Always feel free to contact us for custom work!  rockerbyebaby@gmail.com

Nuby Giveaway: Round One - Newborn Care

We are SO totally excited to announce our first big Nuby Giveaway! We have three rounds of giveaways - so be sure to follow us and keep checking back!

Round One: Newborn Care

When you bring a newborn baby home... there are all sorts of things you will likely have to worry about... bathing, diaper changing, nail clipping, ear cleaning, medicine giving, pacifier ... uhhh... pacifier sucking? ... sure! There will be lots of that too. But never fear, Nuby has you covered in most all of these aspects... and to prove it to you, I've put together the perfect newborn care kit to give away to one lucky winner... But first, I want to tell you about the items you could receive.

Medical Care Kit-
"Nuby's™ Medical Kit helps you take care of you child's medical needs. From medicating to nasal and ear care, this kit makes it easier to care of your baby.
This kit includes: Sure-Dose™ Medicine dropper, Medi- Nurser, Nasal Aspirator with Ear Syringe and Medicine Dispenser."

Nail Care Set-
"Nûby™ strives to provide quality grooming products necessary for safe and simple grooming of your baby. All are available in fashionable colors and designs.
This set includes:
 Nail Clipper: that are sized for baby’s small nails, but are easy for an adult to use. Each Clipper comes with a snap on cover for cleaner storage.
 Baby and Toddler Nail Scissor: are made of stainless steal and are also sized perfectly for baby or toddler’s tiny nails. The short curved blades of these Scissors make it easier to trim a child’s nails. Trim straight across nails then shape as needed. Each pair of Nail Scissors comes with a hygienic cover that easily fits over the end.
 Smoothing Emery Boards: (4 pieces) are specially sized and shaped to help smooth and shape their tiny nails. This helps prevent your child from scratching themselves- and others!"

Nuby Brites Pacifiers: (0-6 months)
"The classic oval baglet with symmetrical shield design ensures that the pacifier always fits in your baby’s mouth. Nuby’s air system allows air to circulate between baby’s delicate skin & pacifier. The pacifiers come in various fun bright colors and designs!"

Paci-Cradle:
"The Paci-Cradle™ from Nûby™ is the ideal way to keep any pacifier or Pacifinder® within reaching distance. The Flexi-Klip™ ensures that the case will stay attached to a stroller, handbag, diaper bag, etc. The durable plastic case keeps pacifier and/or Pacifinder® secure, providing a clean and hygienically safe environment. It's sized conveniently to hold 2 pacifiers or 1 pacifier and Pacifinder®!"

Dr. Talbots Diaper Rash Cream:
"Engineered to be the best, Dr. Talbot's Diaper Rash Ointment was first developed by Dr. Ralph Jefferson Talbot in 1933. This zinc oxide and Peruvian balsam ointment helps soothe and prevent diaper rash, while moisturizing your baby's delicate skin."

Any mama (or daddy) and baby would be super lucky to receive all these Nuby goodies for their little one on the way... and as I HUGE Nuby supporter, I can confidently recommend them all... After baby number 3 - we still have some Nuby items that get regular use from years ago... and are still buying new ones as they come out! So - help me help you get your entries in to get your hands on this prize...

To enter: 

*Each # below is a separate entry, comment below (in separate comments) which each number you complete... The #10 entry is MANDATORY - each extra (1-9) are extra chances at being entered!

1: Fan Nuby Usa on Facebook

2: Follow Nuby on Twitter

3: Follow Nuby on Instagram - @nubyusa

4: Follow Nuby on Pinterest

5: Fan RockerByeBaby on Facebook

6: Follow RockerByeBaby on Twitter

7: Follow RockerByeBaby on Instagram. -@rockerbyebaby

8: Follow RockerByeBaby on Pinterest

9: Follow the Nuby USA YouTube Channel for videos and review by moms like me!!
10: Tell me why you want to win this giveaway from Nuby

Good Luck!!

**I was not compensated in any way for this post, just provided with product to review and giveaway.

 

Vans Warped Tour!!

Yesterday was the Minneapolis warped tour... and it was awesome.... originally we weren't planning on going... but while Zaq was touring he got to meet the guys from Taking Back Sunday. So when we heard they were coming through we wanted to get together. Eddie and I did a little trade, and made him some clothes for his kids in exchange for the backstage passes. Awesome deal!

SO this is what I whipped up for him...

He seemed to really love what I made for him, and I hope to see some pictures soon! After the "swap"we had the whole day just to wander around... It was SOOOOO incredibly hot... but we had loads of fun... 

Yellowcard, The Used, Mayday Parade, Polar Bear Club, The Company We Keep, Rise Against and more... but Taking Back Sunday was by far the best... 

My throat definitely hurt after the TBS show... *thats Eddie over there on the right*

We did lots of walking... the boys did their best to grab some attention... these two? No way... they don't like attention *psssh*

All in all it was a great day... a long, hot, exhausting day... but a great day none-the-less... and Im thankful for all these guys *and gals* that keep Warped Tour alive... it can't be easy going city to city day after day in this insane heat. If you get a chance to make it out to warped tour come back here and let us know! Would love to hear about it!

"OUR" wedding Photographers, AE Photography are in town for a week!!

Check it out - i stole this from their blog so you can share in the deals... to ANY of you in the Minneapolis area - i urge you to JUMP at this deal :)

do you live in or around minneapolis?  would you like a session done by ae?  day after, trash the dress, fashion bridal, senior, boudoir, engagement, family, baby, maternity, child, loveshoot, product, business, or just a fun portrait shoot??  well, you're in luck!  since we will be there already, there will be no travel fees (within a reasonable distance from minneapolis), and we will be offering shoots at the discounted price of:

$250 -- which includes a full photo disc with every image and release rights to print whenever and wherever you would like!

*1-2 hours of shoot time

*full photo disc

*complete editing + retouching for every image

*online gallery for you, family & friends to view and order prints (if you'd like)

*$50 print credit to be used within 1 week of your gallery being fully posted.  good for prints, products & albums.

sessions are typically $499 with your choice of photo disc, prints or an album--and you may add on all 3 at an additional charge... so this is a great deal.

why are we doing this?!

because we are dying to shoot in this lovely spring weather.

because we LOVE shooting in new locations.

because we will be on a mini vacation, so we will be in extra good moods!

because we have a lot of new, fun ideas we are just thrilled about bringing to life!

because we love taking pictures... all the time, simple as that.

SO -- if you're interested in booking a session from the 21st of March to the 27th, email us RIGHT NOW (because it's, like, next week!) and let's get your scheduled!   limited slots available. more details will be sent out when we hear from you.  feel free to email us with any questions you might have before actually booking.  we look forward to hopefully having fun photographing some of you!!

happy spring!

Mentoring Monday: How to Relate

How to Relate?

My mind constantly wonders about what kind of person my daughter will be. For most of the questions, I don’t care about what the answers are specifically. I am just excited to find them out because I look forward to getting to know her as a person. Will she be boisterous like her parents or the opposite of us: shy and quiet? Will her favorite color be something like pastel pink or neon orange? Will she be a picky eater like her dad, or eat anything put in front of her like her mom? Will she be straight or gay? It’s these kinds of questions I look forward to watching her figure out the answers for herself, all the while daddy and me loving and guiding her along the way. But I realistically know it won’t always be that romantic. There will inevitably be questions she answers that we will have to work hard at understanding. Answers that will make us wonder, “Where’d she get that from?” Answers that will cock our heads to one side and crinkle our brows upward, much like this:

What if she has no interest in baseball, but likes football (we’re not at all football fans)? ...Okay, so we learn to like football. What if she doesn’t understand our passion for music and arts, but instead is equally moved by agriculture? …Then we learn about agriculture with her, and encourage the passion even if it’s not our own. What if her favorite band is Insane Clown Posse or she’s into crunk core music? …I have to be honest: I shudder at this one--not sure how to bridge that gap.

It’s easy to fantasize our children-to-be being like us; being interested by the same subjects we are. Partly because we understand no one better than ourselves and partly because it’s romantic to think we’ll relate so intimately with someone we already love so much. Surely we rub off on our kids. For proof, you don’t have to look any farther than the mirror. We have, to varying degrees, already started to become our parents. But it is inevitable that our children will throw us personality curveballs, just as we did to our parents.

The greater question is, “How will I relate to my child’s interest when I’m not naturally interested in the subject?” What efforts will I have to make to relate to Madeline; to get inside her head and more adequately understand where her head is; what she is going through; how she is feeling when I don’t think it’s that big of a deal. I’m only 25, and I say all the time, “I just don’t understand kids today.” I sound like my 85 year old grandmother. But it’s the same every time there is a generation younger than another with a culture all their own. We use our experiences to relate to others, but this is a fallible tactic. Our experiences are, more often than not, different from those of others. And instead of trying to see the world from their eyes, we try to understand them from ours.

How many times when you were a kid did you say to your parents, “You just don’t understand?” And how lost and alone did it make you feel? It’s true: they didn’t understand (insert Fresh Prince comment here), and neither will we unless we use a different approach. The thing I will have to remember when I get frustrated because I just don’t understand my child is that when you break it down, she’s going through the same phase that I did: it’s just that she has different influences (parents, friends, culture, interests) that color that phase than I did. A co-worker and friend of mine told me early on in my pregnancy, “Don’t ever forget what it was like to be a kid.” That is quite possibly my favorite advice so far. When I want to say, “Oh grow up,” when she’s being juvenile and trivial, I need to remember she’s trying to (grow up, that is). I need to remember that what she’s going through, no matter how dumb it may seem to me, is a huge deal to her because it’s the biggest deal she’s had to deal with yet. The tribulations of youth pale in comparison to adult responsibilities when you’re an adult, but when you’re a kid, having the right clothes, the right friends, etc. is necessary for survival: emotional survival. Because all you know at that point is emotional survival.

This mentality will also come in handy when all she says is, “No,” and “Mine!” When you are used to the world as you know it (your home and parents) revolving around you, sharing is a strange and frustrating concept to try and wrap your little head around. And although I will persevere in my dominant role as parent, and as impossible as it may seem to keep cool while she goes through her bratty stage, I must remember that the defiant “no” is her exercising her first revelation of free will and independence: qualities I want her to have to become a strong confident woman.

Mentoring Monday: Does this make me a Grown Up?

Adam is having a bit of writers block lately so meet Maddies mama, Aymee! (Or in my house known as MiMi... ) She has so graciously stepped up to fill his spot for awhile... Yay! Love you Aymee! Hope your enjoying your baby bash!

What separates the young adults from the full-blown adults? At which point do you cross over? Is the right of passage turning 18? Moving out on your own? Buying your first car (when you buy it, not your parents)? Having a child of your own? When you buy a home?

Age 18 separates minors from legal adults. But as we all know when you’re 18, you’re still just a kid--but with legal responsibility for yourself, the right to vote, and the right to buy cigarettes. I was a mature, responsible 18 year-old, but still a kid nonetheless. When I turned 25, I had one of those “oh my god” moments. I realized I was now a quarter-century old (not saying that’s old, just that it’s a milestone), and that I was in a new age box: no longer 18-24, I was 25-30. “Holy cow!” I said to myself. I reflected on my past, and made decisions about my future. What it this transition that made me a “grown-up?” I have felt like an adult for a little while now; getting married, moving all over the Midwest, paying bills, etc. But I’m about to turn 26 and still don’t feel the term “grown-up” applies. I feel like a twenty-something; a twenty-something with a husband and daughter.  That’s not weird to think about; it’s the “grown-up” part. Grown-ups are those we look to for guidance on how to do this thing appropriately named growing up, mainly because they’re already there. My mom’s a grown-up. My boss is a grown-up. …Or are they?

As a kid, you assume an adult knows all the answers. But it’s so not true! Adam was once told (about parenting) that adults don’t know all the answers. But you take what you know and try to direct your child in what you think is the best direction. We’ve still got no clue what we’re doing! We’re still carefully stepping around in the dark, making decisions about moving forward into the unknown. Only now, there are less people offering to guide us and more people looking to sell us a map, and we are expected to make the “right” decision. Not one of us has had a miraculous transformation from child to grown-up. We’re the same children we were before; only now, we have become more confident with walking around in the dark.

So maybe that’s the answer to my question. Maybe having a kid does make you a grown-up, but we don’t see the transformation from our point of view. Maybe the transformation can only be seen from the eyes of the ones we are now leading: our children.

Swinger Sunday - Sometimes being GREEN sucks!

I was so excited to be asked to guest blog for Amber! Well, until I had to think about what to write, that is. RockerByeBaby is all cool and edgy and Amber has cool and edgy friends that do cool things.

I’m just a treehugging law school geek! I have no kids and nothing fun to write about!

But then I just asked myself “What is something you wanted to blog about but can’t on your blog?” And then it hit me: I wanted to write about why being ethical and green really sucks sometimes. So, what follows is the bitter rantings of a pretty square business owner. (: Sort of punky and rockery right?

So--- sometimes being ethical and green all the time sucks!

I own a business that really hangs its hat on being the greenest brand out there. We source organic US-grown cotton to make garments made in the US that are then dyed naturally and printed with waterbased inks. I, personally, have collaborated on some technology that makes our garments easily the most eco-friendly out there. We have our garments sewn by co-ops owned by refugees that are supporting their large families on their work with us. We never cut a single corner on greenness or social responsibility.

Yes, this all sounds great and I sleep easier at night and I love looking people in the eye when I truthfully tell them our supply chain and all that.

BUT what these standards do to my stress levels SUCKS. And sometimes I just want to VENT about it

Jodie, our designer, is a genius. She makes cool stuff. And so she sends me a design I love and I am like “YES!” and then send it to our printer and we can’t get the colors right because of the ec-friendly inks we use. So that is scrapped. Or Jodie and I will want to create a certain product but the co-op that does our work doesn’t have the machinery to handle it. So its scrapped, too. And we want to dye shirts but crunched up bugs and plants can only dye so many colors. So lots of color ideas are scrapped.

Our costs are super high because we are 100% USA made. We donate way over 30% of our profits. We basically donate whatever we have in our bank account. I do this because I feel obligated. I have a business that has a bank account, so I should be helping these people. We grow so so slowly because our margin is small and that margin goes to other people. I’ve never taken a cent from the business personally.

So we go to trade shows and these brands that put the “Organic” sticker on their booth have one garment made from like “organic bamboo” (which is very rare and therefore likely isn’t even organic and bamboo is like... as ecofriendly and polyester, oh, but I digress) and they are dyed in a shade of blue I know uses heavy metals and they are printed with white (which ALWAYS is done using plastic or a toxic wax) and they are acting like they are saving the planet. And I ask where they are made and they smile and say “China  and India of course!” THEN because they have the organic stockers and are super cute and have low prices buyers flock to them. And THEN most buyers look at our pieces, that due to legitimate eco- and socio-constraints are more plain and expensive and the buyers think “Pfft.... no way.”

That SUCKS, right?

So on the weekends, as I chat with friends that are also in the kids industry, I realize how different our lifestyles are. They make blankets and clothing abroad for about $4 each, and wholesale for $40 and retail for $80. They are making draws from their business of over 100k a year and are very well dressed and groomed. They spend their day chatting and designing and paying a large staff and getting massages and going to expensive lunches. I spend my day in dirty jeans with a 8 year old t-shirt getting calls from our sewers that all their kids have the flu and they won’t be in all week and our stuff will be a few weeks late. And then calling retailers to explain. And dealing with sales smaller than similar brands due to our high pricepoint. And dealing with our school in Haiti that has barebones structural support and cash reserves to continue due to the additional people being fed by the rice and beans it stocks. And stressing about the slow progress of our new website because we have no money in our bank account (see previous sentence.) And stressing about how we will pay for our Fall catolog to be printed if I need to send our school in El Salvador a check. And figuring out how to pay Jodie her weight in gold (her worth, basically.) And digging out cans and bottles from public garbage cans to take home and recycle because, well, why did someone throw them in there in the first place?

Being green and ethical SUCKS! It makes me work my ass off all day long just to keep the business moving and grooving and for what? So some kids in Haiti can go to school? So some kids in Texas won’t have to drink water with pesticides? Oh. Uh. Actually, YES.  So I calm down and buckle down and keep doing it.

But sometimes I just need to VENT! So thank you for listening.

Hi guys - its me... i know I mention pretty much, well, all the time... how much i love Kyle... she always amazes me... and this right here... this post is exactly why i wanted to start the Swinger Sunday... a chance for people to vent... spill it all here... get it all off their chest... Kyle asked me if this was too "bitchy" haha... I read it, and said nope, not bitchy at all... thats Kyle. Always working her ass off... Never getting a break... and I now see... not even taking any profits for her hard work. Giving SO much more than she gets... This girl deserves a medal. She is easily the most self-less person i know... every time I think im having a bad day, kyle and I rant on gmail... we usually have a 10 minute "bitch" fest where we freak out about what ridicules thing is going on in the stores... take a deep breath, and move on... But every time, i leave feeling better having had talked to her. Kyle, your amazing. I love you girlie!

Super Special Friday Giveaway! Featuring BabyBooFelt

Attention.... ATTENTION PLEASE! *ahem* thanks.... i am PLEASED to announce that Ailie, the mama behind BabyBooFelt had her beautiful baby girl on Wednesday... after a LONG few days... lots of worries... LOTS of contractions... she was brought into the world via. Emergency C Section... Talk about making a diva style entrance!! The first couple days were a little rough... she was about 2 weeks early and weighed in at just over 4 pounds... in the photo below she still had a breathing tube, which is gone now and she is breathing on her own, YAY!

Last night mommy got to nurse her, and she did great...  

Shes doing better and better each day... Ailie gets to go home Saturday but Lilly will have to stay a bit longer.... so lets keep her busy with LOTS of felt food orders :) Congrats to Ailie & Dan and big brother Gavin... a new addition to your beautiful family :) Now, On with the giveaway!!

Most of you know about my felt food obsession... we have very quickly acquired to giant tubs full... Im not sure who likes it more, me? Or the boys... well, either way Ailie is the best of the best when it comes to adorably hand crafted felt snacks :) We have everything from little shrimps & tofu... breakfast sets... taco's... chicken nuggets and fries... and the newest addition... chocolate cake with strawberries!!

 First off, they love anything dessert related... that always gets their attention... like the cookies... donuts.... etc. Second, I love the the cake comes in pieces... 1 big cake... with a ton of little strawberries that you can pile on top... or take them off and play with them separately... totally adorable!!Lastly... the come in lots of different flavors for the ultimate "creative play" experience... Strawberry, Vanilla & Chocolate...

amazing right!? I dunno how she has the patience for it all... so many tiny little details... Now, I started the felt obsession around christmas time... Zavery is behind in his speech just like Gavin was (her son) She really urged using the food as a way to help him to develop faster and it REALLY has helped. Im so grateful for her advice... we talk about the names of the food... the colors of the food... how we eat the food... what we put with the food... we could the foods... we could the seeds/dots on the food... and the list goes on and on... its been such an amazing way to get him to sit down & learn & practice without him even knowing it... he has made great strides in the last month and I really think alot of it has to do with their little kitchen & felt food. *Keep it up Zave, mama's proud of you!*

So obviously you see where im going with this... ;) You guys are quick! There is a giveaway this week... but not with one... TWO prizes... we have ONE VANILLA/Strawberry cake to giveaway... and ONE STRAWBERRY/Strawberry cake to giveaway... but before I get to that... i wanna say really quick - i would love to see alot of sales in the BABYBOOFELT shop while they are stuck in the hospital... I went and bought a hot dog and the m&m candies... help her out with hospital bills, keep her busy while she is waiting for tiny little Lilly to come home... Im sure they will appreciate it... now- back to business ;)

#1:  Mandatory entry:  Tell us one item that you just LOVE from the BabyBooFelt etsy store.

Extra entries?? But of course :)
EACH ENTRY MUST BE LEFT IN A SEPARATE COMMENT TO COUNT!!!!!

#2) Follow us publicly here on (blogger) - Leave a separate comment for being a (old or new) follower on our blog.
#3) Follow/Tweet us (Twitter) - Leave a separate comment for being a follower and TWEETING about this giveaway on Twitter... If your already a twitter follower of ours, TWEET about it for an extra entry anyways :) Can tweet once daily for extra entries!

Tweet This: "Free Giveaway: TWO WINNERS felt food for creative play - handmade by @babyboofelt Prize = a vanilla or strawberry cake http://bit.ly/aJrrKZ"

#4) Be brave... tell me something you LOVE about yourself.

#5) Fan RockerByeBaby on Facebook...

#6)"Heart" the BabyBooFelt etsy page, and "favorite/heart" two items...

#7) "Heart" the RockerByeBaby etsy page, and "favorite/heart" two items...

#8) Follow BabyBooFelt on twitter!

#9) BIG BONUS: Make a purchase from BabyBooFelt... any $ amount, just a purchase... come back here and leave FIVE comments with the link to the transaction.... thats 5 extra entries... 

A Sad little Sunday Something... Sharing...

There are a million things that sometimes suck about being a mom... right? I think we can all agree... the fighting, the yelling... the cooking... the cleaning... the working... and after all of that, at the end of the day they all still need more... kids & husband alike... But, there are a million things that are great about being a mom... The love of your kids... feeling that love in someone else... and KNOWING they feel the same... that feeling of being needed and wanted... growing a child... teaching them new things and watching their little wheels turn... and seeing that excitement when they learn something new... and today... today was an all new experience. Zaq was home watching the football game & I had some errands to run... were down to just one car now so when I have an opportunity I have to take it. So I loaded up the boys... and off we went. First to the post office... Zave fussed the whole way there... and back into the car... zave fussed some more... and some more... he was on a roll for the fussiness. Izzaq was being great... its amazing how this little baby has turned into a 3 year old walking talking little man... he has so much personality... i love it.... we were having a nice little talk about the big mountains and the hot sun when we rolled up to a stop light... Now, Sun City *where the post office is* Is a retirement community. Filled with all sorts of sweet old men and women just living it up in Cali. Except for one man... At the corner of this stop light was a sad old man. My eyes filled with tears, he looked exactly like my Grandpa Brown *who passed away when I was 13 and miss dearly.* Skin tanned from the sun... wrinkly from age... with big 'ol apple cheek bones.. a scruffy salt & pepper beard... bushy eye brows and loving brown eyes. Its amazing the details that you can pick up in an instance. I swear... they were so alike that It could have been him. I guess if you believe in that sort of thing... maybe it was. He was wearing an army jacket & pants... holding a sign that said "Every Little Bit Helps." I looked back at Izzaq & said... Izzaq, see this man? He doesn't have a house. And he is hungry, so were gunna share our money with him. *im choking up just typing, geesh* So Izzaq said ok mama... lets share. So I pull up to him... roll down the window... grab a HUGE handfull of change from the car... and izzaq yells from the backseat... "HI! We gunna share my moneys with you to eat!" and he reached across the car and held out his hand... with a big smile on his face..."Bless ya Girl, Thank you" I smiled. Looked back at izzaq and fought back tears. I have NO idea why this hit me so hard... maybe because he reminded me so much of my grandpa... maybe because im just an emotional girl today... or maybe because IzzaQ is growing up... I dunno. I always try to help anyone out when I can... I donate money when I can... I donate product when I can... I donate clothes and toys to shelters... and if I have change... i give it... but this was different. It was the most rewarding moment as a mother that I have had yet... in that 30 seconds sitting at that stop light I taught a lesson to my son... Share... not just your toys when you playing... but everything... if you have enough, give to someone else... and in those 30 seconds... i realized I really have a chance to help change the world... Its more than just an opportunity to "Pay it Forward"... more than good Karma... Our world is a crazy messed up place... and i face it with my irrational fears every day. And us moms & dads really can make a difference. It doesnt matter if your black or white... a hippie or a punk... a christian or an atheist... if we all took the time to teach these simple morals and values the world would be a better place... we have the opportunity to help grow one more selfless caring and sharing person to make a difference... Thats enough rambling for my day off of blogging... I just wanted to share that with you... it was very emotional for me... I ljust want to leave you with one more thought... What did you teach your child/children today? What do you do as a mom (or dad), to instill good values in your children?