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Wednesday, September 3, 2014

September Goals

How is it possible that it is September 3rd already? I turn 24 this month! In a week, but who is counting? I am so excited! Birthdays are always fun, in my opinion. So with September being here already I wanted to go ahead and jump on the goals bandwagon. Everyone in the blogosphere writes their monthly goals and it holds them accountable. I think that accountability is great! It really makes you evaluate what you are doing with your life and what you want out of life. I am excited to start accomplishing more. Life is passing us by and I don't want to just live it- I want to live it to the fullest! So, here we go!

1) Share my Limu Experience and story with as many people as possible. Y'all this stuff has me SO EXCITED!! I just want to help everyone out and change their life!!
2) Mom's night out this weekend and staying overnight without the kids! It will be my first time away from Abram overnight ever! I am really not too nervous because I know Ryan can handle it.
3) I want to make sure that I am doing plenty of fun things with my kids. So, I want to make it a mission to go to the aquarium, zoo, insectarium, and library at least once this month.
4) Read 3 network marketing books. I want my business to grow and succeed so I want to make sure that I am learning all that I can.
5) Join a gym and go at least once a week.

Do you do monthly goals? I would love to hear about them!

Monday, August 25, 2014

Abram Ryan: 10 Months

Y'all, I am not even going to say it because if you have kids I know you know exactly what I am going to say. My little dude is ten months! My, oh my, how time flies when you are having fun!! On one hand I can not believe it has been ten months already. On the other, I can't believe it has only been ten months. This little boy fits into our lives like a glove and I can't even begin to imagine what life would be like without him (or his big sister-who is THE BEST big sister ever) for that matter.

Stats: I just weighed him tonight and according to our home scale he is 19.8 pounds! Holy guacamole dude. You storing up for winter? Ha! Length, I have no idea except that he is outgrowing his onesies and shorts in length. He is wearing 3-6 month shorts (and they are still swallowing him) and shirts are 9 months, rompers are usually 9 months. He is wearing size 2 diapers still and probably a size two shoe? I am not really sure on the shoes either because it seems a size 2 is different in every single shoe- which drives me batty.

Food. Is AR's best friend. I kid you not. He eats everything. If he can eat it before it eats him? He will absolutely try! It is INSANE the amount of food the kid eats. Formula? Meh, he could not care less. But food wise, he is a bottomless pit. Craziness. The other day at McDonald's he ate SIX chicken nuggets, a handful of fries, and a 5 ounce bottle and was still begging for more. How much did his big sister eat? Two! Like I said, he doesn't play when it comes to food. He only eats purees every so often- he really isn't interested in them. It almost seems like baby led weaning but I am too paranoid for that so it is just some things. He eats spaghetti, chicken nuggets, meatloaf, mashed potatoes, French fries, veggies of all kinds, bananas, basically if you can feed it to him he will eat it. Last month we had friends over and the kids had 'fun sticks' (fish sticks) for dinner on their little table. Well, they walked away to play and Abram was in his walker. I look over and he is downing a fish stick! When I walked over to him he attempted to hide it- the little sneak! He does that all the time when he is eating things he should not be eating.

He is officially taking a few steps here and there. He has always been very interested in walking more so than crawling, so I really wasn't surprised. We got a couple videos with the annoying mom voice- you know which one I am talking about. Ha! He is also officially really crawling, not the lazy army crawl/drag your leg business he was doing. He said 'dada' for the first time too! He is the sweetest, most independent baby ever. No one can make him light up like his sister does, but he is most definitely a mama's boy through and through. First birthday preparations are well under way! We can't wait to watch you grow up, AR. You complete us!! We love you so much!
Love,
Mom, Dad, and Lex Lex

Saturday, August 23, 2014

My Limu Experience:My Story

Every little thing that you do in life is done for a reason- some are for good reasons, some are for bad reasons, some are selfish, some are selfless, but whatever your drive for that decision it was yours to make. What does this have to do with Limu? It has everything to do with my personal story.

One reason that I took a leap of faith and decided I was all in on this is because of who introduced me- my godfather. He is a very intelligent business man, has always been in my life, I trust his instincts and experience, and I know 100% he would never steer me wrong. Another thing that was a deciding factor for me was seeing all these business minded people Promoting and using Limu. To me- that spoke volumes. All of these people lead very busy lives with personal businesses- if they weren't benefitting I know they wouldn't waste their time with it.  Then when I sat down and watched the videos, heard the testimonials, and did the research (specifically on pubmed.gov) and  I was sold. Hook, line and sinker- I was in. I am determined, I am passionate, and I am excited! I am going to take this to the top and I am taking my team with me. I know it won't be easy but is anything that is worth it easy? Absolutely not. And I don't know about you but I am willing to do what I have to do to give my kids the life they deserve. No one can stop me! People are led to do things by two different reasons- inspiration and desperation.

For a while now I have been praying for God to bring us something that is going to be a radical change and this? Is it. I want to help people- financially and health wise. Health and wealth are huge in life! Money definitely isn't everything but it sure makes things much easier. You could have all the money in the world but without health? It is useless to you! I want to help people get healthy, live lives they have always dreamed of, and be financially free and living life to the fullest. That is my goal and what I wake up every day thinking of what I can do next to get there.

If you are interested in learning what Limu is or the health benefits please do not hesitate to email me. I would absolutely love to talk with you about it and get you headed on your own life changing decision!

Friday, August 22, 2014

My Limu Experience!

Have you ever heard of the Limu Experience? Well, I would love to tell you our story- and it is changing every day!! Email me at Vincent.danielle@ymail.com and I will get back with you as soon as possible. Also, if you don't know what Limu is and wanted to learn more about it, please email me. So I wanted to just keep track of our personal progress and how we are feeling and what we are taking exactly. I am not being reimbursed by Limu to talk about our story or how it is helping us, I am just a promoter and very passionate about this product that can change so many peoples lives for a variety of reasons! I want everyone to know about it, what it does, and how it is changing our lives.

The product that I was most excited about was the energy drinks. Y'all know I have two small children and most of you are moms yourselves, so you know how exhausting that is! I don't know about you but coffee is not my favorite and usually it makes me feel gross and sick. So? Most days I just deal with the exhaustion and nap- lots of naps with the kids, ha! I don't do energy drinks- they are nasty (taste like alcohol to me), make me feel jittery, speed up my heart rate, and to be quite honest I am terrified they are going to make me have a heart attack. Even though I could definitely use the extra energy boost it isn't worth my life. Insert Blu Frog and Blu Frog 2. These two energy drinks are a healthy alternative to Monster, Red Bull, etc. and I can definitely get excited about that.

Now, I am going to fill you in on our first couple days of Our Limu Experience. My mother in law has a variety of health issues and she is taking it, so we will be tracking her progress. And my dad has a couple things I think could be helped by this so we will also be following his journey a little bit. Human nature makes people skeptical and I completely understand that. Going into this Ryan, my dad, and my Millie are all skeptical. I fully believe in this stuff- I know it works and I have people I trust that have experienced it themselves. I want to be able to say that I saw for myself and watched their lives change for the better. How amazing does it feel to help others? Being blessed is blessing others! I am ready to do more. Ready to be more. And shout from the rooftops 'Let me help you!' I would love to have you following along on our journey. Feel free to ask any questions you may have- no question is a dumb question. Let's do this. I am Danielle Vincent and I am Limu. You can visit my Limu website at rvincent.iamlimu.com

Wednesday, August 13, 2014

Summer So Far.

This summer I was working three days a week so when I had off days I wanted to make sure to do plenty of special things with the kids. We have had a pretty low key summer but it has been fun! This is just some of what we have been up to for the month of July. 


 This guy is my shopper- he is the BEST shopping budy. This was him spending 4 hours in hobby lobby the day they opened. He was just as excited as I was, as you can see :)
Selfies with mama!
 Silly faces <3
 Lexi has a Frozen Tea Party birthday party and I wanted to put a little spin on her outfit so this is what I came up with. Introducing: Queen Elsa! She had a blast and still wears the costume.
 This little guy turned 9 months and this was the best picture that I could get.
 'Riding' together in the car. We were sitting in the driveway- no worries :)

 Wagon ride and walk for these silly kids!
 My whole world, minus their daddy.


This girl here. I could talk about her all day. From her personality, to her looks, to her silly quirks, and what she says. She keeps me on my toes. All the time. I wouldn't change her for the world

Wednesday, August 6, 2014

This is the Stuff

Hey y'all! Some of you may not know me or you do but things have changed. I just wanted to update my litte area a tiny bit so here we go. Hi! I am Danielle- wife to Ryan and mom to Lexi (3) and Abram (9 months) and furbaby Maverick. We live in Louisiana on the Westbank, which people around here refer to as the best bank. Ha! I just like that it rhymes. I work Part time and am a full time mommy the rest of the time. My family is my life- I can't imagine life without them. I enjoy crafting (hello, Pinterest!), cupcakes, reading, way too much television, and doing fun and random things.

This little blog of mine is a great little outlet for me. From ramblings to serious things to monthly posts tracking the kids growth I love coming here!! It is my little slice of internet over here and even though I am not here regularly, I am determined to start posting more. The friends that I have made through this blog are amazing- seriously y'all I never understood 'internet friends' until I had them. I can definitely say that one of my best friends I met through this place.

I just wanted to do a little recap of why I am blogging and a little about myself. I first started blogging when Lexi was a baby. Once you become a mom keeping up with little moments is huge! But sometimes it gets lost in being a mom. That's where this place came in. I recapped what she was up to during months, documented firsts and fun events, and even ranted.

The song Francesca Battistelli 'This is the Stuff' was my life at the time and I could relate so much to it, which is why I named this blog 'This is the Stuff'. THIS is my stuff- the crazy, the happy, the sad, the confusing- all of it is mine! It is how big I am blessed, and I am so blessed! I really am. I find myself asking daily how I got so blessed. Once I had the name I knew I had to find a verse that went along with not only the blog but my life. John 1:16 stuck out to me big time. 'From the fullness of his grace we have all received one blessing after another' Does that speak volumes to you? It sure does me! It tells me all the blessings in my life- big, small, and in between are from God. He is there for me. He wants the best for me. Whether I disappoint him, ignore him, don't trust him, no matter what he is constantly blessing me. What an amazing gift!!

I am not sure where this blog is headed but I want to continue to use it as an outlet and to document our lives. I know the days can be long but the years are short. I want to be able to look back and see what we were doing, how we felt, and just what life in general was for us. Thanks for taking the time to get to know me and I look forward to getting to know you. Don't be shy-come on over to the comments and introduce yourself!

Friday, August 1, 2014

Giveaways I am entereing!

I don't know about y'all but I love winning things! It may not happen very often but when it does it is so much fun! Then it makes you want to enter even more! So I figured I would share some of the ones I am entering. You can just click on the links and it takes you right there. Some sites that I follow regularly for giveaways are: Mommy's Craft Obsession, Viva Veltoro, Thrifty Nifty Mommy, Everything Mommyhood, and The Parenting Patch.
 
Combi Go and Grow
 
 
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Combi Go and Grow Walker, Play Table & Chairs Review &...
I told you on Facebook to be on the lookout for a giveaway for those who are expecting or who are having a baby, so here it is! We have a fabulous giveaway up for g...
Preview by Yahoo
 
 
Febreze and AmEx gift card ends 8/5
 
 
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Preview by Yahoo
 
 
Step two tidy cottage ends 8/14
 
 
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Personalizing your child's play space! Plus, a Step2 Nea...
A review and giveaway for the Step2 Neat & Tidy Cottage II, plus tips to personalize your child's playspace.
Preview by Yahoo
 
 
Kids embrace car seat ends 8/12
 
 
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Kids Embrace Toddler Car Seat Giveaway! - Viva Veltoro
A giveaway for the Kids Embrace Toddler Car Seat.
Preview by Yahoo
 
 
Mama and Papas rocker ends 8/7
 
 
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Mamas & Papas Rock ‘n Ride Talking Lotty Giveaway end...
Welcome to the ROCK N’ RIDE TALKING LOTTY Giveaway! Sponsored by Mamas & Papas Hosted by Conservamom Give baby their first set of wheels with Rock n’ Ri...
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#mysummerjourney safety first giveaway ends 8/9
 
 
 
 
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Mommy's Obsessions: #MySummerJourney With Safety 1st!
*Mommy's Obsessions received compensation in the form of product and monetary for the promotion of this review/campaign. As always, all thoughts and opinions ar...
Preview by Yahoo
 
 
Sophie Giraffe teether set giveaway ands 8/10
 
 
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Mommy's Obsessions: Sophie la Girafe Plush & Teether Set...
*Mommy's Obsessions received a complimentary Sophie la Girafe set for review in exchange for our honest thoughts and opinions*
Preview by Yahoo
 
 
Tree top climb and slide giveaway ends 8/12
 
 
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Mommy's Obsessions: Tree Top Climb & Slide Giveaway!
*Mommy's Obsessions did not receive compensation for the promotion of this giveaway* It's summer and there's no better time to spend outside than now! 
Preview by Yahoo
 
 
 
$25 gift certificate to Petite Trinkets ends 8/12
 
 
 
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Mommy's Obsessions: Petite Trinklets Custom Necklace R...
*Mommy's Obsessions received a complimentary custom necklace for review in exchange for my honest thoughts and opinions*
Preview by Yahoo
 
 
Tiny Love infant prize pack ends 8/14
 
 
 
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Mommy's Obsessions: Ultimate Tiny Love Infant Prize Bu...
*Mommy's Obsessions received a complimentary Woodland Take Along Arch and Tummy Time Mat for review in exchange for her honest thoughts and opinions*
Preview by Yahoo
 
 
HP pavilion tablet and printer ends 8/2
 
 
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HP Pavilion x360 Notebook & HP ENVY 5530 Printer Gi...
Don't miss your chance to win the HP Pavilion x360 Notebook & HP ENVY 5530 Printer Giveaway on Jenns Blah Blah Blog! This awesome giveaway valued over $500
Preview by Yahoo
 
 
 
BBQ starter kit, sauce and $100 GC ends 8/9
 
 
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CattleBoyz Starter Kit, BBQ Sauce, and $100 Gift Certifi...
I have never worked with Cattleboyz myself, but I have heard great things about them! Mom Powered Media along with Everything Mommyhood and a handful of oth...
Preview by Yahoo
 
 
Boon Pedestal high chair ends 8/15
 
 
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Boon Flair Pedestal High Chair Giveaway - ends 8/15
I did not receive compensation for this giveaway. All opinions are those of my own.   Do you have a new baby in your life? Maybe you know someone that does. Of cour...
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$1000 back to school gift card (10 winners) ends 8/19
 
Panasonic 32 inch LED LCD tv ends 9/1
 

Friday, July 25, 2014

Budgeting: Grocery Store Edition

I don't know about y'all but I am always looking for ways to save money. We spend some serious money at the grocery store. I literally feel like I could just hand over my check right to the because seriously. It is a little ridiculous. Food is EXPENSIVE and there is no way around it. We don't meal plan because it ends up being more expensive for us. Yes, I am that weirdo that spends way more meal planning that I do winging it. I am probably doing it wrong and that's why it is so expensive but I just give up on it. I am by no means an expert but I am going to share two tips that help me stay under budget or right on and some meals that are in our rotation. Do we go over budget sometimes? Absolutely! Are we under sometimes? Yes, definitely. I try to keep our budget at $100 a week but it includes diapers, wipes, toilet paper, toothpaste, soap/shampoo, etc. when we run out during the month.

Plan and Guesstimate
I LOVE FOOD. Giving myself a $100 budget for food for four people used to stress me out. In my head I see myself and the kids starving to death because we don't have food. Am I being dramatic? Absolutely. I just LOVE food, ha! When it comes time to go grocery shopping I make a list of things we need and want then I guesstimate what they cost. Most things we buy regularly so my guesstimate is pretty close. Another thing that I do is I either round up to the dollar or add a dollar for tax. This makes my guesstimated total higher than my actual checkout total usually but then I get so excited because I was under! Woohoo!! If our list exceeds our budget I start cutting things- never anything we NEED. If we need it, I will go over budget sometimes but I try to stay under when it is possible.

Name brand vs. Off brand
Some people are very serious about only buying brand name things. I don't have a problem buying the off brand. There are a few things that I will not buy off brand- macaroni and cheese and chicken nuggets (Great value ones we had last time were ORANGE. Blech!!), Little Crunchies by Gerber, and Huggies Natural care wipes. We use Parent's Choice diapers. Many people are against this and I was with y'all. I loved Pampers! However, for half the price we gave PC a try and we love them. We haven't had any issues at all with them and I love the money we save buying them.

Meals
We are a simple family. We don't have these extravagant and fancy meals. I don't have the time to devote to preparing them and cleaning up the mess after and I find it is more expensive. If you are one of those people? Awesome!! I am a firm believer in you have time what you make time for and cooking/cleaning the mess isn't my choice. I like trash tv much more ;) We usually have ground meat, fish, and chicken in our freezer at all times. We are a huge chicken family. Huge. We eat chicken in one way or another at least three days a week. The other days we will have ground meat or fish. We really don't eat out too much because it gets so expensive! We eat tacos, hamburgers, shepherds pie, meatloaf and mashed potatoes, grilled chicken salad, chicken salad, grilled chicken, chicken and potatoes, fish, red beans and rice, and pork chops occasionally. For lunch Ryan brings a sandwich and snacks. The kids and I will eat a pack of those $1 noodles or rice mixes and some type of meat- chicken nuggets, hot dogs, or lunch meat.

So, tell me, What is your weekly/monthly budget on groceries? Do you meal plan? What are you eating? Do you have things you buy specific brands of?

Thursday, July 24, 2014

Abram Ryan: 9 Months!

I can not even believe that we are only three short months away from your first birthday! On one hand it seems like you have been here forever, but at the same time it seems like you were just born yesterday. I can't even imagine our lives without you and you complete our family! This month you are up to no good, ha!!




 
(These pictures are terrible but he literally would not stay still long enough for a picture. Such is life. )

You are weighing in at 16 pounds and 6 ounces and 26.5 inches long, which puts you in the less than 5 percentile. I think you are just a small little guy, just like your bib sister. You are eating 4-5 ounces every 3-4 hours, starting to stretch to 4 hours. You eat three meals a day and at least snack twice. You are a bottomless pit! I fear your teenage years- you are going to eat us out of house and home. When you are eating your three meals you prefer foods you can feed yourself but you tolerate purees still. Solids that you are eating are blueberries, bananas, any type of pasta, little crunchies, wagon wheels, and puffs. We go through a container of each of the baby snacks. You definitely don't play when it comes to food. If we sit down to eat, you must have food or you throw a fit. And waiting for your food you fuss and slam your hands down. It is hilarious and obnoxious, ha! You are wearing size 2 diapers and 6 months clothes, with some 9 months thrown in there. Your shorts you fit in 3-6 months because your waist is teeny tiny- just like your sister.

You are so much more ambitious than your sister ever was and I blame that on second kid syndrome! Between wanting to keep up with her and being set down more, you keep up. You are a pro at your walker- constantly slamming into my legs when you want food, running to the stove and fridge, and stealing fun sticks (fish sticks) right off your sisters table. You have been standing on your own much more lately and you even took two solid, solo steps the week before you turned 9 months! I would not be surprised one bit if you are walking by 10 months. You are a very proficient army crawler but this last week you decided that crawling on your knees is much better.

Sleeping was a little iffy there for a while. You were waking up anywhere from 2-5 times, for no reason at all. It was seriously exhausting! Then daddy told me to let you fuss it out. Well, that worked for you! Hopefully I am not ruining this but it is working for you and the best part is that you never even fully cry! Sure makes the mama heart feel better. The first night you were up four times, the second once, and the last two- none! That is a huge improvement. You sleep about 0-:30-8:30ish. You nap three times a day- at 9/10am, 12/1pm, and 5:30/6:30pm. The first two are usually about two hours and the last one is about an hour.

This month you were started on Zantac for reflux. You started spitting up a good bit more, weren't interested in your formula (drinking 3-4 ounces tops!) and having reflux at night. Your angel care monitor has been going off every single night which has been worrying me. We mentioned it to your doctor and he wants to do a sleep study, so we are waiting for them to call and schedule that. You are such a joy, sweet little man! I can't wait to watch you continue to grow. You are special!!! <3