Happy at Maximum Capacity

My life is too full of happy for just one woman to bear. To celebrate all of this good fortune and the minor mishaps that keep life interesting I am planning another Aloha Giveaway. I can't wait to share my favorite flavors and scents of Hawaii with you!!! Visit the
Announcements for all the latest details and events. Please contact me if you have a product fit for paradise that you would like to add to the prize basket!!

It is my special day! I plucked the breastache and even shaved above the knee. That's right, I broke out the razor AND the tweezers. So can anyone guess the cause for such celebration? Is it girls night out, free boob job day, my birthday or national bacon day? Nope. Well, I did just turn 29 but that is NOT what all the fuss is about. You get tons of birthdays but only one SITS day! The most amazing collection of comment givers in blogland will be stopping by to pour on the comment loving.

The best reads come from my comment box rather than the posts. My box is stuffed with confessions, tears, prayers, recipes and giggles. A comment free blog is about as exciting as a plain baked potato. I am forever grateful to the wonderful readers that make sure this blog comes fully loaded. Comment Queens are the chives, bacon, sour cream and extra cheese that make blogging worthwhile. The latest additions to the Comment Queen hall of fame....

The Blonde Duck always checks in and lets me know I'm not blogging to myself. She is "Giddily Married" and it's nearly contagious. I'm glad I discovered such a joyful treasure in my comment box.

Em earned her Comment Queen status by giving me a hysterical visual and a little taste of raising boys. She asked my opinion on gluing Hotwheels to a pacifier instead of flowers. As a mom to all girls I love these little glimpses into raising boys.

(As always this award comes with NO requirements, rules or regulations. Just relax and bask in the glow of your award winning comment leaving goodness!!!)

Heather and Tiffany are the ultimate Comment Queens. They are the brains and beauty behind...

Their carpal tunnel syndrome is the path to endless comment loving and fabulous bloggy friends. Thank you both for my wonderful SITS feature and all your hardwork!!

Linoleum Crocodiles and Magic Stains

Our kitchen has been taken over by a nest of angry crocodiles. I leap over them to get the chocolate milk, the pretzels and the strawberries. Sometimes I forget they're there. My five year old wrestles them to the ground and ties them to the handle of the fridge door with pink ribbon. She is very fierce. She is unafraid of them flipping and flopping on our linoleum floors. She saves me from their snapping jaws and toxic glitter breath. Linoleum crocodiles release poisonous glitter infused gases or so I've been told. In between crocodile wrangling she has trained her baby sister to fart on command. They are both so proud of their stinky little show and serve me "popcorn" scooped from the kitty dish during intermission.

What would my life have been like if I had chosen a child free path?

I imagine it would be full of long vacations, hardwood floors, expensive breakables and literary novels. All that money saved on diapers and college savings would translate into spa days and no roots. I would have a large spacious home filled to the brim with silk blouses, four inch heels and things that stain. There would be no room in my adult sanctuary left for crocodiles and guard dragons. What would have happened to all the purple mongooses of the world then?

My life is magic stained. I will probably spend this birthday mermaid hunting and cleaning up after the sneaky purple mongoose who likes to paint the fridge with pudding when no one is looking. I will fall asleep knowing that a pink dragon is keeping us safe and that the fire breathing horses that pull our Honda are sound asleep. I will be thankful that the "popcorn" comes from the kitty's dish instead of her litter box.

Glitter Eruption

The day my husband has waited for finally came......a craft project he could relate to. Princess wanted to see a volcanic eruption and Daddy could deliver. He broke out the flour and the vinegar. He had plans, big plans. He needed the right shade of paint for a realistic lava rock creation. He needed the perfect base, flour, paper, a lava tube and a reality check..... Who says volcanoes can't sport glitter and hot pink bubbling lava?

(This project was so fun and easy for Daddy and the girls. They created the base by soaking paper in a bowl of water, molding it around a cup full of baking soda. Don't forget to poke a hole in the top. Then they covered it with with a mixture of flour and water. It dried overnight. The "lava" is just vinegar mixed with food coloring poured over the baking soda inside.)

Head over to 7 Clown Circus for Wordful fun and to share photos or..

Works-For-Me Wednesday carnival hosted weekly by We Are That Family for fun tips!

Frankenipple

I've got Frankenipple and it's all your fault. Here's how it happened...

I'm blogging and nursing my little princess at the same time. I pop over to one of my favorite blogs just as the baby starts to nod off. WHAM! Music blares through the computer. It's suppose to be a little sweet, a little fun. Normally it would add a cool vibe to a rather fab blog. However, the baby startles and chomps down. We both scream.

And now here's the dilemma. Who gets the bill for reattaching my severed nipple? Did I mention it is my anniversary today? Isn't that worth a little extra pain and suffering? For all my music loving bloggers I still adore you. I won't hold my frankenipple against all of you. I am partially to blame for offering myself up as a human pacifier and nursing a piranha disguised as a human toddler. I've learned my lesson. I will be blogging from now on with the sound off.

If I was smart I would keep this little story to myself. Too late! I've already owned up to the breastache and the hair removal fiasco. I stopped pretending to be sane a long time ago! Do you have an embarrassing moment? Please share. I'd love to hear that I am not the only walking train wreck in blogland.

And don't worry about me. It isn't anything that can't be fixed with a dab of Neosporin, a butterfly closure and a shot of tequila.

Portrait Pacifier Instructions

These petal pouts make adorable gifts for baby showers. Tuck them in an organza bag and you have a fabulous boutique baby gift. Break out the hot glue right now and you might even set the trend for Jennifer Garner and Ben's little Seraphina. You are just seconds away from pacie couture..

You Will Need:
A Hot Glue Gun
Flat back Pearl or Crystal Center
Small Flower Head

Pacifier

Instructions:
1. Break apart a flower by removing and discarding the plastic pieces.
2. Reassemble the flower by hot gluing the petals back together.
3. Glue the flower to the top of the pacifier.
4. Cover the small hole in the center of the flower by securely gluing a flat back crystal or pearl over it.
5. POOF! You're done. Now wasn't that easy?

Additional Tips:

Ranunculus and small roses work well. Stick to other petals like hydrangeas and cherry blossoms or you will cover up baby's cute face.

Get creative. Layer petals and blend different flower petals. You don't have to use the entire flower.

I just wish I had designed these for my first pacifier loving daughter. Instead the photographer and I had to play pull the pacifier. I would snag it, he would click and I would try to pop it back in before princess wreaked havoc on the earth.

LAST BUT NOT LEAST:
Portrait Pacifiers make wonderful photo props. However, never leave your baby unsupervised with anything that has small parts.

Please do not copy or duplicate any TuTu's Bliss photographs or blog content such as instructions. Copying other people's posts, instructions and creative endeavors without permission is not nice. I could quote legal jargon but my toddler sums it up the best, "MINE! MINE! MINE!".

Works-For-Me Wednesday carnival hosted weekly by We Are That Family. Check it out for fun tips!

Benadryl, Mango Salsa and Hair

Time to sweep up your bloggy crumbs and offer them up for Friday Fragments over at Half-Past Kissin' Time. Just click below to join in and link up..


1. I wonder how much Benadryl I would have to give my girls to get them to stay still long enough for me to try THIS on their rebellious hair?
2. Please don't send me hate mail. I would never coax my girls still with the help of Benadryl just for a cool hair do. What kind of mother do you think I am?

See! I am too busy feeding the baby suckers laced with red dye #40 and letting her use her sticky hands as hair gel on her shaggy bangs.

3. Mango Salsa goes with everything. Spoon it on tilapia or mix it with tuna/chicken and stuff it in a pita. It's healthy but I love it anyway. Plus you can always grease it up by eating it on cheese loaded nachos. Yummy and mangolicious!

Mango Salsa Recipe

2 ripe mangos (peeled and chopped) 2 TBS cilantro (chopped)
1 Red Bell Pepper (chopped)
1/2 Red Onion (diced)
1 Jalapeno (diced)
1 TBS Lemon juice
2 TBS Lime juice

Salt and pepper to taste and then toss. Voila!

11"x14" on canvas board acrylic, part of Cindy's Symmetry Sauce label series

Learn more about the talented and fun artist featured above by clicking HERE. You can visit with the artist, view more of her work and check out her cool chalkboards too!

Love, Millet Seed and Hope

This is Wilson. We found him hungry and chirping, "mama". My daughter wanted to feed him love. I couldn't find a nest, no anxious parents. He wouldn't take water. What to do? Bring him in and let her see the hard lesson that sometimes love is not enough. Is five too young to learn that you can't will someone to live? How long could we even keep him alive? Would it be cruel or kind? I googled nursing baby birds, bird sanctuaries and by the time I was done he was gone. I have my own cynical theories about his fate but my daughter keeps watering them down with her incessant hope. Every bird is Wilson. Wilson learned to fly. Wilson grew up.Wilson got married. Wilson had babies. Our home is now a Wilson sanctuary and we go through pounds of seed feeding his "family". Who knew that so much redemption, love and hope could fit in a seven pound bag of bird seed?

I had this post ready and waiting before I even popped over to check out Angie's post. Head over to 7 Clown Circus for Wordful fun and see how great minds think alike!!

My Food Angels

Letters to my Angels, bringers of all things great, may you be anointed with butter in the spirit of flavor....

"WHO CARES IF MY WINGS GET CHUBBY" is a painting by KJ. Her art is a very special kind of wonderful. You can find her HERE.

Dear Burger King Cashier,
My life was dull until you revealed the "bacon button". This little bacon revelation has put an extra bit of pep in my step. Now I know I can add bacon to ANYTHING on your grease loving menu with just a press of a button. I adore you for not raising your eyebrow when I asked you to hit it twice. I think the heavens parted and a ray of light shown on your beautiful nonjudgmental smile! Thank you!

Dear Starbucks Barista,
Thank you for letting me know that 2% milk is now the Starbucks standard. I can finally stop asking for 2% to mask my guilt for the extra whip request. And thanks for that extra squeeze of caramel that I didn't even have to ask for. We shared that moment. We locked eyes, slightly hidden by that extra ten pounds of weight gain and you just knew. Thank you.

Dear Hubby,
Thank you for adoring my new bacon spread and that extra bit of topping. Love you!!

CLICK HERE for some bloggy inspiration and to check out some fun letters. Write your own and link up!!

Or check out this list of GREAT MOMMY BLOGS created by NewParent.com. I'm on it, I'm on it!! I am so excited. They are on a mission to seek out fun and interesting mommy blogs and give some linky love. It is a special treat to see something that uplifts mothers and fellow bloggers. Thank you so much!

Two Cents: Daddy Magic

What makes a good father? Is there a Daddy checklist? Is it me or is there less pressure on men to be good fathers than there is on women to be good mothers? Do we do it to ourselves? Can bad husbands be good fathers?

I would love it if you would share your Two Cents. This month I'm going to try something a little different. Instead of signing Mr. Linky let me know about your two cents post in the comment section. I will highlight my favorite two cents posts throughout the entire month so feel free to jump in anytime. For a complete list of details and FAQ on Two Cents just Click Here

NOW FOR MY TWO CENTS....

My husband knows that there is a good chance our girls will either marry a man just like him or become him. Their relationships will be modeled after how we treat one another. He doesn't try to separate being a good husband from being a good father. He knows that part of being a good father is being a good husband. I adore that. I don't think you have to be a great husband to be a great father but I do believe that you have to treat the people in your life with respect and apologize when you make mistakes.

We are not perfect. We still fight and there are times we forget to treat each other with dignity and respect but he has mastered the apology. I am still learning. Some men are natural fathers. There are men who rock the diaper tool belt and deserve gold medals for their "scoop and tickle". My husband is not that kind of father. He makes a conscious effort and is always learning. He dresses the baby in her sister's clothes, backwards. He feeds them candy and bagels for dinner. He curls up on the couch for some "Jurassic Park" bonding with his princess divas. He stumbles from bed and cuddles them after their dinosaur induced nightmares. He wakes up with toy indentions in his back and grumpy eyes. Sometimes I say, "I told you so" and sometimes I say,

"Don't do that" but most of the time I say, "Thank You". It means so much to me that he works so hard. I know it doesn't come easy for him. Loving our daughters is effortless but fathering them takes work. My two cents is that sometimes love really is enough. It doesn't hurt to put all your theories on parenting aside and occasionally give trial and error a chance to work some magic.

YOUR TURN!!

Cool Contest Alert!!

Optimism:

Today the baby removed her diaper and finger painted the crib in poo during her morning nap time. I could be stressed, disturbed and nauseous. Instead I am optimistic that my "famous artist to be" will have experience dabbling in various mediums.
Resilience:

The baby can rotate her head in every direction while breastfeeding without every losing suction and my fun bags are still above my waistband. If that isn't resilience I don't know what is.

Empowerment:

My oldest managed to suck her two fingers and pick her nose all at the same time. It took much trial and error but she persevered.
Goal Setting/ Hope:

I have finally reached my goal of sparkling clean floors. I give both girls a washcloth and a bucket of soap while watching from the couch and singing "Sing Sweet Nightingale" from Cinderella. I hope I am not breaking any child labor laws.

Emotional Awareness: Well.....

Fishful Thinking is encouraging parents to create storybooks exploring optimism, empowerment, goal setting, resilience and emotional awareness. Create one and enter to win a 10,000 scholarship.

CLICK HERE

for all the details and to learn all the other cool things you might win with your very own storybook creation courtesy of my favorite ladies from SITS. You get to brag about your kids, share pictures and enter to win loads of stuff. Does it get any better than that? Now I'm off to work on my own storybook but first I need to clean the crib and the baby.

Time for your Your Two Cents ! You can share your two cents on anything or join in on this month's topic, fatherhood and everything daddy. My two Cents goes up the first Tuesday of every month but link up anytime!